Damian Draghici is preparing a jazz album for next year and aims to give up on pop music

At a press conference held on November 11, pan flutist Damian Draghici has announced that he is preparing a jazz album, to be released in 2011 in the US (and a little later in Romania), hopefully by March next year. The jazz album will solely feature 100 percent jazz songs (or bebop, to be more precise), as the artist confessed, and represents his full dedication to the genre, as well as his separation from pop music.

The album that Draghici is preparing might take longer than expected to release, as, in the words of Quincy Jones, “Because if you don’t believe in the music and if it doesn’t make your hair rise and give you goose bumps when you listen to it, how do you expect anyone else to?”, Draghici jokingly declared.

The artist will give a preview of his new material during his concert at Sala Palatului

Draghici will feature some of his jazz songs during his November 12 concert at Sala Palatului. With this occasion, he will play on the first electric pan flute to have ever been manufactured especially for him, after the artist declared that he tested around 40 flutes in order to reach the right one.

Damian Draghici’s concert will mark his return to Romania after spending one year in the United States, where he began his jazz project, for which he collaborated with Michel Camilo, Stanley Clarke, Bob Mintzer, Russell Ferrante, Vinnie Colaiuta, Dave Weckl, Luciana Souza. The pan flutist explained that he has renounced of his pop past, as well as his folklore influences, and will fully dedicate himself to jazz from now on – with the concert in Romania marking his return to the instrument in this purpose.

Eddie Daniels, the clarinet player joining Draghici during his concert in Bucharest, winner of several Grammy awards, has, with this occasion, revealed his Romanian origins (his mother was Romanian). Regarding tomorrow night’s spectacle, the artist declared that he aims to bring relaxing music to the audience. A connoisseur of both classical and jazz music, Daniels was described by Bernstein as someone who “combines elegance and virtuosity in a way that makes me remember Arthur Rubenstein. He is a thoroughly well-bred demon”.

Although not present at the conference, Diane Schuur was much appreciated by her colleagues, Draghici and Daniels, who described her as a genuine genius. “It is a great honor to perform with Diane Schurr. She has an incredible effect on me”, stated Draghici.

A graduate of the Berklee Music College in Boston, where he studied Jazz performance and graduated “Magna cum Laude” in 1997, Draghici has also written music featured in the “Pirates of Caribbean”