Hyperion

The Hyperion Ensemble was founded in 1976 by the composer Iancu Dumitrescu. As a starting point, Hyperion explored possible connections between the most archaic Romanian music – Byzantine music, folk music collected by Bartok, etc. – and today’s avant-garde music. Over decades of work the group evolved a playing tradition which allowed it to change players whilst remaining fundamentally intact. It is a tradition of performance, of interpreting each new score as a provocation of the spirit, and a quest for new domains of sound. Aesthetically, at the heart of this work is the notion of spectrality as it developed in the work of Dumitrescu, Avram and other Romanian composers – that is: a specifically transformational spectrality, as opposed to the structural spectrality of the French Itinéraire group.

Hyperion has performed all over Europe – Vienna, Paris, London, Lisbon, Nice, Allicante, Vitoria, Lerida, Rotterdam, Peruggia, Utrecht, Rome, Chartres, Orleans, Nancy, Belgrade, and recorded numerous LPs and over 20 compact discs.

Have been active members: Cornelia Petroiu (viola), Ion Ghita (double bass), Victor Arsene (trombone), Andrei Kivu (cello), Luminita Fara (percussion), Ioan-Maius Lacracru (violin), Radu Clipa (trombone ), Emil Visenescu (clarinet), Petru Teodorescu (piano), Lucian Fara (violin) Fernando Grillo (percussion) plus other guests including Chris Cutler.

Wikipedia page, here.