It's defined by the use of two violins together with guitar, bass, drums, traditional instruments and voice.

Bucium's discographic materials come with a concept: they mix Romanian legends and fairy tales with an introspective, spiritual music, brought to a contemporary state. With every show and song, the listeners are able to recall their childhood's purity, when they were listening to fairy tales and exploring a fantastic universe.

Live performances have a syncretic concept: the music is synchronized with thorough video projections or spectacular mappings.

Lyrics and music are original productions, but all Bucium materials have roots in local myths and legends. They were not passed along from generation to generation, but composed from scratch in line with the archaic Romanian sound.

BIOGRAPHY
In 2008, the band launched their debut album, named "Voievozii", mixed and mastered in Germany by Franky Winkelmann (Lake of Tears, Gurd, Destruction). The album was distributed in Romania by A&A Records and received a wave of favorable reviews within music media.

Between 2004 and 2015, Bucium performed over 150 shows. Among the main ones we recall: Apocalyptica – 2008, Bob Dylan – 2010, Medieval Festivals – Sighisoara, Ardud, Cetatea Neamtului, ‘The last transhumance' project – unplugged concert accompanied by video montage from Dragos Lumpan's homonymic movie.

At the end of 2016, Bucium launched a new album, “Live in the Hidden Woods”. It holds the live versions of the songs that were most appreciated by the live concerts' audience.

The new album was recorded by Alex Pascu, Goodbye to Gravity's leader, but also a close friend to Bucium band members. Alex only had the chance to edit the first album track: the process was interrupted by Colectiv nightclub fire - a deadly fire in Romania, which killed 64 people and injured hundreds.

“Live in the Hidden Woods” also includes two bonus tracks that are a tribute to Adrian Rugină, band's former drummer. Adrian died at Colectiv because of his effort to save other people from the fire. The bonus tracks represent the first and last tracks that were recorded with Adrian.

In the autumn of 2016, Bucium promoted the new material by going in a national tour. They had live appearances in all the large cities of the country: Cluj, Timișoara, Iași, Constanța, Craiova, Buzău, Galați, Râmnicu Vâlcea.

The tour ended in April 2017, with a live in Expirat Halele Carol - a nightclub in Bucharest, Romania's capital. The public witnessed a unique experience: through 6 projectors disposed in a matrix, the whole video projection was “screened” (or mapped) all around.

In 2017 the band launched a new album, called "Miorița", which took almost 20 years to finish. The album was recorded between 2014 and 2017 and mixed&mastered in Switzerland by V.O.Pulver from Gurd. The band released a visual trilogy for the tracks "Codrule, Măria Ta", "Frunză verde foi mărunte" and "Zorile" that can be streamed on the band's YouTube channel. The album features traditional instruments, a small orchestra, percussions, choirs, sound design elements and a complete layer of sound effects. It is the most ambitious album the band ever released, with more than 73 minutes of immersion in the Romanian fairytale universe.

The album was extremely well received and the band toured continuosly in supporting it.

In 2018 the band released a single for the next album - Drumul robilor, a change in sound and theme.

While Miorița tried to be the most peaceful record the band could do, the following record - Zimbrul alb - set to be released in the end of 2019 - is much more dinamic and metallic sounding.

STYLE AND INFLUENCES

Bucium is a project that combines elements of folk, progressive rock, ambient and symphonic metal.

The music flows smoothly from aggressive to melodious, from uplifting to passionate. Its sound is actually defined by this change of rhythms, by the alternation of the instruments and a frequent change of tempo.

PHILOSOPHY AND LYRICS

The name of the band is symbolic, denoting the Romanian alphorn (“bucium”), a musical instrument used by Romanian shepherds in the mountains. Just as the old alphorn was used to communicate coded messages for confrontations, gatherings or celebrations, the band's songs are in fact stories and fairy tales.

We don't want to go back to traditions and origins, but only to help people understand them better. If we understand Romanian mythology in depth, we can also understand our people's soul and we'll be able to appreciate ourselves a bit more. Maybe we can get back in touch with nature, so that we can reach harmony and balance.