Marius Popp (21 September 1935, in

Sibiu Sibiu ( , , , Hungarian: ''Nagyszeben'', , Transylvanian Saxon: ''Härmeschtat'' or ''Hermestatt'') is a city in central Romania, situated in the historical region of Transylvania. Located some north-west of Bucharest, the city straddles th ...

– 8 November 2016) was a Romanian

jazz pianist Jazz piano is a collective term for the techniques pianists use when playing jazz. The piano has been an integral part of the jazz idiom since its inception, in both solo and ensemble settings. Its role is multifaceted due largely to the Musical ...

and composer. Popp, who graduated from the Institute of Architecture Ion Mincu in Bucharest, studied with Maricica Neagu (

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

), Ana Severa Benţia (piano), Alexandru Paşcanu ( musical theory,

solfège In music, solfège (British English or American English , ) or solfeggio (; ), also called sol-fa, solfa, solfeo, among many names, is a mnemonic used in teaching aural skills, Pitch (music), pitch and sight-reading of Western classical music, W ...

harmony In music, harmony is the concept of combining different sounds in order to create new, distinct musical ideas. Theories of harmony seek to describe or explain the effects created by distinct pitches or tones coinciding with one another; harm ...

), and Corneliu Gheorghiu (piano).

Musical activity

He has participated in many jazz festivals:

Ploiești Ploiești ( , , ), formerly spelled Ploești, is a Municipiu, city and county seat in Prahova County, Romania. Part of the historical region of Muntenia, it is located north of Bucharest. The area of Ploiești is around , and it borders the Ble ...

San Sebastián San Sebastián, officially known by the bilingual name Donostia / San Sebastián (, ), is a city and municipality located in the Basque Autonomous Community, Spain. It lies on the coast of the Bay of Biscay, from the France–Spain border ...

, Ljubliana,

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

Debrecen Debrecen ( ; ; ; ) is Hungary's cities of Hungary, second-largest city, after Budapest, the regional centre of the Northern Great Plain Regions of Hungary, region and the seat of Hajdú-Bihar County. A city with county rights, it was the large ...

Nagykanizsa Nagykanizsa (; , or just ''Kaniža/Kanjiža''; ; ; ; ), known colloquially as Kanizsa, is a medium-sized city in Zala County in southwestern Hungary. It is a city with county rights. It lies not far from Lake Balaton at the meeting point of five ...

Mannheim Mannheim (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: or ), officially the University City of Mannheim (), is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, second-largest city in Baden-Württemberg after Stuttgart, the States of Ger ...

Göttingen Göttingen (, ; ; ) is a college town, university city in Lower Saxony, central Germany, the Capital (political), capital of Göttingen (district), the eponymous district. The River Leine runs through it. According to the 2022 German census, t ...

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( or , ; ), sometimes rendered as Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and usually referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a popula ...

, Russe,

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

Gărâna Brebu Nou (; ) is a Commune in Romania, commune in Caraș-Severin County, western Romania, with a population of 86 people. It is composed of two villages, Brebu Nou and Gărâna (''Wolfsberg''; ''Szörényordas''; until 1924, ''Volfsberg'' in Ro ...

, etc. He played with

Lionel Hampton Lionel Leo Hampton (April 20, 1908 – August 31, 2002) was an American jazz vibraphonist, percussionist, and bandleader. He worked with jazz musicians from Teddy Wilson, Benny Goodman, and Buddy Rich, to Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus, an ...

when the latter had a concert in București (1971). He was a member of the Mihai Berindei Sextet, of the București Jazz Quartet, and has played with Aura Urziceanu, Pedro Negrescu,

Eugen Gondi Eugen Gondi (b. 1947, in Timișoara) is a Romanian-born jazz drummer. He graduated from the Arts Middle School in his hometown. He started his musical career by playing with the "Paul Weiner Free Jazz" trio. He has played with many famous Roman ...

, Johnny Răducanu, etc. He was a regular of Electrecord's ''Jazz Series''. He has also collaborated with the Austrian saxophonist Harry Sokal. Since 1999 he has been a lecturer at the Appenzeller Jazz Days, Switzerland.

Discography (selection)

Vinyl LPs

* ''Jazz in trio'', Electrecord, 1967 * ''Panoramic jazz-rock'' (1977, Electrecord EDE 01266) * ''Nodul gordian'' – ''Seria jazz'' nr. 20 (1983, Electrecord EDE 02377) * ''Acordul fin. Fine Tuning'' – ''Seria jazz'' nr. 24 (1989, Electrecord EDE 03503) * ''Flașnetarium'' (1995, EDE 04401) * ''Margine de lume'', 2013

CDs

* ''Essential'' (2006, Electrecord EDC 671) – guest musicians: Peter Wertheimer,

Dan Andrei Aldea Dan Andrei Aldea (9 March 1950 – 18 January 2020) was a Romanian music, Romanian multi-instrumentalist (guitars, violin, and Keyboard instrument, keyboards, mainly) and singing, vocalist, best known for his work with the band Sfinx (band), Sfi ...

, Decebal Bădilă, Alin Constanțiu and others. * ''Semințe prăjite. Roasted Seeds'' (2008, Electrecord EDC 889)

Film scores

*''Mijlocaș la dechidere'' (1979, directorț Dinu Tănase) *''Întoarce-te și mai privește o dată'' (1981, director: Dinu Tănase) *''Destinația Mahmudia'' (1981, director: Alexandru Boiangiu) *''La capătul liniei'' (1982, director: Dinu Tănase) *''Galax'' (director: Ion Popescu-Gopo) *''Rețeaua S.'' (director: Virgil Calotescu)

Stage music

*''Richard III'' *''Afară în fața ușii'' *''Astă seară Lola Blau''

Books

*''Armonia aplicativă în improvizația de jazz'', București, Edit. Nemira, 1998 *''34 teme de jazz'', București, Edit. Muzicală, 2004

Awards

* Romanian Composers' and Musicologists' Union Award * UNITER Award * Romanian Musical Critics' Union Award * ''Actualitatea muzicală'' Magazine's Award

References

*Daniela Caraman Fotea, Florian Lungu, ''Disco ghid-rock'', Ed. Muzicala, Bucuresti, 1977, pp. 172–173 * Mihai Berindei, ''Dicționar de jazz'', Ed. Științifică și Enciclopedică, București, 1976

External links

Marius Popp at Discogs

Detailed biography on the Romanian Composers' and Musicologists' Union web site
1935 births 2016 deaths Romanian jazz pianists Romanian composers Musicians from Sibiu {{Romania-composer-stub