Fanfare Ciocârlia is a popular twelve-piece Roma brass band from the northeastern Romanian village of
Zece Prăjini. The band began as a loose assemblage of part-time musicians playing at local weddings
and baptisms. In October 1996, the German sound engineer and record producer Henry Ernst visited
Zece Prajini and convinced a number of the musicians there to assemble a touring band. These
musicians decided to name the band Fanfare Ciocârlia: Fanfare being a French word that has passed
into Romanian and is used to designate a brass band; Ciocârlia being the Romanian word for the
skylark. Since their discovery by Ernst, who serves as their manager, they have played more than
thousand concerts in more than 50 countries across the globe.
