About Stefan Stefan Stanciu (b. 1982) was in his childhood known as “Stefan - the little pan flutist”. He was the most permanent Finnish kid star ever without attending any competition: he became famous partly for playing the pan flute as the guest star at kid-star competitions and the concerts associated with them, and partly for his pan flute albums. He published six albums during his school years. At the beginning, Stefan won fame because an exotic instrument was played so well by a little boy, exactly as his father, and his teacher, Constantin Stanciu had expected. However, gradually the audiences started to appreciate Stefan`s unusually mature interpretation of music and he became well-known also among classical audiences. The character of his performances changed. His repertoire grew. The pan flute and its player visited every now and then, as curiosity, classical chamber music ensembles and symphony orchestras in
Before Stefan`s time, the pan flute was not included in the official music educational programme in Finland. Therefore, Stefan started his formal studies in music as a flautist and oboist. During his high-school years he made the choice between the flute and oboe. He decided to major in the oboe at the Helsinki Conservatory, while the pan flute was accepted as his additional soloistic subject. In spring 2003 he passed the soloistic examination C in pan flute playing. It was the first pan flute exam of professional studies in The objective of Stefan’s thesis is thus to compile these missing degree requirements and repertoire lists for the pan flute. His thesis also includes exam evaluation instructions for teachers, as well as suggested sample pieces for each graded level, taken from instrument methods, etude collections and repertoire collections. These instructions is made to help teachers and self-learners in choosing works or pieces appropriate to different levels from outside the list as well. In addition to pieces composed specifically for the pan flute (of which there are very few), the material consists of literature for the oboe, flute, recorder and violin. This thesis is also intended to serve as a little instruction booklet for teachers and self-learners: it offers information about breathing techniques and embouchure compared with flute and oboe. Also, alerts players of the pan flute to movements which may result in permanent physical damage to the player, for instance in the neck area. In December 2007 Stefan graduated from Stadia as oboe and pan flute pedagogue with excellent degrees.
In addition to his research work and teaching the pan flute and oboe, Stefan is continuously extending his classical repertoire and performing constantly with various ensembles.
|
