King Ferus Mustafov

• country:North Macedonia
• region:Balkan
• style(s):Global Fusion, Gypsy
• label:Mister Company
• type:Band, Solo, Composer/Songwriter
• gender:male
• instrumentation:instrumental
• artist posted by:Okopi slave @ RadioPrvi

Line up

• Abdulov Shukri (baritone)
• Agushev Djemal (trumpet)
• Agushev Dzambo (tumpet)
• Agushev Kocho jr. (clarinet)
• Alimanovski Enis (tapan)
• Aliti Djafer (bass tuba)
• Ibraimov Ferhat (baritone)
• Mustafov Ferus (clarinet, saxophone, gaida)

Links

• You Tube loves the King

KING FERUS 2009

After five long years of not being a very frequent guest at the events at the world-music scene territory King Ferus Mustafov, the gypsy sax and clarinet king of the wedding parties in Macedonia, Bulgaria, Greece, Albania, Serbia, Germany and Australia, has issued a ferman that he is back to delivering his kingly performances on the World Music stages West and East of his present residence in Skopje.

As it is widely known among Ferusologists, Ferus Mustafov (1950) has followed the tracks of his late father Ilmi Jasarov, who actually introduced saxophone into Macedonian gypsy music. His first releases date back to the beginning of the 70's, for a short while he cooperated also with Esma & Ensemble Teodosievski, already in the mid-80's he climbed on the throne of the most successful Yugoslav gypsy saxophonist and clarinetist and has remained there ever since.
Already during his first concert for the world music audience (the Ljubljana Druga godba festival, 1991) Ferus captured the audience with his imaginative oriental improvisations, Bulgarian/Serbian ethno-Motorhead speed-core and Macedonian blues.
Since the early 90's Ferus Mustafov was active in many fields, working as a musical editor for diverse Macedonian Roma TV programmes and stations, building a home studio in his hometown Skopje, playing for the Macedonian gypsies between Goeteborg, Chicago, Athens, Stara Gora and Sydney, performing at numerous world music festivals and releasing an avalanche of local cassettes and recently CDs. His most widely appraised 90's recording was the now legendary King Ferus on the U.K. Globestyle label, produced by the also legendary world music producer, musician and protagonist Hijaz Mustapha.

Today the kingdom of Ferus Mustafov has extended to one of the top studios in Skopje, to a Skopje hotel, to his numerous performances with the Greek clarinet king Vasilis Saleas and to numerous new kingly releases, mainly delivered to his devoted world audience by the Skopje-based Macedonian label Mister Company

Even though the world music audience has not forgotten his FM4 super group, these days the King ties his work with diverse musical units, ranging from the jazz team of the piano & synth player Damir Imeri to the Orkestar Dzambo Agushevi Brass Band teamed up by the excellent young hero of Macedonian Roma trumpet Dzambo.

KING FERUS 2011
Due to his recent (heart) illness King Ferus is available only for special concert appearances.


Long live.......

"one hell of a multi-instrumentalist...." (Folk Roots)
"un voyage musical inoubliable..." (Le Provencal)
"ein meister an saxophone und klarinette." (Der Tagesspiel)
"sein fanfarenruf hebt die zeit aus dem takt." (FAZ)
"belly-dancing music played by a high-brow who enjoys a good laugh." (Time-out)
"temperamentvolle balkanmix." (De Nijmeegse Stadskrant)
"an unexpected eruption." (Mladina)

Selected discography:
Strictly Worldwide EFWMF Compilation x3 (Piranha, 1994)
King Ferus (Globestyle U.K., 1995)
Ferus Mustafov 4 (live): The Heat of Balkan Gypsy Soul (Tropical Music, 2002)
Ferus The King: Dance & Bellydance Collection (3 CD Box, Mister Company, 2008)


Selected performances:
Heimatklange, Berlin, 1994, Music Meeting, Nijmegen 1994, Fringes of Europe, London 1995, Bardentreffen, Nurnberg 1995, Folkherbst, Plauen 1995, AMI, Arles 1996, Sfinx, Antwerp 1996, Gent 1997, Re:Orient, Stockholm 1999, Roskilde 2000, Anterpen Open 2009, Sziget 2009 (with Dzambo Agushevi Brass Band).