OFFBEAT TM: Dragoș Rusu
Image and Sound
Deconstructing Romanian folklore
— listening
A century-long archival retrospective exploring the diverse regional traditions of early Romanian folk music. Departing from seminal field recordings captured by ethnomusicologists Constantin Brăiloiu, Tiberiu Alexandru, and Béla Bartók, this session highlights landmark releases—spanning American Ethnic Folkways and Alan Lomax’s series to Romania's own Electrecord folk anthology and French Ocora.
Blending roles as DJ, journalist, sound researcher (with a keen interest in the anthropology of sound), and cultural curator, Dragoș Rusu is co-founder of The Attic platform, where he also serves as editor-in-chief. His DJ sets are famously eclectic, moving seamlessly across genres and regions—from gritty techno and acid house to African, Arabic and contemporary Roma rhythms. Between 2015 and 2020 he programmed the Outernational concert series and the Outernational Days festival.
The Attic is an independent, ad-free music magazine exploring global cultures. By transcending genres, the platform investigates the socio-cultural contexts of music through empirical listening, interviews, and podcasts, pursuing timeless sounds that resonate regardless of era or geography.
Part of the An Alternative History of Music listening sessions, ccurated by Elena Dobîndă in the frame of OFFBEAT. Produced by Image and Sound and co-funded by AFCN.
OFFBEAT is an open initiative for dialogue and collaboration centered on archives and collectors of musical obscurities, sound, and experimentation.
Photo by Petre Fall, courtesy of Image and Sound