Featured on the soundtrack of Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, released in 2020.
Fanfare Ciocarlia is a twelve-piece Romani Balkan brass band from the northeastern Romanian village of Zece Prajini, a village located in Western Moldavia. They are known for their fast, high-energy music with complex rhythms and high-speed staccato clarinet, saxophone, and trumpet solos. The village is entirely populated by Romani families. Traditionally, most men in the village work either as subsistence farmers or at factories in nearby towns. Playing an instrument is a family tradition, and while the village is noted locally for its brass musicians, none consider themselves to be professionals. The group's instruments include trumpets, tenor and baritone horns, tubas, clarinets, saxophones, bass drum, and various percussion instruments. Their song lyrics are usually in either Romani or Romanian. Their musical style stems primarily from the traditions of Romani and Romanian folk-dance music, but they also borrow freely from Turkish, Bulgarian, Serbian, and Macedonian musical styles, and they incorporate a number of tunes gleaned from international radio, Hollywood, and Bollywood into their repertoire. Fanfare Ciocarlia's music includes traditional Romanian, Romani, and Eastern European folk pieces, as well as arrangements of Western songs, including Born to Be Wild, James Bond Theme, Caravan and Summertime. The band performed at the 2012 Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in Oslo, Norway. They are featured on the soundtrack of Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, released in 2020. The band's version of Moliendo Café is used as the theme of the 2024 animated series Creature Commandos.
Jock McKenzie studied trumpet at the Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester where he was a joint recipient of the college’s concerto prize. From 1987 Jock based his musical career in Hampshire, working as a freelance trumpeter, conductor, composer, arranger and brass teacher. Jock is a former Professional Leader (Brass) for Hampshire Music Service and was the Director of the Hampshire County Youth Band from 2004 until 2020. It is the mix of all of these musical roles that has led to Jock establishing a reputation as a leading creator of brass music resources, particularly in the field of education and brass ensemble music. In 2020 Jock was awarded an “Honorary Fellowship of the University of Winchester” for services to music education. Currently Jock is working part-time for the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama; providing tuition for their Brass Teaching Module. In 2024 Jock was given the award for “Services to Youth” by Brass Bands England.
