My Story
With an electric violin I built myself, back in 1978.
Violin, rock and electronics
Having started playing the violin from age seven, I entered the Bucharest Conservatory in 1976. There, I specialised in violin performance, piano, composing, orchestration and sound research.
From 1977 I was in a rock band called Blitz. It ran for some five years, and we were among the first bands in Communist-era Romania to use synths and other electronic music equipment - including my self-made electric violin.
Semi-legal home studio
It was technically illegal to run any sort of private business in a Communist country, but I did anyway. It was mostly original scores for animation films, as well as negatives of Western music hits. I had started out with basic equipment built by me, but I gradually acquired some "capitalist"-made gear as well. The picture opposite shows how my home studio looked in mid-late 1980s: there's a Commodore C64, a REVOX B77 tape recorder, a Casio CZ 5000 synth, a Roland D110 (which I'm still using!), an Akai Drum Module, a Yamaha TX 81Z, a Roland sampler (their first 12-bit sampler). The studio monitors are made by myself, and in the foreground you can just about make out a 24-channel mixer also made by my own two hands.
My home studio, mid-late 1980s
Full-fledged professional music studio, after the fall of Communism
In parallel, all through the '80s I also held a full-time violinist job at the National Opera. But in 1989 the old Communist regime packed in and we suddenly found ourselves "transitioning" to capitalism. It was the wild 1990s, with new markets and industries springing up - including in music, film and advertising. By 1992 I had enough business going through my home studio that I could afford leaving the Opera and start a proper full-time music production studio. I've worked across the board since then: film and theatre scores and soundtracks, original music albums, orchestrations etc. Click below to find out more about my Sound Expert Studio:
Media INFO
Official Bio
A violin and composing graduate of Bucharest Conservatory (1980), Stefan Elefteriu has developed a vast experience in sound engineering, sound design and film music composition over 40 years. In 1994 he founded SOUND EXPERT Studio, which quickly became one of the leading professional audio production facilities in Romania, with particular strengths in film and TV sound and music work.
Stefan is an accomplished and internationally-recognised composer, multiple winner of international music festivals, jury member and member of international music industry associations. He has worked with artists and producers across the world, from Australia to most of Europe, to the US.
A pioneering spirit (he produced the first English-language Pop music album in Romania), Stefan is always at the forefront of sound innovation, experimenting constantly. He specialises in rock, pop, electronic and an electro-symphonic fusion with elaborated orchestrations, chill-out, new-age, jazz, experimental.
Awards for original music
☆ Best Original Documentary Film Score for Iulian Mihu, as he was, directed by L. Damian. (2009 - Romanian Filmmakers' Union Annual Awards - i.e. the Romanian Oscars)
☆ Honorary Lifetime Award for services to the Romanian animation film (2007 - National Film Centre and Animafilm Cinema Studios, Bucharest)
☆ Best Original Film Score for Damen Tango, directed by Dinu Tanase (2004 - Romanian Filmmakers' Union Annual Awards - i.e. the Romanian Oscars)
☆ Finalist, original composition (2000 - Universe Talent Music Festival, Prague)
☆ 1st Prize, original composition and orchestration (1999 - International TV Pop Festival, Malta)
☆ Finalist & FIDOF Special Mention (1998 - International Pop Music Festival, Los Angeles - 12 finalists out of 4000 entries)
☆ Best Song, "Ready for You" (vocals: Malina Olinescu) (1997 - Golden Stag International Music Festival, Brasov)
☆ 1st Prize, advertising soundtrack (1996 - MediaFest Advertising Festival, Bucharest)
☆ Finalist, original composition (1994 - Cesme Song Contest, Turkey)
☆ Finalist, original composition (1992 - Midnight Sun Festival, Finland)
☆ 1st Prize, documentary film music (1986 - Karlovy Vary Documentary Film Festival)
Recognition & Affiliations
♯ Universe Talent Music Festival - jury member (2001 and 2002 editions – Prague)
♯ SABAM Belgium - member (2000 - present, Brussels)
♯ FIDOF - member (2000 - present, Los Angeles)
♯ Romanian Filmmakers' Union - member (2000 – present, Bucharest)
♯ Romanian Composers' Union - member (2000 - present, Bucharest)