Mark Lupescu

Archetype

Messenger. Humble energy channel of sacred music. Precise hands creator and innovator.

Role

Guardian and musician of sacred ceremony space.

Personal Journey

My name is Mark Lupescu, I was born in Romania and I immigrated to Germany at the age of fourteen, I graduated from the Leipzig Conservatory as a percussionist.

In 2001 I traveled to West Africa (Gambia and Mali) and Cuba (2005) where I studied percussion with different masters. In 2003 my journey with the kora began, an ancestral 21-stringed harp that opened the space to play in many different bands and recordings. The kora is my main instrument still now.

Music brought me to Barcelona in 2008 where I discovered the power of a new instrument, the handpan. I played this instrument in different concert halls, yoga rooms, and open spaces so I knew very well which qualities to search for in a handpan: stable and equilibrated note fields, nice timbre, good sustain, and pleasant overtones.

I learned the art of tuning steel thanks to the guidance of master tuner Darren Dyke and as a result of many hours of hammering, I developed my own technique. Five years later, in 2013, I started to build handpans under the brand name “Lupan”. Since then I have been hammering with love.

I have been on the medicine path since 1996 when I sat for the first time with San Pedro (Huachuma) in the Colombian jungle. I have done several Vipassana meditation courses. My first one in 2003 in Dhamma Dvara (Germany) opened the world of self-consciousness and silent observation for me. These two worlds -music and plant medicines- came together in 2009 when I started playing music at ceremonies with Nara Trio and Shaman Laika.

I have recorded several albums with Nara Trio (Leonardo Trincabelli and Binod Katuwal) and I played in other projects such as Rasakan, Nais, and Nakany Kante. Transmitting the energy of music I see myself as a messenger. The influence of different cultures is always reflected in my music, and as a perfectionist, I am always seeking to improve.