Great voice, but...
Leonard Fox | Charleston, SC USA | 10/13/2008
(3 out of 5 stars)
"It is true that Ms. Weigl has a great voice, but many of the songs on this CD come from the repertoire of Maria Tanase, who was probably the greatest singer of Roma and popular folk music In Romania during the 1930s to the 1950s. I would suggest that anyone who enjoys this CD should listen to Tanase's renditions of the same songs (and many others): they are absolutely superb, and the accompaniment is - at least to my taste - quite a lot better. I find it surprising that on Ms. Weigl's website, as well as on other sites that mention her CD, no indication is given she was perhaps inspired by Maria Tanase. It would stretch credibility to believe that she is unaware of her illustrious predecessor's artistry. Electrecord, the Romanian recording company has reissued on CD a number of Tanase's old LPs. They are worth searching for, and if you don't find them on Amazon, try Romsky.con, which specializes in Romanian music of all types, or passiondiscs.co.uk, which usually has several Tanase discs in stock."
This is a travesty!
Adrian G. Sahlean | Boston MA USA | 12/11/2009
(1 out of 5 stars)
"What Ms. Weigl sings is definitely NOT gypsy music!!! She took over a few of the popular songs sung by Maria Tanase, who was the greatest singer of popular folk music for close to half a century. Maria Tanase's music is considered by Romanians as part of their heritage but her songs were definitely NOT gypsy music. (Romanian gypsy music has its own virtues and great 'classic' traditional representatives - you can look up names like Romica Puceanu, Gabi Lunca, Faramita Lambru, Dona Siminica, etc.
Maria Tanase's accompanists were often gypsies, since they were traditionally the 'fiddlers' in Romania (and other countries like Hungary), especially on the 'tzambal' and the accordion. Faramita Lambru (mentioned above)was part of Maria Tanase's band as an incredible accordionist (and, as mentioned, a great authentic singer of gypsy music in his own right).
Ms. Weigl came to Boston last year to meet with students at Harvard (at the initiative of the NY Romanian Cultural Institute)and to promote a "Gypsy in a Tree" tour. She told the 20-odd people in the room that the name of her tour was inspired by the cruel reality of the gypsy musicians in other Romanian times. According to the story, the discriminated gypsies were considered so 'ugly' that they were hired to sing at weddings but were made to perform their music from the trees! This is of course not true, but it is a rather catchy story, and Ms. Weigl's promotion of her brand of Romanian re-makes as Gypsy music / Gypsy Kill, etc is ultimately just very shrewd advertising. It is not the only misrepresentation by Ms. Weigl, but I don't want to even touch on her own version of personal bio. Her self promotion as the international singer of gypsy music and the aggressive mention of anything gypsy is a PR stunt she has milked all the way.
It is difficult for me (having grown up on Romania, very much familiar with Romanian music, and also a musician)to understand how her limited range of voice, rather shaky delivery and dubious arrangements can fool any listener into believing what her own adds claim. Listening to her 'live' was verging on 'embarrasing'. Most of my Romanian friends who have seen her or have listened to even her samples feel angry by this travesty. She should be ashamed of this fabrication, but I cannot dictate what she feels and how she can morally justify her skewed public statements. Do follow what another reviewer prompted and listen to the originals by Maria Tanase!"
Wonderful CD, Beautiful Voice, One of a Kind Artist
Odisseas Olissaiou | New York | 10/23/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I recently saw Sanda perform at Joe's Pub in New York and I was blown away. After the concert I bought her CD. The CD is just as gripping and intense as her live performance was. She mentioned Maria Tanase as being a great inspiration many times throughout the performance. To suggest that she is not aware of Marai Tanase's recordings is absurd. Ms. Weigl's interpretations of the songs are very different from Maria Tanase's which is also evident in the new arrangements of the songs. I was literally blown away by this artist and her voice. It is a shame that she is not a worldwide superstar.
I listen to the CD almost daily. BRAVO!"
Track Listings (11) - Disc #1