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A kaleidoscope of regions/styles

Erika Borsos | Gulf Coast of FL, USA | 10/05/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This CD has a broad range of musical styles from diverse regions of Europe and even from Rajasthan (India). It has a most impressive line up of famous musicians from Hungary: Roby Lakatos and Andras Farakas masters of the violin and Kalman Balogh a virtuoso on the cimbalom. Vera Bila and Kale hale from the Czech Republic, whose style has a South American or Mexican

quality. There is a Romanian village brass band and also a Macedonian one called Kocani Orkestar. The Bulgarian wedding music is played with great speed in the 7/8 rhythm --- stunning, astonishing sounds. The contrast and variety is amazing between regions such as Serbia's Saban Bajramovic who sings "Pena" about a girl he met who vanishes overnight like soapsuds ... and Esma Redzepova, Macedonia's "Queen of Gypsies" who provides unusual vocalizations which are characteristic of the pain and pleasures of gypsy life. Goran Bregovic wrote "Cuje Sukorije" for a young gypsy vocalist who sings in what sounds very much like "gypsy rap" music ...

Chrissoula Christopoulou (Greece) shows us the musical diversity of the Meditarranean region. There are musicians I have never heard before, such as Ibro Lolov (Bulgaria) and Fanfara Din Lozmesti (Romania) who have provide wonderful rhythms and musical creativity. Musafir (Rajasthan, India) creates a raw earthy sound, a bit more primitive and a great deal more passionate than their European counterparts. This CD includes traditional and village music as well as modern gypsy music written to appeal to a broader audience. Overall, if expanding your musical horizons to explore different styles of gypsy music is your goal, buy this CD. In short, it packs a lot of value for the buck! Erika Borsos (erikab93)"