Gypsy artists are coming to town

Published Date: 29 May 2009

TOP gypsy artists are coming to Doncaster to mark the second national Gypsy Roma Traveller History month.

The Baro Ziro Big Time Festival will be running for a week in June as part of the Hothouse arts programme, and will taken place at three venues across the borough - including a traditional circus tent in Chequer Road's Arts Park.

The main marquee line-up will feature entertainment from world music chart-toppers, KAL, Czech Eurovision entry Gypsy CZ and the rarely seen traveller music legend Ambrose Coop and Family.

There will be tales of life on the road with the UK's leading traveller storyteller, Richard O'Neill, an evening of performance, tunes and stories directed by the internationally acclaimed theatre director Alan Lyddiard, and a special screening of Shane Meadows' iconic film King of the Gypsies.
The gallery at The Point, on South Parade, will play host to the creation of an installation by renowned British traveller artists Delaine and Damian Le Bas, and British Traveller photographer Patricia Knight will bring her exhibition to Cusworth Hall.

Baro Ziro runs from Saturday June 13 to Saturday June 20. Tickets are available from the Doncaster Civic Theatre box office on 01302 342349

Romania: Gypsies Celebrate Roma Day, Yet Fear Reigns

Written by Chuck Todaro
Thursday, 30 April 2009

April 8th marked the Twentieth International Roma Day since the Gypsies of Eastern Europe broke free of the communist’s amalgamated "national minority" status and began openly acknowledging their heritage. However, according to the US State Department 2007 Country Report on Human Rights, Romania, home to Europe’s largest Roma population, is the setting for some of the most pervasive societal violence and discrimination against Roma. "This day offers the press the chance to reverse the usual negative stereotypes," says Roma journalist Rudolf Moca during the ceremonies at the Apalina Public School in the Eastern Transylvania town of Reghin.

The day long celebration at Apalina begins in the school courtyard with speeches, the singing of the Roma National anthem Djelem Djelem, followed by a barefoot Roma dance performance, concluding with a skit portraying a confrontation between young Romani men being settled with a dance competition: the fastest dancer possessing the more complicated moves and greatest stamina exits the showdown with his head up and a woman under his arm.

Roma day has a special significance for the 4,000 Gypsies living along the two parallel roads at Apalina that bears the reputation as a den of thieves. "Whatever goes missing in town, I can guarantee you can find it at Apalina," comments Maria, a downtown barmaid.

"When I go on my jobs, my boss reminds me not to tell them that I am from Apalina, he says to say I’m from somewhere else, or else they wont have any work for me," says Dani Racz, who like many at the Roma of Apalina works the traditional trade of laying paving stones, a skill he learned from his father who learned from his father before him.

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NY Gypsy Festival 5th Anniversary Season Kick-off Party with Selim Sesler, "The Coltrane of the Clarinet"

Posted: 2009-03-25

Saturday, April 11 2009
10pm - 4am
New York Gypsy All-Stars with special guest Selim Sesler Romashka
Frank London

DJ Pepe and introducing DJs Wonderlust
Gypsy Dance by Kristina Melike
Visuals & Decor by Wonderlust
Palm reading by Mephuliaat

Le Poisson Rouge
158 Bleecker St, New York
$15 tickets at http://www.lepoissonrouge.com
18+ w/ID

Enter the wild, underground world of the Gypsies on April 11, 2009 when an all-star cast of performers, DJs, dancers and colorful characters gather to launch the 5th anniversary season of the NY Gypsy Festival. The 6-hour marathon will feature live bands and DJs in a circus-like atmosphere with dancers, palm readers and visuals at Le Poisson Rouge.Headlining the soiree is one of Turkey's top clarinet players, Selim Sesler, who played two packed shows at Joe’s Pub two years ago. Described as “The Coltrane of the Clarinet” by The Guardian, Sesler will join the mighty NY Gypsy All-Stars for a must-see clash of the clarinets, and high energy Balkan funk & jazz.

Also appearing are the 9-piece dance combo Romashka playing brassy Balkan beats & heart-twisting Russian tangos and heavyweight trumpeter Frank London, who brings his infectious energy and klezmer-brass sounds to the kick-off party. In their NY debut, Finnish duo Wonderlust are taking the Gypsy sound into club world by mixing music from both the west and east side of the Volga River. DJ Pepe rounds off the night with music from the Bosporus straight up the Danube River, right over the Hudson. West Village venue Le Poisson Rouge will morph into an Eastern gypsy town with visuals & decor by Wonderlust, palm reading by Mephulia and gypsy dances by the beautiful Kristina Melike - a feast not just for the ears but also for the eyes.

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Review: Los Farruco at Royce Hall

6:30 PM, March 4, 2009

Raw and riveting, Los Farruco -- the famed Seville-based Gypsy flamenco family descended from legendary dancer El Farruco (Antonio Montoya Flores), who died in 1997 -- came to Royce Hall on Tuesday night and all but shredded the stage. The patriarch’s lusty daughter La Farruca is a study in stealthy abandon. Her son, Farruco (right), matinee-idol-ready at 21, enthralls with his pounding feet. Then there’s La Faraona, also an El Farruco daughter, and her son, Barullo, who at 19 is the baby -- and bullish to boot.

It must also be said that the clan’s latest superstar (and El Farruco’s oldest grandson), 26-year-old El Farruquito, was, alas, not dancing. Credited with conceiving and directing the show, this performer who’s dazzled audiences since childhood recently served time in a Spanish prison for a hit-and-run killing.

But what would flamenco be without a little drama? Not to worry. Los Farruco, backed by two extraordinary guitarists and four scorching singers, offered more drama than a telenovela in a nearly two-hour intermissionless performance that throbbed with heart, soul and filigreed footwork. From the opening “Alegrías” to the final “Jaleos,” the hotblooded dynasty turned Royce into an intimate tablao.

The cousins, ramrod straight and moving in unison, immediately captivated. Tossing off a jump here, a whipping turn there, they were soon joined by La Farruca, whose rapid stomping accelerated to seismic proportions. Dipping, swirling and swaying, she radiated majesty, her curling fingers irresistible.

In his solo, “Seguiriya,” Barullo skittered about, accenting his machine-gun tapping with fist-pumping and ending with a flourish of dizzying spins.

If anatomy is destiny, La Faraona, with her barrel-shaped body, is fated to be the family’s plus-size clown. Thrusting her chest out and hopping in jagged spurts, she performed a “Bulerias” as a duel with the statuesque singer Mara Rey. Unfortunately, despite beguiling wrist-flicking, La Faraona lost.

Flamboyant, haughty and decidedly swoon-worthy, Farruco let it rip in “Soleá,” proffering an astonishing array of beats. Even when he was tapping unaccompanied with one foot, the sound filled the hall like a monster percussionist’s. Moving as if possessed, shaking his long hair free from its ponytail, Farruco became a quivering, ecstatic pillar of rhythmic marvels. But his drum-rolling footwork proved only a prelude to his tearing across the floor like a bullet train.

In her solo, “Romance,” La Farruca, a slave to passion and pain, did a slow burn before scooting and sashaying as if her life depended on it. Her artistry was matched throughout by the musicians: Guitarists El Tuto and Antonio Rey provided electrifying licks in addition to backup, and the mournful wailings of El Rubio de Pruna, Antonio Zúñiga and Pedro el Granaíno cut to the bone.

In this era of high-tech everything, it’s comforting to know that a handful of performers can still transport an audience to an emotional wonderland where awe and joy -- and fabulous hair -- abound.

-- Victoria Looseleaf

Gypsy turn for Palm Court

By Lexi Bainas, The Citizen
February 25, 2009

It's time for a Gypsy Carnival, cry the musical enthusiasts that make up the Palm Court Light Orchestra.

British violinist Marianne Olyver leads the Orchestra Sunday, March 8 in an exuberant, fun-filled concert of gypsy music including Brahms's Hungarian Dances, Monti's Csárdás, the Tango Jealousy and selections from Fiddler on the Roof. Get out your dancing shoes!

Olyver has a wonderful warm personality and is one heck of a fiddle player, says Palm Court founder Charles Job.

"Back in the UK, Marianne studied with one of my violin heroes, Alfredo Campoli. As a youngster I can well remember attending a Campoli concert. The Kreisler encores went on forever. Marianne will lead the Orchestra from the violin in the tradition of Albert Sandler, Max Jaffa, Reginald Leopold and, in more modern times, André Rieu.

Showtime is 2 p.m. Tickets are $26 for adults, $14 for students. Get them at the Cowichan Ticket Centre or call 250-748-PLAY to reserve.

© Copyright (c) Canwest News Service

Gypsy movie shown in Fremont Saturday

Feb 18, 2009

FREMONT — The second film of a four-part Foreign Film Series will show 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the Dogwood Center in Fremont.

"The Crazy Stranger," directed by Tony Gatlif, spins a story of a wandering hero and includes scene after scene of Gypsy music, dance, and the carefree and spirited zest for life that permeates the Romany culture. Filmed in the Romany language, with English subtitles, this 97-minute film contains adult content and language.

Tickets are $7.50 per person, which includes the Apres Film social gathering in the Dogwood lobby after the film. Tickets are available from the Dogwood box office or at the door.

Film a celebration of Gypsy music and culture

By Margaret Smith
GateHouse News Service
Posted Jan 20, 2009 @ 06:22 PM
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Acton, Mass. —

Exuberant violins and brass, the soaring passions and aching sorrows of flamenco echo across the same stage as a compelling drum beat from northern India -- rhythms from which these and many other sounds sprang.

These far-flung music styles came together in the Gypsy Caravan tour, chronicled in “When The Road Bends: Tales of A Gypsy Caravan,” which follows the artists, technicians and producers on a very noisy bus traveling to elite concert halls throughout North America.

The film is a dramatized documentary following the tour -- a dazzling survey of Gypsy music in its many forms, which included a Boston area stop -- and reaches into the inner lives of the artists and staff , both on stage and off.

Enthusiastic audiences greet them everywhere. With shots of the musicians’ encounters with devoted fans on sidewalks and during shows, the film slyly records how “right now” Gypsy music has become, even as Gypsy people continue to suffer discrimination and sometimes differ over how to chart a course for a better future.

Despite a common origin, the Gypsy communities represented on the tour have to work to find common ground, overcoming barriers of geography, language and cultural differences.

Interspersed with dazzling performance segments are segments of the performers’ friendships and occasional clashes on the bus and in hotel rooms, and glimpses into their lives back home.

These postcards from their native lands – forming a trail of the Gypsy diaspora, from India to the United States – are often sad, but not without silent victories.

In their homelands, even the most celebrated musicians can face struggles despite their celebrity status. Esma Redžepova, a celebrated Macedonian singer, recalls the plight of the influx of refugees from Kosovo.

The Romanian ensemble, Taraf De Haidouks, became stars through concerts and film appearances, with Johnny Depp – who appears briefly – among their fans and collaborators. But, band members support an entire, impoverished Gypsy village, where their large extended families live. Juana la del Pipa, matriarch of a flamenco family, speaks from her apartment in Spain about helping loved ones overcome drug addiction.

Extras include more concert footage, vintage footage and scenes of Gypsy life in various locales, an interview with Depp that rambles and provides little added insight.

Rich with history, stories, music and dance, “Gypsy Caravan” is a rare, candid insight into an intensely private people, with musicians – as they so often are – ambassadors -- shuttling between worlds in the hopes of bringing them together.

‘When The Road Bends: Tales of A Gypsy Caravan.’ Directed by Jasmine Dellal. Little Dust Productions. English, with Spanish, Romany, Romanian, Macedonian and Hindi with subtitles. Margaret Smith is Arts and Calendar Editor of GateHouse Media New England's Northwest Unit. E-mail her at msmith@cnc.com.

Renowned Flamenco Dancer Mario Maya

By Terence McArdle
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, October 10, 2008; Page B06

Mario Maya, a Spanish-born Gypsy who created memorable works of flamenco dance and as a choreographer broadened the scope of the traditional form by adding elements from modern dance, died Sept. 27 of cancer at his home in Seville, Spain. He was 71.

Mr. Maya toured internationally and performed on Broadway, staging productions that combined flamenco dance and song with poetry and drama. They were programmatic works with a text and theme, often a message of Gypsy pride.

His troupe served as an incubator for flamenco dance talent, including such dancers as Israel Galván and Mr. Maya's daughter, Belén Maya. All three danced in director Carlos Saura's well-received performance film "Flamenco" (1995).

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Classical dance bridges culture gap

Friday, Sep. 12, 2008
By Michelle Isham- For the CDT

In the hills of Kathirkama in Sri Lanka, a beautiful princess named Atmavalli falls in love with Kathirkama Kandan, the lord who resides in a temple in the forest. Atmavalli pines for Lord Kandan until a kurati, or gypsy, arrives and assures her that Lord Kandan will marry her.

So goes the dance drama “The Gypsy and The Princess,” based on a style of South Indian storytelling that is hundreds of years old.

“It’s a very typical and traditional story,” dance instructor Teja Rao said.

Rao’s dance troupe, from the Natyam School of Classical Indian Dance in Buffalo, N.Y., will perform the story at Mount Nittany Middle School this weekend. The performance will benefit the State College chapter of the Association for India Development, which funds long-term social and educational development projects in that country. The group hosts events throughout the year to raise funds to support its programs and to promote a greater understanding of Indian culture.

“We really wanted to reach to non-Indians to give them the cultural awareness and create a bridge between the east and west cultures,” said Vikas Argod, an AID member and one of the coordinators of the event.

“State College has a very enthusiastic dance culture. The missing piece of the puzzle was Indian dance,” said fellow AID member and event coordinator Amit Arora.

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Coastside Film Society screens a fresh and vibrant musical surprise, Friday

Feature: The Crazy Stranger (Gadjo Dilo)
French and Romany with English subtitles

Tony Gatlif is a wonderful French/Roma (Gypsy) film maker. When the Film Society screened “Latcho Drom”, Gatlif’s documentary about the many styles of gypsy music in Jan 2007, the audience asked for more. This month they are going to give HMB more.

On June 20th The Film Society is screening one of Tony’s feature films about the Roma (Gypsy) life. Gadjo Dilo (The Crazy Stranger) follows a young Frenchman who finds himself living among Romanian gypsies. This plot about a stranger living among the Rom gives Gatlif the chance to explore the passions of Rom culture, music, and mores in a way that he could not do using the documentary format of Latcho Drom.

This story touches upon adult themes and the Rom actors are not afraid of using authentically salty language. So the Film Society was a little concerned about screening it at their usual venue at the Methodist Sanctuary. So they are moving this screening this month down the road to their our old haunt South of town at the Depot at Johnson House.

When: Friday June 20th at 8:00 pm
Where: The Depot at Johnson House, Half Moon Bay 110 Higgins Purisima Road
Donation: $6.00

“A fresh and vibrant surprise. A film that pulsates with consistent energy, humor and an unexpected pathos. There have not been many films that succeed in capturing the reality of the gypsy life, and Gadjo Dilo works beautifully. It’s a classic fish-out-of-water story which miraculously evolves into a boisterous, sometimes comic look at a particular Romanian tribe.” Paul Fischer Urban Cinefile

Director Tony Gatlif’s award-winning film about a young French man trying to come to terms with his father’s death. Searching for clues about his distant Dad he travels to Romania hoping to meet the reclusive Nora Luca, a legendary gypsy singer whose music was his father’s greatest obsession.

In hopes of tracking down the diva he ingratiates himself with the local Gypsy community. Initially suspicious of the stranger, the villagers gradually come to accept him. He, in turn, falls in love with beautiful, spirited gypsy dancer. The film’s complex story line weaves around the couple’s affair, revealing the rich world of gypsy custom and musical culture.

“The performances are all startling, from the superb work of French actor Romain Duris, the magnificent Isidor Serban, who is hypnotic as the elderly gypsy leader with a lust for life, and the seductive, earthy and foul-mouthed Rona Hartner who lights up the screen as the sensuous Sabrina. All in all, an exhilarating experience not to be missed.” Paul Fischer

* Winner of the Caesar Prize for Best Music for a Film *

For more info and a streaming video trailer see: www.HMBFilm.org

Warning: This film features adult themes and language

Choreography contest winner borrows from Gypsy culture

Nelly van Bommel walked away with the cash in March 2007 as the clear winner of the Milwaukee Ballet's Genesis Choreography Competition.

Now she's back to claim the other half of her prize: a commission for a new work, which the company will perform on a mixed-rep program Thursday through Sunday at the Pabst Theater.

"O Clemens," her prize-winning octet, was smart, buoyant and elegant, like its accompanying Vivaldi concerto and Pergolesi "Stabat Mater."

Van Bommel, who has her own modern Noa Dance Company in New York and never danced in a ballet troupe, made a dance that showed the dancers' balletic lines to advantage and for the most part kept them comfortably vertical.

The second time around, she would stretch the vocabulary more, but still respect the dancers' training and style.

"It's light, it's dancey," she said of her new work, during a break at the Milwaukee Ballet's Walker's Point studio. "This is a little wilder, I think, than last time, but still very much a piece for them. I probably wouldn't have made it for my dancers.

"The experience last year was good. I learned a lot about the process, and ways to make it more efficient."

Building from a base

Like many modern choreographers, van Bommel has a core of regulars. Their shared history and aesthetic turns dance-making into a collaborative give-and-take over extended periods of time.

Ballet dancers and ballet companies don't work that way.

"Usually, I don't start from the beginning," she said. "I start with a draft and move things around. That can be confusing to dancers. This year I tried to be more clear about that, so they know where we're going."

Van Bommel said some of her 12 dancers worked with her on "O Clemens," and that gave her a head start this year. Instead of standing around waiting for her to dictate steps, they're pitching in some, in the modern-dance way.

"It took a couple of weeks, but now I can take from what they give," she said. "It's like cooking. You take what they give, add spices and shake it up."

Seven Romanian Gypsy songs were their starting point.

The music reflects a long-standing interest in Eastern Europe in general and Gypsy culture in particular.

Van Bommel grew up in France and lived there until moving to New York in 2002. She had some contact with Roma people in France and on trips to the East.

The title of the piece is "Gelem Gelem," after the song a Gypsy congress that convened in London in 1978 adopted as a national anthem.

"Every year, a Gypsy camp formed in our neighborhood," she said. "My mother was a teacher, and sometimes the boys - always boys, never girls - would attend her classes for a month or two before they moved on."

Getting in the mood

In preparing for this piece, she listened to a lot of Roma music and looked at a lot of Roma dancing on video.

"There is this wonderful research tool, now - it's called YouTube," she said. "The girls shake their shoulders a lot. The guys have a lot of percussive footwork. And the movement is always driving down."

Some of that seeped into her new 30-minute ballet, but she does not intend to mount a stylized folk dance.

"I always wanted to use Gypsy music in a way that is not folky," she said. "It's more my fantasy about Gypsies and the Roma diaspora.

"I'm especially interested in the women. In traditional culture, they're subservient until they're married. Then they gain some prominence. I'm interested in how Gypsy women are portrayed in literature. Often, they're like Esmeralda, beautiful and strong. I wanted to explore that, and I have such a female character in the piece."

While the dance hints at characterization, it doesn't tell a story.

Van Bommel is more after the specific moods of the seven songs. Like most Roma tunes, they evoke either sentimental yearning or dancing and partying.

"I want to move between nostalgia and fiesta," the choreographer said.

The music's powerful rhythm posed the biggest challenge. The path of least resistance would be to simply move with the thrust of the beat, complicated and compound as it might be.

"I'm in love with this music," she said.

"It's fun, but it's more than fun. You can't just go with the music, you have to go away from it and come back again. I want the bodies to be strong, strong enough to compete with the music and resist it.

"But sometimes you can't help it, and you're carried away."

STREET PEOPLE: Flamenco dancer Lakshmi Basile's gypsy spirit

Named after the Hindu goddess of beauty (and nicknamed "La Chimi" by Spaniards who can't wrap their tongues around it), flamenco dancer Lakshmi Basile jetsets between Seville, Spain and her hometown of San Diego to present her vein-blistering-hot work.

Meet the most authentic gypsy-style flamenco dancer in town (or see her Luna Flamenca troupe's "Trois" at the Lyceum this month).

Age: 26

Your artistic motto, in two words: Amor y disfrutar (love and enjoyment)

Care to elaborate? When I dance I feel like I'm connecting to my ancestors, to my great-grandfather who was an Arabic gypsy [from Egypt]. When I dance flamenco...it messes with my soul.

What else can you dance? Ballet, modern dance, jazz, tap, breakdancing, Irish dancing...but I've never been able to express myself and get something across to other people like I do with flamenco.

Tell us about your new show: The reason why it's called "Trois," which means three in French is because of the storyline. It's like a love triangle. There are three dancers, including myself, backed by musicians...and it [shows] a woman who has her partner and all of a sudden is swept off her feet by an older man.

How'd you get into Flamenco? I grew up around it...My mom [worked] in Barcelona when she was young as a flamenco dancer. My aunt in Paraguay has a flamenco and folk dance academy.

What's flamenco mean? There are a couple of different takes on the meaning. The song, the dance and the guitar didn't come until the 19th century, when a large contingent of gypsies went through Flanders, the Flemish [region]. The Spanish word for that is "Flemings."

Is there a general theme to the dances? There's not a general theme, there are so many different colors to it. It's just expression overall of a current feeling. We have various styles called "palos." There's "alegria," which literally means happy. "Soledad," which means loneliness.

I'd say the majority of the palos are somber, the older styles are definitely more somber. And as it developed it became happier, when the gypsies got more settled in Spain...the style became more of a party style. If you look at the oldest palos, [they're about] not having food, being a peasant, being a fugitive.

Is it hard getting acceptance as an American flamenco dancer, even though you studied with the legendary Farruco family? Especially being American born, it's not easy being accepted in the flamenco world, and even less so in the gypsy world. But people don't think I'm from there, because of my features. [Editor's note: Basile's family hails largely from South America] But it hasn't all been enjoyable.

The nature of the arts is already very competitive; they already bring a lot of drama. Working in Spain the first year at Tablas I'd go home every night crying, because people were downing me. I've even had moments when my master teacher took me to add me to a list of artists and an agent laughed in my face. It was like, ugh, ouch...I grew up dancing, just like them. I was born in the arts. But when it comes to me dancing, it's been wonderful, and I feel like I'm free.

Where she hangs: I definitely stop by the Turquoise in PB; it's like a little European Bar. The owner Basilio Ceravolo, he's the one who had all the impromptu flamenco parties when I was a little girl. This was my mom's first friend [when she came] from Argentina. On Tuesdays he has flamenco night. And every time I go I get treated like a queen.

Then other than there, my house in Encanto. I have a big family and we're all musicians and artists and the next thing you know the guitar comes out and the piano...

Where she eats: Thai Time over in North Park.

Perfect San Diego weekend: I would say lunch out there in Seaport Village and then a little walk there or anywhere near the beach -- PB or Coronado.

Then in the evening going to some bar like Basilico's, where you get some kind of ethnic music, because I'm not into the typical techno. Then the next day, I'd be happy to have another beach day, then go to the movies. I love the Gaslamp, over the years it's been getting better and better. And definitely being with my family. They're very key to me.

Then to finish up the weekend, just have a flamenco party at my house or someone else's house with wine and friends and by 2 in the morning we start singing and dancing. I live for those. I'm going to do this for my birthday. A flamenco "juerga," [which] means party. I love parties, I grew up at parties, I'll probably die partying.

Favorite Books:
"Maldito Gitano" by Ronald Lee
"Libro de Poemas/Romancero Gitano/Llanto por Sanchez Mejias" etc. by Federico Garcia Lorca
"The Art of Flamenco" by Donn Pohren
"The Dirty Girls Social Club" by Alisa Valdés-Rodríguez
"Tao Of Jeet Kune Do" by Bruce Lee
"The Cask of Amontillado" by Edgar Allan Poe

Top 10 songs:

1. "Se Nos Rompe el Amor" by Fernanda de Utrera
2. "Ruthenian Rock" by The Electrocarpathians
3. "Cry Baby" by Janis Joplin
4. "El Poeta Lloro" by Bambino
5. "Wish You Where Here" by Pink Floyd
6. "Let´s Stay Together" by Al Green
7. "Rumanian Tune" by The Electrocarpathians
8. "No Ordinary Love" by Sade
9. "Kaya" by Bob Marley
10. "Bulerias" by Manuel Molina

Lakshmi Basile's troupe, Luna Flamenca, will perform "Trois" at the Lyceum March 27-28.