Gypsies invade New York, bring with them amazing music

by Paul Caine September 1, 2009

Gypsies. The subject of much lore, fear, and confusion—think organ grinders, caravans, and petty theft—they make up an ethnic group (the Romani) that most folks don't know much about, but which has a major presence across Europe and Asia and an artistic legacy that deserves wider acclaim.

Luckily, people are starting to catch on, and expunge any memory of terrible 1996 film Thinner from their minds. That disaster involved fortune-telling, curses, and Joe Mantegna—none of which should be present for the fifth annual New York Gypsy Festival, which begins on Sept. 11 and runs through Sept. 26. Of particular note are some cool-sounding concerts: Arcade Fire/Yeah Yeah Yeahs/Antibalas side project Sway Machinery performs on a tall ship on Sept. 12, and Rhythm Of Rajasthan is playing Symphony Space on Sept. 26. The latter act is composed of traditional players from the Indian region of Rajasthan—folks whose caste determined their careers as musicians. Here in America, it's usually just folks trying to disappoint their parents.

All of which is to say: Check this out. Full details can be found at the festival's website here.

PRINCES AMONGST MEN: THE GYPSY FILM FESTIVAL!

FEATURE FILMS AND DOCUMENTARIES
ALONGSIDE A PHOTO EXHIBITION, LIVE MUSIC & DJS OVER TWO WEEK-ENDS!

www.myspace.com/princesamongstmen2007

April 24-25-26 @ The Ritzy, Brixton

May 1-2-3 @ The Picture House, Greenwich

This festival was conceived by Garth Cartwright after his book, Princes Amongst Men: Journeys With Gypsy Musicians (Serpents Tail) was published in 2005 and readers’ began enquiring as to how they could get to see the various feature films and documentaries he described. Since then lost classic feature films, brand new feature films and many documentaries have been screened. Directors, cinephiles and Roma rights activists have participated and the Ritzy’s upstairs bar has been transformed into a Gypsy-flavoured party across the weekend.

For 2009 the Festival continues with a rich offering of past classics and brilliant new material. The Ritzy also hosts FREE live music on Saturday and Sunday night in the upstairs bar and a PHOTOGRAPHIC EXHIBITION of an Albanian Roma community by Australian photojournalist Rob Hackman.

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THE RITZY BRIXTON Friday 24th, Saturday 25th, Sunday 26th APRIL
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FRIDAY 9pm: LATCHO DROM (film)
Directed by Tony Gatlif, this beautiful 1993 feature follows the musical migration of the Romany people from Rajasthan to Andalucia. Celebrated as a classic of world cinema, Latcho Drom is a haunting, visionary film.

+ post-screening Princes Amongst Men DJ event @ Ritzy upstairs Bar

SATURDAY afternoon 4.10pm: GYPSY MUSIC EXTRAVAGANZA (vintage live footage)
Vintage TV (Esma Redzepova, Gabby Lunca) live performances (Fanfare Ciocarlia), Guca festival footage and Bulgaria's Azis. Ranges from the ‘60s to ‘00s: a variety of short documentaries including 1960s footage of Esma Redzepova, 1970s Romanian TV footage of Bygone Age stars, contemporary footage from Serbia’s Guca festival, Bulgaria’s gay Gypsy pop-folk icon Azis and other footage; most never before screened in the UK before.

SATURDAY evening 6.45pm: PRETTY DYANA: A GYPSY RECYCLING SAGA & CYMBALOM LEGACY (documentaries)

Roma documentaries Pretty Dyana: A Gypsy Recycling Saga (Serbia) & Cymbalom Legacy (Holland-Hungary 45 mins) are acclaimed, brilliant award winning documentaries! Pretty Dyana finds director Boris Mitic investigating how Roma families that fled ethnic cleansing in Kosovo have built Mad Max-like vehicles from old Yugoslav Dyana cars and employ them to recycle Belgrade’s trash. It is both hilarious and life-affirming – a Balkan Slumdog! Cymbalom Legacy focuses on virtuoso Hungarian cymbalom player Miklos Lukacs. Beautifully shot and recorded by director Mano Camon, Cymbalom Legacy offers up both a history of the cymbalom and the life story of Lukacs, a young Roma musician dedicated to crossing boundaries.

+ post-screenings live music @ Ritzy upstairs Bar with French singer-guitarist FLORENCE JOELLE, accompanied by accordionist-keyboard LUCIE REJCHRTOVA, performing a blend of jazz, blues and Romany songs (Princes Amongst Men DJ support).

SUNDAY afternoon 4.30pm: ROMA HUMAN RIGHTS EVENT (documentaries)
A variety of short documentaries from Turkey, Kosovo, Serbia, Bulgaria and the UK celebrating ROMA HUMAN RIGHTS.

**** British Gypsy activist and film maker Jake Bowers will present several shorts he has directed on the UK Gypsy-Traveller community*****

SUNDAY evening 7.00pm: I EVEN MET HAPPY GYPSIES + CHILDREN OF THE BRASS BAND (film)

A very rare screening of the classic 1960s Yugoslav film I EVEN MET HAPPY GYPSIES. This brilliant, disturbing feature is rated as one of the great European films of the 1960s, helped launch Yugoslavia's "black cinema" movement and inspired Kusturica’s Gypsy epics. Supported by THE CHILDREN OF THE BRASS BAND VILLAGE, a witty and engaging 15-minute documentary that shows how ancient musical traditions continue to exist in southern Serbia.

+ post-film screenings live music @ Ritzy upstairs Bar with klezmer duo THE MATZOH BOYS (PAM DJ support).

RITZY PHOTOGRAPHIC EXHIBITION

A photographic exhibition of an Albanian Roma community by Australian photojournalist Rob Hackman will hang in the Ritzy's downstairs bar across April.

Hackman writes, “After emerging from 50 years of isolated communist rule the people of Albania were encouraged to invest their savings and houses in a huge pyramid scheme. An estimated $2 billion was lost when these government endorsed schemes collapsed in 1997. Today many in Albaniastruggle to rebuild their lives.

This collection of images depict the lives of a small group of Roma living in the wake of this huge financial crash.” All prints will be for sale with profit going back to this Roma community.

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THE PICTURE HOUSE GREENWICH Friday 1st, Saturday 2nd, Sunday 3rd MAY
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FRIDAY 6.45pm: LATCHO DROM (film)
Directed by Tony Gatlif, this beautiful 1993 feature follows the musical migration of the Romany people from Rajasthan to Andalucia. Celebrated as a classic of world cinema, Latcho Drom is a haunting, visionary film.

SATURDAY evening 6.45pm: PRETTY DYANA: A GYPSY RECYCLING SAGA & CYMBALOM LEGACY (documentaries)

Roma documentaries Pretty Dyana: A Gypsy Recycling Saga (Serbia) & Cymbalom Legacy (Holland-Hungary 45 mins) are acclaimed, brilliant award winning documentaries! Pretty Dyana finds director Boris Mitic investigating how Roma families that fled ethnic cleansing in Kosovo have built Mad Max-like vehicles from old Yugoslav Dyana cars and employ them to recycle Belgrade’s trash. It is both hilarious and life-affirming – a Balkan Slumdog! Cymbalom Legacy focuses on virtuoso Hungarian cymbalom player Miklos Lukacs. Beautifully shot and recorded by director Mano Camon, Cymbalom Legacy offers up both a history of the cymbalom and the life story of Lukacs, a young Roma musician dedicated to crossing boundaries.

SUNDAY afternoon 4pm: ROMA HUMAN RIGHTS EVENT (documentaries)
A variety of short documentaries from Turkey, Kosovo, Serbia, Bulgaria and the UK celebrating ROMA HUMAN RIGHTS.

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THE RITZY, BRIXTON Box Office: 08707 550
Coldharbour Lane, London, SW2 1JG
Nearest tube: Brixton (Victoria Line), 3 minutes walk
www.picturehouses.co.uk/site/cinemas/ritzy/local.htm

GREENWICH PICTURE HOUSE Box Office: 08707 55 00 65
180 Greenwich High Road , Greenwich, London, SE10 8NN
British Rail is five minutes walk
www.picturehouses.co.uk/site/cinemas/Greenwich/local.html