THE GYPSY QUEENS & KINGS

Line up

Aurelia Sandu (Romania) (dance)
Esma Redzepova (Macedonia) (vocals)
Fanfare Ciocarlia (Romania) (brass)
Florentina Sandu (Romania) (vocals)
Jony Iliev (Bulgaria) (vocals)
Kaloome (France) (guitars, percussion, vocals)
Ljiljana Buttler (Serbia) (vocals)
Mitsou (Hungary) (vocals)
Tanzica Ionita (Romania) (dance)

country:
Romania
region:
Balkan
style(s):
Gypsy Rumba
label:
Asphalt Tango Records / Asphalt Tango Production
type:
Band
gender:
male, female
instrumentation:
instrumental, vocal
artist submitted by:
Asphalt Tango Records / Asphalt Tango Production

19 Roma musicians on stage, coming together from at least four different countries, cast a spell over their audiences with the stunning voices of their people and virtuoso instrumentals!
Over the course of the decades they have lost their shine and gained their own patina, they have countless scars and dents and they are made of brass - the instruments belonging to the high-speed brass music masters of Fanfare Ciocarlia. They are loved and mistreated. More than 100 concerts per year, countless flights, battered bass tuba funnels, dozens of valves re-soldered, funnels straightened, valves made to work with rubber bands.
The heroes of Gypsy brass music decided to invite the greatest Roma voices to join them in the studio for their new album "Queens and Kings". The band brought together some of the finest musicians from the Gypsy diaspora like Ljiljana Buttler and Saban Bajramovic from Serbia, Esma Redzepova from Macedonia, Jony Iliev from Bulgaria, Florentina Sandu und Dan Armenca from Romania, Mitsou from Hungary and Kaloome - Gitanos from Perpignan / France. They appear to be worlds apart and the differences could hardly be bigger. And yet there are bonds which build bridges and reconcile cultural differences: They are Gypsies; they speak the same language and have created a life for themselves in music.
The album was internationally acclaimed in the spring of 2007 and went straight to number one on the WMCE.
FANFARE CIOCARLIA's real skill however is to work their audience up into a frenzy with their live performances. A reviewer of STERN, the biggest cultural magazine in Germany, wrote about the audiences of Fanfare Ciocarlia´s concerts:"...they're going wild, berserk, freaking out. Designer jackets are flying obsessively into the corners and abandoned worn-out health shoes through the concert halls - it's the same everywhere: Wherever the Romanian brass band inflate their cheeks, no one can stand still - not by the coolest stretch of the imagination..."
The live "Queens and Kings" performance promises a fascinating and intoxicating diversity of real Gypsy music turning every concert hall into the most exciting Gypsy party ever!

The show was acclaimed by international press:
"… just one verse was enough to make this the concert of the year. Promoters should be working out how to take this show on the road." The Independent
"In a two-hour set that could have gone all night, Fanfare Ciocarlia turned the genteel, cavernous Barbican Hall into the best Gypsy Party this side of the Danube."Guardian
"… the Romanian Brass band Fanfare Ciocarlia prefer to open with a wild, orgiastic climax and then work their way up from there …"The Times
"… but the evening everyone was talking about was Fanfare Ciocarlia's Queens and Kings - the Barbican was in party mode within the first few minutes and everybody knew it was going to be a legendary night to remember."Songlines