(my photo: Gipsy.cz)As most of you are no doubt aware, there was a world music festival on this weekend (Pinksterweekend - a long weekend). It took place in Park Brakkenstein, next door to my apartment, or as I like to think of it 'my backyard'. I have been raving about it for months, to anyone who'll listen, but unfortunately most didn't. Anyway, there was an amazing line up of musicians and it was very hard not to listen to music all-day, everyday for 3 days. They had two stages so a different act came on every hour and wouldn't you know it even listening to music can be tiring if you do it persistently enough!
The whole event was rather quaint and very 'Nijmegen'. It was well organised with the main tent being a nice red and white stripey number with a wooden floor and seats. The sound quality was very good and the lights plentiful and colourful if a little nineties. The audience was very grey with very few nutters. Most people were in the 45-60 age bracket and looked like they were off to a theater show, or about to have some friends over for dinner. This might have given it a bit of a sedate air, but they all danced and applauded like anything.
The way it was organised was very nice because anyone could go in to the festival and you could take in whatever you want (including grog). In addition there was reasonably priced food and drink available. So that was all quite nice and different to an Australian festival, where they try and fleece you for everything you've got. You didn't even have to pay for the toilet like you usually do in europe although I noticed most people put something in the tray for volunteers, feeling perhaps a little strange using a public toilet for free. The main stage was in a closed tent and you had to pay to go in but there were excellent acts on the other stages too.
So enough rant, bring on the music! I thought I might share with you some of the musicians who I really liked. As you know, the recordings don't really sound the same, and the two I liked perhaps the best conveyed a lot on stage too.
Cherifa
(photos: stolen from musicmeeting website)
Cherifa Kersit is a Tamazight Berber Moroccan who developed her rough style singing at Berber village festivals and weddings. Three men back her on lute, drums and tambourines [see video above]
Gnawa Crossroads
Also from the Magreb there was a band called 'Gnawa Crossroads' - put together temporarily from Moroccan, Algerian musicians and musicians living in the Netherlands, partly to promote the Gnawa festival in Essaouria (would like to go, but...). Gnawa Crossroads featured the singer Hamid El Kasri, who it turned out I had on a CD I got in Morocco. I am now an even bigger fan. In addition the backup singers were great clowns and reminded me of the charming berbers we met in Morocco, always fooling around and somehow serious at the same time.
I couldn't embed anything but you can hear one song with Hamid and see a cute video recorded on location in Morocco here:
http://www.accords-croises.com/en/artiste-bio.php?artiste_id=31
This site about the Essaouira Gnawa festival plays good music while you look at it:
http://www.festival-gnaoua.co.ma/en/edito.htm
Not sure how to upload a music file (any hints?)
Gipsy.cz
The biggest surprise of the festival for me was Gipsy.cz. Exactly as described in the program which didn't give me great expectations: "Imagine a gypsy group and suddenly Eminem comes on the stage". Somehow the lead singer Radoslav Banga really channels Eminem: the combination of whingy teenager and teenage bravado. Luckily no bleached hair and visor though. And yeah lots of musical talent in singing etc. which Eminem lacks.
The theme of the festival was cultural and stylistic fusion, which I find can really go wrong. But for the most part it was not a case of westerners working with 'exotic' musicians, watering it down and adding a cheesy beat, but instead people playing the music they want to rather than some kind of pure cultural product or something like a tourist cultural show (there were 4 altogther that I didn't like for these reasons, but that's all!).
Anyway Gipsy.cz was really young and energetic and were clearly masters of the gipsy style, and generally did an amazing job of mixing the genres. The tradtional gipsy music they played was heaps better than all the other stuff I've heard over here. I even starting thinking that maybe Eminem wasn't that bad after all! Europe is currently in the grip of a balkan craze - but somehow they often manage to make it sound really monotonous - I wasn't surprised to read that the DJ credited with popularising the balkan beat is a german house DJ!. But now I'm willing to give this Balkan business another go.
I particularly liked these songs:
http://www.gipsy.cz/mp3/romano/11_Nacalado_Godi.mp3
http://www.gipsy.cz/mp3/romano/10_abacus.mp3
http://www.gipsy.cz/mp3/romano/02_Multin.mp3
The rest (or samples of them) are on:
http://www.gipsy.cz
You can even see Radoslav's evil Eminem sneer - don't worry the other musicians were much cuter! Although Gipsy's certainly know how to do the cute thug as well as Nelly or 50 cent.
Now I'm trying to work out how many other world music festivals I can make it to this summer. Won't be able to pop home for a cup of tea at the other ones though.
The whole event was rather quaint and very 'Nijmegen'. It was well organised with the main tent being a nice red and white stripey number with a wooden floor and seats. The sound quality was very good and the lights plentiful and colourful if a little nineties. The audience was very grey with very few nutters. Most people were in the 45-60 age bracket and looked like they were off to a theater show, or about to have some friends over for dinner. This might have given it a bit of a sedate air, but they all danced and applauded like anything.
The way it was organised was very nice because anyone could go in to the festival and you could take in whatever you want (including grog). In addition there was reasonably priced food and drink available. So that was all quite nice and different to an Australian festival, where they try and fleece you for everything you've got. You didn't even have to pay for the toilet like you usually do in europe although I noticed most people put something in the tray for volunteers, feeling perhaps a little strange using a public toilet for free. The main stage was in a closed tent and you had to pay to go in but there were excellent acts on the other stages too.
So enough rant, bring on the music! I thought I might share with you some of the musicians who I really liked. As you know, the recordings don't really sound the same, and the two I liked perhaps the best conveyed a lot on stage too.
Cherifa
(photos: stolen from musicmeeting website)
Cherifa Kersit is a Tamazight Berber Moroccan who developed her rough style singing at Berber village festivals and weddings. Three men back her on lute, drums and tambourines [see video above]
Gnawa Crossroads
Also from the Magreb there was a band called 'Gnawa Crossroads' - put together temporarily from Moroccan, Algerian musicians and musicians living in the Netherlands, partly to promote the Gnawa festival in Essaouria (would like to go, but...). Gnawa Crossroads featured the singer Hamid El Kasri, who it turned out I had on a CD I got in Morocco. I am now an even bigger fan. In addition the backup singers were great clowns and reminded me of the charming berbers we met in Morocco, always fooling around and somehow serious at the same time.
I couldn't embed anything but you can hear one song with Hamid and see a cute video recorded on location in Morocco here:
http://www.accords-croises.com/en/artiste-bio.php?artiste_id=31
This site about the Essaouira Gnawa festival plays good music while you look at it:
http://www.festival-gnaoua.co.ma/en/edito.htm
Not sure how to upload a music file (any hints?)
Gipsy.cz
The biggest surprise of the festival for me was Gipsy.cz. Exactly as described in the program which didn't give me great expectations: "Imagine a gypsy group and suddenly Eminem comes on the stage". Somehow the lead singer Radoslav Banga really channels Eminem: the combination of whingy teenager and teenage bravado. Luckily no bleached hair and visor though. And yeah lots of musical talent in singing etc. which Eminem lacks.
The theme of the festival was cultural and stylistic fusion, which I find can really go wrong. But for the most part it was not a case of westerners working with 'exotic' musicians, watering it down and adding a cheesy beat, but instead people playing the music they want to rather than some kind of pure cultural product or something like a tourist cultural show (there were 4 altogther that I didn't like for these reasons, but that's all!).
Anyway Gipsy.cz was really young and energetic and were clearly masters of the gipsy style, and generally did an amazing job of mixing the genres. The tradtional gipsy music they played was heaps better than all the other stuff I've heard over here. I even starting thinking that maybe Eminem wasn't that bad after all! Europe is currently in the grip of a balkan craze - but somehow they often manage to make it sound really monotonous - I wasn't surprised to read that the DJ credited with popularising the balkan beat is a german house DJ!. But now I'm willing to give this Balkan business another go.
I particularly liked these songs:
http://www.gipsy.cz/mp3/romano/11_Nacalado_Godi.mp3
http://www.gipsy.cz/mp3/romano/10_abacus.mp3
http://www.gipsy.cz/mp3/romano/02_Multin.mp3
The rest (or samples of them) are on:
http://www.gipsy.cz
You can even see Radoslav's evil Eminem sneer - don't worry the other musicians were much cuter! Although Gipsy's certainly know how to do the cute thug as well as Nelly or 50 cent.
Now I'm trying to work out how many other world music festivals I can make it to this summer. Won't be able to pop home for a cup of tea at the other ones though.
1 comment:
theintrepidexpat.blogspot.com; You saved my day again.
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