Iag Bari

Fanfare Ciocarlia | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 9, 2001)
• Label: Piranha Musik
• ASIN: B00005QKGC
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,592,360 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Manna for the body and soul..., March 24, 2006

By 

Kevin (Utrecht, Holland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Iag Bari (Audio CD)

Sit down and buckle up, because you won't be able to once the music starts.

From the first beat your body and soul will be bludgeoned into delightful submission by this unruly musical tour-de-force from Fanfare Ciocarlia. The faint-hearted be warned.

The spirited energy and genius of this music belies its origins in the apparently austere fringes of eastern Europe, where the grey, damp and misty Carpathians give way to the unwelcoming depths of the Black Sea.

History hasn't always been kind to those who found a home, if not necessarily a welcome, in the Balkans. Since the times of the so-called barbarians and way before, history has swept through the region on numerous occasions, each time leaving a new layer of cultural baggage, and a new argument.

Better known in the West for one of histories most disagreeable characters, Transilvanias Vlad the Impaler, there has always been a dark and foreboding mystery surrounding the forested slopes of the Carpathians, which at times has seemed best left unknown.

Where Europe meets Asia, history has bequeathed a heady mix of diverse peoples and exotic ingredients, and in the music of Fanfare Ciocarlia, an intoxicating mixture of Roma, Ottoman, Jewish, Turkish, Arabian and Western influences has defied the odds and spawned a brilliant [illegitimate] child, which will undoubtedly subvert the ears of those with more conservative musical sensibilities.

In another part of the world, an equally complex concoction of peoples and influences created the hugely popular Jazz genre, which the Roma music is often compared to. Some technically brilliant Jazz musicians could perhaps benefit from listening to the untamed virtuosity of the mostly non transcribed music of the Roma, and get their audiences back up on their feet.

The music of Fanfare Ciocarlia is a joyous celebration of the human spirit over the adversities of the human condition. It is here despite the hardships of the Roma people, and not because of them. It defies you not to smile, yet at the same time retaining all the pathos of their circumstances.

Enjoy the ride.

4.0 out of 5 stars Ali Baba' s Cave, September 30, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Iag Bari (Audio CD)

Colours melting into sounds...noises growing into colours. At times, the Graal is in sight...Check out (at least) tracks 3, 5 and 9 then let' s talk RHITHM!!!

3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars These guys are amazing!, March 6, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Iag Bari (Audio CD)

This is incredible, energetic music. It's crazy, soulful, and mindblowing. When you put the CD on the stereo, you feel as if your house was just invaded by an army of happy, frenetic gypsies. And that's a good thing.

Buy this CD! Now!