A right royal knees up

4 November 2014

From Balkan Brass to French Flamenco, European Romany music is as diverse as it is spectacular, but if you wanted to see its range you’d have to travel thousands of miles from one end of Europe to another. But a musical tour of European Romany musical royalty across England next month means you won’t have to go that far at all.  

Next month, a tour by the Legendary Gypsy Queens & Kings will come to the UK. Gathering twenty musicians and dancers from across Europe, Gypsy Queens & Kings is a celebration of Romany Gypsy culture and music.

“Gypsy Queens & Kings was born as an outgrowth of the Gypsy Caravan tours of the US that featured a variety of Gypsy musicians from several different nations,” says tour organiser Florence Arpin, of the Junction 2 Music Agency. “ Berlin’s Asphalt Tango Records – the leading European Gypsy music label – wanted to replicate the Gypsy Caravan experience for European audiences, so devised a format where a Romanian brass band would provide the performance motor while being joined by a variety of singers and dancers.”

Started in Bucharest in December 2006, Gypsy Queens & Kings has gone on to become a huge international hit – from playing in front of hundreds of thousands of people at Sydney’s New Year Celebrations through storming festivals across Europe to turning London’s Barbican into a huge dance club - and has proved popular with audiences of all ages and nationalities.

 The Legendary Gypsy Queens & Kings 2009 tour will feature Romanian brass band Mahala Rai Banda pumping out a sizzling Eastern funk while singers from Macedonia, Bulgaria and Romania join them onstage to perform a variety of Balkan Gypsy songs. One of the singers is Macedonian Esma Redzepova, the legendary “Queen of the Gypsies”.

But the show also features Romany music from closer to home from the French band Kaloome.  This Gitan trio from Perpignan performs traditional lamenco songs and dances with a twist of rumba flamenco the sound that The Gipsy Kings made world famous. Throughout the evening, the musicians will be joined by beautiful Gypsy dancers from France and Romania.

The Legendary Gypsy Queens & Kings 2009 features:

  • Esma Redzepova ‘The Queens of the Gypsies’ (Macedonia) - guest singer
  • Florentina Sandu (Romania) - guest singer
  • Joni Iliev (Bulgaria) - guest singer
  • Aurelia Sandu (Romania) - dancer
  • Tantzica Ionita (Romania) - dancer
  • Kaloome (France) – Rumba Flamenco, performer, singer, dancer
  • Mahala Rai Banda (Romania) - brass ‘backing’ band, singer

It will be at the following towns and venues in England throughout October. 

  • 11 October MANCHESTER The Bridgewater Hall
  • 12 October LIVERPOOL The Philharmonic Hall
  • 13 October LEICESTER De Montfort Hall
  • 15 October BRISTOL The Colston Hall
  • 16 October BASINGSTOKE The Anvil
  • 17 October COVENTRY Warwick Arts Centre
  • 18 October NORTHAMPTON The Royal & Derngate Hall
  • 19 October LONDON The Royal Festival Hall
  • 21 October GATESHEAD The Sage Gateshead