Macedonia: Esma Redžepova's Passion for Humanity
"A Gypsy from the city of Skopje", as she calls herself, Esma Redžepova has more than 40 years of singing and humanitarian efforts under her belt. Full Story
The Choir that Turned England a Bit Bulgarian
One of the few constant sources of pride for Bulgarians is traditional folk music, and especially singing. But not the Oriental-beats-modified kind that often booms in nightclubs, giving their... Full Story
Serbia: A Sizzling Summer of Music in Belgrade
4 May 2009 | The announcement that legends of rock U2 will be playing Zagreb this summer caused mass excitement; the Balkans now seem definitively on ‘the map’ of the biggest popular artists. As... Full Story
16-Year Old Kejsi Tola to Represent Albania in Eurovision Song Contest
20 March 2009 | Kejsi Tola, a student at the Art College of Tirana, will be heading to Moscow this year for Eurovision. She cleared her own path to Moscow by winning the National Song Festival in... Full Story
At Macedonia’s Concert for Toshe Proeski, a Huge Outpouring of Love and Sadness
7 October 2008 | Macedonia, and indeed the entire Balkans, were transfixed on Sunday night by an event much larger than its confines in Skopje’s City Stadium. The massive humanitarian concert for... Full Story
EXIT Festival in Novi Sad, Serbia: Overnight Exile in the Fortress
Located roughly in the middle between Bulgaria's Black Sea and Croatia’s Adriatic coasts, which are both shaken by high-energy rock parties each July, Novi Sad hosts one of the most significant... Full Story
Ethno-Jazz: Vlatko Stefanovski
The two modern forms of Balkan folk music - pop folk and ethno-jazz - differ as a hand-rolled cigarette and an expensive cigar.
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Experimenting with Eastern Orthodox Chants
Milen Ivanov/Daniel Spasov | Thou Art Blessed, Lord |Kuker Music, 2007 Full Story
Unbearable Nostalgia, After Theo Angelopoulos
Eleni Karaindrou | Elegy of the Uprooting |Crammed/Dyukyan Meloman, 2006
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Esma Redžepova, the Institution
If it is true that interesting women, as they advance in age, become like cathedrals, then Esma would be Gaudí’s La Sagrada Família.
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Eclectic Gypsy Brass, Bulgarian Version
Brass Orchestra Karandila | Cyclops Camel | Messechina Music, 2005
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A Gang of Romanian Rebels
The Romanian group Taraf de Haïdouks is a mandatory introduction to the Roma culture on the Balkans. Full Story

