Sunday, 12 February 2012

Music


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



Bulgaria
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 clientele the urge to jump atop tables and chairs and... Full Story


Serbia
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 the weather warms up and the thoughts of all turn... Full Story


Albania
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 December.
Full Story


Macedonia
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 Toshe Proeski, held on the one-year anniversary of... Full Story


Serbia
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 summer festivals on the Balkans – EXIT. As fans from... Full Story


Macedonia
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.
Full Story


Bulgaria
Experimenting with Eastern Orthodox Chants

Milen Ivanov/Daniel Spasov | Thou Art Blessed, Lord |Kuker Music, 2007 Full Story


Greece
Unbearable Nostalgia, After Theo Angelopoulos

Eleni Karaindrou | Elegy of the Uprooting |Crammed/Dyukyan Meloman, 2006
Full Story


Macedonia
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.
Full Story




Epicure


Turkey
Izmir Gourmet: Food is in the Air

Food is literally everywhere in Izmir.

The first stop a traveller would usually make, is Passaport – the vivid promenade along the seaside, which has turned into a landmark with its black and white pavement.
Full Story



Curiosity Chest


Romania
Electric Candle Is Fine, Online Blessing - Not

Sound blasters and electric candles, that are switched on by dropping a coin, have long infested Christian churches around the world. Yet virtual prayers and blessings remain controversial practice to religious communities. Lately the dispute surfaced in the Balkans.
Full Story



Useful Reads


Greece
In Sfakia: Passing Time in the Wilds of Crete (2008) | By Peter Trudgill

Crete has long been acknowledged as one of the most singular and unique parts of Greece. Its people keep a fierce hold on their traditions, customs and history. Practically a country of its own, this vast island looms over all others in Greece. Nevertheless, as In Sfakia author Peter Trudgill aptly notes in his preface, “some parts of Crete are more special than others, and Sfakia, on the remote south coast, is certainly one of those.” Full Story