Voice of Roma Presents the 21st Annual Romani Music Festival, Featuring Džambo Aguševi Orchestra.
(Carol Silverman, Professor of Anthropology and Folklore and Public Culture, is interviewed on this blog https://48hills.org/2018/03/romani-music-festival-oakland/ .)

Tickets: Presale: $15 – At the Door: $20
Presale Link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/21st-annual-romani-gypsy-music-fest-dzambo-agusevi-orchestra-tickets-43150930595?aff=es2

• 7:30 PM – Panel discussion on Romani music and culture with the artists, led by Šani i Rifati, Kosovo-Romani activist and dance teacher, and Carol Silverman, Professor of Anthropology and Folklore/Public culture at the University of Oregon.
• 8:30 PM – Dance workshop with Šani Rifati.
• 9:30 PM – Dance party with Džambo Aguševi Orchestra

Trumpet virtuoso Džambo Agušev, born in Strumica, Eastern Macedonia, in 1987, represents the apex of the younger generation of Romani brass performers. Džambo was trained by his father Cemal and his uncle Kočo (1965-2009), a legend who led the famous band Aguševi.  At the age of eleven Džambo became a member of Aguševi as third trumpet. He soon ascended to the top of his profession and formed his own band, composed of his father, other relatives, and childhood friends. Džambo and his band have won prizes in all the major brass festivals: Kumanovo, Pehčevo, and the international trumpet festival in Guča, Serbia. In February 2018, Džambo was again chosen best trumpet player for the fourth year in a row in the Zlatna Bubamara Festival in Macedonia. The band has an active touring schedule and recently performed in the UK and Mexico. Džambo frequently appears as a guest artist, performs at Romani diaspora celebrations, and recently toured in Australia with Ljubojna. The Džambo Aguševi Orchestra has two recent CDs: Brass Hurricane Tour (2014), and Brass Like it Hot (2016, ARC).
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nZ14lc8ej38
ABOUT VOICE OF ROMA: 
Voice of Roma is a California based non-profit that promotes the rich cultural heritage of Roma dating back over 600 years, through festivals, workshops, performances and educational presentations. Voice of Roma also works to heighten awareness of human rights issues faced by Roma in today’s world, and to support efforts by Roma to build and maintain their communities, and to improve their lives. In its 21-year history, Voice of Roma has supported  several national tours of esteemed artists, such as the final American tour of superstar vocalist Esma Redzepova who passed away in 2016.

Voice of Roma’s president, Šani Rifati, is a Rom from Kosovo who immigrated to the United States in 1993, co-founding Voice of Roma three years later. Rifati has taught at many international dance camps and festivals. Šani produced VOR’s first summer camp on Balkan Romani music and dance in Šutka, Macedonia in 2017; the second camp will be held August 1-10, 2018.

Festival panelist and Voice of Roma Board Member Carol Silverman is an activist, performer, and scholar of Balkan Romani music. Her book Romani Routes: Cultural Politics and Balkan Music in Diaspora (Oxford, 2012) won the book prize from the Society for Ethnomusicology.

Voice of Roma events seek to renew interest on and attention to the continued struggles of Romani people around the world, striving to counter negative Gypsy stereotypes and supporting efforts by Roma to rebuild and maintain their communities, improve their lives and strengthen their international voice and visibility. “Few Americans know that one million Roma reside in America today, that Roma are the largest minority in Europe today and that Roma have a rich and varied culture in spite of centuries of discrimination,” says Silverman. “Furthermore, festivals of ‘Gypsy Music’ are often stereotypical fantasies geared toward exoticism. Voice of Roma’s Festival, on the other hand, places the music in its cultural and historical context.”

Voice of Roma’s 21st annual Romani Music Festival is supported in partnership with the Center for Traditional Music and Dance in New York City, and by a grant from the Trust for Mutual Understanding.

FOR MORE INFO:
Visit voiceofroma.com
https://www.facebook.com/events/162660227694115/