Ukraine - The South

 Next stop on our virtual journey through Ukraine is the industrial city of Zaporizhzhia, famous for having the largest nuclear power station in the country and currently under Russian occupation, which is cause for concern.  

Photo credit: By Ralf1969 - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7343361

This is where Guitarist Estas Tonne was born in 1975.  He is of Jewish and German ancestry, but now lives a nomadic lifestyle, moving from place to place all around the world performing at concerts, on the streets and at festivals.  He calls himself a modern-day troubadour and is classically trained and plays his own finger-picking style inspired by classical and Roma styles often on a 10-string acoustic guitar.  Here is a tune called The Song of the Golden Dragon, which features on his 2023 album Anthology Vol. III, which is currently available for free on Bandcamp: 

Next we are heading to the Crimean peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014, but internationally still considered a part of Ukraine.  Crimea has a long and complicated history, ruled by many different powers and even enjoying periods of independence.  The original inhabitants of the peninsula were the Crimean Tatars, a Turkic ethnic group with their own language and mostly adhering to Islam.  Throughout the various occupations of the region they were often discriminated against and in 1944 most of them were forcibly removed by Stalin and resettled mostly in Centra Asia.  Once the peninsula became an autonomous region of an independent Ukraine, the local government was very much pro-Russian, understandable in the context of the native population having been mostly evicted and replaced by Russian speakers.

In that context the 2 artists that I have chosen to represent Crimean Tatars were actually not born there.  We start with the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest winner Jamala, whose real name is Susana Jamaladinova.  She was born in 1983 in Kygyzstan to a Crimean Tatar father and an Armenian mother, who were both musical.  In 1989 they did move back to Crimea, where Jamala's musical career started at the age of 9 and where she attended the Simferopol Music College.  She also trained in opera, but sadly decided to make her career in relatively bland pop.  At the supposedly non-political 2016 Eurovision she caused a stir with her song 1944, obviously referring to the year when the Crimean Tatars were forced to leave their homeland by the Soviets.  Apparently she is now 'wanted' by Russia, presumably not to represent them at Eurovision.  Here's the song that gave her international fame:

Jazz guitarist Enver Izmailov is another Crimean Tatar who was born in exile in Uzbekistan in 1955.  He incorporates Crimean Tatar folk elements in his composition, often using typical time signatures.  He plays his custom-made 3 necked electrical guitar tapping the neck of the guitar with his fingers.  Here is a tune called Yalta, after the famous seaside resort, from his 1999 album Minaret: 

Next we are heading to the Podolia region which covers parts of western Ukraine and northern Moldova.  The region has historically been a melting pot for various ethnic groups, including Ukrainians, Jews, Moldovans and other Balkans.  Hence the traditional music of the region is a blend of all those influences.  Brass band Konsonans Retro was formed by members of the Baranovsky family in the town of Kodyma right on the border to Moldova.  Their music has more than just a hint of Balkan wedding music and klezmer to it.  Here's a tune from their 2011 album A Podolian Affair called Moldavskaya Hora:

That's it from Ukraine, next we are heading for a quick visit into Moldova.  Meanwhile, as usual you can follow my virtual ramblings on my Tripline map. 

Belarus

 We arrive in Belarus, another country I haven't visited and I don't know a great deal about, apart from the fact that it is governed by a pretty repressive dictatorship, a fact I don't think is too controversial internationally.  The national language is Belarussian, but Russian is spoken widely.  As far as the music is concerned, the government stipulates that 75% of music played on the radio has to be Belarussian, whether it be in the Belarussian or Russian languages, and presumably voices critical of the regime don't get a look in.

First stop is the western city of Lida, where multi-instrumentalist Ivan Kirchuk was born.  He specialises in the ethnology and folklore of his homeland and plays rare and ancient instruments such as the ocarina, domra and bagpipes, as well as singing songs.  He is a larger than life character with a beard to match his personality, who now teaches at Minsk university.  Here is a song from his 1999 album Heritage of the Lost Villages called Oy, ishli-prayshli da try yangali:

Accordionist Aliaksandr Yasinski was born in the city Baranavichy in western Belarus in 1989, but now resides in Prague.  He draws on Belarussian and Balkan music as well as tango and jazz in a unique and dramatic style.  Here is the title track to his first 2022 solo album Hlybini (Depths):

Instrumental trio Port Mone were established in 2006 in the capital Minsk.  They have forged their own roots style with influences from minimalism, jazz and ambient music.  In 2012 they got together with the inimitable DakhaBrakha from neighbouring Ukraine to form the Khmeleva Project.  Here is a track from the resulting album called Єлена (Elena):

The Camerata Vocal Group were established in 1992 in Minsk and appear to be quite proudly state sponsored, which isn't to say they are not talented.  The seven or so members give their own orchestral accompaniment to their songs with their voices, using both electronic enhancement and at times techniques like beat-box.  Here is a song from their 2000 album Angels called Сокол (Falcon), complete with snowy backdrop and (bizarrely) fighting knights:

Ethno-musicologist and multi-instrumentalist Zisl Slepovitch is a native of Minsk, but now resides in New York, where he lectures on Eastern European Jewish music and culture and klezmer, in which he holds a PHD.  He has released 2 albums recreating songs remembered and described by Holocaust survivors.  Whilst this sounds like a heavy subject matter, most of the songs are surprisingly resilient, even satirical, a testament of the power of music in adversity.  The lyrics are in Yiddish, French and Polish and are sung by Latvian singer Sasha Lurje.  Here's a song from the 2021 album Cry My Heart, Cry! Songs from Testimonies Vol. II called Kidush Hashem:

Early music folk band Stary Olsa was established in 1999 playing Medieval and renaissance music on from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, of which Belarus was once a part of. To keep it interesting though they also play covers of classic rock songs on the same instruments.   Here's their 2021 single Балада пра Цмока (Ballad of the Dragon):

Finally spare a thought for the members of Tor Band whose protest songs about the regime in Belarus got them into trouble with the government and were sentenced to up to 9 years in prison in October this year for inciting hatred, creating an extremist group, discrediting Belarus and insulting the president.  Their song не народец (Not a Nation) has become an anthem for the anti-government protest movement:

That's it from Belarus, next stop is Ukraine, where we linger a little longer.  In the meantime you can follow my virtual musical journey on my Tripline map as usual.

Russia - The West & St. Petersburg

 After Moscow we are heading due west to the town of Usyaty in the Pskov Oblast.  This is where button accordionist Ekaterina Trusova has recently released an album of traditional music of the region called Usyaty: Russian Music From Pskov Region in Modern and Archival Recordings.  It's a slightly bizarre album.  The modern recordings are Trusova playing traditional tunes on the accordion, but the archival recordings were made by her in the 90's and are of bad quality, especially those of her father Dimitry Kozintsev, so we'll play a tune from the first and better quality half of the album, a short tune called In the Village at the River:

Next for something a bit more polished we are heading to the city of Pskov itself where gusli player and harpist Olga Glazova was born in 1993.  Her speciality instrument the gusli is an ancient east Slavic multi-stringed zither.  On it she plays her own interpretations of Russian folk songs accompanied by her own voice.  Here is a song from her 2023 album Live in Alexandrinsky Theatre called Memories:

Next we are heading into St. Petersburg itself, the second largest city in Russia and the birthplace of the Russian Empire, formerly known as Leningrad.  Here's a picture of the above-mentioned Alexandrinsky Theatre:

Photo credit

First up is the fun folk-rock band Otava Yo (Отава Ё).  They started life around 2003 as a Pogues-style Celtic punk-folk inspired band called Reelroadъ, but have since moved onto Russian folk with their own energetic rock.  Their breakthrough came through their funny YouTube videos, having them dance madly in costume and tell fun stories that are understandable even to those who don't speak Russian, although they often do come with English subtitles.  It is also worth pointing out that they have publicly spoken out against the Russian invasion of Ukraine.  Here's the opening track to their 2018 album Do You Love / Любишь ли ты called Once Upon a Time in a High Hill / Как на горке, на горе:

The 3 original members of klezmer and Balkan band Dobranotch (Good Night) are all from St' Petersburg but originally met busking on the streets of Nantes in France in 1997.  They left Russia in 2022 in opposition to the invasion of Ukraine and are now based in Germany.  Their main raison d'etre is klezmer with a good dose of Balkan brass, Gypsy tunes and Russian folk.  Here is a song from their 2019 album Mercedes Kolo called Ya Rayah:

Russia's coolest female band, according to Russian Rolling Stone, folk-rock outfit Iva Nova were formed in 2002 in St. Petersburg.  Whilst rooted in Slavic folk, don't expect traditional Russian songs, these ladies rock with a real urban grunge.  Apart from Russian they also sing songs in Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Georgian and Tatar languages.  Here's the opening track from their 2021 live album Snow White Concert called Don't Want It! / Не хочу!:

Gypsy band Loyko were formed in 1990 by Sergei Erdenko initially as a duo, then a trio, sometimes with the addition of his niece Leonsia Erdenko on vocals.  Sergei was actually born in eastern Siberia in 1958 into the sub-group of Servitka Roma, but started this project in St. Petersburg.  What this man can't do on a fiddle is yet to be determined, from lightning fast pizzicatos to making train noises, bird calls, horse trots and other effects.  Whilst gypsy music is at the core of the group, they are not afraid to cross over into other genres such as flamenco, Celtic music, Hungarian folk or classical.  Here's a song from their 2012 album Gypsy Times for Nunja called Gypsy Street:

Finally we head west a bit towards the Estonian border stopping at the town of Kingisepp, where composer and accordionist Evelina Petrova was born in 1974. Whilst vaguely rooted in Russian folk, she very much veers off into experimental music and world fusion genres.  Her singing is mostly in made up language and includes hollers and whoops.  One of her projects is the Evelina Petrova Trio formed in Oslo together with Norwegian trombonist Andreas Rotevatn (also supplying electronic effects) and California Hardanger fiddle player Laura Ellestad.  This unusual combination took the form of an experimental lab where everything was permitted and nothing left untested.  Here is a live version of the opening track Farewell from their 2019 album First Dance.  Ellestad is replaced by Scottish fiddler Sarah-Jane Summers (whom we met in Oslo) on this occasion.

So much for European Russia for now..  I'm sure there's a lot more to find in this vast country, but a lot of websites there seem to be blocked here in the west and it's not easy to find stuff.  Next stop is going to be Estonia, until then you can follow my virtual travels on my Tripline map.

Denmark - Sjælland Part II

As we continue our exploration of Copenhagen, we encounter balfolk band the Mads Hansens Kapel.  Coming from a variety of musical backgrounds the 5 members of the band got together in 2015 to play traditional Danish dance tunes with a slightly unusual line-up of instruments with fiddle, guitar, bass, piano and clarinet, which gives them a sometimes slightly jazzy feel.  Here is a live version of a tune called Newcastle Hotline from their latest 2021 EP One For the Road:

Like most capital cities, Copenhagen has its fair share of international influences and a thriving global music scene.  One such example is North Macedonian saxophonist and clarinettist Bjonko, who has made Copenhagen his home.  He creates a crossover of Balkan Beats and Nordic contemporary sounds and hip-hop.  Here's a hip-hop Balkan number called OPA! from his 2021 album Enigma:

Spanish guitarist (the guitar style being Spanish, not the player) Jacob Gurevitsch was actually born in the small town Havnbjerg in the southeast of the country, but is now very much a Copenhagen resident.  He is at pains to point out that he does not play flamenco, but melancholic style Spanish guitar tunes mostly in minor tunings evoking romantic moods of Spain.  Here is the title track of his 2015 debut album Lovers in Paris:

Danish/Pakistani Sufi Rock band Rocqawali combine the 1000 year old traditional Pakistani Sufi music of Qawali with 70's style rock'n'roll.  The Pakistani front man Ejaz Sher Ali comes from one of Pakistan's most eminent musical families, and he is backed by 4 Danish musicians from the Indie Rock scene.  Here is the opening track of their 2017 album Sufi Spirit called Ill Allah:

The north meets the east with Klezmer band Mames Babegenush, who blend Nordic calm with East European wedding music.  The 6-piece band formed in 2004 in an effort to revive the Danish Klezmer scene and developed their own style of the genre.  For their 2017 album Mames Babegenush with Strings they added, as the name suggests, some strings to their sound and this is the opening track to the album called Tornado Albastru:

Fusion band Total Hip Replacement combine Reggae, soul with a dash of Afrobeat.  They mostly operate as a live band touring extensively around the world, but have brought out some notable releases.  This a song from their 2020 album Bliss called Lost in Thought:

Finally, just before hopping over the bridge to Sweden, we go to the island of Amager, which houses the eastern half of Copenhagen.  We started this post with something traditional and we shall finish on that note.  Medieval folk band Virelai has a Viking theme to much of their music with Nordic ballads as well as some southern European dance tunes, all played on traditional instruments. This song is homage to the Norse goddess of love and fertility Freja and was released as a single in 2017: Frejas Store Kraft:

That's it from Denmark, next stop the south of Sweden.  In the meantime, as usual, you can follow my virtual musical journey on my Tripline map. 

Germany - Berlin Part 2

 We'll start the second part of our visit to Berlin with something a bit more traditional.  Violin duo Trad Töchter (Trad Daughters), consisting of Berlin-born Vivien Zeller and Ursula Suchanek, take their inspiration from the traditional dance music of Northern Germany and give them their own twist with their own compositions and arrangement.  This is a tune called Sturmflut (Storm Surge) from their album Neue Geigenmusik:

Klezmer trio Sukke seems to have been just a one-off collaboration of 3 of Europe's most in-demand klezmer musicians, accordionist Sanne Mörike from the Netherlands, clarinettist Merlin Shepherd from England and bassist Heiko Lehmann from Berlin.  They keep their klezmer sound fairly traditional, but add own compositions.  Here is the opening track from their one and only 2011 album Introducing Sukke called Beygele:

Australian David Stewart Ingleton, American Jason Serious and Chilean Tomás Peralta met in Berlin to form the Americana and Bluegrass band Yonder Boys.  They sometimes give their interpretations of the genre  hints at 1960's psychedelia, hence the title of their 2021 debut album Acid Folk.  Here is the opening track of the album called Rabbit Song:

Now in complete contrast something more calming from Celtic harpist Andy Ozbolt alias Andy Aquarius, who is of German and Croatian descent.  His music is reminiscent of Celtic new age music and could be used as ambient background music at a yoga session, but it holds enough melodic and rhythmic interest to hold your attention.  Here is a song from his 2021 album Chapel called The Phase Has Changed.  Why do I always feel like a Guinness when I see a Celtic harp?

And while we are on harps, Harfenduo Zirla consists of Daniela Heiderich and Merit Zloch playing music on Bohemian hook-harps inspired by old dance tunes with influences of Latin, jazz, rock, pop and world music.  Quite a combination and quite a groovy sound.  They have released one album in 2019 called Abfahrt in 5 Minuten (Departure in 5 minutes), which is only available on CD, and here is a tune by them called Cila:

That's it from Berlin for the time being, next we're heading to Saxony and Lower Saxony for some tunes.  In the meantime you can follow my virtual ramblings on my Tripline map.

Poland - The South

 I've only been to Poland once in the early 1990's for a wedding in a small village in the west of the country and my memories are hazy as there were copious amounts of vodka being served.  I've gone off vodka ever since.  Anyway, we backtrack our journey through the Czech Republic a bit and start our virtual road trip of Poland in the village of Istebna in the Silesian Beskids mountains, where string folk band Vołosi hail from.  The band started in 2004 by Krysztof Lason to play traditional Highland music at his wedding.  They were later joined by some classically trained musicians and have gone from strength to strength, touring both nationally and internationally.  Here's quite a rocky tune called Crawler from their 2015 album Nomadism:

Celtic folk band Beltaine were founded in Kattowice in 2002.  Whilst their initial repertoire consisted mostly of Scottish and Irish tunes on traditional instruments, they later included other influences and instruments to develop their own unique style.  Here is a tune from their 2015 album Miusjik called Pol(s)ka:

Also from Katowice is folk band WoWaKin Trio, founded in 2016 and named after the surnames of the band members: singer and violinist Paula Kinaszewska, accordionist Mateusz Wachowiak and and guitarist Bartolomiej Wozniak.  Both the men double up on a variety of other instruments.  They play traditional Polish village folk from the Radom, Kielce and Sanniki regions of Poland. Here is the title track from their 2020 album Wiązanka:

The city of Kraków has a long and distinguished history and is Poland's second largest city, having even functioned as its capital at times.  However the saddest part of its history is the one many people still associate with the city, the establishment of the infamous Kraków Ghetto, where the Jewish population were forced to live under the Nazi occupation.  It is therefore good to still see Jewish culture being celebrated in modern times with a number of Klezmer bands being active in the city.

One of those bands is Kroke, named after the Yiddish name for Kraków.  They were established in 1992 and have since their inception branched out into fusing klezmer with influences from all over the world including collaborations with English violinist Nigel Kennedy, Mongolian singer and yangqin player Urna and Norwegian folk band Tindra.  Here is a tune from their 2011 album Ten Pieces to Save the World called Light in the Darkness (T4 2):

Another klezmer band from Kraków is the Bester Quartet.  They formed in 1997 as the Cracow Klezmer band and changed their name in 2007.  They seem to have seized activities since, as their web-site is longer live and their last recording, the album Krakoff, was released in 2013, and is now hard to get hold of.  This is the opening track of the album called Hope:

Also based in Kraków is the Motion Trio, who are according to their own claims 'the most famous accordion ensemble in the world'.  They describe their style as 'crossover' containing elements of jazz, world music, rock and classical.  Here's a lively tune from their 2018 album Accordion Stories called Happy Band:

 Self-described 'regressive dark folk band' Daj Ognia are also from Kraków and list their influences as roaming somewhere between Poland and Scandinavia.  This song called KIR is from their 2020 album Wykrot:

Finally we head into the Tatra mountains to the town Zakopane for something altogether more traditional.  The area is home to an ethnic group known as Goral.  The folk group Zakopower introduces us to the culture and music of the region in a whole series of mini-documentaries.  Here is one of them:

Another proponent of Goral folk music is the Trebunia Family Band (Trebunie-Tutki  in Polish) from the nearby village of Biały Dunajec.  Here is a Goralski dance sequence from their 1995 album Music of the Tatra Mountains.

And that's it from the south of Poland for today, next we're exploring the east.  As usual, you can follow my virtual rambling on my tripline map.  Apologies for the long gap in posts, I have been away on some real travels.

Netherlands -Amsterdam

 Almost every time I tell someone I am Dutch they will say something like: "Oh I've been to Amsterdam and found this cute little place, you probably know it" or "I'm going on a stag do to Amsterdam soon.  Do you have any recommendations of places we must see?".  I then have to patiently explain that my family are from Rotterdam, that the people of Rotterdam don't like the people of Amsterdam much, so much so that none of my large and sprawling family live there and I have only briefly visited the place about 3 times in my life, twice in the 70's and once in the 90's.  So don't ask me for any recommendations of places to visit in Amsterdam!

Right, now that I have that out of the way, I have to admit that Amsterdam in the province of North Holland is the capital of the Netherlands and as such a magnet for tourists and artists from all over the world, so I shall acknowledge some of the mostly international music acts from this city.

Whilst I did say I wouldn't do any recommendations, one tourist attraction is the Anne Frank House, where the young Jewish girl wrote her famous diary, while hiding away from the Nazis.  This demonstrates the ongoing Jewish connection of the city, which is also reflected in some of the music, such as The Amsterdam Klezmer Band, who have been playing their modern danceable sound of klezmer combined with Balkan, Jazz, Gypsy and hip-hop since 1996.  Here is the opening track from the 2006 album Remixed called Sadagora Hot Dub:

 

Amsterdam-based Turkish psychedelia band Altin Gün are a band consisting of Turkish and Indonesian immigrants as well as Dutch musicians performing music inspired by Anatolian folk infused with 80's psychedelic pop.  Here's a track from their upcoming album Yol called Ordunun Dereleri:

The Mauskovic Dance Band might sound like another klezmer band, but the varying members of the Mauskovic family produce an electronic dance sound with psychedelic Afrobeat and Cumbia influences. This might not be everybody's cup of tea, but here is a live clip of some of their hypnotic grooves:

In 1995 Jazz drummer Lucas van Merwijk founded the Cubop City Big Band in Amsterdam, who have been in the forefront of the Salsa and Latin dance scene in Europe.  Given that the full ensemble consists of some 20 musicians, it must be tricky to get them all together at one place at any one time, which is perhaps why they have only released 7 albums during their 25 years in existence.  Here's a track from their 2003 album Arsenio with music by Arsenio Rodriguez called Mulence:

Boi Akih are a jazz and world music outfit around Dutch guitarist Niels Brouwer and Indonesian vocalist Monica Akihary that was established in 1997.  Akihary sings both in English and her father's native Haruku, an endangered language of the island in Indonesia of the same name.  Their musical style combines musical traditions of the Molucca Islands, Bali, Dutch jazz, improvised music, Indian classical music and traditional African music.  On their latest 2020 album Storyteller they are joined by Hungarian recorder player Dodó Kis and Ivorian kora player Sékou Dioubaté.  Here is a small session showcasing 3 songs from the album:

I first came across Selma Peelen from Amsterdam several years ago when I heard her singing Turkish folk.  In her latest project she teamed up with Johan Visschers to form folk duo Mankes.  They named themselves after Dutch painter Jan Mankes (1889-1920).

Mankes self portrait

Mankes (the music duo) describe their style as cinematic folk with a hint of the Orient and a healthy dose of noisy and dark texture.  Here's a song from their 2019 album Chant called You're Loved (since it was Valentines Day yesterday...)

That's it from Amsterdam.  As usual you can follow my virtual ramblings on my tripline map.

France - Paris Part III

 Paris is of course a very cosmopolitan city like London with many international influences in its music.  Zoufris Maracas were formed around 2007 by friends Vincent Sanchez and Vincent Allard.  The name Zoufris refers to the name given to Algerian workers arriving in France during the 1950's, but their influences combine chanson inspired by Jacques Brel with sounds from African Rumba, Mexican Cumbia and Gipsy Manouche.  Their latest 2020 release is Bleu de lune and this track is taken from it called Sa Majesté la mer:

Due to France's colonial past there is a strong North African diaspora living in Paris, who bring their musical influences with them.  Gnawa music is a body of religious songs and rhythms mostly centred around Morocco.  Multi-national and inter-generational outfit Gnawa Youmala add fiddle and banjo to the traditional instrumentation of gimbri (bass lute) and qaraqab (metal castagnets) to give the genre a lighter, uplifting touch with hues of Berber and Arabic sounds.  This is from their recently released debut album Dounya called Mandiga:

Also playing Gnawa merged with other Maghreb influences such as chaâbi, rai, alaoui and kabyle as well as salsa, reggae, jazz and funk are northern Paris band Orchestre National de Barbès, who were founded in 1995 by some Algerian and Moroccan musicians.  This is the title track from their 2010 album Rendez-vous Barbès:

Paris born clarinettist Yom believes klezmer is all about being a dance music and veers away from the traditional by blending it with some electronic dancefloor sounds.  This tune is called Swimming in the Styx from his latest album You Will Never Die recorded in 2018 with the Wonder Rabbis:

Multi-instrumentalist and composer Etienne de la Sayette is a true musical world traveller who fuses many world music styles.  Notably he championed Ethio-Jazz with his band Akalé Wubé and Korean music with Baeshi Bang.  His recent solo album Kobugi, comprises of his own musical doodles whilst having nothing much to do between concert tours and suddenly realising he had enough material to release an album.  Apart from Ethiopian and Korean influences, there are hints of Mali and Zimbabwe as well as rap.  Hard to put into just one box.  In a recent interview he was asked how he envisioned his future as a musician.  He answered: I might just have a glass of Sancerre after this interview.  A man after my own heart.  Here's a song from the album called Loulou:

Finally we listen to some electro swing from electronic band Caravan Palace, who list their influences as Django Reinhardt, Vitalic and Lionel Hampton.  This is a track which features on the 2011 album The Rough Guide to Paris Lounge called Jolie Coquine:

That's it from Paris, next we are heading back into the French countryside.  As usual you can follow my virtual trip on my tripline map.

France - Hauts-de-France & Normandie

Typical half timbered houses in Rouen, Normandy

The first sight most travellers from Britain arriving by boat in France is the port city of Calais in the Hauts-de-France region, which until recently was the site of the infamous Calais Jungle refugee camp, where many refugees waited for their chance, legally or illegally, to hop over the channel for a better life or to be reunited with family members.  At its height the jungle accommodated over 8000 people in squalid conditions, before it was dismantled in October 2016.  In September 2015 a group of international musicians travelled over from Britain to find musicians inside the camp to collaborate with resulting in the recording of The Calais Sessions which featured musicians from Syria, Afghanistan, Romania, Mexico, Kuwait, Kurdistan, Ethiopia, Eritrea and other places.  Proceeds from the sale of the album go to help the refugees, so you can buy it on their bandcamp page for maximum effect.  Here's a track called Kandahar from the album:

Going onto something a bit more traditional, many people may not realise that this part of France was historically part of Flanders, and Flemish is still spoken by some there.  Hence also names like Dunkirk, which sounds odd in French, but means church in the dunes in Flemish.  This is where traditional folk duo Raymond Declerck and André Rouzet, known as Bart en Klerktje come from.  I don't know much about them, except that they recorded a couple of albums in the 1980's, including a live album recorded in Bruges, Belgium in 1981, which includes this little drinking song called Drinke Liedje:

Folk and Dance band Zlabya started off in 2007 in Lille taking influences from Klezmer, Irish and Romani music and blending them into some Jazz fusion. In 2017 they released a live album to celebrate their 10th anniversary and this tune is taken from it called La Pégreuse:

Normandy doesn't seem to treasure its traditional music in the same way as some other parts of France for some reason.  The only thing I could unearth was a collection of traditional songs from Normandy by singer/songwriter and hurdy gurdy player Jean-François Dutertre, who was born in Paris, but to Norman parents.  Apart from other albums of traditional material from various parts of France, he released the album Chansons Traditionelles de Normandie in 2001 as part of a series called Musique Du Monde.  I've scoured the internet to find a copy of the album, but without success.  Here's a song called Le Passage du Bois:

 This is it for today.  As usual you can follow my virtual trip on my tripline map.  Next up will be some Celtic stuff from Brittany.

England - London Part III & Bedforshire

'Psychedelic Turbo Folk' band Don Kipper proclaim to be playing 'traditional music of North-East London', which is one of the most culturally diverse parts of the city.  They started off in 2013 as a klezmer band around Greek/Serbian singer Dunja Botic, but incorporate many Eastern European and Balkan influences.  The name of their latest album released in 2018 is Seven Sisters, which is a sub-district of Tottenham, which they claim as their spiritual home.  Here's a mad song from that album called Opa Ela:

Folk singer and avid collector of traditional songs of Britain and Ireland Sam Lee was born in Tufnell Park, North London.  He picked up his love of folk music during summer camps as a kid.  Son of Jewish parents he has a particular interest in songs from the Roma and travelling communities.  His latest album released in January this year is called Old Wow and this is the opening track from it called The Garden of England (Seeds of Love):

Indie folk band Patch and the Giant consist of 5 multi-instrumentalists based around Highgate in North London producing sometimes a foot-stomping, clap along sound, sometimes more melodious songs.  This is from their 2017 album All That We Had, We Stole and is called Flowers:

North London is also home to a large Jewish community, especially around areas of Golders Green and Finchley.  From these areas sprung Oi Va Voi in 2000, playing Klezmer fused with indie-rock and alt-folk.  'Oi va voi' is an exclamation in modern Hebrew roughly translating as 'oh my gosh!'.  Here's a song from their 2018 album Memory Drop called Vanished World:

English folk musician and composer Andy Cutting hails from Harrow, a suburb to the northwest of London.  The melodeon player was part of Blowzabella and Fernhill and is known to perform both traditional English and French material as well as writing his own compositions.  Apart from the above bands he also extensively collaborated with guitarist Chris Wood and many others within the folk scene.  In 2015 he formed an Anglo-French band called Topette, which we will revisit once we hit France.  He has only one solo album to his name, which is the self-titled Andy Cutting released in 2010.  These are 2 tunes from that album: Old Light and The Abbess:

Moving a little beyond the commuter belt of London we hit Bedford, where we meet two musicians.  First up is '1940's compere and all round dapper chap' Thomas Benjamin Wild Esq., who went viral a while ago with his witty song I've No More ... to Give.  He performs in a smart suit playing a mandolin banjo singing some hilarious lyrics, some of everyday funny situations, others throwing ridicule at the political establishment.  In case you have missed his most famous song, here it is, and it features on his debut 2018 album Awkward Encounters While Walking My Dog: 

Secondly from Bedford is Jack Sharp, who, after 13 years of fronting psych folk band Wolf People on guitar and vocals, has recently released an album of more traditional folk songs inspired by his native Bedfordshire and pared down to just acoustic guitar and singing.  The album is called Good Times Older and this is a collection of songs off it.

This is it for today.  Next time we will finally complete our tour of the British Isles and forthwith bravely head onto the rest of Europe.  As usual you can follow my virtual ramblings on my tripline map.