Shukar Collective Downloads

Consisting of the three founding members of Shukar and six new generation musicians, the Shukar Collective have produced an outstanding album blending traditional ancestral gypsy songs with modern technology. The original Shukar line-up – Napoleon Constantin, Tamango (Radu Vasile) and Clasic Petre... Learn More »

Consisting of the three founding members of Shukar and six new generation musicians, the Shukar Collective have produced an outstanding album blending traditional ancestral gypsy songs with modern technology. The original Shukar line-up – Napoleon Constantin, Tamango (Radu Vasile) and Clasic Petre – take their inspiration from many years ago, when the Tartars and Mongolians invaded Dacia (Romania’s ancestral name). Shukar’s original sound, called ursari music, was originally developed from men singing, shouting and playing percussive instruments while a bear ‘danced’ around them. Shukar are not involved with bear taming and are only concerned with the ursari sound experience and modernising bear taming music. Tamango, the leader of Shukar and aged 62, infuses the band with folkloric music passed down to him by his forefathers. From Balãrii village, Teleorman County in Romania, he is legendary on the local folk music scene and has been playing spoons since he was 16. He contributes vocals and spoons to the musical mix on Urban Gypsy. Napoleon is the main vocalist living in the village of Gratia, Teleorman County, and he also plays wooden barrel percussion by hitting it with his foot and stones. Now 38, he appeared as a special guest on Taraf De Haïdouks’ album Dumbala Dumba. Also from Gratia, Clasic performs voices and primitive percussions and despite being only 24 years old is already a living legend of ursari music. Lucian Stan and Dan Handrabur came up with the idea to form the Shukar Collective when they heard some original Shukar tracks and saw them perform in a well-known Bucharest jazz club. Alongside Stan, Handrabur and the original Shukar members, the Collective also consists of Cristian Stanciu, Vlaicu Golcea, Mito? Micleu?anu and Marius Mate?an. A talented producer, Dan Handrabur is classically trained and plays a variety of instruments including the violin. Lucian Stan is one of the founding fathers of the Romanian Underground scene and Cristian Stanciu won the Découvertes Electroniques contest with his band NSK (Natural Soft Killers). One of the best double bass players in Romania, Vlaicu Golcea performs in the largely unknown but excellent Romanian jazz scene. He is attracted by the possibilities electronics offer and skilfully blends the acoustic bass with computers. The youngest of the Shukar Collective, Marius Mate?an is an excellent composer and producer and Mitos Micleusana composes ambient and experimental music. Recorded and produced in Romania, the idea behind Urban Gypsy, was to re-orchestrate the fabulous folkloric pieces of Shukar with current technologies. The aim was to preserve and even emphasize the original aspect and to develop ursari music for today – the result is what you are listening to right now. ‘Malademna’ – a track from the album that also has an accompanying music video (please contact World Music Network for press copies of the video) – was written by Dan Handrabur and Napoleon. It is an upbeat, irresistibly catchy song and perfectly portrays the collision of traditional Romanian gypsy influences with modernity that can be heard throughout Urban Gypsy. Urban Gypsy is the remarkable new album from Shukar Collective, a talented group of musicians and producers who have furthered the sound of ursari music and brought together traditional influences with technology in faultless harmony.
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