025: Introducing Bela Lakatos & the Gypsy Youth, by Bela Lakatos & the Gypsy Youth Project

Bela Lakatos & the Gypsy Youth Project (Hungary)
Introducing Bela Lakatos & the Gypsy Youth Project (2006)
15 tracks, 45 minutes
Spotify · iTunes

It’s already becoming clear that there are some gaps in my music knowledge, and – as we saw with the Bisserov Sisters – that Eastern European music is one of them. Which is fine, we can’t all know everything about everything. But my lack of knowledge doesn’t stop me from enjoying or listening to as much as I can! So with that said, let’s stumble through some thoughts on this album, from Hungary.

Béla Lakatos put together the Gypsy Youth Project to keep the endangered culture of the Hungarian Roma people, including their music, language and stories, alive into the next generation. Any undertaking that aims to continue folk traditions is important, but when they sound as good as this, it would surely be a crime to let it be forgotten.

The whole album is worth your eartime, obviously, but I think this is one of those that is perfectly encapsulated in the first track. The piece is called ‘O Bijav’ and it’s bloody good – it’s got everything that makes the rest of this album so enjoyable. It’s got some really bluesy, heartfelt vocals, choppy guitars and tinkly little mandolins even give it a bit of a country feel now and then. There’s nonsense syllables and encouraging shouts from the ensemble-at-large, some exquisite whistling and harmonies to die for – the ensemble can start all singing in unison before branching off into some proper extended chords before all ending up back on the same note at the end of the phrase. It’s all so charming, and an interesting mix of the jolly and rueful. The rest of the album contains each of these in bigger or smaller amounts, but this opener sets the scene perfectly.

I particularly like the production of this album and the atmosphere it provides. Although it’s obviously made in a studio, I still feel like it would sound exactly the same if you were to slip a microphone into the Lakatos’ kitchen after everyone had gotten suitably merry. It doesn’t sound slick or that every note has been rehearsed to death. There’s no mistaking that these are accomplished musicians, but they keep their music sounding vibrant and alive, rather than a dusty museum piece.

The real shame about this album is that it’s the only recording I can find by the group…or so I thought, until I did a little bit of reading before writing this and found out they’re better known in Hungary as Ternipe (meaning 'Youth') and they’ve got quite a few albums out there by that name. So that’s good! I’m off to do some more listening, I’ve got some to catch up on…