Taraf De Haïdouks

Taraf de Haïdouks sustains the longstanding musical customs of Romania’s “lautari” gypsies through distinctive performances delivered by a twelve-member ensemble of instrumentalists and singers ranging in age from 20 to 78. Beyond four notable collections of traditional material, the musicians have shared television broadcasts with Yehudi Menuhin and have both recorded and toured alongside Swiss pop star Stephan Eicher. Their sound also appears in Tony Gartlif’s award-winning film Latcho Drom. David Harrington of Kronos Quartet observed that Taraf de Haïdouks “take their listeners to the essence of music; that place where the bow meets the string and a world of action follows.” Drawing their name from the Haidouks—Robin Hood-like thieves celebrated in numerous ballads—the group originates in the modest Romanian village of Clejani, southwest of Bucharest. Until two Belgian enthusiasts, Stephen Karo and Michael Winter, encountered them during a 1990 visit to Romania, the musicians had rarely left their home region. Karo and Winter arranged Belgian concerts and introduced the band to the world-music label Crammed Discs. Following an enthusiastic 1991 appearance at the WOMAD festival, Taraf de Haïdouks issued their first album, Musique Des Tsiganes De Roumanie, which attained the summit of Europe’s world-music charts and reached listeners worldwide. Their second release, Honourable Brigands (1994), earned the German Critics Association’s “Best World Music Album” accolade. Success continued with Dumbala Dumba in 1998, which included contributions from Rosioru, master of Valachian Gypsy crooners, renowned Romanian female vocalist Viorica Rudareasa, and Napoleon, a member of the Urasi Romanian bear-trainer caste. The self-titled fourth album appeared in 1999. In 1998 French director Guy Demoy also completed a documentary video portrait of the group.