Kala Zingarica: Iva Bittová and Petr Pavlinec in Prostoru

Description

Kala Zingarica is a new musical project by Iva Bittová and Petr Pavlinec that revives nearly forgotten Romani songs from the Horňácko region and its surroundings. The combination of voice, violin, and cimbalom opens up space for strong emotions and free musical improvisation. The traditional repertoire takes on a new form here, showcasing the unique depth of Romani musical culture. Nearly forgotten songs of the Romani people from Horňácko and its surroundings are the building blocks of this new musical project by singer and violinist Iva Bittová and cimbalom player Petr Pavlinec. The Romani have long been associated with Horňácko folklore. Although historically they mostly formed mixed groups with non-Romani musicians, they enriched the interpretation with new elements and also brought part of a new repertoire. It is surprising that currently, only the song “So tu more kheres” is known in live performance, while the rest is nearly forgotten. Recordings of other songs, mostly with lyrics recorded in Romani and Czech, are now presented in new unconventional arrangements through the concert performances of I. Bittová and P. Pavlinec. Singing, violin, and cimbalom, combined with strong emotions, undoubtedly belong to Romani songs, but this combination opens up unexpected space for colorful and even abstract improvisation in rhythm, melody, and harmony. The very name Kala Zingarica is a combination of the Sanskrit word “kala” meaning fate or space-time, and the Latin “Zingarica” referring to the Romani people.