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Mitsoura
Mitsoura

Mitsoura is a group formed around the unique vocalist Mitsou. As singer for Ando Drom, Mitsou captured a great deal of attention - she has a peculiar way of using her voice, sounding almost childish, sometimes slurring vowels as if drunk, especially when she stretches high notes in an oddly soft yet engaging manner. Ando Drom have reborn themselves as producers and the Mitsoura album is obviously an attempt to take East European Gypsy music into clubs and cafes. A bit like Transglobal and Natacha Atlas? Indeed, although I must emphasise that Mitsou and her musicians are way superior. The musicians layer breakbeats, tablas and ambient drift beneath Mitsou's voice, leaving plenty of space, sometimes making the sound too big, too dubby. I first heard this record in Romania last year where a room full of Gypsy musicians dismissed it and her as "Woody Woodpecker" yet there is something compelling, almost fabulous here. As a marriage of modern Western club music with traditional Gypsy music, Mitsoura is vastly superior to Crammed's Electric Gypsyland remix album. At times the production is overdone and I'd still recommend Ando Drom's magnificent album on Germany's Network label first. The final track, 'Me Na Szom,' feels like a Hungarian take on Madredeus and quite lovely for that. - Garth Cartwright, fRoots

Listen:
Intro
Me Na Szom

Musicians:
Mitsou – vocals, percussion
András Monori – gadulka, kaval, soprano, ektar, zurna
Péter Szalai – tabla, ghatam, doromb, dholak, kalimba, konnakol
András Dés – kanna, bodhran, riq, ride, darbouka, percussion
Miklós Lukács – cimbalom
Márk Moldvai – pro tools, live surround, percussion
Éva Mandula – live animations

Press from the record label says:
It can be special and beautiful experience if you listen to the new album of Juhász Miczura Mónika or you visit Mitsoura's concert.

Mitsou – with her unique voice – must be mentioned amongst the most talented Gipsy artists worldwide. She has already given her voice to motion pictures like Tony Gatlif: Gadjo Dilo, Swing, Zoltán Kamondy: Kísértések. She's also one of the members of Global Vocal Meeting project which goes on tour all over the world. The audience could first meet her as the vocalist of Ando Drom.

After spending many years in the world of authentic Gipsy music Mitsou decided to find her on way. In her new group she is surrounded by musicians who transform Mitsou's songs into an exciting, unique genre using their sensibility towards traditional music. Spending 3 years in silence, the result of a long experimenting was born: an album that contains the mixture of Gipsy roots with the effect of the present world: the Mitsoura.

Who takes the opporunity to go to the concert or listens to the record should do it without prejudice, with open soul and mind. Mitsou's voice is unbelievably powerful, the songs include Gipsy and ancient Indian atmosphere, traditional songs collected by Károly Bari. The music is based on ethnic instruments and melodies by András Monori with the contrast of 'factory noise feeling' by Márk Moldvai. The visual composition of the stage is a large projected circle behind that changes from scene to scene. The sight is created by Eva Mandula whose animation were inspired by Indian motives, patterns and Gipsy painters like András Szentandrássy, András Balogh Balázs, Magda Szécsi. The listener immediately finds himself in the middle of an audible and perceptive atmosphere by the surrounding effect.

'These songs come from different Gipsy traditions such as lovári, collár, gulvári, romungo. These are the songs of my mother, my family. Songs of holidays or funerals by old Gipsy people who were able to sing with such big talent that I will probably never have. I simply sing the songs which surround my life' – Mitsou