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Various Artists
Before the Revolution
A 1909 Recording Expedition In The Caucasus And Central Asia By The Gramophone Company
Compilation and text by Will Prentice
$17.99

"This astonishing bit of musical archaeology peels back the layers of time to bring to light nearly lost traditions." - Peggy Latkovich, RootsWorld (Read the full review)

From the record label:
In 1909, the Gramophone Company of London sent one of their recording engineers on an epic 5,000 mile journey across the southern regions of the Tsarist Russian Empire. From the Caucasus mountains to the deserts of Central Asia, Franz Hampe recorded the various cultures and ethnic groups he encountered. What resulted was an incredibly intimate view of pre-Soviet life, in the form of almost 1,200 music recordings. Now, for the first time in over 90 years, a representative sample from the expedition can be heard. The 23 tracks include Caucasian male choirs, classical maqam singers from Bukhara and the Ferghana Valley, and a nomadic singer from the Kazakh Steppes, among others.

From Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Chechnya and other culture groups in the northern Caucasus, as well as Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Xinjiang in Central Asia, they were recorded at a point when few of these names appeared on any map. Digitally remastered and with extensive liner notes, this CD offers a rare link to a virtually unknown time, before the Soviet era changed the lives and music practices of the region for ever. Remastered from rare 78 rpm discs to give outstanding sound - from nearly a century ago.

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