Date: Fri. 19th Feb 2010.
Venue: Aberystwyth, Arts Centre:
Doors: 10.15pm
Tickets: £9.50 adv./£11.50 door
Alejandro Toledo & The Magic Tombolinos:
This sextet of prodigious traveling musicians from different parts of the globe (Argentina, France, Greece, UK, Slovakia and Portugal) takes music to its edge and plays with great risk, never failing to amaze with rhythm and virtuosity. Their fiery music invites you to an amazing voyage to be savoured and ignites the passion to dance.
The band burst on to London's thriving Gypsy Balkan music scene and arrived with something of a bang. In the few months since the band's debut in London, they put their spell on the underground party scene while at the same time performed at leading venues around London, the UK and overseas causing mayhem and selling out on several occasions. Led by Alejandro Toledo (former student of Peter Freeman [Classical Sax] and Daniel Ivancea [Gypsy Sax]), this high energy band delivers the most exciting performances Balkan ethnic music has to offer with wild, unruly tunes, potent rhythms and their general uncontrollable energy.
Alejandro Toledo - a superb saxophonist who has toured with the mighty Fanfare Ciocarlia and a charismatic singer and frontman - along with musical maestros from across Europe and beyond, blend Gypsy, Balkan, Latin and Klezmer influences with passion and astonishing musicality. The line-up includes double bass, percussion, accordion, mandolin, drums and saxes, all played by virtuoso musicians and capable of switching effortlessly between the wildest dance music imaginable to delicate, beautiful doinas and laments.
More info, sounds and photos of the band:
Songlines
"If you're blessed, you get to attend one of those gigs which blows you away completely - and the memory never fades... From the moment this six-piece took to the stage, we were taken on an exhilarating journey. One minute we were being seduced by an exotic sway of melodies, when suddenly the band would rip into a frenzy of beats and riffs which left us unable to stand still. Imagine Gypsy, Klezmer, shades of Middle-Eastern mystery, interspersed with vibrant African and Latin rhythms. The mix was intoxicating..." -
South Wales Guardian, UK, 2009
«They are an unruly bunch of musical virtuosos from across Europe and beyond, with a reputation as one of the hottest live bands around - prepare to dance your socks off! With a line-up featuring sax, drums, accordion, bouzouki, double bass and percussion, they play a frenzied mix of gypsy, klezmer, tango and Balkan music that guaranteed to move your feet. This will be a serious party night with a band who have stolen the show at festivals across Europe »
London Diaspora Capital, London, 2009
« [...] a diverse and inventive band that creates "modern traditional music," with a strong focus on innovation. They thread together eclectic genres including Arabic, Balkan music, French Chanson, jazz and Afro-Cuban percussion seamlessly to create an entirely original sound. »
Diktio Radio station, Chania, Greece, 2009
«It was time that Balkan music enters the 21st century. These guys are creating the ethnic sound of the future »
London Evening Standard, UK, 2009
« one of the liveliest Balkan Gypsy bands to storm Europe... »
Froots, UK, 2008
« these guys get the crowds going wild »
Royal Albert Hall Ignite Series, UK, 2008
« stylishly serving up intricate and fun performances of gypsy music »
Gina Boreham, UK, 2008
« burst on to London's thriving Gypsy Balkan music scene […] and arrived with something of a bang »
Lecool, UK, 2008
« lots of high-energy Balkan music, a full on dervish of a singer [… ]. Heaven»
Bern Busker Festival, Switzerland, 2008
« the fiery music will ignite your passion to dance »
Transform Festival, Norway, 2008
« faster than your brain can cope »
L’express, Switzerland, 2008
« an amazing voyage to be savoured »
The London Paper, 2007
« prodigious performers taking music to its edge and playing with great risk, rarely failing to amaze with rhythm and virtuosity »
