Hailing from the moldivian region of northeastern roumain, FANFARE CIOCÂRLIA embodies all the bravura and vertiginious speed of Romany Gypsy brass-band music, a tradition sprung from the Turkish military bands that dominated the Balkans under Ottoman rule. Singer, clarinetist and alto saxophonsit Ioan Ivancea heads a driving 11- strong cadre of horn and reed players, drummers and singers, ranging in age from 22 to 68. This high-spirited release comprises an agile blend of Romanian, Bulgarian, Serbian, Macedonian, Turkish, Near Easten and international dances. The band’s cosmopolitan sensibility also shows the influence of foreign radio broadcasts tuned in subreptitiously, a form of cultural resistance the heavy-handed Ceausescu regime. (The state apparatus delighted in giving musicians offers they could not refuse, to perform denatured Romanian « Folk » music for the glory of the now-departed strong man).