Jari Pavlica is the artistic director and first violinist of the band Hradistan since 1975. The band started in 1950 and focuses on the traditional music from their home land Moravia which is now part of the Czech republic. On this new CD the band plays a composition by Pavlica in which he mixes traditional tunes with old lyrics and more recent work. This CD is a cooperation with the Philharmonic orchestra BRNO, jumping drums and Altai Kai. The result is a symphony of styles deeply rooted in ancient culture. The orchestral start is to bombastic to my personal taste. The beautiful melodies are drowned in an overkill of instruments. Much better is the second part Dialog s minulosti which has an medieval atmosphere or the dialog etnicky which is closest to the tradition. As a whole I would say this is an intriguing project with occasionally some fantastic music. It’s a journey through styles and time. When I skip the bombastic start, about 45 minutes of quality music is left. Including many ancient instruments, strong vocal work, throat singing and much more.

Eelco Schilder

http://www.folkworld.eu/36/e/cds3.html#pavl