Orchestre International du Vetex is a collective of about 15 musicians, from Flanders, Wallonia and the North of France. Since they started up in 2004 in the former textile-plant in the Sint-Jans neighborhood of Kortrijk, the band has played more than 800 concerts worldwide. Major European festivals, club gigs, jazz and theater festivals throughout EU and its outside borders, from honeymoons to funerals, from street-theaters to rock-festivals. Vetex really, really does it all!
The full name of this young and prosperous group is “JACARÁNDA piccola Orchestra Giovanile dell’Etna”, but mostly simply known as Jacaránda. They come from Catania (Sicily), as an initiative of AME – Associazione Musicale Etnea. This huge laboratory ensemble is directed by Puccio Castrogiovanni, multi-instrumentalist and composer, a well known member of the Lautari. Jacaránda’s musical signature represents a binding relationship between traditions and young people, spiced with musical instruments from all over the world. They create and perform original songs in Sicilian, in a form of contemporary popular world music.
Vladimir Todorović is a well-known guitarist in the Serbian alternative world music scene. By the beginning of his musical journey, his former Paniks world music ensemble had a lot of success and helped him become a recognisable name in the surroundings of his residence town of Subotica, later on through-out many ethnic and world music festivals they performed across Europe. Nowadays, he most often performs in a duo or a trio formation called Todorrica, which cherish the Balkan melodic traditions. Though, being honest, he prefers to step across the line to the really alternative, underground and experimental side of things, where his compositions become fresh and adorable.
David Yengibarian is a well known Armenian-Hungarian accordionist. He built his musical reputation in Budapest, and is well known for his skills and dedication to ethnic, world and jazz crossovers. David has a long track record with hundreds of concerts in solo or with his trio formation, 7 albums behind him and film/theater music productions in the past two decades. His frequent travels to Yerevan keeps him connected with his roots music as well, which he nicely incorporates into his complex compositions.
As strange as it sounds, as good as it is(!): Zajnal calls it “designer folk” music, and describes it as turning away from intangible heritage towards popular music. They say it is not something they want. Nor the other way around. It’s a simple imprint of all the cultural impressions surrounding them, let that be Hungarian folk dance houses, or urban electronica. In 2020, this approach made them the discovery of the year in a national musical talent development programme. Since 2021 they are a core “ingredient” of the original Tremolo project, as well as its Tremolo_forte expansion, being a part of the artists international mobility and cooperation activities, touching mostly peripheral areas of Europe.l songs in Sicilian, in a form of contemporary popular world music.
Our Tremolo_forte project was blessed with this cherry-on-the-pie, for the end of the summer concert series in 2022! But for La Caravane Passe (“the caravan passes”), the point of view is always that of the traveler. For almost twenty years, Toma Feterman has been leading his band on a double journey through the musical landscapes of Eastern and Southern Europe, and afterwards on extended tours stopping over wherever… Once again during their concert at Malomfesztivál, borders, languages, shapes and rhythms got entangled. But we could clearly sense Toma’s melodic art, his parisian-flavored Mitteleuropa compositions fed on hip hop and fluent in Serbo-Croatian. “At La Caravane Passe concerts, with us, people can become gypsies at least one day in their lives” says the band, and we invite you to catch their next show.
Where we’ve been, where we’re goin’…
Meet our artists at magnificent events, festivals and venues through-out Europe.