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His music is played at weddings, funerals & Borat, too: Goran Bregovic has thatfree-spirited Gypsy feeling

Goran Bregovic
Photo by Andrew Shpak
Goran Bregovic
Photo by Nebojsa Babic

There's something about the free spirit of what we associate with culture and customs of the Gypsies that spans and resonates with just about everyone. Maybe it's the romantic appeal of the unrestricted passionate stereotype combined with a dash of rebellious anti-establishment sentiment that draws us into our own idea of the raucous lifestyle, true or not.

Doesn't everyone want to party, in full abandonment, until the cows come home?

That seems to be the experience of anyone attending one of Goran Bregovic & His Wedding and Funeral Orchestra, at least as far as a concert hall is concerned. You may not know music of the Balkans, you may not know the language, but you will respond to the visceral rhythms, harmonies and affect.

The music mingles sounds from a myriad of different traditions — Jewish, Catholic, Bulgarian, Bosnian, Serbian, Romani and Muslim, among others — to create a mishmash of joyful tunes that are irresistible.

At the helm of the ensemble is Sarajevo-born Goran Bregovic, who is known for the musical scores of Underground, Arizona Dream, Time of the Gypsies and Borat.

In between travels and concerts, we emailed with the busy leader to learn about his upcoming appearance in Houston, set for 8 p.m. Tuesday at Jones Hall via the Society for the Performing Arts.

CultureMap: Talk a little about what a funeral orchestra is in the Eastern  European tradition. We can relate to wedding music, after all, it's a joyous occasion.

Goran Bregovic: Where I come from weddings and funerals are still the two most important events in one’s life, both on a personal and sociological level. The music that accompanies them is played by same musicians. At funerals they perform the music that the departed person liked to hear during his life. That is where I, as a composer, come from.

 CM: What happens at a Gypsy wedding? Other than the obvious, of course.

GB: The notion of time and society is different in Gypsy culture. I always envied my first trumpet player who got married in a village on the Romanian border. His wedding had six hundred guests, it lasted for three days and for which three different bands played.

 CM: Gypsy music is contagious. No matter what cultural background, it  speaks to many. Why is that? What it is about the music that makes it  universal?

GB: The music speaks to our most profound needs. Deep down most of us would like to be a Gypsy. It's a metaphor for that part of the soul which defies gravity. The Gypsies teach us about a traditional system of values when freedom was different and more precious than it is now.

The most characteristic aspect of Gypsy music is its capacity to borrow from every different tradition and culture with which it comes into contact. They believe music belongs to us all so they feel free to steal in the most natural way. Gypsies think nothing of grafting a Spanish harmony onto a Turkish melody with an odd Bulgarian beat.

  CM: Let's talk about Borat. Seriously, that movie was offensive to many  people. Personally, I thought it was hilarious. Did you worry about your  association with a film that everyone knew would be controversially  received?

 GB: No.

 CM: Well, there it is. You've recorded 20 albums! That's a lot. Do you have more in the works? Has there  been one that has been your favorite? 

GB: I am now finishing my new album Champagne for Gypsies, to be released in 2012. It is meant to remind us of our favorite Gypsy musicians who left a trace in popular culture around the world like Gipsy Kings, Ayo, Florin Salam, Stephane Eicher, also who have accepted to perform on this CD.

 CM: At what age did your love for music and performing began? Are  there musicians in your family that have influenced you? 

GB: My father was an amateur violinist and he wanted me to study violin but that hope did not last long because guitar was easier to learn and I figured that girls preferred guitar players. At 15, I started playing popular music as a professional. At 18 I had my rock n' roll band and went to play in holiday resorts in Italy.

When one is young one thinks that studies of philosophy can give you answers to the fundamental questions one asks oneself. Then one starts to study and only ends up having more questions.

So from age 20 to 24, I studied philosophy and sociology and, at the last minute when I was about to become professor of Marxist Thought — in communist times this is what studying philosophy resulted in — my record The White Button, which stayed on as the name of my band, came out and I became the biggest rock n' roll star in my country and was thus saved from the sad career of a professor.

 CM: How would you like people to feel after a concert?

GB: Happy!

CM: Well, there it is again. Short, sweet and to the point.

Presented by the Society for the Performing Arts, Goran Bregovic & His Wedding and Funeral Orchestra's concert is set for 8 p.m. Tuesday. Tickets start at $42 and can be purchased online.

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Movie review

Nick Jonas and Paul Rudd chase their dreams in music-heavy Power Ballad

Photo by David Cleary for Lionsgate

Nick Jonas and Paul Rudd in Power Ballad.

Writer/director John Carney is one of the great purveyors of movies featuring music (as opposed to musicals) in the 21st century. Starting with Once in 2007 (which was turned into a Broadway musical several years later), he has made music-themed stories like Begin Again, Sing Street, Flora and Son, and now Power Ballad.

Rick Power (Paul Rudd) is a former wannabe rock star who is now the lead singer of “Ireland’s #1 Wedding Band,” The Bride & Grooves. While they mostly play smaller weddings, a gig at a country estate leads to an encounter with Danny Wilson (Nick Jonas), a former boy band member struggling to make it as a solo artist. Rick and Danny wind up bonding in a booze- and pot-filled jam session, sharing various song ideas.

After returning to Los Angeles and desperate for a hit, Danny steals one of Rick’s songs, which miraculously turns into the No. 1 “How to Write a Song (Without You).” Rick, initially overjoyed that something he wrote has become big, is crushed when he finds out Danny didn’t give him credit. His quest to find a way to prove his worth sends him into a spiral, upending the ordinary life he had built.

Co-written by Peter McDonald, the film is a nice exploration of two men trying to hold on to their music dreams. Their individual circumstances could not be more different, but each of them knows the ups and downs of the business as well as the other, as well as the ineffable magic of creating that one great song. While the music scenes are hit-and-miss because of a reliance on lip synching, the scene featuring Rick and Danny trading ideas is electric with creativity.

Oddly, though, the film could have used a bit less music and more of a focus on the two men’s personal lives. Rick wound up living in Ireland after falling in love with his future wife, Rachel (Marcella Plunkett), while on tour with his former American band. He spends a decent amount of time with her and his daughter, Aja (Beth Fallon), but his story needed a few more family scenes to drive the point home. Danny’s personal life is all but nonexistent, giving his arc less impact than it could have had.

Instead of loved ones, Carney and McDonald try to give Rick and Danny more depth through friends and business associates. Rick’s bandmate Sandy (McDonald) is a ride-or-die kind of guy for him, but his presence is only good for a few humorous distractions. Danny’s manager Mac (Jack Reynor) is difficult to parse, as he goes to bat for Danny on multiple occasions, but also seems to keep him at arm’s length.

It’s long been joked that Rudd never ages, and that youthfulness serves him well in this role, in which his character is supposed to be much younger than his actual age of 57. His energy and enthusiasm make his character appealing throughout, even when Rick starts to go off the deep end. Jonas is decent in his role, selling the music side well, but there might be a reason his character doesn’t have many scenes requiring him to show emotions.

While Power Ballad has all the hallmarks of another great Carney music movie, it’s missing a few pieces that could have put it over the top. It’s still a fun film with an insanely catchy song at its center, but it’s not quite as memorable as most of the filmmaker’s previous efforts.

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Power Ballad is now playing in theaters.

movies music film