RESPECT 2000
3rd ANNUAL FESTIVAL OF ETHNIC AND WORLD MUSIC
The impulse that led the founders of Respect – the music
agency Rachot and Respekt Weekly – to establish the tradition of an
annual festival of ethnic and world music was the racist murder of a
Sudanese student in Prague at the end of 1997. The basic idea behind
the festival was to achieve a balanced combination of the aesthetic
– the popular and sacred music of diverse ethnic groups from all over
the world, performed by top ensembles – with humanist ideals.
The organizers of Respect took as their motto a quote from Tony Gatliff,
a French director of Romany origin and maker of the films Latcho Drom
and Gadjo Dilo, who said: "Music is the best way of fighting racism
– because it speaks straight to the heart, there is no resisting it."
Journalist Petr Chudožilov’s article about the final concert of the
Respect ’99 Festival at Prague Castle testifies to how far we have succeeded
in achieving these aims: "We left in silence. Without a word. There
was nothing more to say. People treated each other with unusual respect.
Czechs smiled at Romanies. They even exchanged friendly looks with other
Czechs, however incredible this may sound. I was unexpectedly overwhelmed
by that feeling which we rather ashamedly call brotherhood."
Besides music, which is Respect’s main feature, the project also includes exhibitions and films. This year, for the first time, Respect will take place not only in Prague but also in five other Czech cities, where concerts by the groups Álom (CR) and Hudba Juliusa „Šuko" Bartoša (Slovakia) are to be held during April and May. These events will be accompanied by the One World film festival, dedicated to human rights issues and organized by the People in Need Foundation.
The main theme of Respect 2000 is the Mediterranean.
Why does this region seem relevant to us at the beginning of the third
millennium?
The entire Judeo-Christian civilization is centered around the Mediterranean
Sea, and it was in this region that the great monotheistic religions
(Judaism, Islam and Christianity), modern philosophy (with its roots
in Ancient Greece) and the modern republic, with its secular and democratic
principles, were all born. The three continents surrounding the Mediterranean
Sea have been involved in cultural and commercial exchanges for several
thousand years.
The nations living on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea have taken
their religion and culture from the dominant population groups, but
at the same time have retained their original cultural diversity. The
Mediterranean was the birthplace of both Oriental and Western music.
Music thus recalls the Golden Age of Seville and Cordoba before the
Inquisition, when Catholics, Jews and Muslims lived together in perfect
harmony, showing us that many peoples and cultures have much more in
common than might appear at first glance.
As part of its main program, Respect 2000 will present:
The Berbers, an ancient nation from northern
Africa, which, despite Arab pressures to assimilate, has preserved
its original musical tradition.
The Kurds, who, scattered across the Near East from Anatolia
to western Asia, continue to cultivate their own music and culture.
Ensemble Al Kindi from Aleppo in Syria, which thanks to its rich
oral tradition is generally regarded as the birthplace of Arabic music,
together with the whirling dervishes of Damas.
The Romanies, migrant peoples who have wandered across the entire
Mediterranean region for more than a thousand years, playing their own
music on their own instruments, are represented this year by musicians
from Egypt, Greece, Turkey and Spain.
Kroke – An acoustic klezmer trio from Krakow, Poland. The now world-famous trio Kroke takes the traditional klezmer repertoire as the basis for its original arrangements and improvisations. The group uses its experience in classical music and jazz to create a unique new sound unusual in Jewish music. This concert by Kroke makes up for their cancelled performance last year.
Film screening: "Otto Placht – Painter of the Jungle" A portrait of a Czech painter living in the South American jungle. A film by Martin Čihák and Alice Kalousková.
Taraf De Haidouks – Romania The entire festival
marathon comes to a symbolic climax with a performance by the most highly-recognized
Romany ensemble today - the fourteen-member ensemble from the Romanian
village of Clejani that appeared at the first Respect Festival in 1998.
Taraf De Haidouks, who were invited to record and perform with The Kronos
Quartet even though they can’t read music, who sold out the Royal Albert
Hall, whose three albums have climbed to the top of the world music
charts, and whose unbelievable concerts have left listeners all over
the world breathless, really needs no further introduction.
