Kalman Balogh CimbalomTrio is the dynamic merging of music from old and new worlds. Balogh continues a fabled  European musical tradition harking back to the collaboration of masters like gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt and violinist Stephane Grapelli, connecting ancient folk music traditions of Central and Eastern Europe with the chord progressions and swinging rhythm of jazz. Balogh’s cimbalom becomes a new and compelling voice centering the Trio, which is enhanced by acoustic violin/viola and acoustic bass. Similarities in jazz and traditional folk music, such as improvisation and a kaleidoscope of emotional expressions, are immediately evident.

1.  SZUNYOG (The Mosquito) 4:33,
   Béla Bartók collected these folksong in Northern Hungary in a village called Nagymegyer. A         playful favorite children’s song about the “mosquito and humans”.
2.  DUNÁNTÚLI TÁNCOK (Dances from Transdanubia) 5:03
   A bouquet of muscial selections from the famous cimbalom player of Northwestern Hungary, Pál   Tendl, arranged by Kálmán Balogh – it ranges from slow to fast Csárdás music
3.  KOLOZSI NÓTÁK (Songs from Kolozs, Transylvania) 8:24
   A selection of joyous songs from an area rich in Hungarian folklore. These songs are popular in   weddings and other celebrations where wine and “palinka” are abundant.
4.  ROMANIAN FOLK MUSIC 9:44
   In Transylvania, Hungarian and Romanian folk music exist side-by-side and most musicians play   them both. This selection consists of Doina, Hora and Sirba melodies, which are favorite at   festivities, but are also played in the memory of the famous “prímás” from Moldova, Ion Dragoi.
5.  SZATMÁRI CSÁRDÁS ÉS FRISS (Fast and slow csárdás music from Szatmár, Northeastern Hungary) 3:11
   These melodies may be considered the most popular songs from the area, the sort of songs which may be included in the imaginary “Top Ten List of Szatmár Music”.
6. “SZÓL A KAKAS MÁR” (Old Jewish melodies from Eastern Hungary) 7:17
   Old traditional melodies from the European Jewish culture of Eastern Hungary, which was very important before the tragedies and persecutions of WWII.
7. “WERBUGI”  6:34
   Bugi-vugi (or Boogie-Woogie) was made popular by Elvis Presley, but what happens when a traditional “Verbunk” (recruiting man’s dance) music from the small village of Decs is played in a different style? The meeting of different cultures and the birth of “WERBUGI”.
   Hungaria Records,  2012