The ensemble was founded in 2005 by József Balog and Ágnes Künstler, a world-famous pair of solo singers of Roma music, from among the virtuosos of Hungarian Roma music. In recent decades, millions of people from Japan to the United States have danced to their songs, and their voice has been hailed as the first “authentic Roma voice” to be heard from Central Europe.
The founding of EtnoRom is a station on the bridge of worlds that brings together past and present, the raw, ancient sound and the explosive world music sound. EtnoRom’s repertoire ranges from authentic Oláh Roma songs to sweepingly dynamic “Roma world music” spiced with swing and jazz.
The band has twice won the Budapest Fringe Festival’s top professional prize, and has performed to overwhelming acclaim in Hungary, Austria, Italy, Poland, the Czech Republic, Finland, Estonia, Ukraine, the Netherlands, Germany, Norway, Spain, France, Morocco, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, the United States and Spain.