Super Rats return to the friendly confines of Smith’s to present an evening of classic songs and dance tunes from the gypsy neighbourhoods (“mahala”) of Old Bucharest.

Old, old but not yet weary songs about working all day and all night, stealing horses, and blaming your fickle heart for falling in love. Old tunes as crooked and curling as a gnarled branch in the forest covered once more with flowers. Exuberant tunes that revel in virtuosic speed like letting your horse gallop just because it wants to, ornamented all over with bright twists of intricate, sprightly melody. Supple oriental lines, shaped by centuries of commerce with the Turks, that suddenly take flight into long, lyrical phrases that surf over a churning engine of accompaniment.

Two decades spent exploring the musical back-roads and alleyways of darkest Romania have made “Super Rats” Canberra’s experts on this fascinating music. Let them take you on a tour!