Released in Hungary in 1998, Cigányszerelem / Romano Kamipo / Gipsy Love presents Kalyi Jag’s distinctive approach to Hungarian Roma folk music at a mature stage of the ensemble’s career. Rooted particularly in Vlax Roma musical traditions, the recording combines Romani-language singing with guitars, mandolin, rhythmic accompaniment, vocal techniques, and arrangements developed for concert and recorded performance. The album reflects Kalyi Jag’s important role in bringing community-based Roma musical traditions into Hungary’s professional folk and world-music sphere while maintaining a strong connection to Romani language and cultural identity. Preserved here in its original Hungarian cassette edition, the recording also documents the continued circulation of Roma music through the compact-cassette format during the late twentieth century.
