Petra Gelbart: Jsem Romka

Petra Gelbart is an embodied combination of Romani (ethnically Gypsy), Czech
and American cultures.

Her family is rather unique in that it consists partly of Moravian and German
(Sinti) Romanies who survived the Holocaust (almost all the other Roma in the
Czech protectorate were killed). Her grandmother, on the other hand, was born in
a Slovak Romani settlement. It is no wonder, then, that Petra uses more than one
dialect when speaking Romani and is interested in a variety of Romani musical
styles, as well as in the interaction of Romani genres with other traditions.
There is a number of accordionists and other musicians among her extended
relatives (she’s strapped to a squeezebox often enough), but she learned to sing
and improvise mostly from her mother, grandmother and great-aunt. Her voice has
been described as "a lot bigger than her body" and her technique is often
characterized by rich ornamentation. As a soloist she has performed on many
stages in the USA and abroad, including the California Herdeljezi festival,
Sanders Theatre in Cambridge, Boston College, the Englert Theatre in Iowa City,
the Gypsy Celebration festival or the Salmovska Café in Prague. Petra is a
founding member of VIA Romen, which specializes in Russian Romani music.
Together with the Talisman ensemble, she recorded Dostoyevsky, Jews and Gypsies,
to be released on the Profil label.

Gelbart is a Ph.D. candidate in ethnomusicology at Harvard University, where
she has been a teaching fellow and took a turn leading the Traditional Music
Ensemble. Besides music, writing, and raising two kids, Petra spends time on
projects dealing with children in orphanages, adoption, foster care, and
interethnic relations. She is on the Board of Directors of Voice of Rom.