Goran Bregović has every reason to raise a thankful champagne toast to the Gypsy (Roma) people. Born in 1950 to mixed Serb and Croatian parentage, the singer and soon-to-be guitarist - having trading in his violin for an instrument more suited to the beat generation under whose sway he had fallen - later won his greatest success and international acclaim with compositions inspired by the music of the Gypsies of Eastern Europe and the Balkans. It has to be said that the chief source and driver for this tradition might sometimes have been the consumption - as depicted in their 2009 album, Alcohol - of the substance of the same name.

After the demise of his legendary band Bijelo Dugme during the Balkan wars, Bregović partnered with the film director and musician Emir Kusturica as they both moved toward a more traditional approach to music. Their first collaboration, Time of the Gypsies, brought them enormous acclaim, as well as a string of requests to perform, with such well-known musicians as Iggy Pop, Scott Walker, Ofra Haza and Cesária Évora all singing their songs. What they have achieved is something few songwriters could even dream of: the songs Djurdjevdan and Mesecina - well known from the films Time of the Gypsies and Underground - have become anthems of the Balkans. It would be difficult to imagine a Bregović concert without these classics, but there is no need to worry: The old hits will come thick and fast, intermingled with his freshest material. Bottoms up!

Presented by: Palace of Arts