Duo Vargoz

Re-exploring repertoires of oral tradition and rearranging them is a fairly common approach in the world of traditional music today. Guillaume and Robin Vargoz, two brothers from the French Alps (Dauphiné) have just released a brilliant CD that shows how the process is alive. Growing up with the repertoire of their home region, their music is at once powerful, organic, inventive, refined and intense.

The sound of the violin and harmonica, an atypical duet, works, sounding in perfect harmony. The tracks are mostly rigodons, the typical dance from Dauphiné, but also valses, mazurkas and bourrées, which are part of the repertoires in many areas of France. The tunes are assembled and arranged together with skill. For the two musicians, the challenge lies first and foremost in playing for dancers, with only two melodic instruments melting into one sound, working on the grain and the fusion, as musicians did in older times. Duo Vargoz are quite passionate about keeping this style of playing alive, while also trying to add their own personal touch. Releasing special gems from the French tradition with a contemporary sound, playing an acoustic duet, is a fascinating challenge. And Duo Vargoz’s album is a success.