Fragment, one of the most popular central European bluegrass bands ever, is celebrating their 30th anniversary by doing a reunion tour. Bass player and vocalist Jana Mougin is chronicling their tour for us at Bluegrass Today.
Day 9: December 1, Budapest, Hungary
The last show of our tour was actually Fragment’s first ever in Hungary. Even though Budapest is only a couple of hours drive from my hometown Bratislava, Slovakia, we’ve never had a chance to play here, as bluegrass has never had a wide fan base in this country. The times are changing and our southern neighbors are discovering this genre and musically, they are actually doing really good!
I was very impressed as we arrived to a nice Community House downtown in Budapest. The band on stage Poa Pratensis (scientific name for Kentucky bluegrass) was sounding great! We were the closing band of the event, and while we were enjoying home made goulash soup (thanks to Adrienn and Milan), we had a chance to listen to a folkier formation Tempered Sprits.
The concert was held in beautiful atrium of the Community House and despite a very small audience, the atmosphere was really great. Quietly listening fans, applauding after solos, enjoying every moment of our show made our first time performance in this country really enjoyable.
Big thanks to Hungarian Bluegrass Association for this well organized night! It was nice to meet new musical friends and fans.
Shortly after the finished the last show of our tour, we jumped back in the car, as the boys had a long trip home ahead. Even though everybody was tired, we felt happy.
Our 30th anniversary was simply a blast! I just hope it won’t take a long time until we get together again!
