More amateur musicians are playing folk and gipsy Music of East European Countries in the Netherlands than in any other West European Country. Most of them started to do so in their college days and never stopped thereafter. That is why the author Dr. J.L. van Os of the webpage www.cimbalom.nl decided to create an online collection of more than 3500 Hungarian folk songs.

Already for some decades Students Unions of several Dutch Universities maintained an orchestra of some 6 to 8 musicians in an ever changing strength. As many of these musicians formed new ensembles during their later life, to day some 40 Dutch orchestras are playing Hungarian, Romanian, Russian and other East European gipsy and folk music. The main purpose of the cimbalom.nl platform is communication among active and passive devotees of this type of music.

The author started to play East European music on accordion at high school. During his student years from on 1950 he started to play the cimbalom in the Utrechtsche Studenten Zigeuner Kapel ‘Tzigane’. Ever since he has played in several amateur orchestras like ‘Siperkov’ and ‘Hon Tzigane’. Although playing melodies of several East European countries, the playing and collection of Hungarian folk music always was and remains his hobby.

More information about this initiative: http://www.xs4all.nl/~jlo/