There are a great number of artists on Modern Bard and I admit that I was rather concerned about the choice of who would follow Charley MacGowan as our second featured artist. I never imagined I'd find anything like Djilia Phralengo. 

When the Oracle CD crossed my desk I tossed it into the player to give it a quick listen, several hours later I turned off the player after listening to the album over and over again. The music was breathtaking. 

Djilia Phralengo is billed as "a contemporary fusion of vibrant gypsy and early renaissance music", but that hardly does it justice. There simply isn't anything else out there like this music. The moment you think you know exactly what the styles and artists are that have influenced the music, you notice something new. Frontman Ernest Villarreal calls it "an expression of passion and magic, an invitation for the spirit to relive a romance from centuries back and pre-live a romance from centuries forward... time standing still... spirit and life evolving... immortal." That's far more accurate than simply labeling the group's music.

Djilia Phralengo (Songs of the Brothers in Romani) is led by Ernesto Villarreal, a 27-year old instrumentalist and composer who has been involved in music since the age of 15. Having performed with rock bands in
music festivals as well as with orchestras in theater and musicals, he's brought his experience and careful mastering of the stringed instruments into this first solo project Djilia Phralengo, blending flamenco and
middle eastern elements with Irish and contemporary acoustic progressive fusion.

Currently Djilia Phralengo performs at Renaissance Faires and spirit-inviting venues around southeastern Michigan. Please feel welcome to visit their website for more information, pictures, sound clips, etc.

We at Modern Bard have recently learned that there are limited quantities of Djilia Phralengo's first CD, "Belomancy", available through CD Baby. While Ernesto is quick to point out that he doesn't believe the first CD is of the caliber of "Oracle", I think we've all felt that way about our first recording. 

I think Charley would have approved.