Linsey Pollak: Macedonian music changed my life

A chance encounter with a 70's vinyl recording of legendary Macedonian bagpipe player Pece Atanasovski changed Linsey Pollak's life at the tender age of 22. His love of Macedonian traditional music and the music of the Macedonian Roma brought him to Macedonia to learn the craft of making, playing and appreciating every aspect of the age old styles. This inspiration would later lead Linsey to form The Balkanics, a recording band in Queensland, as well as develop a 50 year old musical association with Macedonian Dance Ensemble Ilinden in NSW.

Linsey Pollak playing a Macedonian gajda (bagpipe). Source: linsey Pollak