Romanian music in Klezmer repertoire

[Paul M. Gifford <PGIFFORD...>]

I'm curious about the transmission of music from the repertoire of
southern Romanian (i.e., Bucharest) lautari (Gypsy musicians) to
that of klezmorim in Russia.  Some of the klezmorim who recorded
on 78s in the U.S. may have come from Romania, but in any case
there is reason to believe that the music was played in Russia.

A friend of mine, Nicolae Feraru, who's a cimbalom virtuoso from
Bucharest, now living in Chicago, pointed out that most of the doinas
on various klezmer 78s I played for him were Doina oltului----a
southern Romanian (not Moldavian) Gypsy standard.  And there are
others----for example, on a Max Leibowitz record (Orientalishe
melodien, Emerson), there is a southern Gypsy tune included in the
medley.  Although I haven't heard Romanian versions of some of the
3/8 klezmer tunes, they do sound Romanian.

Recently I was in Belarus and heard Romanian music played by the
violinist at the hotel in Mogilev and at a restaurant in Minsk.
The Mogilev violinist was Jewish (I talked to him) and I assume
the one in Minsk was as well.  In Mogilev he played "Ciocarlia"
and the one in Minsk, an old hora.  Incidentally, for their "Jewish"
medleys, both played "Hava Nagila" followed by a standard dance
tune I don't know the name of.

I know that Romanian Gypsy orchestras began to play in Russia in
the reign of Alexander III, and that they played in restaurants in
St. Petersburg, Moscow, and Kiev.  After the 1917 revolution, they
left, some going to Paris and New York, where they played in Russian 
restaurants. This is almost forgotten today. Is this how southern (not 
Moldavian) Romanian Gypsy music entered the klezmer repertoire?  

Paul Gifford