BALKAPALOOZA!

We are thrilled to announce that we will hold our 2007 Balkapalooza! sessions again at Unity Church Unitarian in St. Paul, MN. The dates for this summer's sessions are:

* August 20-26, 9 a.m.-3 p.m.: Intermediate/Advanced session
* August 25-26, 9 a.m.-3 p.m.: Introductory/Exploratory session

Returning students will be happy to see that both sessions have been extended, per your evaluations last year. Thanks for all of your great comments and suggestions; we hope you'll like this year even more!

Visit www.balkapalooza.natalien.com to download this year's brochure and a registration form. Registrations are due August 1, 2007. All registered students will receive a study packed in the mail in early August.

Balkapalooza! provided entertainment during a Mezőségi dance party on Saturday, November 25th in Douglas Padilla's art studio in the California Building, Northeast Minneapolis. B! graduates Abbey Roemer (violin), Eric Ray (kontra, accordion, voice), Henry Wahl (violin), Matt Miller (bass, voice) and Sydney Lafevre (violin, voice) performed a set of ugrós and csárdás music from the Dunátúl region of Hungary. They were joined by faculty members Colleen Bertsch and Natalie Nowytski and the members of the Madison-based Hungarian band "Szászka" Doug Code and Sara Bruins. The advanced students also performed a set of Ciganycsárdás from Mezőkölpényi and the Székely Blessing.

Thanks to Doug Padilla for the use of his inviting, energizing, creative space! http://www.dougieland.com/

Balkapalooza! 2006 advanced graduates performed at Unity Church Unitarian in St. Paul, MN this past Sunday, Novemeber 19, 2006. The following background notes were printed in the bulletin:

Music for Meditation
Ugrós (Hungarian folk): A medley of dance songs from the Dunátúl region.

Cigany Csárdás (Hungarian folk): This series of three csárdás dances come from the village Mezőkölpényi which sits on the border of Mezőség and Székelyföld.

Prelude
Hungarian Suite (IV): by Béla Bartók.

Interlude
Lakodalmi tánc (Hungarian): This dance is traditionally part of a pre-wedding ceremony, during which the bride’s girlfriends dance around her.

Offering
Székelyföld Korcsos (Hungarian folk): We would like to honor our guests from Homoródszentpéter with this korcsos from their home region.

Postlude
Székely Blessing

Bio
Today’s music has been researched and performed by faculty and graduates of BALKAPALOOZA!, an intensive Eastern European music and cultural summer workshop for motivated young musicians ages 12-22. The 2006 program focused on Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, Serbia and Ukraine. BALKAPALOOZA! faculty members Colleen Bertsch (violin, voice) and Natalie Nowytski (voice, bass, flute) are seasoned instructors and performers of Eastern European folk music. In addition to being an accomplished teacher, Colleen is also a student of Vizeli Balázs, lead violinist of the highly acclaimed Budepest-based Hungarian folk ensemble, Téka. Natalie, often called “chameleon voice,” sings in more than 40 different languages and has performed with such luminaries as Peter Ostroushko, Ruth MacKenzie and Garrison Keillor. Although both Colleen and Natalie are classically trained musicians, both women have traveled extensively to study, collect and accurately perform traditional music of Eastern Europe. Joining Colleen and Natalie today are the 2006 BALKAPALOOZA! graduates: Sydney Lefevre (violin, voice), Matt Miller (bass, voice) and Eric Ray (accordion, kontra, voice). BALKAPALOOZA! would like to thank Unity Church Unitarian for partnering with us in our pilot year and making this week-long workshop possible. Information about BALKAPALOOZA! is available in the parish hall after today’s service or by visiting www.balkapalooza.natalien.com/.

This is a great site based in Kosiv, in the heart of Hutsul'shchyna in Western Ukraine. The Ukrainian version of the site has more to it (including photos), but there's lots of interesting info also on the English version.
http://www.kosivart.com/eng/
-Natalie

Thanks to all of the Balkapalooza! graduates and guest specialists who made our pilot year a success! With the amount of interest this has cultivated, we will definitely be holding a session in summer of 2007. Stay tuned!
-Balkapalooza staff

BALKAPALOOZA! is a new hands-on intensive workshop for motivated young musicians in the Twin Cities who:

• are current students of Eastern European folk music who seek a deeper knowledge of these art forms and would like the opportunity to work with guest area specialists to sharpen already strong ensemble skills. (intermediate/advanced level participation recommended)


• are new to Eastern European folk music and would like to gain understanding of the various cultures and basic music techniques. (introduction/exploratory level participation recommended)


• would like to gain more experience in Eastern European-specific ensemble playing. (introduction/exploratory level participation recommended)

Intermediate/advanced level students are invited after a formal assessment by a BALKAPALOOZA! faculty mentor. The workshop runs August 21-25, 2006, from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. for intermediate/advanced. These students also participate in the weekend intensive, August 26-27, 2006, from 1-4 p.m.

Introduction/exploratory level students must already have had previous study of a specific instrument. Ability to read music is helpful, but not mandatory (aural learners will have additional preparatory work). The workshop runs August 26-27, 2006, from 1-4 p.m. for introduction/exploratory students.

Countries of focus for BALKAPALOOZA! 2006 are Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, Serbia and Ukraine.

Register by August 1, 2006, by e-mailing balkapalooza@gmail.com.