Harmonia (concert) (Special Event)

TAKE THE MOST OUTRAGEOUSLY TALENTED virtuoso soloists you've EVER heard playing Eastern European music: a gypsy violin, flutes and panpipes, and a cimbalom (chromatic hammer dulcimer). Put them together with a driving bass player, and a soulful singer, under the direction of the finest accordion player, and meld them into a tightly disciplined ensemble, and you've got as good a notion of Harmonia as you can imagine without actually hearing them. When you hear them, their infectious and often crooked rhythms will make you need to dance, their soulful renditions of songs and tunes will make you crave to listen harder, and their virtuosity on a fast-paced gypsy tune will leave you astonished.HARMONIA presents the traditional folk music of Eastern Europe, ranging from the Danube to the Carpathians. Its repertoire reflects the cultures of this region: Hungarian, Slovak, Ukrainian, Romanian, Croatian and Gypsy. Performing on authentic folk instruments, and styled after turn of the century East-European Gypsy bands, Harmonia's music is drawn from both the urban and rural traditions of Eastern Europe. The ensemble's performances evoke the full range of human emotions; interspersing brilliant pyrotechnical virtuosity with soulful melancholy and nostalgic yearning. THE MUSICIANS come from varied East-European backgrounds; in Harmonia they have found a common musical language. Whether playing at ethnic weddings, celebrations, or in smoky cafés, this ensemble's members stay close to their roots. Harmonia's music brings to the concert stage the vitality of these traditional settings. HARMONIA CONSISTS OF Marko Dreher - violin; Alexander Fedoriouk - cimbalom; Andrei Pidkivka - sopilka (Ukrainian flute), nai (panflute); Walt Mahovlich - accordion/clarinet; Adam Good - bass; and Beata Begeniova - vocals.Personal review--I'm not usually one to gush, but I first heard Harmonia last June at a festival in New York. I've listened to a lot of great Eastern European music (my specialty), but I was not prepared for the music I heard from Harmonia. 'Obscenely talented' is the best description I can come up with. As jaded as I am from hearing a lot of this stuff, Harmonia made my mouth open speechlessly, and my eyes stare trying to comprehend how the music I was hearing could possibly be produced by mere mortals.--Charlie Baum