Harmonia
Music from the Heart
of Europe
Contents
Overview
Biography
Instruments
Awards and
Discography
Press Quotes
Workshops
and Residencies
Technical
Requirements
Harmonia
Music from the Heart
of Europe
A multi-cultural group of master musicians from several countries
performing on authentic folk instruments, Harmonia presents the virtuosic and
passionate traditional music of Eastern Europe.
Brilliant. Lush. Dazzling.. raved SingOut! Magazine.
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, their music is their music is drawn from both urban cig‡nyzene
and
rural folk sources of Eastern-Europe. The ensembleÕs performances evoke the
full range of human emotions; interspersing fiery, passionate virtuosity with
soulful melancholy and nostalgic yearning. The six-piece ensemble uses instruments
as varied as accordion, upright bass, violin, panflute, and cimbalom, the
East-European 125 string hammered dulcimer. Capturing the emotion, depth, fire and
passion of Eastern Europe; HarmoniaÕs rhythms move in a heartbeat from mellow
and dissonant to loud and frenzied. The musicians come from varied
East-European backgrounds, finding a common musical language in Harmonia.
Their technical brilliance only adds to HarmoniaÕs breathtaking
performances .dizzying cimbalom solos coupled with soaring violin lines,
haunting flute and accordion solos and soulful vocals are a joy by any
standard. In addition to being polished performers, HarmoniaÕs members are
adept at explaining their music and culture - the ensemble is equally at home
on the concert stage and in academic or workshop settings.
Booking
Contact:
Walt Mahovlich
216-288-8727
2176 West Blvd.
Cleveland, OH 44102
Promotional pictures and
materials available for
download
Harmonia
Biographies:
Walt Mahovlich, Accordion
Walt Mahovlich got his
start as a teenager playing Croatian and Macedonian weddings with traditional
village musicians. He founded Harmonia in 1992.
HeÕs played frequent concert tours of Europe and throughout North
America. A featured artist at the
SmithsonianÕs 1976 Festival of American Folklife, heÕs performed at Smotra
Foklora in Zagreb, as well as in
Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, and Kennedy Center. He made his off-Broadway debut in Tony KushnerÕs A Dybbuk, performing at New YorkÕs Public Theater. Walt appears on many recordings of East
European and Klezmer music. HeÕs
performed with numerous East European and Middle Eastern musical groups and
projects. In addition to Harmonia,
he currently plays clarinet and sax with TurliTava, performing music of
Macedonia and the central Balkans.
Walt studied
ethnomusicology at Sarajevo and produced the UNESCO award winning album, Nova
Domovina: Balkan Slavic Music from the Industrial Midwest. He
worked as a folk music fieldworker and presenter for both the Smithsonian and
the National Council for the Traditional Arts (NCTA). Walt also currently curates the INSIDE World Music concert
series in Cleveland, Ohio.
Alexander
Fedoriouk, Cimbalom
Alexander Fedoriouk
began playing the cimbalom at the age of 7 in Kolomyja, Ukraine. While still in his teens he played
weddings in mountain villages in Ukraine and Moldavia. He studied music at the Kolomyia Music
School, Chernivtsy Musical College and the Kiev State Conservatory and received
awards at the Ukrainian national competition on folk instruments. He has
performed as a soloist with The Odessa Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Cleveland Orchestra. He has
performed for film scores both in the United States and Ukraine. Appearing on numerous recordings,
Alexander was featured on jazz flutist Herbie MannÕs final album, as well as
with avant-garde composer and cellist Erik Friedlander, Nigel Pulsford of Bush and has performed in Carnegie hall with John Cale of
the Velvet Underground.
Beata Begeniova, Vocals
Born in Eastern
Slovakia, Beata Begeniova grew up surrounded by Slovak and Rusyn folk songs
sung by her family. She attended the music school in Prešov and received
her music degree from J. P. Safarik University in Slovakia. While still a student, she was featured
as a soloist on many recordings and radio broadcasts and received numerous awards
in folk song competitions. A featured soloist with the professional Rusyn ensemble Dukla in Prešov, she toured Europe and North America with Šarišan.
Andrei Pidkivka, Folk Flutes
Andrei Pidkivka began
playing the sopilka and other folk
flutes, as a child in his native Ukraine.
Since then, he has become a master of folk wind instruments. Graduating
from the Ukrainian State Academy in Lviv with a major in both folk and
classical music, Andrei began his professional career as principle flutist for
the Ukrainian State Folk Ensemble, Unist and performed with the Lviv
Philharmonic State Symphony Orchestra.
In 1992 he received first prize at the International Music Festival of European
State Folk Ensembles in Vienna.
His talents have brought him to Poland, Germany and the Czech
Republic. AndreiÕs folk flute
playing has also been featured across the country in numerous symphonic
concerts of the music of Lord of the Rings. AndreiÕs extensive fieldwork in Eastern Europe
researching folk flutes formed the basis of his PhD dissertation. He received his doctorate from Michigan
State University in 2005.
Harmonia
Biographies, page 2:
Steven Greenman,
Violin
Steven Greenman is a seasoned performer of Hungarian, Slovak,
Romanian and a wide range of other East European music as well as an
internationally known performer of Klezmer music. Steven has performed for Hungarian and other East European
communities in the United States since 1990. Steven has frequently collaborated with fellow
Clevelanders Alexander Fedoriouk and Walt Mahovlich on East European and
Klezmer musical projects. He has
been a frequent soloist with the Cleveland Pops Orchestra in performances of
his orchestral arrangements of East European Gypsy music. A participant in many classical music
festivals, Steven received his Bachelor of Music and Master of Music Degrees at
the Cleveland Institute of Music. Steven leads the
ensemble Khevrisa and also
performed with such groups as Budowitz, the Flying Bulgar Klezmer Band, and the Klezmatics. An accomplished teacher of traditional
East European Klezmer violin, Steven has served on the faculty of KlezKamp-the annual Yiddish Folk Arts Program and KlezKanada. Steven
is featured on numerous recordings including Khevrisa European Klezmer Music on Smithsonian Folkways and StempenyuÕs Dream a double CD recording of StevenÕs own compositions
which was introduced in at the Jewish Culture Festival in Krakow, Poland.
Branislav
Brinarsky, Bass, Fujara, Gajdice, Vocals
Branislav
ÒBranoÓ Brinarsky began his musical
studies at age six in his home town of Secovce in Zemplin County in Eastern
Slovakia. While at the University
in Košice, he began performing with the Jahodna folk
ensemble playing bass, gajdice, dvojacka and singing.
During his five years with Jahodna, he toured throughout Slovakia,
Europe and Asia. After receiving
his degree at Kosice he moved to the United States in 1998 where he immediately
founded the Slovak Folk Band Pajtaši which he currently leads. Pajtaši has performed throughout the East Coast for numerous
Slovak cultural events and also provides music for Slovak Folk Ensemble
Limbora. Recently, Brano has
branched out collaborating with other East European bands in the tri-state
area. In addition to his folk
music endeavors, he also performs with the Bensen-Scott and Jump Start big
bands in the New York City area.
Harmonia
Music from the Heart
of Europe
Instruments
Harmonia
performs on a wide range of authentic East European folk instruments including:
Cimbalom: The hammered dulcimer of East Europe, It exists in several forms
in Eastern Europe. It was developed into a chromatic, four and a half octave
concert instrument in mid 19th century Hungary by the instrument maker Schunda.
The player can vary the sound by using different kinds of sticks and also by
using pizzicato techniques and harmonics.
Nai, (panflute): An ancient folk instrument, it consists of 25 pipes
joined together, each of which produces one sound.
Sopilka: A
wooden shepherd.s flute with ten holes from Ukraine.
Fujara: A 6-7 foot long, 3 holed, bass
fipple flute from Slovakia.
Tylynka, Tilinc‹ :
A simple folk flute from the Carpathian mountains with neither fipple nor
holes; the player depends on overtones to play melodies.
Drymba: a jaw harp with a free beating metal tongue.
Zozulka: a ceramic, globular flute, similar to the ocarina
Frula, Fluier: a small six-holed shepherd.s flute.
Dvodencivka: a double flute that allows the player to play in harmony.
Taragot, Tarogat—: With a single reed and a conical wooden bore similar
to a wooden soprano saxophone, it is derived from an ancient Hungarian military
instrument.
Gajdice: A double pipe with reeds and and cowhorn bells, with a sound
reminiscent of bagpipes.
Buben: A large, two headed drum topped with a cymbal, played throughout
eastern Europe. The instrument is
a key part of the Ukrainian mountain music called troyista muzyka.
Picture of the instruments
are available at www.harmoniaband.com
Harmonia
Music from the Heart
of Europe
Awards
And
Discography
Awards:
Nominated for
Cleveland Scene 2005 Music Award
Selected as
ClevelandÕs Best Ethnic Band, The Plain Dealer 2004
Nominated for
Best of Cleveland Music Award
Selected for
American Traditions/Global Sounds Program
Discography:
Harmonia:
Music of Eastern Europe Traditional
Crossroads 80702-4313-2
Art of the
Cimbalom Traditional
Crossroads 80702-4314-2
Cimbalom
Traditions Folk Sounds
Records
Ciganska
Krčma: in
a Gypsy CafŽ Folk
Sounds Records
Balkans
without Borders Omnium
Records
Harmonia
Music from the Heart
of Europe
Press Quotes
1 of 2
ÓAt the Goldman Theater, the
Cleveland-based band Harmonia spurred toe tapping and hand clapping with
Eastern European folk music. For more than an hour, Harmonia's virtuosic
musicians spun through melodies and songs from Romania, Ukraine, Croatia and
Slovakia. Using various
combinations of instruments -- violin, accordion, cimbalom (a 250-pound
predecessor of the hammered dulcimer), flutes, string bass and voices --
Harmonia generated music ranging from the pastoral setting of a lonesome
shepherd's flute tune to the rhythmic evocation of a rustic circle dance.
Alexander Fedoriouk hammered his trapezoidal cimbalom with impressive velocity,
while Marko Dreher played his violin with songful passion. Andrei Pidkivka breezed through fast
passages on a number of ethnic flutes, but he was most winning playing
plaintive melodies on the nai, or pan flute, and the tylynka, a long, slender
shepherd's flute with no finger holes. Beata Begeniova sang with much spirit and spunk. Her
cinnamon-flecked alto was as frolicsome in the Gypsy songs on the program as it
was poignant in a traditional wedding song from eastern Slovakia. Walt Mahovlich, who founded the ensemble
in 1992, played his accordion sensitively and kept the audience well informed
about the program's music.Ó
GRACE JEAN, The Washington Post, June 17, 2005
ÒClevelandÕs
Best Ethnic Band: Harmonia The spirited group led by accordionist Walt Mahovlich
specializes in lusty arrangements of East European roots music.Ó
HARVEY PEKAR,
Cleveland Splendor: The Plain DealerÕs Guide to Northeast OhioÕs Best, March 5, 2004
a testimonial
– Ò.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. .ÕObscenely talentedÕ. 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.Ó
CHARLIE BAUM,
Folklore Society of Greater Washington, December, 2001
ÒBrilliant.
Lush. Dazzling. Soulful. All true, but still insufficient to evoke the passion
and exhilaration, the melancholy and triumph, that a Harmonia performance
evokes. Each individual musician is stunningly virtuosic; together, they weave
such a complex layer of richly textured sound that the only thing one can liken
it to is the finest of traditional oriental rugs.Ó
JUDY BARLAS, SingOut!
Magazine, Spring 2001
Ò....I
canÕt express enough my appreciation of Fedoriouk.s remarkable and truly
unusual talent - a talent that is very difficult to find here in the United
States. His mastery of his instrument, the cimbalom, is most refined....Ó
HERBIE MANN,
May 2000
.ÓHarmonia
is a select group of American and Eastern European musicians who blend
Hungarian, Ukrainian, Romanian, and Croatian influences. The seven-piece ensemble
uses instruments as varied as accordion, upright bass, violin, cimbalom, taragot,
and pan flute. Its rhythms move in a heartbeat from mellow and dissonant to
loud and frenzied. Imagine the energy of the Pogues, only with a female singer and
no drummer. Beata Begeniova, from eastern Slovakia, has a voice as beautiful as
her smile. A joy by any standard.Ó
JASON
BRACELIN, Cleveland Scene, July 10, 2002
Harmonia
Music from the Heart
of Europe
Press Quotes
2 of 2
Ò.... they
kicked things off with a short but impressive set of Romanian Gypsy music , ...
allowing [the] sweetly passionate violin to soar. Mahovlich wailed on clarinet
... Things really got cooking when Fedoriouk took hammers to cimbalom. His
fiery playing was jaw-droppingly fast, evoking gasps from the audience.Ó
PEGGY J.
LATKOVICH, The Cleveland Free Times, September 11, 1999
CD Review of Harmonia :Music of Eastern
Europe
(Traditional
Crossroads) ÒHarmonia has been
dazzling audiences in Cleveland and around the world for years with high-energy
performances. They capture that spirit on Music
of Eastern Europe,
a collection of traditional and contemporary songs and dance music from
Bulgaria, Slovakia, Ukraine, Romania, Hungary and all points in between. Anyone
who's seen the band live knows of the virtuosity of violinist Marko Dreher,
cimbalom player Alexander Fedoriouk and flutist Andrei Pidkivka. The addition
of vocalist Beata Begeniova in recent years has taken the sound to a new level.
Her confident voice has power and spaciousness that brings the mountains of
Eastern Europe to the shores of Lake Erie. She gets to show her versatility on
the medley of Gypsy songs that closes out the disc, exploring her lower range and
working passionately phrased lines between Fedoriouk's rolling arpeggios and
Dreher's impeccable trills. Combining the spotless technique of classical music
with Gypsy passion, Harmonia is one of Cleveland's treasures.Ó Selected as one
of the top ten albums of 2003
PEGGY
LATKOVICH The Cleveland Free Times,
December 31, 2003
CD Review
of .Cimbalom Traditions. ÒUkrainian cimbalom master Alexander Fedoriouk is the
featured soloist on the album of rollicking traditional music performed by
Harmonia. ... the musicians sound as wild and free as an authentic Gypsy band.
They dig into melancholy sentiments, improvise expressively on traditional
rubato forms and periodically take off on their own virtuosity. Skillful with
syncopated rhythms and asymmetrical phrases, the players plug into the energy
and excitement of music from a rich variety of Eastern European traditions..Ó
WILMA
SALISBURY, The Cleveland Plain Dealer, May 6, 2001
.ÓHarmonia,
brought haunting resonance to music from a region that has suffered intolerable
atrocities ... violin, accordion and vocalist overflowed with bittersweet sentiments
and proud, folkloric gestures. The musicians captured the heartfelt emotions
with the directness of cabaret players performing for a select audience.Ó
DONALD ROSENBERG,
August 6, 1999 The Cleveland Plain Dealer
Ò....
driving, urban roots music .....Ó
THE KNITTING
FACTORY, January 1997, New York City.
Harmonia
Music from the Heart
of Europe
Residencies and
Workshops
page 1 of 2
Harmonia offers a variety of residencies and workshops, depending
on the audienceÕs interests, level of musicianship, and length of the
workshop/residency. Workshops are available for audiences ranging from general
audiences to elementary schools to graduate music seminars.
I. School workshop on East European music
Target audience: Elementary, Middle School and High
School students Level: Beginning - Intermediate
Harmonia presents an interactive concert: discuss East European
geography, music, instruments, and culture; they also demonstrate various
styles and types of music. The program can be tailored to coordinate with
social studies units, history units or multi-cultural fairs. It can also be
tailored to students participating in instrumental and vocal music programs.
Folk flute demonstrations are particularly interesting to schools with
elementary recorder/song flute programs.
The program is interactive: students participate in singing and dance.
The main topics/activities include:
á Locations of
the countries and their cultural connections;
á Instrument
construction and performance techniques - specifically aimed at kids;
á Performance
experiences in Eastern European countries, with musical selections from each
country;
á Cultural
settings of the music growing up in Eastern Europe and among US immigrant
populations
á Dance - groups
of students are taught traditional dance.
Presented at: Flint City Schools, Flint MI, Iolani School,
Honolulu, Hawaii, Bloomington City Schools, Bloomington, IN, Crestwood High School,
Mantua, OH, Garfield Middle School, Garrettsville, OH, Calsieu Parrish Schools
Lake Charles, LA
II. General lecture-demonstration workshop on East European
Music
Target audience: General audiences to advanced
university
Level: Beginning to Advanced
Harmonia members discuss East European music, instruments, and
culture; they will also demonstrate various styles and types of music.
The main topics include:
á Locations of the
countries and their cultural/political connections;
á Instrument
construction and performance techniques;
á Performance experiences
in Eastern European countries, with musical selections from each country;
á Cultural
settings of the music both in Eastern Europe and among US immigrant
populations;
á Wedding customs
(compared and contrasted) in various Eastern European cultures.
Presented at: University of Michigan, Flint MI, Bismarck
Art & Galleries Association, Bismarck, ND (general audience), Old Songs
Festival, Guilderland, NY, Hiram College, Hiram, OH (University Seminar)
Harmonia
Music from the Heart
of Europe
Residencies and Workshops
page 2 of 2
III. Lecture/demonstration of East European instruments (formal or informal)
Target audience: General (level of detail can vary
depending on audience)
Level: From general audiences to graduate level
Harmonia members talk about and demonstrate a variety of East
European instruments that we use - 7 different types of folk flutes - including
panflute, tilinca, dvodencivka and sopilka
-
as well as cimbalom, violin and accordion. Beata discusses, demonstrates and
contrasts various types of vocal styles from Eastern Europe as part of this. If
appropriate (for Ethnomusicology or acoustics students), we can be very
detailed about the techniques and construction of the instruments. This
workshop can be offered informally (questions from the audience interspersed
with HarmoniaÕs commentary – for younger or general audiences), or as a
more formal classroom lecture.
Presented at: The National Folk Alliance Conference;
The Ohio Music Educators Association, Kent State University, Indiana University
department of Ethnomusicology, McNeese University, Lake Charles, LA
IV. Hands On Folk
Orchestra Workshop
Target audience: Musicians/ music students
(instrumental or vocal)
Level: Intermediate to advanced
A group workshop for musicians in which Harmonia teaches them to
play one or more tunes and put together a band playing our Eastern European
music. We work both in sections and as a group. Appropriate instrumentalists
would include: violin, viola, bass and cello; flute, recorder and clarinet,
soprano sax; accordion, hammered dulcimer or cimbalom as well as
percussionists. As part of this, Harmonia member, Andrei Pidkivka, can teach
the basics of playing tilinca (thatÕs the flute without finger holes that operates
on harmonics) and supply several tilincas for student use.
We can also supply a few sopilkas (recorder-like folk flutes) and a panpipe
for
student use during the workshop. For
a longer residency (three days or longer), we can also supply up to 3 small sized
cimbaloms on which students can learn the fundamentals of the instrument
- (additional shipping costs paid by presenter). We typically teach first by
ear - which develops a sense of styling - and then supply written notes in the
form of a lead sheet and chords. Beata, the groupÕs female vocalist, can teach
one or more songs as part of this kind of workshop, as well.
Presented at: Balkan Music and Dance workshop.
V. Songs of Eastern Europe
Target audience: From interested amateurs to trained
singers
Level: Intermediate to advanced
Beata Begeniova demonstrates and teaches songs of Eastern Europe
with a focus on her native region of eastern Slovakia. Vocal techniques and
styling, as well as the cultural setting of the songs are covered. The level of
detail can be varied with the audience. Often dance is worked into the program
and taught as an accompaniment to ritual song. Other members of Harmonia can accompany
Beata as she teaches. This workshop is available either as a single one-hour
presentation or as an extended multi-session residency culminating in a group
performance.
Presented at: Mendocino Folklore Camp, Mendocino,
CA, Old Songs Festival, Guilderland, NY
VI. Balkan Rhythms
Target audience: Musicians, Dancers, Music Educators
Level: Interested amateurs to advanced university
While western popular and classical music has restricted itself to
duple and triple meter (4/4, 2/4 and ¾), Balkan music uses a wide
variety of unusual meters such as 7/16, 11/8 and 13/16. Walt Mahovlich presents
the unusual and complex rhythms used in south-eastern Europe. The presentation
includes music demonstrations, ways of understanding counting, clapping and
moving to Balkan rhythms.
Presented at: International Dalcroix Conference,
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
Harmonia
Technical requirements
page 1 of 2
Microphone,
Mixer and other Requirements :
1. XLR cable
indicated is for violinist.s clip on mic; it requires phantom power.(We bring
this microphone.)
2. Microphone
for flutes should have a wind screen or pop screen.
3. Microphones
for cimbalom should be on goose necks or booms.
4. Microphone.
for string bass should be on boom or short mic stand as to stand about 2 feet
off ground.
5. As a minimum,
All microphones should at least of the quality of Shure SM58.
6. Shure Sm 58
or Shure Sm57 microphones are preferred, however any brand of good quality
mics, such as Shure, Audio Technica, AKG, high end stage mics, are acceptable.
7. Condenser
mics work particularly well, especially for the Cimbalom.
8. There should
be 2 backless bar type stools on stage for use by accordionist and bassist and
one sturdy music stand (black metal stand preferred, wire stand is not
acceptable.)
9. The mixer
should have reverb or an effects system of some sort.
Mixing
Guidelines:
1. Violin:
Almost
all highs should be rolled off of violin, lows should be turned up slightly
more than middle. Violin should be slightly more than other instruments. Some
reverb should be added.
2. Flutes: Flutes should
be at about the same volume level as violin. Take care that it is not piercing
when in high registers. Flutes should have a medium, or more, amount of reverb;
slightly more reverb than violin. About half of the highs on the flute should
be rolled off. Note that several types of flutes are used and need to be individually
sound checked.
3. Balance:
Violin
and flutes are the main melody instruments; as such, they should be very
present in monitor mix.
4.Vocalist: VocalistÕs mic
should have some highs rolled off with a nice amount of reverb. The style of
singing is more open voice than that of a rock singer. Make sure that the
singer can be heard over the instruments but is not piercing or downing out the
instruments.
5. Cimbalom: Cimbalom
serves as both an accompaniment and solo instrument. The mic on stage left is
for the bass strings and the mic on stage right is for treble strings the
cimbalom should sound warm - not percussive. A small amount of reverb should
help this. Also, rolling off some highs on the treble end and boosting the lows
on the low end should also help make it sound very warm. In general, cimbalom
should be louder than accordion, except when accordion is playing solos. When
the cimbalom is playing solos it should be heard as well as violin or flute.
6. Bass: Bass should
have more bass sound and less bow and string noise. It helps to roll off highs
and some mids and boost lows. Bass should be heard well in monitors.
7. Accordion: Accordion here
primarily plays accompaniment. There should be some accordion in monitor mix but
somewhat less than bass. Accordion should not overpower cimbalom. When
accordionist plays solos, he will move closer to microphone to be heard more.
Harmonia
Sound and Technical
Requirements page 2 of 2: