Category Archives: Content

SONG SCAPING RESIDENCY

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SONG SCAPING is a four month residency at the Tranzac Club of workshops and performances by Andrea Kuzmich, intersecting traditional vocal polyphony, improvisation, and song. The Tranzac Club is located at 292 Brunswick Ave (just S of Bloor St).

THU JAN 19 7-9 PM
COLLIDING WITH KOLIADA

Koliada refers to a Slavic winter carolling tradition, thick in pagan references and gratitude, the practice usually starts in December can continue well into February – singing away those dark and cold winter nights!

7:00-8:15 PM Vocal Workshop learning winter carols
8:30-9:00 PM Performance of Koliada inspired repertoire with a small band AND YOU!!

(Here’s a little audio sample of what you may hear and sing along with)

The workshop will teach 2-3 traditional polyphonic Ukrainian winter carols. The performance then demonstrates how these songs and others are “scaped” into pieces arranged for a small band, consisting of: Andrea Kuzmich on voice & guitar; Alina Kuzma voice; Jaash Singh percussion; Jim Bish tenor sax; Michael Herring on bass; special guests from Kosa Koliadanyky AND YOU!!

SAT FEB 25 5-7 PM
UNCONVENTIONAL LOVE

UNCONVENTIONAL LOVE…will feature 2-3 singer/songwriters presenting their original compositions and arrangements that challenge the conventional love ballad, and offer new “scapes” of the love song.

More info to come…

THU MAR 16 7-9 PM
SPRINGING CAROLS

Vesninanky are Ukrainian spring carols. Many of these are ritualistic and, with their use of interesting vocal techniques and powerful dissonance, represent some of the most archaic layer of Ukrainian polyphony.

7:00-8:15 PM Vocal Workshop learning Vesnyanky (spring carols)
8:30-9:00 PM Performance of vesnyanky-inspired repertoire with a small band AND YOU!! …….more details to come…

SAT APRIL 22 5-7 PM
SCAPING THROUGH TRADITIONAL SONGS

On this last date, the workshop will focus on vocal improvisation, covering some sounding and improv techniques, and how they can be used in rearrangements of traditional polyphonic songs. The performance will feature mostly a capella arrangements of Ukrainian and Georgian songs, including the Sound Stepping Suite, commissioned by Urban Vessel for riverMouth on the Echoes app.

5:00-6:15 PM Vocal Workshop
6:30-7:00 PM Performance with participation from YOU!!

more details to come…

ALL WORKSHOPS AND PERFORMANCES ARE PWYC & TAKE PLACE AT:

THE TRANZAC CLUB, 292 BRUNSWICK AVE (just South of Bloor in Toronto).

MusiCamp at Do West Fest 2022!

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TimeProgram
1:30 PMUkrainian Village Dance Workshop
2:30 PMSing With Ukraine – sing with us
2:50 PMDancing in All Direction – sneak peek for 4 pm
3:00 PMWest African Drum Workshop
4:00 PMDancing in All Direction Dance Workshop
4:45 PMSing With Ukraine – sing with us

1:30 pm Dance Workshop:

Ukrainian Village Dance workshop Featuring Live Music!

2:30 & 4:45 pm Sing With Ukraine.

Come to our workshops – 7pm Thursdays May 26/Jun 2 at Shevchenko Museum (on Bloor just west of Dundas West); and Saturday 10:30 am May 28 at MusiCamp’s backyard. Or join along in our sing-a-long sections on June 4. Click here for more info and to have a listen to and even learn some songs. And more about Sing With Ukraine here.

2:45 pm Dance performance.

4:00 pm Dance Workshop:

Dancing In All Directions Dance Workshop – blending urban & indigenous dance movements to connect mind, body, spirit & emotion.

Fine tune your moves with a lead-up workshop at Lula Lounge Monday May 30 7-8 pm.

3:00 pm West African Drum Workshop:

With Master Drummer Amadou Kienou!! We’ll have drums but feel free to bring your own. Last time someone joined in from their balcony in the neighbouring apartment building!

2021 SPRING BODY PERCUSSION WORKSHOPS

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A fun, physically active, movement and rhythm workshop, and a great workout for the brain…

With workshops for the Ontario Womyn’s Winter Drum Camp and our own zoom classes, we had a great go of winter. But spring is here now, so no matter your level, no matter your experience, we invite you to join us online and make music with your bodies.

Body Percussion Tuesdays!!
Next workshop is TUESDAY MAY 25
and every other Tuesday
7:00-7:45ish PM EST on ZOOM!!

$10-15 for employed, PWYC for underemployed (per Tuesday class)

Sign up with our PAY PAL link (be sure to grab the zoom link when you do) or use our Contact Us Page for more info.

A PHYSICALLY FUN AND ACTIVE WORKSHOP FOR BODY AND BRAIN
These are physically active workshops, where layers of rhythm are overlapped to make some serious groove. A singing component involves vocalizing rhythms as well as singing songs and riffs, sometimes in harmony. With all these layers, we’ll challenge your brain but in such a fun way! Without realizing it, you’ll develop a stronger sense of rhythm but also experience the pure joy of making music solely with your body.
Below is a fun arrangement based on a Ukrainian new year carol.

BEGINNER and INTERMEDIATE
Because we start with simple patterns and build upon them, our workshops accommodate both beginner and intermediate levels. Those who are more adept are given more challenging rhythms to layer on top of a basic rhythm. Alternatively, those challenged by the more demanding rhythms can practice holding the simpler rhythmic pattern. Vocals, like singing or vocalizing rhythms, are another layer that can be added.

IN EACH WORKSHOP: DRILLS, SONGS and ARRANGEMENTS
Each workshop will usually start with drilling some rhythm rudiments to develop and strengthen your technique – all in a fun and accessible way. But within the span of a 2-4 workshops, we’ll also be working on a single arrangement, that way people can take the time to learn the choreography while developing their skill.

For the end of March through April we’ll be working on a piece based on a West African Song called Baga Gine. You can see a bit of the song in the video below, but we’ll also be including a break and something of a coda, the latter which you can hear in the videos below (note, one of them is a funny sped up video from one of our past workshops).

Around the spring of 2014, MusiCamp’s director and founder, Andrea Kuzmich, started exploring ways to use body percussion in our kid’s summer camps. It not only functioned as a pedagogical tool to help with rhythm and arranging, but also heightened the excitement of any song – and really was inspired by Andrea’s interest to instantaneously make a party-like atmosphere, any where, any time, without instruments, but through the body alone!

In the spring of 2019, she was honoured to lead workshops on body percussion at the Ontario Womyn’s Drum Camp. In prep to do so, she started hosting informal body percussion sessions with adults at the MusiCamp studio. These eventually evolved to online workshops in 2020, but…

Since body percussion can be done, outside, and in a socially-distanced responsible way, Andrea will be hosting workshops again outside in Toronto’s West End as soon as the stay at home order lightens. Visit back for more dates and/or let us know if you are interested.

Body Percussion Festival 2018

Body Percussion from our kids’ summer camps

2021 WINTER BODY PERCUSSION WORKSHOPS

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A fun, physically active, movement and rhythm workshop, and a great workout for the brain…


SUNDAY FEBRUARY 7 at 1 PM EST
with the Ontario Womyn’s Winter Drum Camp

AND EVERY OTHER TUESDAY 7-7:45ish PM EST on ZOOM!!
$10-15 for employed, PWYC for underemployed (per Tuesday class)

Sign up with our PAY PAL link or use our Contact Us Page for more info.

Participants in this workshop will be introduced to cool rhythms that can be performed with the body and voice. This is a physically active music workshop, where layers of rhythm are overlapped to make some serious groove. The singing component involves vocalizing rhythms as well as singing songs and riffs, sometimes in harmony. Participants will come out with a stronger sense of rhythm and the pure joy of making music solely your body.

Starting with simple patterns and building upon them, the workshops present material to accommodate varying skills. Those who are more adept are given more challenging rhythms to layer on top of a basic rhythm. Alternatively, those challenged with the more demanding rhythms can practice holding the simpler rhythmic pattern. Vocals, like singing or vocalizing rhythms, are another layer that can be added. A component of drilling certain movements/rhythms will allow some room for individual variation, giving the student more of a chance to express individuality, which in turn makes it more interesting and musically alive!

From 2020 Virtual Drum Camp

Around the spring of 2014, MusiCamp’s director and founder, Andrea Kuzmich, started exploring ways to use body percussion in our kid’s summer camps. It not only functioned as a pedagogical tool to help with rhythm and arranging, but also heightened the excitement of any song – and really was inspired by Andrea’s interest to instantaneously make a party-like atmosphere, any where, any time, without instruments, but through the body alone!

In the spring of 2019, she was honoured to lead workshops on body percussion at the Ontario Womyn’s Drum Camp. In prep to do so, she started hosting informal body percussion sessions with adults at the MusiCamp studio. These eventually evolved to online workshops in 2020, but…

Since body percussion can be done, outside, and in a socially-distanced responsible way, Andrea will be hosting workshops again outside in Toronto’s West End as soon as the stay at home order lightens. Visit back for more dates and/or let us know if you are interested.

Body Percussion Festival 2018

Body Percussion from our kids’ summer camps

Georgian Singing Workshop Online?!?

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Starting February 6!

ONLINE WORKSHOPS via ZOOM
SATURDAYS 2-4 pm EST (7 pm GMT)
Starting February 6th, and
EVERY OTHER SATURDAY AFTER
$20-30 for employed; pwyc for underemployed.

Questions?
A song requests?
Or want to sign up?
Drop us a line or click the PAY PAL button (make sure to enter your email address) and we’ll send you the zoom link.

MusiCamp’s most popular activity is running Georgian singing workshops. We usually run singing workshops in the fall, winter and spring. Our last one started late February 2020 – and after only 2 sessions, the workshop got hijacked by COVID 19 and the new social-distancing measures. Somehow, we transferred these harmony singing workshops to ZOOM and as you can see from the image posted above or the videos below, we were all singing together and, in some inexplicable way, it worked!! Here’s what a few of our participants have to say about it:

Thank you for a wonderful workshop and an opportunity to learn from artists with such integrity, talent and hospitality… The workshops are well structured, easy to follow and very enjoyable. – Merey Ismailova

An enjoyable sharing of interesting songs, singing and music. With a smiley side of open hearts and kindred spirits. – Jan Knoppers

If you want to learn more about how we teach harmonized singing online, please read on. 


VIDEO OF ONLINE GROUP SINGING

HOW DOES SINGING HARMONIES WORK ONLINE?!


The short answer: it doesn’t. There will always be some kind of latency, even with the fastest internet speeds and the most advanced technology.

What makes it work for us is the fact that we are a singing family and have enough people in our household to sing all the harmonies – all three voices are covered on our end. The ZOOM participants actually sing along with us but they mute their mics so that their voices don’t lag and upset the musical form, as you can see in the videos.


VIDEOS OF TEACHING

WORKING ONE-ON-ONE


Like in our studio, we teach the parts individually (see the video above). Participants’ mics still need to be muted for this. But there are times when mics are turned on, so we can have conversations, make a toast (once in a while only), or work one-on-one with individuals to ensure the vocal line is correct, or even work on technique. We actually had a great session a few weeks back working on some distinctive timbral issues and inflections with krimanchuli, a yodelling style in Georgian polyphony.
VIDEO WORKING ONE ON ONE

TEACHING KRIMANCHULI  (Note: audio quality is poor due to the wrong mic settings).

SING-ALONG FEATURE


We even offer the play-along or sing-along feature (trio minus one voice) so that participants can test themselves, make sure they can sing their part alone, and sort of feel what it’s like to fit their voice into the trio. In the video below, the participants can practice the top voice independence with the bass and middle being sung by the workshop leaders.

SING ALONG: TRIO MINUS ONE


WORKSHOPS WILL START AGAIN FEBRUARY 6
Suggested $20-30 for employed; PWYC for under employed

Let us know you are interested through our Contact Us Page or click on the PAY PAL button (make sure to enter you email address) and we’ll send you instructions for installing and running ZOOM and setting up your microphone up to work with musical content (rather than spoken content).

In the meantime, stay safe and healthy and wash your spirit often with music ;) !!

FESTIVE SPIRIT TO SHARE

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hoping to keep spirits up, we’re sharing this free download

Thanks to Jaash Singh on cajon and darbuka for his generosity and inspiration. Also thanks to Stephanie Woloshyn for inspiring the partnership between Jaash and me. 

 
It’s been a challenging season for many. We at MusiCamp had our challenges too, making it harder to share these musical offerings in a more timely way. However, we are of the belief that the festive mood should carry on past the major holiday marks, that we may celebrate not only how the days are  getting longer, or that the earth will sprout again after going through the necessary winter renewal, but also that there is now so much hope with managing the covid pandemic and that we will overcome the challenges together. Please enjoy this tracks with this spirit in mind. 
WISHING YOU AND YOURS, PEACE AND JOY! 

please also enjoy some seasonal videos below…
JINGLE BELLS
MARRY HAD A BABY
WHAT CHILD IS THIS

 

ONLINE BODY PERCUSSION/MUSIC WORKSHOPS

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A fun, physically active, movement and rhythm workshop, and a great workout for the brain…


TUESDAYS 7 PM – 7:45 PM EST (GMT-4 hrs) on Zoom
$10-15 for employed, PWYC for underemployed (per Tuesday class)

Sign up with our PAY PAL link or use our Contact Us Page for more info.
There’s also more info on registering at the bottom of this page. 

Participants in this workshop will be introduced to cool rhythms that can be performed with the body and voice. This is a physically active music workshop, where layers of rhythm are overlapped to make some serious groove. The singing component involves vocalizing rhythms as well as singing songs and riffs, sometimes in harmony. Participants will come out with a stronger sense of rhythm and the pure joy of making music solely your body.

Starting with simple patterns and building upon them, the workshops present material to accommodate varying skills. Those who are more adept are given more challenging rhythms to layer on top of a basic rhythm. Alternatively, those challenged with the more demanding rhythms can practice holding the simpler rhythmic pattern. Vocals, like singing or vocalizing rhythms, are another layer that can be added. A component of drilling certain movements/rhythms will allow some room for individual variation, giving the student more of a chance to express individuality, which in turn makes it more interesting and musically alive!

About 5 years ago, MusiCamp’s director and founder, Andrea Kuzmich, started exploring ways to use body percussion in our kid’s summer camps. It not only functioned as a pedagogical tool to help with rhythm and arranging, but also heightened the excitement of any song – and really was inspired by Andrea’s interest to instantaneously make a party-like atmosphere, any where, any time, without instruments, but through the body alone!

In June 2019 Andrea was honoured to lead workshops on body percussion at the Ontario Womyn’s Drum Camp. Due to Covid-19, the 2020 camp was turned into a Zoom camp, and Andrea lead a Zoom body percussion workshop for over 60 participants. The video below is from that workshop.

With an interest to share and develop these skills more, Andrea will be hosting regular Zoom body percussion workshops on Tuesdays. You can use our Contact Us Page for more info or to arrange payment, or click this PAY PAL link (all sorts of credit cards accepted) to sign up now (make sure you enter your email address) and we’ll send you the zoom link and instructions. 

Body Percussion Festival 2018

ONLINE BODY PERCUSSION/MUSIC WORKSHOPS

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Please visit our UPDATED PAGE for this workshop.  

TUESDAYS 7 PM – 7:45 PM EST (GMT-4 hrs) on Zoom
PWYC for underemployed, suggested $10-15 for employed

Sign up with using our PAY PAL link or use our Contact Us Page for more info.


Drawing on her wealth of experience from running innovative music programs at MusiCamp, Andrea Kuzmich will introduce participants in this workshop to cool rhythms that can be performed with the body and voice. This is a physically active music workshop, where layers and layers of rhythm are overlapped to make some serious groove. The singing component involves vocalizing rhythms as well as singing songs and riffs, sometimes in harmony. Participants will come out with a stronger sense of rhythm and the exceptional experience of creating music together. The material will be presented to accommodate varying skill levels.

Starting with simple patterns and building, the workshops present material to accommodate varying skills. Those who are more adept can be given more challenging rhythms to layer on top of a basic rhythm. Alternatively, those challenged with the more demanding rhythms can practice holding the simpler rhythmic pattern. Vocals, like singing or vocalizing rhythms, are another layer that can be added. A component of drilling certain movements/rhythms will allow some room for individual variation, giving the student more of a chance to express individuality, which in turn may make it more interesting and musically alive!

About 5 years ago, MusiCamp’s director and founder, Andrea Kuzmich, started exploring ways to use body percussion in our kid’s summer camps. It not only functioned as a pedagogical tool to help with rhythm and arranging, but also heightened the excitement of any song – and really was inspired by Andrea’s interest to instantaneously make a party-like atmosphere, any where, any time, without instruments, but through the body alone!

In June 2019 Andrea was honoured to lead workshops on body percussion at the Ontario Womyn’s Drum Camp. Due to Covid-19, the 2020 camp was turned into a Zoom camp, and Andrea lead a Zoom body percussion workshop for over 60 participants.

TO REGISTER
With an interest to share and develop these skills more, Andrea will be hosting more Zoom body percussion workshops. Thursday June 27 is just the first of many. You can use our Contact Us Page for more info or to arrange payment, or click this PAY PAL link (all sorts of credit cards accepted) to sign up now (make sure you enter your email address) and we’ll send you the zoom link and instructions. 

Body Percussion Festival 2018

URGNT LIVE: MAY 8

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SAVE THE DATE!! FRIDAY MAY 8th 7:00 PM.


We were so honoured to get the invitation from our good friend and incredible musician Mark Marczyk (of Lemon Bucket Orkestra). When he first asked us, I don’t think we realized what sort of company we would be associated with or the reach it would have. But looking at the lineup and the list of co-presenters now, we are in awe!

Ori Shalva, our family ensemble, will be streaming at 7:45 PM on May 8. But have a look at the incredibly diverse and exciting lineup of musicians below, many of whom are internationally acclaimed and Juno award winning!  And plan a great evening of great music with URGNT.

And remember, it’s possible and important to support this meaningful cultural work via URGNT’s gofundme campaign.

LIVE STREAM ON MAY 8th 7:00-11:00 PM from:
MusiCamp’s FB page , URGNT or MacCleans.


A bit about URGNT: 

Starting as a livestream series in empty venues created in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, URGNT LIVE, in partnership with Music Together ON and news magazine Maclean’s, quickly adapted to promote social distancing and create a curated platform to present and support the best of TO’s music online. We’re also grateful to the lovely folk at Folk Camp for choosing to cosponsor Ori Shalva!
Past shows can be seen here https://www.urgnt.ca/past. 

MAY 8: SCHEDULE, ARTISTS and CO-PRESENTERS

(Also brought to you by Shopify, Arts & Crafts, and Ontario Live via Ontario Creates)

7pm – Gryphon Trio – Chamberfest
7:20pm – Kobo Town – Northern Lights Festival Boréal
7:45pm – Ori Shalva – Folk Camp
8:20pm – Laila Biali – TD Sunfest
8:40pm – Stewart Goodyear – The Royal Conservatory of Music
9:00pm – Scott Merritt – Hillside Festival
9:20pm- Britta B – Unity
9:45pm – OKAN – Sunfest
10:10 – Meesha Shafi – Small World Music
10:30 – Skratch Bastid – URGNT

6-week Georgian Singing Workshop

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We hope to have the opportunity to cozy up with you in our studio and blend our voices into a warm harmony that will help pass the winter away.
 
A 6 Week Workshop
WEDNESDAY 7-9 PM FEB 19 – APR 1 (skipping Mar 4)
at the MusiCamp studio
$250 for new participants; $200 for repeat students
More info or register by email through our contact page

IMG_1558Under the direction of Shalva Makharashvili and Andrea Kuzmich, MusiCamp will be hosting another Georgian singing workshop. Georgia, is located in the mountainous region of the Caucasus, the crossroads of Europe and Asia. Its ancient singing tradition, known for its distinctive and haunting harmonies, was recognized by UNESCO as an intangible masterpiece of humanity in 2001. The 3-part form defies Western conventions and comes in a plethora of musical dialects, reflecting the diverse geographical and cultural makeup of the land.
 

In this series, we’ll take a look a variety of regional styles and song-types (harvest/work/travel/table/love songs and chants). At the end of the 6 weeks we’ll have a little performance for friends and family… and a little toast – to keep it in the Georgian tradition…
 

 
Georgian-born singer/multi-instrumentalist Shalva Makharashvili and his Toronto-born partner, Andrea Kuzmich are Canada’s foremost experts in Georgian polyphony. Both Shalva and Andrea were featured soloists in Darbazi; founded the award-winning trio ZARI; perform with their family ensemble Ori Shalva; led Georgian workshops and/or have collaborated with many groups in Canada, including VIVA Youth Singers, Aradia Ensemble, UofT Vocal Jazz Ensemble, Young Voices of Toronto and Folk Camp; and have exposed many in Toronto (enthusiastic amateur singers to professional musicians and composers) to the intricacies of Georgian polyphony through regular workshops they lead out of MusiCamp. (Andrea is also an academic (PhD ABD) who has presented and published papers on Georgian music to international audiences.)

To register for the workshop send us an email through the contact us page.

For some samples of Georgian songs have a listen to Shalva’s and Andrea’s trio soundcloud playlist or visit their website ZARI