Tag Archives: polyphony

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).

GUERRILLA CAROLLING – SING WITH UKRAINE – SINGING SONGS TO AWAKEN PEOPLE FROM INDIFFERENCE

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For the past 2 weeks we have been interrupting the scheduled programmed events at different Toronto venues to SING…  

.

To sing powerful traditional songs, musically and sonically shaped by the courage and solidarity of a people fighting for survival.

So powerful that you don’t just hear it, your feel the collective strength…

So powerful that it can awaken people from indifference and help recognize the wars and injustices not just in Ukraine but that so many are fighting around the world. 

We are a group of Toronto musicians/artists with connections to Ukraine, collaborating hard to find ways to support those in Ukraine, and developing this extensive list of resources to help navigate this terror.

…

CLICK FOR A LIST OF UPCOMING GUERILLA CAROLLING DATES

I’ve been humbled yet again by a community of mostly women, who reacted and mobilized so quickly to the sudden and unimaginable terror of war that fell on Ukraine two weeks ago.

These women facilitated transportation and lodging for those seeking refuge; advocated and organized services for unfairly treated visible minorities; compiled reliable media and donor agencies for us in the “west;” compiled form letters to government and corporations – to plead for sanction against Russia, to request services be withdrawn from Russia, or to plead for a no-fly-zone; compiled lists of supplies needed from sources in Ukraine and listed local drop-off points here in Toronto; organized a unique Toronto cross-cultural fundraiser…  It was and continues to be an unbelievable whirlwind of chaotic organization, logistics, messaging, google docs and sheet, slack channels… 

But in the midst of all this, these women also took the time to meet up with each other, to sing together, and for others. They sang in local bars and restaurants, like DROM, La Palette and The Pamenar.

They initially sang there to share their grief with audiences they knew, in venues they frequented. And when they sang and shared the traditional Ukrainian songs, they channeled that profound collective memory of courage and strength that Ukrainian people have needed in so many past wars and even genocide.

The power of these collective memories came clearly through these songs and affected audiences in just as profound a way, even to people who have no association with Ukraine. Even when they sang at the Supermarket’s Big Fam Jam, where the creative musical youth of Toronto gather and were ready to party, to celebrate the end of the lock ups, and sing and play their funky hearts out… those youth all stood quietly and listened; and when asked, they all joined in on the drone to accompany the singers. And when the songs were over, they cheered with such enthusiasm and force that it felt Ukraine would be able to withstand anything!  

And just as the songs can express the strength needed to counter the devastation in Ukraine, a unique Toronto cross-cultural fundraiser to amass that strength happened only 2 weeks after the war broke out, on FRIDAY MARCH 11 at the OPERA HOUSE, where we raised over $30,000 for humanitarian aid in Ukraine. For more info please visit www.WithUkraine.ca

By the way there is a long history of music, defiance and war in Ukraine. I will update this article with a few links to find out more in the next couple of weeks.

Sign up to find out about UPCOMING SINGING WORKSHOPS and community singing events and/or visit our workshop page for more info.

WANT TO CONTACT US? Or know of a place or event that’s ripe for some SING WITH UKRAINE guerrilla singing? Please let us know with the form below!

UPCOMING GUERRILLA CAROLLING DATES

Andrea and Jaash

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Presenting a refreshing sound by two seasoned world musicians, Andrea and Jaash feature an extensive repertoire of tunes from diverse musical traditions. Their inspirations are vast, drawing from jazz, roots and other, sometimes obscure musics from around the world. The result is a harmonious blend of melodies, rhythms and musical styles that explore and unravel a sonic story.

While circling each other’s musical orbit for years, Andrea Kuzmich (a specialist in vocal polyphony) and Jaash Singh (a multi-instrument percussionist) finally came together to perform in late 2020. Without a doubt, there were challenges in creating music under the conditions of the pandemic, but this did not stop them to quickly develop an extensive repertoire of tunes from diverse musical traditions. Their inspirations are vast, drawing from jazz, pop, and traditional musics from far off pockets of the world, including Eastern Africa, the northern and central Caucasus, and Turkey. The result is a harmonious blend of melodies, rhythms and musical styles that explore and unravel a sonic story.

Below is a rough mix and edit of video of the Georgian song შენზე ფიქრებს ბედავს გული თავხედი (the heart dares to think of you) in the Georgian language.

Andrea and Jaash’s first performance was in a park – the safe outdoors – and soon after, everything closed up from the threat of covid. So their next collaboration was creating this short EP of festive tune.

They have since performed in actual venues around Toronto. Here’s a video of them from December 1 2021 at Hirut Cafe, performing Ой у лісі лісі – коляда – Oh in the Woods in the Forest, a traditional Ukrainian Christmas carol wrapped up in a jazzy feel.

As an award winning singer, a teacher, an ethnomusicologist, and music facilitator, Andrea has performed in and/or recorded with numerous ensembles and choirs throughout Toronto: from Whitney Smith’s Big Steam Band to the conventional SATB Choir of Trinity-St. Paul’s United Church; from the contemporary improvised new music of the Element Choir and vocals she provided for the soundtracks of The Witch and The Tall Grass, to the traditional folk music of Ori Shalva, Gabo’s Trio, Darbazi, ZARI, Kosa Kolektiv or Kalendar. She has worked and performed with many of Toronto’s finest musicians, including Maryem Tollar, Bernie Senenski, Kevin Malon, Alex Samaras, Christine Duncan, and many others. 

Jaash Singh is a highly sought after percussionist, specializing in live performance, dance accompaniment, studio recordings, theatre and television. He performs in a variety of styles, on a variety of instruments including drum kit, darbuka, tapan, cajon, and more. He is currently active in several projects including the Lemon Bucket Orkestra, Ventanas, and Nomadica, among others. He also works as a tour manager and operations manager for festival and conference presenters BLOK and URGNT.

THE GEORGIANS ARE COMING!

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Don’t miss this very rare & exceptional opportunity to witness a millenia-old singing tradition from one of the world’s smallest & oldest surviving cultures.

People who are in the know are super excited. This sort of visit by 6 Georgians singers from the Didgori Folk Ensemble has never happened before in Canada. According to the long-time World Music Columnist for The Wholenote magazine, Andrew Timar,

It will be a huge moment for Georgian music in Canada, an opportunity that happens perhaps once in a lifetime (Andrew Timar, The Wholenote).

Didgori’s tour starts in Edmonton as part of a classical choral music festival and makes its way eastward. Thanks to co-presenters MusiCamp, Clay & Paper Theatre and Folk Camp Canada, Didgori will have their featured concert in Toronto on June 7 2019, 8 pm at Jeanne Lamon Hall, Trinity St Paul’s Centre (427 Bloor St West). If you’re in Kingston, you also have the opportunity to see them on June 10 12:15 pm, as part of the Choir Festival Series at St George’s Cathedral (270 King St E).

JUST AS IT IS OLD, IT IS HARD TO DEFINE…

No, we are not talking about Georgia in the states. We are talking about the country that is situated in the Caucasian mountains, that borders the Black Sea and shares borders with Russia, Azerbaijan, Armenia and Turkey. It is situated on the cusp of Asia and Europe, and it’s likeness to either is often debated.

Interestingly, there are no migratory myths for the Georgians (whose population is approximately 3.7 million). They are indigenous to the Caucasus. They call themselves Kartveli and their land Sakartvelo. Compared to neighbouring countries (and perhaps due to its mountainous terrain) Georgia is known to have 17 distinct sub-ethnic groups, each boasting its own musical dialect. (More academic info on Georgian Polyphony can be found here.)

Perhaps this is why Georgian traditional music is also hard to define. It is certainly vocal heavy but it seems to meld together all sorts of appealing sonic qualities that makes it amenable to fit into festivals featuring a variety of styles – from classical and early music to middle eastern, to folk, world music and even improvised and contemporary new music! Truth is, the best way to understand the various appeal and the uniqueness of the music is to experience it live, so check out their tour info (Didgori in Canada, Didgori in Toronto) and see if they are performing near you! (You can also follow that link for some sound bites and videos of the ensemble.)

A CHANCE TO SING WITH THEM …

To further the exceptional nature of their visit, they are also hosting workshops where you have the chance to join in on the thousands of voices before you that have contributed to this millennia-old folk tradition. In Toronto, they are hosting 2 workshops:

  • Saturday June 8 5-7 pm at St Vladimir Institute ( 620 Spadina Ave, just S of Harbord)
  • Sunday June 9 11-4pm at MusiCamp Studio (11 Cobourg Ave, near Dufferin Mall)

But there are also workshops being held in Edmonton, Winnipeg and parts of Quebec. For more info, please visit the Didgori in Canada page. And don’t forget to tell everyone:

“THE GEORGIANS ARE COMING”

#TheGeorgiansAreComing

#DidgoriFolkinCanada

 

Didgori in Canada

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The Georgians are coming!
It is a very rare opportunity that 6 members of Didgori will be touring Canada from late May to mid June 2019. The last and only time a choir from Georgia was touring Canada was in the 1970s. This time, Didgori will not just be performing but also hosting singing workshops, with stops in Edmonton, Winnipeg, Toronto, and other parts or Eastern Canada. Scroll down to view their Canadian tour schedule to date.
 
The award winning Didgori ensemble has been performing internationally since 2004 and has toured Russia, Turkey, UK, France, Switzerland, Israel, Poland, Uzbekistan, the Czech Republic and Latvia. Declared an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO in 2001, the millennial old Georgian polyphonic singing tradition, with its close harmonies and untempered scales, is often described as transformatively visceral. It features 3-part singing in a variety of styles, from hauntingly melismatic lyrical genres to exploding counterpoint.

 

Have a listen to a sampler track compiled from Didgori’s most recent CD Singing as a Lifestyle


 

As can be heard from the variety of songs in the above sampler, Didgori are masters of a variety of Georgian musical styles, the wide variety of which reflects the diverse and complex landscape that has housed the Georgian people for thousands of years. Didgori is dedicated to the traditions of their ancestors through mastery and popularization of Georgian polyphonic folk songs and chants, and to the hope that their efforts will inspire future generations. The name, Didgori, honours a historical battle in 1121 that helped reunite Georgia and ushered in a period of growth in arts and culture.
Watch them perform (and even dance!) an Abkhaz round dance in the video above or listen to a performance of a chant in the audio player below.

 

Current Listing of Performances and Workshops

GABO’s TRIO

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GABO’s TRIO is Gabriel Makharashvili, Andrea Kuzmich and Mario Morello. Formerly known as Trio From Canada, they first formed in 2016 to sing at the biennial Symposium on Traditional Polyphony in Georgia, Eurasia. They represented two polyphonic traditions that are practiced in Toronto: Georgian polyphony and Ukrainian ridnyj holos. Towards the end of their 2016 trip, after singing at many Georgian family tables, they started being called Gabo’s Trio. Andrea – an ethnomusicologist and performing musician – and her 10-year-old son, Gabriel, are both part of Ori Shalva (also known as the Makharashvili Family), a singing family that performs Georgian polyphony for private family and calendric events and cameo appearances on stages in Toronto, New York and Georgia. Mario, an ethnomusicologist, Balkan-singing specialist and student of Georgian polyphony, joined Andrea and Gabo to sing songs from the Makharashvili repertoire and elsewhere.

Past Shows of GABO’s TRIO in Toronto 2018!!

Sunday Sept 30 2018 3-5pm Mel Lastman Square Discover Geogia – Cradle of Wine
Sunday Oct 14 2018 2-9pm 8th Annual Ossington Village Alleyway Party
Friday Oct 19 2018 7pm Poetics of Food and Song
Thursday Oct 25 2018 6-9pm Drom Taberna

UPDATE: Since returning from Georgia in the fall of 2018, GABO’sTRIO released a small EP. Check it out:

 
They also have another video from live TV and other moments in pictures we hope to share soon!
 

   
 
During our 2016 trip, we were honoured to be so well received in Georgia…
 
especially to be asked to sing live on Georgian TV…
 
and Georgian Radio.

 
The christening of the name GABO’s TRIO happened in the fall of 2016, towards the end of our trip, at this most hospitable home in celebration of the grape harvest.


 
 

Past Shows of GABO’s TRIO in Toronto 2018!!

Sunday Sept 30 2018 3-5pm Mel Lastman Square Discover Geogia – Cradle of Wine
Sunday Oct 14 2018 2-9pm 8th Annual Ossington Village Alleyway Party
Friday Oct 19 2018 7pm Poetics of Food and Song
Thursday Oct 25 2018 6-9pm Drom Taberna

GABO’s TRIO: heading back to Georgia

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GABO’s TRIO has a new page.

GABO’s TRIO is Gabriel Makharashvili, Andrea Kuzmich and Mario Morello. Formerly known as Trio From Canada, they first formed in 2016 to sing at the biennial Symposium on Traditional Polyphony in Georgia, Eurasia. They represented two polyphonic traditions that are practiced in Toronto: Georgian polyphony and Ukrainian ridnyj holos. Towards the end of their 2016 trip, after singing at many Georgian family tables, they started being called Gabo’s Trio. Andrea – an ethnomusicologist and performing musician – and her 10-year-old son, Gabriel, are both part of the Ori Shalva (also known as the Makharashvili Family), a singing family that performs Georgian polyphony for private family and calendric events and cameo appearances on stages in Toronto, New York and Georgia. Mario, an ethnomusicologist, Balkan-singing specialist and student of Georgian polyphony, joined Andrea and Gabo to sing songs from the Makharashvili repertoire and elsewhere.

Past Shows of GABO’s TRIO in Toronto 2018!!

Sunday Sept 30 2018 3-5pm Mel Lastman Square Discover Geogia – Cradle of Wine
Sunday Oct 14 2018 2-9pm 8th Annual Ossington Village Alleyway Party
Friday Oct 19 2018 7pm Poetics of Food and Song
Thursday Oct 25 2018 6-9pm Drom Taberna

UPDATE: Since returning from Georgia in the fall of 2018, GABO’sTRIO released a small EP. Check it out:

 
They also have another video from live TV and other moments in pictures we hope to share soon!
 

   
 
During our 2016 trip, we were honoured to be so well received in Georgia…
 
especially to be asked to sing live on Georgian TV…
 
and Georgian Radio.

 
The christening of the name GABO’s TRIO happened in the fall of 2016, towards the end of our trip, at this most hospitable home in celebration of the grape harvest.


 
 

Past Shows of GABO’s TRIO in Toronto 2018!!

Sunday Sept 30 2018 3-5pm Mel Lastman Square Discover Geogia – Cradle of Wine
Sunday Oct 14 2018 2-9pm 8th Annual Ossington Village Alleyway Party
Friday Oct 19 2018 7pm Poetics of Food and Song
Thursday Oct 25 2018 6-9pm Drom Taberna

A FOLK OPERA

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ZEMLYA / EARTH:  A Ukrainian Folk Opera 
May 17 8pm $30
St. Vladimir Institute (620 Spadina Ave)

 

ZEMLYA / EART : A Ukrainian Folk Opera

ZEMLYA / EARTH is an innovative interdisciplinary original work that features a contemporary context for the powerful and ancient women’s singing tradition of the Ukraine, a polyphonic tradition that has too often been overlooked – by Western academia and the rest of the world.

Growing up with Ukrainian grandparents, I often heard and sang Sovietized arrangements of folk songs. I always thought they were beautiful but, like most of the world, never thought much of the singing tradition. I only discovered how intense and varied their polyphonic tradition was about four years ago. The remarkable thing is that most people – even musicologists and ethnomusicologists – have no idea about this ancient and powerful tradition. So it gives me great pride to be a part of an innovative approach to presenting the music: a folk opera!

This project was initiated by KALENDAR, a performance singing group that grew out of the Kosa Kolektiv urban folk movement. With grants from the Ontario Arts Council, the Shevchenko Foundation, and the Ukrainian Credit Union, we were able to commission the expertise of ethnomusicologist/musician Marichka Marczyk – who is not only the co-created of the award winning Counting Sheep but has also spent over 15 years collecting songs in the fields of Ukraine and has an incredible ability to teach and share the essence of these songs with us. 

The show will premiere with only a single performance scheduled at St. Vladimir Institute on May 18, 2017. It is my hope that Zemlya‘s presentation of the ancient powerful women’s musical tradition (which involves choreographed movement, traditional dance, and background video) will reveal an ageless purpose of the music and viscerally remind us of the universal relationship humans have with the earth and each other.

For more information visit www.Kalendar.ca or visit KALENDAR’s FB event page.
Tickets can be purchased online from http://zemlya.brownpapertickets.com/
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