Showing posts with label gypsy music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gypsy music. Show all posts

Wednesday, 5 December 2012

Krasa


KRASA ~ a name made from the Slavic roots of words for beautiful, the colour red, delight, fiery, alive, dazzling... (and which possibly ever so slightly brings to mind a certain anarcho-punk band?!). 
This is the new little trio that I'm playing in (and our business card, which I've just designed). You might find us these days on Devon street corners in red outfits busking for coins in the cold December sun. We'll be performing alongside esteemed musical comrades at the Feast of Fools, of course, but you can come and see us play for free next Thursday December 13th at the Sandy Park Inn, from 7.30pm. 

Here we are playing at a party last week... we all look rather serious and engrossed in getting the notes right, and there are people talking in the background (about accordions and morris minors and drinking too much, amongst other things!), but it gives you a taste.
These are two Klezmer tunes: Freilechs noch der KhupePapirossen.
Lisa Rowe is on fiddle, Tim Heming is on clarinet and bass, and that's me on accordion. Thanks to Pete Montanez for the video.
I'm still battling the excruciating performance nerves; it's a strange combination of wholeheartedly loving and wanting to play this music and simultaneously finding doing it in front of people terrifying. Strangely this is only when it's an "official" gig - I feel quite at home playing round a fire and thoroughly enjoy busking; perhaps I shall always remain a vagabond. But I forge on through the fear nonetheless, so come along to the pub and cheer us on if you're free next Thursday and live nearby.


Tuesday, 1 January 2008

A day of firsts

TODAY, this first day of the year I sold the first copy of Telling Stories to the Trees on etsy, and I received my first ever royalties! They were for my front cover illustration for the lovely series of Gypsy Music books written by Gundula Gruen and published by Spartan Press.

A collection of 63 gypsy tunes from Eastern Europe and the Balkans, collected and arranged for fiddle, Bb & C instruments with chord symbols. The CD was recorded live by Gundula Gruen (violin) and Zivorad Nikolic (accordion). Countries represented include Russia, Hungary, Romania, Ex-Yugoslavia, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Romany Tunes and some Virtuoso gypsy pieces to finish. Difficulty level ranges from easy to advanced!

Order them here!: