George CHITTENDEN - plays just about everything

George has been playing Balkan and Near Eastern music since the mid-1970s, having previously become familiar with the music through his experience as a dancer and performer. He has studied music extensively abroad, focusing primarily on regional dance music of northern Greece and Anatolian Turkey. This has included traveling to remote corners of both countries to experience the social celebrations in which music plays such a central role, as well as learning regional styles from both rural and professional musicians. George performs regularly for ethnic communities and for folk music and dance events throughout the country and has toured abroad. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife Lise and plays with two bands; Ziyia and Edessa, known for playing high-energy dance music of the southern Balkans.

Lise began her involvement with Balkan music in 1976 in the vibrant dance scene of the San Francisco Bay Area. She was a member and director of Westwind International Folk Ensemble for many years. At a Balkan music and dance camp Lise first heard the sound of the santouri (Greek hammered dulcimer) and was hooked. She began studying santouri with the Philadelphia-based musician Yiannis Roussos. She and her husband George Chittenden moved to Athens, Greece, where she continued her studies with the master musician Tasos Dhiakogiorgis. Lise plays santouri, accordion, and baglama in the bands Ziyia and Edessa and has toured internationally with the band Rebetiki Parea. She has taught santouri at Balkan music workshops on both the west and east coasts as well as in Hawaii.

Rumen "Sali" SHOPOV / tambura, bouzouki, dumbek, tupan, drum set

Rumen "Sali" Shopov hails from the Turkish Romani (Gypsy) mahala (neighborhood) of Gotse Delchev, a crossroads town in Southwest Bulgaria's Pirin Mountain range, neighboring the borders of Greece and Macedonia. He began his musical career at the age of ten when he joined his uncle's wedding band as a dumbek (goblet) tupan, and barabani (drum set) player. Soon thereafter, he began playing tambura. When he was only thirteen, he won an audition to join the Nevrokopski Ensemble, Bulgaria's first professional national folk ensemble, founded in 1946. At the age of 18 Rumen became the Nevrokopski Ensemble's concertmaster and toured as an ambassador of Bulgarian culture with the group throughout Eastern and Western Europe, the Near East, and Canada for more than 20 years. Simultaneously, Rumen was also a lead member of several of the Pirin region's hottest bands Biljana, Shturo Make and Orkestar Orbita, and an accompanist to a long list of Bulgaria's most popular folk singers. In the fall of 2002, Rumen toured across America with the Kolevera Folk Ensemble. Now residing in the San Francisco Bay Area, he is the leader of Orkestar Sali, a band that captures and showcases the soul of Rumen's native Turkish-Romani/Bulgarian musical tradition.He also performs regularly as a percussionist with Anoush and Edessa, and as an accompanist to the vocal ensemble Kitka.

Hasan ISAKKUT / Kanun, Violin, Vocal, Turkish Ensemble

Hasan presents a stunning instrumental program of original compositions which evoke moods of the Middle East, jazz, new age, and classical music. With his newest recording, Hayat 1 Hayat, the brilliant Turkish musician and composer Hasan Isakkut introduces his dynamic singing style. The CD features both an instrumental and vocal version of his hit “I Love You” which was covered by the famous Turkish diva Muazzez Ersoy and also appeared on the CD compilation Buddha Bar

Murat TEKBILEK / Turkish Percussion

Murat was born into a family of musicians. Since the age of 5, he has studied with his father Omar Faruk and his uncle Ibrahim Turmen (another master musician). Murat became a master darbuka, def, bendir and daire player. He has performed in numerous concerts and camps all over the USA, performing with a variety of Turkish, Greek, and Lebanese musicians. For the past 3 years he has been on tour with his father’s ensemble and has been playing venues in Spain, Italy, Holland, Greece, Turkey, England, Australia, and Russia.

Merita HALILI / Albanian Singing

Merita Halili is one of the favorite Albanian singers. Born in Tirana, she now lives in New Jersey. In her homeland she performed with the most famous musicians including Ensemble "TIRANA". Merita had performances at various national and international festivals ("Festivali i Gjirokastres"). Her career as a singer is full of awards. She is known in Albania as the "Queen of the Albanian songs". When she was sixteen Merita gave her first recital and then she became a "prima singer" in the State Ensemble for Traditional Songs and Dances, which was the most prestigious music institution in Albania. In that period Merita performed regularly at the national TV, radio, and theatre. In 2000 the President of Albania named her "National Ambassador", which is the highest Albanian award for an artist. Today she travels around USA, Europe and Asia.