Archives: 2009
International Sessions for Teens and Adults
Bosnia
January 24, 2009;
We're very sorry, but we've had to cancel this session.
Village Harmony is pleased to host its third camp in Bosnia and Hercegovina. Bosnia is a country of great natural beauty, with high rock mountains, deep canyons and breathtaking waterfalls with an enduring treasury of traditional arts. Since the devastating war in the early 1990’s Bosnia has made enormous strides in reconstruction and reconciliation.
Our first two camps there were great successes.
Like last year, the rehearsal week of camp will take place in the central Bosnian town of Bugojno about 100 kilometers from Sarajevo. Bugojno is an ethnically mixed town of 60,000 on the Vrbas River. It is surrounded by stunning forests and mountains. We will stay at the Youth Hotel Karalinka, about 1 kilometer from town in a beautiful, forested location. We will work with a local choir and folklore ensemble, make excursions in the area and present our first concert there. From there we will travel to several other towns for joint concerts with local choirs or folk ensembles.
Some other likely towns for concerts are Jajce, Travnik and a final concert
in Sarajevo as part of a month long arts festival that is held there every year. We also intend to do some concerts in villages - including Prusac -
an ancient Islamic pilgrimage site and the village of Guca Gora - where
we will have the chance to participate in the agricultural work of the village
and sing for and with the villagers..
Mary Cay Brass spent two and a half years in the former Yugoslavia on a Fulbright Scholarship in ethnomusicology. She has published two book/ CD collections of music from that region. Tijana Vignavic is an awardwinning conductor from Sarajevo who specializes in the traditional citysongs of old Bosnia. Branka Vidovic, an ethnomusicologist from Sarajevo who leads the Music Academy’s Ethno Choir, will be our instructor for this repertoire. We will also study sacred music from all of Bosnia’s religious traditions with Maja Budimir, a singer and with the Sarajevo-based inter-religious choir Pontanima, which performs the music of the Jewish, Orthodox, Catholic and Islamic traditions of Bosnia. We hope to invite a dance choreographer to teach traditional dances from Bosnia and the Balkans.
Rehearsal week in Bougojno, Bosnia
Tuition: $1,350
Testimonials
"The Village Harmony camp in Bosnia was an amazing experience. I had been singing Balkan music for some time and thought I had a pretty good idea of what it is about, but...seeing the landscape, the cities and villages, and the music performed in a more or less traditional setting gave me a much fuller understanding of the importance of it in the society. The teachers we had - Tijana, Maja, Branka and Mary Cay - provided a wonderful balance - teaching us music from various traditions and helping us understand the culture and history from which they derive. We had other teachers - from the strawberry pickers and imam in Bugojno to the accordion wizard in Visoko, the priest in Sarajevo and the general in Boracko - who provided lessons in music, culture, history and humanity. The home stays were an important aspect of the camp, giving us very individual interactions with families that we would not have otherwise."
"The Bosnia Music camp is a most enriching experience. Mary Cay and the Bosnia choral organizers have put together a cultural music immersion experience that will be with me for the rest of my life. The country contains great beauty. The people are humble and welcoming. The music is rich with history, tradition and diversity. We made friendships. We sang a lot, and, looking back, it practically seemed like we were singing all the time! This camp experience is one not to miss, I would go again in a heartbeat."
Chris Miksic
Plainfield, Vermont
"Village Harmony camp in Bosnia was an experience that opened up my heart and mind in so many ways. Inspiring, dynamic leaders not only taught us a variety of Bosnian music, but about that music, and we had the opportunity to meet Bosnians who sang and loved the music we were learning. Bosnia is a beautiful, ancient country whose citizens continue to work on healing and reconciliation, and music is part of that healing. My Bosnian experience and learning was joyful, rich, unexpected and inspiring!"
Leaders
MARY CAY BRASS of Putney, VT Mary Cay Brass is a veteran of the early days of VH. She directs several community choirs in Vermont and Massachusetts and is the co-musical director of Hallowell Hospice Choir. Mary Cay is also a highly-sought after contra-dance keyboardist and accordion player. She spent two and a half years in the former Yugoslavia on a Fulbright Scholarship in ethnomusicology. She has published two book/CD collections of music from that region. Recently, she has led two very successful Village Harmony camps in Bosnia.
TIJANA VIGNJEVIC studied conducting at the Music Academy in Sarajevo. She started singing in choir when she was ten years old. In 1997, she began working as a conductor with the female vocal ensemble Corona – an a cappella group that sings the traditional music of the Balkans. She also works as a high school orchestra teacher in Sarajevo. Her orchestra and choir have won awards at music competitions in Bosnia and Herzegovina. She worked with us at our first two Bosnia camps and co-led a teen camp in the US in 2007. Tijana will be organizing this coming summer’s trip to Bosnia, and will teach a mix of Bosnian, Croatian and Macedonian repertoire.
Karalinka Youth Hostel
Bugojno, Bosnia
The Karalinka Youth Hostel is located on the road linking Bugojno with Split, about 1 mile from the center of the town. On a plateau in the midst of a pine forrest, the hostel offers comfortable lodging, a large meeting/seminar hall, a fitness club and swimming pool, summer gardens and sports fields, and a hunter’s lodge (for “photo-hunting”),
ensuring a perfect stay for groups or individuals. http://www.karalinka.com/index_en.html