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Heartland Harmony
Heartland Harmony
ZEDASHE ENSEMBLE
Workshop: 9/11 1-4 PM
Supra: 9/11 6 PM
Nature Nooks Viroqua WI
ZEDASHE is coming to Wisconsin!
Please join us for a once in a life time opportunity to sing, toast, listen, and dine with a renowned Georgian folk ensemble in the rolling hills of SW Wisconsin! Zedashe will be visiting the area on a rare US tour from their home in Khakheti Georgia this September, and giving us 3 events that are each well worth a trip and disrupting your work or school week for.
Zedashe will give an evening concert on Tuesday September 10 at Cappella Performing Arts in La Crosse, WI, and on Wednesday the 11th, they will lead a Workshop in traditional Georgian polyphonic singing just outside of Viroqua, followed by a Supra - traditional Georgian feast - featuring regional cuisines prepared by ensemble director and chef Ketevan Mindorashvili, along with a full evening of mind-bending musical and dance performance throughout the meal.
Read on for Details and Registration.
DETAILS
CONCERT:
Tuesday September 10 • 7:00 PM • Doors 6:30
Cappella Performing Arts, La Crosse
Tickets: $20 Suggested Donation
WORKSHOP:
Wednesday September 11 • 1 - 4 PM
Nature Nooks Retreat, Viroqua
Tickets: $75
Join us for an unforgettable afternoon of singing traditional Georgian polyphonic songs collected by the Zedashe ensemble in the mountainous villages of Georgia for the last 3 decades. Singers will learn under the expert instruction of Ketevan Mindorashvili and other Zedashe members. Space is limited for this opportunity to experience this music in a comfortable participatory setting, so sign up soon!
SUPRA:
Wednesday September 11 • 6 PM
Nature Nooks Retreat, Viroqua
Tickets: $50
There is a reason Georgian Supras have a place in the World's Intangible Cultural Heritage List as an essential form of human connection and communication.
A Supra usually consists of a many-course feast and unending pours of homemade wine. A toastmaster punctuates and weaves the guests and evening together with themed toasts to the group - Love, Land, Ancestors, Children, Death, and on and on. All participants are invited to join the spontaneous toasting on these themes throughout the evening as inspiration arises.
A Supra is an ancient tool for expressing generosity, happiness, respect, grief, and gratitude communally, all while reveling in the very best elements of traditional culture - singing, dance, amazing food, and giving blessings at the table.
As the eating and drinking drums on, moments of music and dance erupt from the musicians at the table, inspired by peaks in the energy, particularly beautiful toasts, and the ever increasing affects of the wine as the night goes on.
Chef Ketevan will be serving up 6 different traditional Georgian dishes for dinner, and Zedashe will be giving performances throughout the meal. The dinner comes with 2 glasses of wine per plate, and does not include participatory group singing.
Space is extremely limited, and priority is given to choir members.
ABOUT ZEDASHE
Zedashe Ensemble is a polyphonic vocal choir and dance group based in the eastern medieval fortress city of Sighnaghi, Caucasus Georgia. It is one of the few mixed (male and female) choirs in Georgia that is led by women. Directed by Ketevan Mindorashvili, the ensemble was founded in the mid-1990’s to sing polyphonic chants, unique to Georgia, that were largely lost during the Communist era. The complex three-part melodies date back to pre-Christian times and comprise music sung for the Orthodox liturgical services. Zedashe’s repertoire also includes folk songs, instrumental melodies and accompanying dances, which were collected from old publications and learned from village song-masters from around the many diverse regions of the country.
The group’s name is taken from the special earthenware jugs – zedashes – that were buried under the family home for the purpose of making wine. The wine made in zedashes was especially for the veneration of ancestors, and the tapping of the zedashe every year carried great ritual significance.
Besides numerous appearances throughout the Republic of Georgia, Zedashe has toured internationally with appearances at major festivals and universities in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Belgium, Latvia, and the United States. In addition to their performances, Zedashe often holds day- to week-long workshops, either connecting with specific local choirs or simply open to those interested in the Georgian culture.
Zedashe’s initial inspiration drew from songs of Kiziqian region, where their hometown Sighnaghi is located. Over the years though they have expanded to also include song and dance traditions of the various regions in Georgia, including Rach’a-Lechkhumi, Guria, Kartli, and Abkhazia. They preserve the unique musical and dance techniques of each region, as well as a variety of instrumental traditions: panduri (Kakhetian lute), chonguri (Gurian lute), ch’iboni (goat-skin bagpipes), accordion, diplipito (drum), and doli (drum).
registration
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