Welcome To The Firs Quarerly ALU M N I NE W S L E T T E R Your source for everyhing AMAN; access o music and video archives and downloads, AMAN lore and hisory, news and updaes on alumni evens, ools o keep abreas of he fanasic hings AMAN alumni are doing around he world and opporuniies o reconnec wih far flung colleagues. As we prepare for our h Anniversary celebraion in 2013, his newsleer will be our way o build our lis The AMAN h Anniversary Reunion is being sponsored as a Culural Even by Mendocino Folklore Camp In 2012 Mendocino Folklore Camp will be celebraing is h Anniversary as a nonprofi organizaion dedicaed o inspiring new generaions of passionae folk musicians and dancers hrough heir camps and youh scholarship program. and ensure ha our even will be amazing and memorable. So please, make sure ha we have your correc conac informaion and share he newsleer wih all of your AMAN alumni friends and supporers. We wan o reconnec our vas AMAN family for a once in a lifeime gahering and beyond. In This Issue WINTER 2012 Welcome o he quarerly AMAN Alumni Newsleer Page 1 AMAN s h Anniversary Celebraion Ocober 2013 Page 2 Check ou he New AMAN h Reunion Websie Page 2 Free Song Download from he AMAN Archives Page 3 Fakelore True (and Tall) Tales from he AMAN Sorybook Page 3 Poscards from he Diaspora The laes from AMAN Alumni Page 5 Keep in Touch, Wach Videos and Phoos on he AMAN Facebook Groups Page 5 Links o he AMAN Relaed Page 5 How can you be a par of planning he h Anniversary Celebraion? Page 5 Go phoos or video? Page 5 CLICK ON ANY ITEM IN THIS LISTING TO GO DIRECTLY TO THE LINK
5A5A5A5A As our even grows, so will our websie wih a calendar of evens, hoel and ravel suggesions and relaed links. You will be able o reserve your space a he AMAN h Anniversary Alumni Reunion banque and wingding weekend, wih on-line regisraion and is Paypal click-hrough. Regiser "early-bird" NOW and receive a $25 discoun off he final even package price! You will be able o pre-order a memory CD/DVD of AMAN images, and he commemoraive -shirs for he Aman even (coming laer). And also able o place ads (personal WINTER 2012 Page 2 AMAN s h Anniversary Celebraion Ocober 2013 The high and mighy order of AMAN scholars and he ehnic police me under cover and deermined ha here was no way o pinpoin he acual and exac dae ha AMAN began. Was i he firs collaboraive performance of he Village Dancers and he Friends of Middle Easern Music in 1963? Was i he firs performance under he name AMAN in he summer of 1964? Was i he firs combined rehearsal a he UCLA Women s Gym or was i a he Inernaional Suden Cener? Thus i was deemed ha some ime beween 2013 and 2014 we would be reaching our h Anniversary (and he fall is nice) le s do i in Ocober! So, save he dae & business relaed) in he official "AMAN h Anniversary" banque souvenir program book. On he sie here will be a webpage wih an upload opion so ha you can send us your AMAN phoos o add o he Memory CD/DVD. Or, you can arrange o drop your picures AMAN s h Anniversary Celebraion Thursday Ocober 10 h Sunday Ocober13 h, 2013 Columbus Day Weekend Renaissance Marrio Palm Springs, California USA Three nighs of wall o wall music and dance; food and drink, kafana, panels and discussions on all hings AMAN wander he halls, see who you see. Check ou he new AMAN h Reunion Websie hp://www.aman.com off wih an Alumni voluneer o scan. (We will provide conac info on he sie for ha opion.) We also will be using his sie o compile a maser lis of AMAN Alumni, so click hrough and make sure ha you give us all your curren conac informaion. Don forge o peruse he posed names of AMANies ha we are rying o locae you migh be he only person who knows where hey are hiding. Of course, all conac informaion will be kep privae and will no be used for any purpose oher han o flog you unil you agree o come o he pary.
5A5A5A5A WINTER 2012 Page 3 FREE SO NG & LY RIC S DOWNLOADS TO W H E T Y O U R A PPET I T E, H E R E IS A F R E E D O W N L O A D O F A N AMAN ORC H E ST R A C L A S S I C. In 1970 AMAN hi he sudio for heir firs LP collecion of recordings from Yugoslavia and Greece produced by John Filcich. Wih Doc Siegel, Ed Epsein and Barry Glass on he board, he AMAN Orchesra cu foureen songs including Lepa Anka Kolo Vodi (Beauiful Anka Leads he Kolo), a Podrovina wedding dance from Croaia. On his recording are Andy King, Sewar Mennin, Miamon Miller, John Mundweil, David Pearson, Richard Schneider, Seve Skaggs and Chris Yesea. Pu on your dancing boos, pop a cork on some red wine, keep your knees high and don knock he bole over. Go o hp://www.aman.com o download Lepa Anka Kolo Vodi Lepa Anka Kolo Vodi Lepa Anka kolo vodi, Kolo vodi I govori Alaj su mi oči čarne Oči čarne, usne male. Prey Anka leads he kolo, Leads he kolo and says: Oh wha dark eyes I have, dark eyes and small mouh. Fakelore True (and Tall) Tales from he AMAN Sorybook Confessions of a Tamburiza Groupie by Terri ( Teresa Wong Prizren aka Terri Tunes ) Prizan I d been lisening and dancing o amburiza music for years, bu didn know he dephs of is yugo rock and roll band feel unil I became (scream) a amburiza groupie! I m no quie sure how i sared. I hink one of he guys offered me a piece of candy. And by candy, I mean, invied me o come o a Tamburiza rehearsal. I seemed so innocen, almos educaional, if you will. Bu deep down inside I kinda knew (and acually hoped) ha I was gonna ge ino rouble. And by rouble, I mean ehh, use your imaginaion. Now you have o undersand, hese were he hippes guys in he group, definiely he hippes guys in he room, and possibly he hippes guys in our lile corner of he ehno universe. They didn seem o have o follow he rules, rules ha he res of us dancers were saddled wih. They were hunky, manly men, hey were funny & inellecual (well, some of em, anyway, & you know who you are) and wildly alened musicians. Once I sared hanging ou wih hose guys, i was so much fun and such a oal blas, I insanly fel as if I lef he bookish nerd corner and enered he realm of he cool kids. Bu if you were a serious band aide, you had o know a bi abou he bes amburiza guys from Over There. (I admi, wha I remember abou he grea ones is a lile fuzzy, no doub due in par o also being invied ou back by some of he guys o parake of some of he mos excellen [illici maerial of your choice here] ever. There is a saue of limiaions for any kind of prosecuion, righ?) Anyway, you had o know abou he fa man, Janika Balaž. As wide as he was all, and wih fa subby fingers, i was hard o imagine he guy hiing any individual noes on he prim, he smalles of amburiza insrumens. The prim looked like a iny fake oy resing on he guy s somach. Bu, he guy was a oal maniac viruoso; amazing skills and absoluely wihou quesion sill worh a lisen o oday. The rehearsals were always eneraining and like being a a >>>
5A5A5A5A WINTER 2012 Page 4 Confessions of a Tamburiza Groupie coninued >>> privae concer. Wha girl wouldn wan o be here? The Gaffer, he amazing Rick Schneider, kep everyone in line in his own balle eacher/riding crop sor of way. In addiion o heir awesome insrumenal/ vocal reperoire and ob-ligaory dance unes, hey did incredible versions of some surprisingly nonradiional songs Old MacDonald, Under he Boardwalk, and Hold Tigh (Wan Some Seafood Mama). Bu he mos famous one had o be he Ho Shi Tamburiza s version of he Beach Boys une, Hep Mi Ronda. And hanks in par o he brillian (and luckily for me) sill in circulaion Nify, Official-Looking Tamburiza Songbook pu ogeher by he infamous Chris Yesea, you oo could sing along wih your fav amburiza unes. Bu I go o be here wih hem, and herefore held he ulimae ehno back sage pass. The good good imes coninued when, ou folk dancing, Billy Secre Agen Debelo Duck Burke and I played follow he leader o he boys u šess. (Remember his? Everybody ge up and dance wih your siser because U ŠEST IS BEST! ). Bu anoher good ime was following John Filcich leading a Veliko Kolo. And who could no love he dasardly Snidley Whiplash sounding Sara Baba musical break? I m sorry, bu all ha suff jus did somehing o me, go me righ here, y know? The band was always fun o sing and dance o on sage and i was also fun when hey played for us folk dancers. Bu I hink I preferred hem he mos in Look for he nex AMAN Alumni Reunion Newsleer (Spring 2012) or check he h Reunion websie for reservaion informaion updaes for he big Anniversary Weekend Celebraion, Ocober 10-13, 2013 A he AMAN Decennial Pary, he girls poke a lile fun a he boys: Trudy Israel as Sewar Mennin, Penny Kamen as Chris Yesea, Ann Rowland as Kenny Sojkovich and Leeanne Mennin as Rick Schneider heir naural habia in a bar, of course, afer a concer or a he AMAN insiues, (or Desiues as Dan Rakovich so aply named hem) jus drinking and playing for ips. I s here I really discovered my rue groupie syle. I loved o dress in somehing oo shor, and definiely revealing, oh le s call a spade a spade, somehing sluy and drink and sing along wih hem il all hours of he morning. I closed many an afer pary wih hem and hose are some of my greaes memories. I know you wan o know, cause you all have enquiring minds, bu his groupie s no gonna name names, cause wha happens a Tamburiza rehearsals says a Tamburiza rehearsals. Excep o raise a glass and give a lile oas: (All righ, so I am gonna name names.) Here s o you boys: Rick Schneider, Chris Yesea, Dan Rakovich, Jerry Robin, Andy King, Suar Broman, Larry Modell, Mark Forry, Dave Feeney, Sewar Mennin, Ken Sojkovic, Neil Siegel, and o all y all I inadverenly lef off he lis. And don forge, for a good ime, boys, you can sill call me
5A5A5A5A WINTER 2012 Page 5 Poscards from he Diaspora The Laes from AMAN Alumni CaféAMAN For hose of you who don know, Mady Taylor and Ian Price heroically rescued he AMAN name from obscuriy and have repurposed he Keep in Touch, Wach Videos and Phoos on he AMAN Facebook Groups AMAN spiri and mission ino a monhly gahering in Los Angeles every 2nd Saurday for an evening of oldies bu goodies, familiar classics, curren favories, eaching by members of he folkdance communiy, and ses of live music 7:30 p.m. o 10:30 p.m. (or laer) $10.00 Admission Café AMAN Pacific Ars Cener 10469 Sana Monica Blvd. Wes Los Angeles, California 90025-31 (310) 481-9966 hps://www.facebook.com/ groups/39013161866/ More Links o he AMAN Relaed hp://www.phanomranch.ne/ folkdanc/perform/aman.hm Don miss Dick Oakes' AMAN page AMAN hisory and phoos. hp://www.leonawood.com/works.hm Leona Wood, her painings and he beauiful new book from Aisha Ali, Mardi Rollow and Susan Marshall. hp://www.amazon.com/anhony- Shay/e/B001JRWHIG The laes book from Anhony Shay Dancing Across Borders: he American Fascinaion wih Exoic Dance Forms is available on Amazon. Don forge o join he AMAN Facebook Groups. There are wo: One, he public AMAN Folk Ensemble Group a hp://www.facebook.com/groups/92420925316/ There is already an archive of 2000 phoos and videos onsage and behind he scenes some of you are so old you are in black and whie (you know who you are). Check ou he blog wall and see wha your AMAN pals are up o. Upload your picures o share. Two, he privae AMAN Folk Ensemble Reunion Group a hps://www.facebook.com/profile. php?id=1000028769355&ref=s This privae group page will be your go o for updaes on he acual even in 2013. MORE AMAN VIDEOS AND PHOTOS: No on FB? Check ou he phoos and videos on Myspace a hp://www.myspace.com/ amanworldmusicanddance Ineresed in aending a dance or music camp nex summer? Check ou Mendocino Folklore Camp (MFC) a hp://www.mendocinofolklorecamp.com/. They are he non-profi inernaional folk dance and music camp who are sponsoring/presening our AMAN reunion weekend (hrough alumni Billy & Susie Burke). Our even weekend will also be a fundraiser for hem, wih a small amoun of he proceeds o benefi MFC's youh scholarship fund. The idea is o "pay i forward" o he nex generaion of folk musicians and dancers who aend heir camp each year. Prey cool huh? * * * How Can YOU Be a Par of Planning he h Anniversary Celebraion? To join he AMAN Alumni Commiee wrie o us a amanreunion.2013@gmail.com Go phoos or video? Wrie o us a: phooshare@aman.com