upcoming

The Tamburitzans

What:

CenterArts presents The Tamburitzans on Wednesday, May 26, 2010 at 8 p.m. in the Van Duzer Theatre, HSU. A company of 33, America’s premier folk ensemble presents the music, songs and dances of Eastern Europe and neighboring cultures.  Wherever the Tamburitzans perform, the stage becomes a kaleidoscope of sight and sound. Songs are sung in many languages and dialects. Dancing and fancy footwork is articulated in hundreds of styles. Tickets are $12 general, $7 Senior/Child and $5 HSU students. Tickets are available at the Works in Arcata and Eureka, University Ticket Office at HSU or at centerarts.humboldt.edu.

The Tamburitzans began in 1937 as a musical group of twelve young men who played the tamburitza. Intrigued by the culture surrounding this traditional East European stringed instrument (similar to a mandolin), the group’s founder, Dr. A. Lester Pierce brought his “Slavonic Tamburitza Orchestra” from St. Edward’s University in Austin, Texas to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he garnered support for his ensemble from the multitude of ethnic communities and fraternal societies residing in the culturally diverse city. Equipped with this affirmation of the viability of his ensemble in Pittsburgh, Dr. Pierce negotiated a work scholarship arrangement with Duquesne University, and the Tamburitzans began a spirited tradition heralded as “unique in all the world.”

The Tamburitzans’ numbers have tripled since those early days. The students who comprise the Tamburitzans performing ensemble come from across the country, across the border, and across the sea. Contrary to popular supposition, Tamburitzans performers are not professional; they are college students who receive grant consideration for their participation in the ensemble.

Each Tamburitzans performer is concurrently a full-time student at Duquesne University, studying in the academic field of his or her choice. Tamburitzans students at Duquesne major in everything from Accounting and International Business to Nursing. Attending classes during the week and performing an average of eighty shows from coast to coast on most weekends and breaks during the academic year is a hectic schedule which many college students would find impossible to keep. Yet, the Tamburitzans accomplish this feat with the bravura of seasoned professionals, despite the fact that no performer has tenure with the ensemble for more than four years. And, most admirable, Tamburitzans also achieve academic excellence, placing on the dean’s list often during their unconventionally busy college careers.

When/where: