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Orkestar Zirkonium

by Orkestar Zirkonium

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1.
Heavy the Foreign Land 02:34
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2.
Hot Coals 03:24
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3.
Solo Tapan 04:13
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4.
Bury Your Dead 03:54
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5.
The Mimbo 04:27
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6.
Rusasca de la Buzdug
7.
Guillotine 05:34
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8.
A New Light 04:03
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9.
Aase Hechchagide
10.
Zece Prajini 03:34
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11.
The Purge 02:47
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12.
Nekemtenemmutogatol Oro

about

Orkestar Zirkonium is a Balkan-inspired mobile brass-and-drum band cast through an American lens. Our repertoire includes songs on loan from Eastern Europe's phenomenal brass band tradition, as well as a number of original compositions.

EVOLUTION

Orkestar Zirkonium was founded by a core group of Seattle musicians in 2003, and has over the years accumulated over a dozen members, hailing from diverse projects including Circus Contraption, the Infernal Noise Brigade, the Degenerate Art Ensemble, the Fremont Philharmonic, the MTKJ Quartet, and the Anti-Fascist Marching Band. The band plays in a variety of incarnations and lineups; the versatile percussion section includes bass drum, snare, dumbek, and percussion instruments such as cymbals, tambourine, and qarqabats.

INFLUENCES

The raucous, celebratory Balkan music that inspires us originated among the working-class factory towns and Roma encampments of southeastern Europe, including countries comprising the former Yugoslavia. Orkestar means "band" in several Slavic and Romance languages, and "Zirkonium" (the low-cost diamond substitute) is in reference to our fundamental fakery: Sadly, no one in the group actually hails from the Balkans.

We borrow from the greats of the current Balkan music scene, including Romania's Fanfare Ciocarlia, Macedonia's Kocani Orkestar, Serbia's Boban Markovic Orkestar, Hungary's Besho Drom, and Yugoslavia's Goran Bregovic. We are also influenced by Bollywood, Middle Eastern, and klezmer traditions. Our repertoire is roughly 2/3 borrowed and 1/3 original.

ESCAPADES

As a marching band, our desire is to facilitate joyous musical spectacles in unexpected locales. Our performances range from the completely unsanctioned to the civically sponsored: We maraud through grocery stores, throw dance parties in fountains and parks, and take over parties as surprise (and, sometimes, invited) guests; we burst uninvited into taverns, play for families at city festivals, provide the soundtrack for underground casinos, and entertain wedding-goers.

credits

released May 14, 2008

Samantha Boshnack, trumpet
Sari Breznau, percussion
Donn Cave, baritone saxophone
Colin Ernst, trombone
Kevin Hinshaw, clarinet
Paul Kikuchi, percussion
Stephen Lohrentz, trumpet
Ted Lockery, trumpet
Matt Manges, drums
Anne Mathews, bass drum
Ivan Molton, alto saxophone
Jerry Neufeld-Kaiser, tuba
Whitney Neufeld-Kaiser, alto horn
Jeff Walker, trombone

Recorded by Doug Haire at Jack Straw Studios, Seattle. Produced by Paul Kikuchi, Ivan Molton, and Orkestar Zirkonium. Mastered by Barry Corliss at Masterworks, Seattle. Design by Anne Mathews. Printed at Stumptown Printers, Portland. Cover photos by Steven R. Arntson and R. Kent Wenger. Interior photo by Espressobuzz.

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Orkestar Zirkonium Seattle, Washington

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