Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, October 1, 1993 TAG: 9309300156
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: Donna Alvis-Banks
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Kukuruza, the Russian bluegrass band that performed at the Grand Ole Opry in 1991, is back in the United States for a third concert tour. The eight-member band will play for the October segment of First Tuesday Live at the Norwood Room in Radford. The show, which includes a live radio broadcast, runs from 8 to 11 p.m. Tuesday.
Formed in the early '80s in Moscow, Kukuruza (pronounced Coo-coo-roo-za) named the band from the Russian word for "corn." The choice was no accident.
Because the name Kukuruza had a comical connotation, the band was considered a novelty act in the USSR. Otherwise, a band playing country and bluegrass music would have been on shaky socialist soil.
While the musicians were inspired by American artists such as Roy Clark and Doc Watson, they didn't set out to duplicate the American bluegrass and country rock styles. Kukuruza quickly developed a distinctively original sound.
Andrei Shepelev, one of the founding members of the band, writes many of Kukuruza's original tunes. Sometimes referred to as the "Bill Monroe of Russian bluegrass," he's a master on banjo, dobro and guitar.
Irina Surina, the only female in the group, is the lead vocalist. While she sings mostly in Russian, she also performs a few favorites (such as "Gentle River") in English.
Other musicians include fiddler Sergei Mosolov (who's earned the nickname "Pasta Man"), bassist Alexei Aboltynsh, guitarist Mikhail Venikov and percussionist Anatoliy Belchikov. Dimitry Vakhrameev plays a fine banjo and Georgi Palmov plays guitar, clarinet, harmonica and mandolin (actually, an old Gibson mandola). Georgi, also an original member of Kukuruza, is the most fluent English speaker of the group.
Appearing with Kukuruza at the Norwood Room is Ken Farmer and Friends, a group of bluegrass musicians from the New River Valley.
Admission to Tuesday's show is $7. The Norwood Room is at 1115 Norwood St.
\ CLASSICAL AND JAZZ: For John Nilsen, there's a fine line between the two.
Nilsen, who started playing piano when he was 6 years old, likes the structure of classical music and the spontaneity of jazz music. That's why he tries to combine the two.
"I need both," he says. "On some tunes I need to make it fly. If the music's going to work for me, it needs that magic start. But for other tunes, no way. It's got to be as it's written, with the major melodies in place."
Nilsen's latest album (his seventh, by the way) is called "Sometimes Paris," a collection of original works. It was released on the Magic Wing label.
His earlier albums were produced on Guthrie Thomas' label, Eagle Records. Thomas, a well-known guitarist, launched Nilsen's recording career after performing with him. Nilsen recorded "Sea of Inspiration," "Transparencies," "October in September," "Blue Pacific," "From the Sky" and "A Midnight Clear/music of Christmas" on Eagle Records.
Called the "Henry David Thoreau of the piano," Nilsen is known for his laid-back sound.
He will give a concert Saturday night at 9 in Squires Student Center's Old Dominion Ballroom on the Virginia Tech campus. Admission is free.
\ IT'S THE GREAT PUMPKIN FEST, CHARLIE BROWN: Laurel Creek Nursery's annual "Pumpkin Fest" runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.
It's a full day of fall fun with live music, hayrides, pumpkin hunts and pony rides. There's even a haunted house and a magic show to help us get into October's spooky spirit.
Visiting dignitaries include Smokey the Bear and Woodsy Owl. Jugglers will be entertaining throughout the day.
Balloons, door prizes, refreshments? Yes.
Admission? No.
Laurel Creek Nursery is at 2930 Peppers Ferry Road in Christiansburg.
\ IS IT A MUSIC FEST OR A MUSIC FEAST? The Floyd County M.S. Fest, a two-day musical event to benefit multiple sclerosis patient Suzanane O'Connell, is happening this weekend. This is your chance to gorge on some great groups.
Saturday's spread includes music by The Kind, Jim Bush, Visible Shivers, Picasso's Fish and Zookeeper.
And that's just for starters. . . .
Landlord Scott, Travianna Farm, Trespasser's Will, Stickman, Just Another Project and Awakenings will be there, too.
Rock and alternative rock is on the menu Saturday. The bands will play from noon to midnight.
On Sunday, a variety of gospel and classical musicians will perform from 1 to 6 p.m. The lineup includes classical guitarist Chris Miller, The Singing Servants, The Pisqah Quartet, The Harmonizing Crescendos, The Highland Gospel Singers and Christian and Michelle Hoyle. The Rev. Jerry Parr of Bedford is the master of ceremonies.
Admission is free at Sunday's concert, but an offering will be accepted to help with O'Connell's medical expenses. Medical Charities Inc. of Floyd is the sponsor.
Advance tickets for Saturday's blowout are available at Native Cotton, The Record Exchange and D'Rose in Blacksburg. They are $10. Admission at the gate Saturday is $15.
The outdoor event will be held in a field on Conner Road in the Copper Hill section of Floyd County. Signs will direct you to the site.
For more information, call 563-2404, 929-4154 or 342-6965.
\ FROM BLACKSBURG TO THE WHITE HOUSE: The Audubon Quartet has represented Virginia Tech by playing beautiful music all over the world. Soon after it was formed in 1974, the quartet won major international music competitions in France, England and Rio de Janiero.
The group was invited to tour Mainland China in 1982 and was invited by President Carter to play at the White House.
Still, the musicians in the quartet are proudest of their affiliation with Virginia Tech.
"Coming to Virginia Tech has been perhaps the most important thing . . . ," says Thomas Shaw, founder and cellist of the group. "We have built friendships and families here. Our life is in Blacksburg now and I hope we've brought as much joy to the people here as the university and Blacksburg have brought to us."
Shaw's wife, Doris Lederer, is the quartet's violist. David Ehrlich and David Salness are the violinists.
The quartet will observe its 20th anniversary in the summer of 1994. To celebrate the accomplishment, the musicians will present the entire set of Beethoven's string quartets over the next two seasons.
What a treat for us!
The first concerts are this weekend at 8 p.m. Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday in Virginia Tech's Squires Recital Salon.
For this special series, members of the Audubon Quartet will give talks 45 minutes before the performances. Saturday's talk begins at 7:15 and Sunday's at 2:15.
If you haven't gotten tickets yet, you'd better hurry. Saturday's concert is almost sold out, but tickets are available for the Sunday performance. They're on sale now at the ticket office in Squires Student Center. The cost is $7 for adults or $5 for children, students and senior citizens.
by CNB