Mary Hofer Farris
Mary was on a long hiatus from playing after quitting the conservatory…until one spring day in 1996, when a clarinetist came into the music store where she was working and played a tsamiko. The angels must be from Epirus, because from that moment the hiatus was over. A founding member of Bay Area Balkan bands Voluta Vox, Top Dog Run, and Late Cift, Mary first delved into Bulgarian and Macedonian music, being temporarily sidetracked by West African music and finally finishing that pesky classical degree. She went on to play saxophone and clarinet with the wildly popular Brass Menažeri for six years before leaving the band late in 2008 to study Turkish music and to devote her energy to the Helladelics.
Michele Simon
Michele fell in love with Balkan folk music at age 15 and has never recovered. After a 20-year acting career, she has spent the last 20 years as a vocalist and drummer with a variety of Balkan music groups including Kitka Women's Vocal Ensemble, and the dance bands Anoush, Orkestar Sali and Zabava! Izvorno. She is a founding and current member of Brass Menažeri (http://www.brass.menazeri.com/). She has studied with native-born musicians in the USA as well as in Bulgaria, where she has appeared on Bulgarian National Television. She is a popular singing teacher at West Coast music workshops and camps.
Gari Hegedus
Gari plays violin, viola and a variety of stringed instruments from Greece and Turkey including lauoto, oud, saz and hand drums. Gari plays in the duo Teslim with violinist Kaila Flexer, and performs with world music group Stellamara (www.stellamarra.com) and Persian vocalist Hamed Nikpay (www.hamednikpay.com). He has studied with oud master Naseer Shamma and has recorded and performed with Ross Daly. He has toured with the Mevlevi Dervish (Sufi) Order of America and continues to participate in Turkish ceremonial and devotional gatherings around the country.
Tom Farris
