Bulgarian Folk Singing Workshop with Tzvetanka Varimezova Saturday, May 26, 1-4 PM Musically Minded Academy 5776 Broadway, Oakland, CA $25 per person-Register Online Join us for a lecture-demonstration by Bulgarian folk song master Tzvetanka Varimezova and her Alliance for California Traditional Arts Apprentice Elizabeth Setzer, followed by a Bulgarian Folk Singing Workshop led by Tzvetanka. All are welcome!

Spring 2012 Something REALLY EXCITING has happened in ‘Kitkastan’! We’ve received a $10,000 East Bay Fund for Artists (EBFA) challenge grant to commission and premiere an evening’s worth of original music created especially for the unique voices of Kitka. Two new works, Iron Shoes and Songs for Everyday Living, will be composed by Kitka’s own in-house vocalists, composers, and musical directors Janet Kutulas and Elizabeth Setzer. We’ll unveil these new creations on International Women’s Day Weekend (March 8-10, 2013) in Uptown Oakland’s beautiful new intimate concert space, the Piedmont Piano Company. Over the years, Kitka has received prestigious grants to commission and/or premiere new works by established and emerging composers including Pauline Oliveros, Chen Yi, David Lang, Richard Einhorn, Linda Tillery, Dan Cantrell, Roy Whelden, Janika Vandervelde, Daniel Hoffman, Mariana Sadovska, and Meredith Monk, among others. Yet, from Kitka’s earliest years, there have been many gifted composer/arrangers within the ensemble who have created compelling original pieces for Kitka that have become audience favorites. Until now, compositions by Kitka singers have been created purely as a labor of love. This EBFA grant marks the first opportunity for Kitka’s own composers to be fairly compensated for their creativity, and for Kitka singers to be paid for the rehearsal time required to bring our ensemble-mates’ work to life. One of the goals of the EBFA is to engage the community in the co-commissioning of important new works of art. The fund will match individual donations of any size on a dollar-to-dollar basis, up to a maximum of $10,000. The EBFA recognizes that it “takes a village” to support the arts in challenging economic times, and that in challenging times, people need powerful art more than ever. Read more >

Please help Kitka raise $10,000 by May 25 to meet a challenge from the East Bay Fund for Artists Kitka Photo: Peter Ellenby Won’t you help us meet this challenge with a tax-deductible gift?