Fri, January 11th

Fundraiser Honoring Selim Sesler

gypsy TICKETS

Doors 11pm
Show
Advance Price $15
Door Price $15 Suggested Donation

Advanced online ticket sales stop at 5pm on day of show
If available, more tickets are available at door




Selim Sesler is a clarinet player from Turkey very much acclaimed for his musical technique and abilities, both nationally and worldwide, who was named the “Coltrane of the Clarinet” by the Guardian, has been waiting for his turn for a heart transplant for over a year now. Some articles: ForgottenDiaries, Ulusalkanal, Hurriyet 

Come together to support the one of important name of Romani Music!

Selim Sesler was born into a professional reed horn family in 1957 in Kesan, a village located in Edirne. After the population exchanges of 1923, Sesler's family moved from Greece to Turkey and settled in an enclave of Kesan called Ibriktepe where they lived in the Yeni Mescit neighborhood. Selim began his love affair with music by learning how to play the horn, however during the 1960s many children from drum and reed horn families began to play Turkish Classical ensemble instruments and Sesler followed the trend by jumping on the bandwagon and learning how to play the clarinet. Already a regular at weddings and fairs by the age of 14, by the mid-80s Sesler set out with Roman musician friends to play in Istanbul and to develop his craft. He gained experience and recorded a lot of material by playing at restaurants with fasil groups, as a musician at the Ferhan Sensoy Theater, and by continuing to play at Roman and non-Roman weddings. In 1998 he got the chance to tour Canada with Brenna MacCrimmon, which afforded him the opportunity to represent his Turkish Roman and Rumelian roots. Drawing from his medley of musical experiences, Sesler developed a repertoire and musical style deeply reflective of his region. Whether he is among Roman peers or solo, Selim Sesler stands alone, famous for his master improvisations, expert wedding airs, and repertoire of dance melodies. Aside from being invited to play at many important festivals in countries such as Germany, France, and Sweden, over the past two years Sesler has performed many special concerts and taught at music workshops across the United States of America.
 
100% door income of proceeds go to SELIM SESLER
Additionally, DROM will donate 20% of their bar revenue to SELIM SESLER 






Featuring:
NY GYPSY ALL-STARS 



A Greek bassist ducked into a little bar in New York’s Alphabet City and heard the Eastern Mediterranean and Southern Balkans pouring across the packed room. The clarinet was keening and singing, and he knew every tune.

From this blown-away moment of discovery, the New York Gypsy All-Starssprang, uniting bi-musical virtuosi raised on the lush sounds of Macedonian, Greek, Turkish, and American roots and forged in the halls of the world’s best music schools. With composerly ears and a madcap relish for ill and crunky sounds, the quintet of crack musicians tears through the tollgates separating the region’s interlocking roots on the long-awaited album of original pieces, Romantech (Traditional Crossroads) and on tour in February with concerts in cities including Chicago and NYC.
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FRANK LONDON'S
KLEZMER BRASS ALL-STARS



Trumpeter/composer Frank London, a member of the Klezmatics and the Hasidic New Wave, and has performed with a wide range of artists from John Zorn, LaMonte Young to They Might Be Giants and LL Cool J. He is featured on over 100 CDs and  his projects include the folk-opera A Night In The Old Marketplace, Frevo Bombastico and The Brotherhood of the Brass. He was music director for David Byrne and Robert Wilson´s The Knee Plays, taught Jewish music in Canada, and produced CDs for Gypsy legend Esma Redzepova, and Algerian pianist Maurice el Medioni.
Official Website
 


RAYA BRASS BAND



Raya Brass Band (pronounced “RYE ah”) is the sort of brass band that gleefully mashes up the music of Eastern Europe with funky American dance grooves. Featuring odd meters, unusual scales and a fine helping of gorgeous Balkan and Romany (Gypsy) melodies played on reeds, trumpet, accordion, tuba and drums, Raya Brass Band slakes the thirst for something old and new at the same time, unusual and funky, spiritedly played by some of NYC’s finest Balkan folk musicians.

Raya Brass Band draws in both average listeners and Eastern European folk music aficionados alike with its energetic and engaging portable show. As a fully acoustic ensemble, Raya Brass Band can wander freely, bringing a Balkan style dance party everywhere it goes. With members of the band ready to teach basic Balkan dances at the drop of a hat, the audience can choose to listen, learn some new dance steps, or shake everything they’ve got however they like!

Since its inception, Raya Brass Band has thrilled audiences throughout New York City at events ranging from wild parties, Mardi Gras celebrations and large Balkan music festivals to humble community concerts and impromptu “guerilla” shows. By channeling the festive, exciting and spontaneous music of the Balkans, Raya Brass Band brings the organic and joyous experience of the Eastern European village brass band to its own “village” of Brooklyn, NY.
Official Website



ZLATNE USTE



From Kolos to Kusturica, experience the rich sounds of driving Balkan brass. Zlatne Uste (Golden Lips) is an internationally known group of American-born musicians playing traditional music of the Balkans, primarily representing Serbian, Macedonian, Bulgarian and Romany (Gypsy) traditions. Four-time invited guest at the Dragachevo Brass Festival in Gucha, Serbia, the 12-piece band is among the foremost presenters of traditional Balkan dance music in the United States. Each year Zlatne Uste hosts and produces the Golden Festival, New York's biggest and best Balkan music festival with an astounding 40 or more bands and something for everyone.
Official Website