Živio Biographies by Last Name

Živio Biographies by Last Name

Mike Adams- Mike has been with the band for over 10 years. He plays a Kaval: this is a Bulgarian shepherd’s flute, which is wooden and requires that the player blow on a simple hole at the end, a technique that takes a great deal of skill and practice. He also plays a Brac, a Serbo-Croatian Tamburitza instrument.

Don Beckwith- Don has been with the band for over 7 years. He plays a Prim, a Serbo-Croatian Tamburitza instrument, and a Bulgarian Tambura, a guitar-like instrument.

Andy Bishop- Andy moved to Utah in 2008, but didn't discover the local folkdancing community until early 2011. He came to a folkdance party, and began rehearsing with Zivio within a few weeks. Andy particularly enjoys the culture of folkdancing and brings that enthusiasm to every dance he does.

Crystal Boatright- Crystal took a folkdancing class at Weber State College in the fall semester of 2010, and one of their assignments was to experience folkdance in a real setting. To fulfill this requirement, Crystal came to a folkdance party in Salt Lake City in early 2011, and was immediately recruited by the Zivio members in attendance. She was in her first Zivio performance a few months later, and in her words "has enjoyed every minute of it".

Karen Bradakis- Karen has been with the band and the dancers for over 20 years. She plays Tupan, which is a Bulgarian two-headed goat skin drum, dumbek, a small ceramic drum, and bugaria, a rhythm Tamburitza instrument (not to be confused with "Bulgaria").

Ann Kelly- Ann sees Zivio as her adoptive family; when she first moved to Salt Lake City, the group (then called Folkdance Underground) took her in and acted as her support base. She joined the group as a performer shortly thereafter. They trained her in Balkan singing, and she has done vocals with them ever since. Ann was part of Živio's Hungary tour.

Elli Miller- Elli grew up with folkdancing, and in fact attended her first folkdance party when she was 1 day old. Elli began performing with Zivio in 2007-2008, then took a year off to complete part of her college education outside Salt Lake City. When she moved back into town in 2009, Elli rejoined the group and has been performing ever since. If anyone asks her about her favorite part of being in Zivio, she replies that she just loves performing.

Michael Miller- Michael attended band practices for most of his life, largely because he was accompanying his mother, Sarah. But when he was about 8, seeing an accordion player interested him in making music. His subsequent lessons introduced him to the accordion, the piano, and the clarinet. For a time, Michael played with the band on the Kaval, a challenging wind instrument, the Prim, a Serbo-Croatian Tamburitza instrument, and the Tambura, which is a guitar-like instrument. In 2008, he began to perform with the dancers.

Sarah Miller- Sarah, who began as both a dancer and a singer, was one of the founding members of the group. Eventually she decided to concentrate on vocals, which is where she remains today. Her introduction to folk music and dance actually began through Irish dancing: there, she met another current member of the band named Jim Stringfellow, who introduced her to Balkan singing and dancing. She was with the group during both international tours to Poland and Hungary.

Shireen Mooers- Shireen joined Zivio in the fall of 2001. She plays the accordion and penny whistle. She also ran the Folk Music Center in Holladay, which provided folk dance studio space, classes, and acoustic music lessons (mandolin, accordion, guitar). Shireen loves difficult parts and beautiful folk melodies.

Pam Poulson- Pam has been with the band for over 10 years. She plays the bass and provides a few sound effects during select songs.

Brynne Pulsipher- Brynne became introduced to folkdance at a party in early 2011 when Crystal, another Zivio dancer, wanted some company for a folkdancing assignment. Brynne began attending rehearsals the very next week and performed for the first time in April 2011. Brynne says that she loves being part of something unique that has both a sense of purpose and a sense of family.

Ernest Randa- Ernest, known as Ernie, joined Živio in 1981. He began folk dancing with recreational dancing in 1978 and attended a workshop in Bellingham from the Western Washington University in 1979. He performed briefly with Narodna in the mid 1980’s. He also was a part of the first and only performance of the English Muffin Folk Dancers in 1983, and sang with the Balkan singing group Darena from 2004-2007. When Živio was known as the Folkdance Underground, Ernie was a part of the original board of directors.

Jan Root- Jan has been with the band for over 10 years and currently serves as Živio’s Music Director. She plays a Prim (a Serbo-Croatian Tamburitza instrument), a Macedonian Tambura, and a Gudulka, which is a Bulgarian bowed instrument with 13 strings. In addition to all of this, she is the primary vocalist.

Jim Stringfellow- Jim has been a dancer and singer with the group for over 25 years. He currently plays the Bazouki, which is a Greek stringed instrument, and sings vocals.

Penny Vandermolen- Penny began her performing career with Hopa International from 1996-1999, and has been a performing member of Živio Ethnic Arts Ensemble since 2003. Penny also sang with a Balkan group called Darena (2004-2007). Although no longer the youngest dancer, she still holds the record of being the youngest- 12 years old- at the time of joining.

Phyllis Vandermolen- Phyllis began performing as a member of Mandala Folkdance Ensemble, a semi-professional folk dance group in Boston, Massachusetts, from 1979-1982. Later, she founded and directed a folk dance company called Hopa International (1996-1999), which specifically targeted school-age audiences. In that same time period she became the president of the folk dance club in Oak Ridge, Tennessee (1998-1999), and team-taught a folk dance workshop in Beaumont Elementary School in Knoxville, Tennessee with Bob Grimmik. She also taught folk dance to a variety of audiences, from adult classes to elementary school children. Phyllis joined Živio Ethnic Arts Ensemble in 2001 and acted as Secretary from 2005-2010.

Roy Vandermolen- Roy began performing in 1980, when he joined Mandala Folkdance Ensemble in Boston. During his time with the semi-professional folk dance group, until 1983, he performed dances from around the world, including

Bulgaria

Poland

Israel

, and many, many more. Roy became a member of Živio Ethnic Arts Ensemble in 2002.

Sara Vandermolen- Sara began to dance recreationally in 1995, and performed with Hopa International from 1996-1999. She taught folk dance classes at Bryant Middle School in Salt Lake City from 2004-2007. Sara joined Živio Ethnic Arts Ensemble in 2001 and was elected to the position of Secretary in 2003. She was elected General Director in the October of 2005, the youngest to ever hold that position (19 yrs).

Sara Wright- Sara began dancing with Živio in January of 2008. She's been dancing much longer than that, however, since both of her parents performed with Zivio during its earlier days. Sara grew up going to folkdance parties and watching others dance in big performances- now it's finally her turn! She also has experience in Irish dance, Modern, and has taken piano lessons for over 10 years. Sara became Zivio's General Director in 2010.

Karen Zinner- Karen has been a member of Živio Ethnic Arts Ensemble since 1983, and has traveled to Eastern Europe to attend international folk festivals with Živio three times, in 1985, 1987 and 1989. She has held numerous positions within the organization, among which are General Director and Director of Utah Slavia, a Slavic ethnic festival with over 1,000 attendees each year for a number of years. Karen has been dancing recreationally since 1976 and has taught outreach programs and recreational groups for over ten years.