June 20, 2026: Tamburitza Orchestra Play Along

Description

This powerful music is contagious and accessible. Native to Serbia, Croatia and neighboring regions, it also has had a strong presence in the US for over a century, where pockets of immigrants have kept this joyful culture alive. See our list of links below to learn more.

Please consider joining this orchestra for the day if you play plucked or bowed strings, accordion, or like to sing! These tunes fit well on the traditional tamburica instruments which are tuned in 4ths, but can also be played on mandolins or other plucked strings as well as fiddles of course.

Sheet music will be provided, but many tunes are easy to catch by ear as well. We will make recordings and sheet music available ahead of time for those who want to listen to the music on their own before we meet.

Our Leaders:

Pajdashi (“buddies”, friends) is a Boston-based tamburitza band and chorus. We were founded by a group of local folk-dance enthusiasts in the early 2002 and have since performed at many festivals, camps, New England Friends of Croatia events, weddings and folk-dance venues in and around Boston, New York and Connecticut. The name Pajdashi fits our large, inclusive group particularly well. We are good friends and get together to share singing and making music together followed by culinary pleasures, stories, and laughs, so it is no accident that we are known as the local “Croatian Singing and Supper Society” in local folk dancing circles. Also, we have recorded and produced 2 CDs – U Kolo and Naše Selo. We relish any opportunity to start up a drmeš or a waltz and before you know it, someone calls “U Kolo” (let’s dance!) – the dancers join hands and the fun begins!

 

Inspired by the Tamburitza Hall of Famers we learned from, Tamburitsa Troubadors come together when we can to play Serbian and Croatian tamburitza music on original instruments, in the style of groups like the Balkan Serenaders.

Schedule:

2:00-3:30 PM: Session I

3:45-5:15 PM: Session II

5:30-6:00 PM: Review

6:30 PM: Dinner

After Dinner: Short concert, then dancing!
(Afternoon participants will be invited to play on the dance tunes learned in the afternoon)

Links for more info:

The History of the Tamburitza
The Tamburica Instrument Family
Tamburitza Association of America
Tamburitza! Hot String Band Music: From the Balkans to America 1910-1950
From Wikipedia – Tamburica

Youtube:

Bob Wallace visits a traditional tamburitza music practice session