Vashon folk dancing series kicks off June 23

The Village Green will be the scene of a lively concert and participatory folk dance at 6:30 p.m., Monday, June 23. The concert, the first in a summer-long series sponsored by the Vashon Park District and Vashon Folkdancers, will feature the music of Pangéo, a four-member group drawn together by a passion for Greek and Balkan folk music.

June 17, 2008 9:26 pm
The sounds of Pangéo will fill the air at the Village Green in the evening on Monday
The sounds of Pangéo will fill the air at the Village Green in the evening on Monday

The Village Green will be the scene of a lively concert and participatory folk dance at 6:30 p.m., Monday, June 23. The concert, the first in a summer-long series sponsored by the Vashon Park District and Vashon Folkdancers, will feature the music of Pangéo, a four-member group drawn together by a passion for Greek and Balkan folk music.

The band’s repertoire includes ballads from the mountains of Epiros in Greece, lively tunes from the Bulgarian, Yugoslavian and Albanian border areas and Roma dances from the Gypsy quarters in Macedonia. The instrumentation includes clarinet, accordion, guitar, percussion, voices and bouzouki.

Green Man Review calls Pangéo “some of the finest Greek music that you’ll ever have the pleasure to hear.”

Dance instruction, starting at 6:30 p.m., will be led by Islander Martin Koenig.

Future concerts include Bosnian Blues on Monday, June 30, at the Green; the nine-member salsa band Son Café Cabalache on Monday, Aug. 11 at Ober Park; and Mary Sherhart & Balkan Cabaret on Monday, Aug. 18, at Corbin Beach.

All Islanders — dancers and listeners alike — are invited to attend these free, family-friendly events; bring chairs or blankets for seating.