There are many exciting things on the immediate horizon. Here are the top three:

1. Zozulka will be singing from 8-8:30 PM in the Atrium at this bonanza of a Golden Festival next Saturday, January 19th at The Grand Prospect Hall, the most ostentatious Brooklyn hall of all.

2. I am very pleased to be leading a graduate seminar on “Musical Exoticisms of the Former Soviet Union” at Columbia University this spring semester, where I am a Jacyk Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Harriman Institute. The course is open to graduate students and advanced undergraduates (and recommended especially for students in Ethno/musicology, Anthropology, and Slavic Studies).

In this course, we explore musical discourses of “civilization” and “barbarism” with a focus on examples from Ukraine, Russia, and Central Asia. The historical scope of the class includes key moments since the 18th century through the present day: from Catherine II’s southward expansion into the territories of the Ukrainian Kozaks and the Crimean Khanate, through the era of romantic nationalism on the eastern borders of Austro-Hungary, through Soviet discourses of musical “progress,” to the changing social and political landscapes of music in the post-Soviet era, to modern political discourses of indigenous rights.

The course will meet once a week, on Thursdays from 10:10AM-12PM, starting on Jan. 24. Please contact me if you are interested in more information on the course. maria.sonevytsky@gmail.com

3. The Debutante Hour will make our grand return to Brooklyn on Thursday, February 7th at the coziest spot in town, Barbes. This show happens to fall on my birthday, and will feature mystery guest musicians, new songs, and possibly some baked goods.