MEET THE BAND

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Pine Wilson
Band leader / Accordion, tupan, doumbek
Pine's love of Balkan music grew out of her 20-year experience with Eastern European folk dance. The soulful melodies and quirky asymmetric rhythms of the dance tunes inspired her to move from the horizontal keyboard of her piano background to the vertical keys, buttons, and bellows of the ethnic squeezebox. A musical sojourn in Bulgaria and Greece, and studies with an Albanian accordionist planted her firmly in the soil of Balkan traditional music where she has sprouted with a bouquet of colorful
and dedicated players.
Ann Streufert
Violin, viola, flute, percussion
Ann Streufert first began playing the violin in 4th grade so she could go to the annual "Strings Roller Skating Party". After studying classically until midway through college, she became an orchestra dropout when folk tunes caught her ear. Ann has been a member of the American Swedish Institute Spelmanslag of Minneapolis, MN, a strolling minstrel for the Renaissance Festival in Shakopee, MN, a player of Scandinavian double fiddle tunes, and a member of the wannabee band "Wishing for Banjos". A speech-language pathologist so she can keep eating, she can also teach you how to say, "I want more pie", with perfect articulation.
Elizabeth Finanger
Mandolin, guitar, percussion
 Elizabeth's love of rhythmic and melodic expression brought her together with the mandolin...and now Maritza. Growing up in a family that had an occasional jam session after dinner, she has maintained a passion for music by singing and playing various stringed instruments. It was when her father traded in a hammer dulcimer for the mandolin that Elizabeth swiped the latter and has been playing it to her heart's delight ever since. The I.O.U is still hanging on the fridge.

Erik Berg
Drum set, percussion
Erik Berg has also been playing percussion practically non-stop since high school, and that's a looooonnggg time. Erik has performed with a wide variety of bands in a drumming career spanning over three decades. A pioneer rock musician in Iowa, Erik was a member of the cutting edge group called "The Dogs," based in Decorah. He and his musical colleagues were recently inducted into the Iowa Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame. (Congrats, Erik!).
Hannah Breckbill
Double bass
Hannah Breckbill, a recent addition to the northeast Iowa music scene, plays bass for Maritza. She picked up jazz bass in the eighth grade, because jazz band was way cooler than orchestra where she had been playing violin, and has been with it ever since. While her bass playing background is firmly rooted in jazz, she has played with a variety of groups, ranging from country cover bands to tango orchestras to Maritza. Hannah is an organic vegetable farmer when she's not playing music or writing to her representatives.


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For further information, email us!
Standard mail: Maritza, 1388 Big Bluestem Rd., Decorah, IA 52101. Phone: 563.382.3119.

Updated 5 Feb 2012