Meg York has played woodwinds and percussion for two decades in recitals, orchestras, music theatre, and jazz bands. She also plays klezmer, Middle Eastern, Turkish, and Balkan dance gigs. She toured the U.S. playing flute and percussion with Pablo Rodarte's Dance Espana's "Natividad Flamenca", and Mexico twice playing E flat soprano clarinet with The University of New Mexico Orchestra. She also played in the Albuquerque Philharmonic, the Symphony Orchestra of Albuquerque, Albuquerque Civic Light Opera, and Albuquerque Little Theatre. She directed the Kokopelli Konsort, a woodwind ensemble in New Mexico until 1997. She has a strong background as a classically trained musician equally comfortable in the pit orchestra or on stage in all western classical styles.
Meg has always loved to share her passion for music and movement. She started teaching private lessons in the 1980s and continues to this day. In Albuquerque, New Mexico, she taught at Baum's Music Company for six years, Sombra Del Monte Elementary School band program for two years, and at Hummingbird Music Camp in Jemez Springs, NM, for eight years. In Colorado, she was Music Director at Evergreen Academy for two years, and has mentored at Conifer High, Bear Creek High, Lakewood High, and Kearney Middle School. She has directed a summer seminar for eight years, the Clarinoodle Conference, that brings together students with top Front Range master musicians at the Denver School of the Arts, Denver Folklore Center, and Metro State College. She continues to teach at Evergreen School of Music and out of her Lakewood home.
Meg York also loves playing for dancers: belly dancers, International line dancers, Jewish events, and Society for Creative Anachronisms' events.
Meg leads the hot Eastern European jazz dance band, Veelah, featuring sizzling instrumental solos, tight horn lines and complex rhythms that groove hard. The line up: Jesse Manno, percussion, Dexter Payne, baritone sax, alto sax, and clarinet, Dave Willey, accordion, and Brian Mullins, tuba.
Some other projects include Congregation Beth Evergreen's Klezmorize, a large vintage style klezmorim with multiple horns: David Froman, trumpet, Hal Stein, trombone, Cheri Rubin, keyboards, Jonathan Kaley-Isley, drums, and bass.
The Klez Katz is a leaner group with Michael Mendelson, bass, and Sheldon Sands keyboards. Meg has played with Sheldon in various configurations at the Boulder Jewish Festival for five years. Klez Katz have taken a haitus since Michael moved, but Meg is honored to play with Sheldon's Clueless Goy on occasion. Meg also plays with Ben Cohen's Klez Dispencers.
Meg puts together an annual classical music project. The most recent one included soprano Mandi McKibbin-Ogle, Karissa Swanson, piano, and Emily Bowman, viola in a performance for the International Penwomen's Association 2006 Conference at the Brown Palace in Denver. The group played a song cycle by contemporary composer Winifred Hyson, who recieved lifetime composition awards.
Other groups Meg has played with include:
~Sherefe, a Middle Eastern Fusion, with Jesse Manno and Cameron Powers, oud, bouzouki and vocals, Zahara, percussion, and James Hoskins, cello and gadulka.
~Musical Missions of Peace with Cameron Powers and Kristina Sophia
~Laughing Hands, Celtic-Flamenco:
~Stockton International Dance Camp House Band, in Stockton, California. with Bruce Sagan, violin and gadulka, Lyuben Dossev, kaval, Milen Slavov, accordion, Petur Iliev, percussion and Terry Friedman, guitar.
~Circus Luminos -- a Santa Fe based circus with live pit band, and youth through adult performers.
~Jurjuna, a Turkish Roma style fusion group, which has also played period Ottoman classical music at the Colorado Early Music Fall Festival since 2003. Jurjuna includes Kylie Faint, kanun, and Chahib Halihal, violin, oud and percussion.
~ Colorado Moon Festivals -- a lovely, home grown, weekender up in Gold Hill at the Colorado Mountain Ranch -- bluegrass and contra dance and camping, with kids and a kitchen co op. Good times.
Meg York received a B.A. in clarinet performance from The University of New Mexico with Professor Keith Lemmons.
She also studied flute with Professor Frank Bowen, one of the last living students of Marcel Moyse.
World Master Musician teachers include clarinetists Christos Govetas, George Chittenden, Lefteris Bournas, Souren Baronian, Margot Leveret, oudists Cameron Powers and Haig Manookian, and violinists Beth Cohen, George Lammam.
She's also studied jazz with trumpeter Ron Miles, and clarinetists Eddie Daniels and Rich Chairluce.
Meg lives for the Eastern European Folklife Center's Balkan Music and Dance Camps in Mendocino, California, wonderful weeklong intensive Balkan music workshops in the redwood forests.
She teaches at the Evergreen School of Music, and directed the Clarinet Choir at Conifer High School from 2002-2004. She also mentors at Jefferson County Open School, in Lakewood, and at Kearney Middle School in Commerce City. She maintains a home studio in Lakewood, CO.
Meg York produces the annual Clarinoodle Conference since 1998.
Meg has 2 CD's available:
Opium with Sherefe (2004)and
Veelah: Village Squared (2006)
Also Zakik is available through www.Dr-Roots.com