Stary Olsa: Early Music of Eastern Europe

Belarusian band Stary Olsa occupies a unique position at the intersections where past
meets present, tradition mingles with innovation, and contemporary creative expression has
demanded the cultivation of skills that date back to the Middle Ages and Renaissance. Much like
their namesake (a wandering brook in the Mahilou region), Stary Olsas path has been full of
twists and turns, and is also deeply and inextricably linked to the traditional culture, history and
music of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (where Belarus was a significant region of cultural and
geopolitical life in the 13th 18th centuries).
In the late 1990s, Zmicier Sasnoski brought together a diverse
group of musicians, some classically trained and some also self-taught,
who encompass a wide range of professions (several music teachers, a
computer programmer, and a professional chef). Like many bands,
Stary Olsas roster shifted until it settled on the current line-up, which
includes: Zmicier Sasnoski (bagpipes, gusli, tromba marina, vocal,
hurdy-gurdy), Maryja aryj (flutes, shawms), Alie umako (vocal,
gusli, cister, rebec, shawms), Illia Kublicki (lute, cisters), Siarhiej
Tapeski (drums, percussion, tromba marina) and Aliaksiej Vojciech
(drums, percussion).
The bands democratic process of choosing the music they play (majority rules) has
served them well as they have recorded twelve albums of traditional Belarusian ballads, martial
songs, and canticles in addition to popular European songs from the Middle Ages and the
Renaissance. Their most current album Medieval Classic Rock, is the result of YouTube
postings of informal rehearsal videos in which band members play their favorite rock tunes.
On February 26, 2016, the band launched a Kickstarter
campaign to raise money for the new album by offering a wide range of
handcrafted projects and individual performances. They reached their
initial goal in one week and then set their sights on a stretch goal to
fund a U.S. tour. By mid-March they had reached the goal and were
planning their trip.
As they travel to the U.S. in August to kick off their first tour of
the states, Stary Olsas aim is to not only introduce U.S. audiences to
the beauty of the Belarusian culture and the richness of its age-old

musical traditions, but also show how much it has in common with modern rock classics as they
bring living history to the stage!