Mark Levy
Mark Levy has made numerous trips to the Balkans (especially Bulgaria and Macedonia), and has performed clarinet; Thracian, Rhodope, Macedonian, and Serbian gajda; and other aerophones with the Aman Folk Ensemble, Pitu Guli, The Balkantones, Slavej, and Kef. Mark created the first week-long Balkan Music & Dance Workshop in 1974, and co-founded the East European Folklife Center in the early 1980s. Mark received M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in ethnomusicology from UCLA. In addition to Balkan folk music, he has strong interests in the musical traditions of India, Indonesia, and sub-Saharan Africa. He recently retired from the faculty of the University of Oregon School of Music and Dance, where he taught courses in ethnomusicology, coordinated a world music concert series, and directed the UO East European Folk Music Ensemble. In his retirement, Mark has been exploring Buddhism, and is currently doing volunteer work as a Court Appointed Special Advocate for abused and neglected children. Mark lives in Eugene, Oregon with his wife Carol Silverman, a cultural anthropologist/folklorist and Balkan singer. Their daughter Nesa Levy teaches at SW Charter School in Portland, Oregon. She is involved with the choir “Sing Portland!”, and is learning Greek santouri.