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Hire Mila

Mila Vocal Ensemble
Three Appearances on A Prairie Home Companion
Now Booking for 2008-2009
Click for sound samples

Mila Vocal Ensemble nourishes the human spirit with songs and stories of every day life, collected from the folk traditions of Europe and beyond. With powerful voices, meticulous precision and breathtaking harmonies, Mila will astound your audience, evoking a primal response that is at once transporting and relevant.

What audiences have said about Mila:

"The seven women of Mila pitched yelps and slides into the mix like handfuls of garlic and hot paprika. The Bulgarian sound was thrilling...." – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

"We are enriched and inspired by the splendor of your art, reaching across time and space to transfix us with breath-catching beauty."

"Hearing Mila on Prairie Home Companion so reminded me of first hearing the Bulgarian Women's Chorus in 1954 that I wept for the beauty for your singing and my memories."

"Unbelievably perfect harmony...what passion in your voices!"

"I just listened to your choir's performance on Garrison Keillor's show. Talk about goosebumps! What incredible singers you are! Deeply moving...."

From the Americas to Ukraine, Mila's sound spans generations and crosses cultures. Click on the sound clips below for a taste:

• Begala e Vena (Bulgaria)
• Shen khar venakhi (Georgia)
• Oj khodyt' pokhodyt' misjats' (Ukraine)
• More sokol pije (Bulgaria)
• Oj Savice (Croatia)

Hear more by visiting our buy cds page.

Book Mila

Mila is now accepting 2008-2009 bookings for public, private and corporate events, festivals, workshops, film projects and collaborations. To learn more, e-mail booking@milavocalensemble.com or call 651.894.4032.

Recent projects

Touted as "the best authentic Eastern European vocal ensemble in the U.S.," Mila has had the opportunity to work with world-renowned musicians, music educators and performing ensembles at home and throughout the world. Recent highlights include:

• Theotokos, songs and stories for advent with singer, songwriter, actress Ruth MacKenzie, 2007
• Leb i Sol (With Bread and Salt) CD Release Party with the Niks, SPCO Center, St. Paul, MN, 2007
• Songs for a Summer Day, Mila and the Niks, presented by North Shore Music Association, Grand Marais, MN, 2007
• Soundtrack for Dragonlance, a feature length animated film, recorded at Winterland Studios, Minneapolis, MN, 2007 (released to DVD January 2008)
• Singing the Good Life: A Tribute to Song, with Twin Cities Women's Choir, St. Paul, MN , 2006
• V'Gradinata (To the Garden) CD Release Party, Cowles Conservatory, Walker Arts Center, Minneapolis, MN 2006
• Milwaukee Art Museum, presented by Present Music, Milwaukee, WI 2006
• AOSA Conference, featured performance, Birmingham, AL 2005
• Garrison Keillor's A Prairie Home Companion 2005 (3 appearances, rebroadcast in 2006 and 2007)
• Folk festival spotlight performances in Bulgaria (Koprivshtitsa, Varna, Sofia), Czech Republic (Cerveny Kostelec), France (Oloron-Ste. Marie), Hungary (Szeged), Serbia (Belgrade) and the United States (Minnesota, Wisconsin) ongoing

Please be sure to visit our buy CDs page to hear sound clips.

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