Winter Weekend

Born in California, educated at Princeton University, long-time resident of Vermont and currently living in Chicago, IL, Patty is an energetic, dynamic workshop leader and choral director and is internationally-renowned for her expertise in teaching Corsican, Georgian and South African music. Patty joined VH founder Larry Gordon in co-directing Village Harmony in 1995, and since his passing in 2021 she is now director and CEO.

Over the years Patty spear-headed the expansion of the organization’s reach into the four corners of the globe. Later it was primarily Patty’s vision and labor that shaped VH’s response to the covid epidemic and launched our online programs, which we are carrying on even as we emerge from the isolation of these past few pandemic years.

A native of Asheville NC, Suzannah is a performer, teacher, activist, organizer and community leader. She comes from a family of three generations of traditional Appalachian and British Isles singers, storytellers, artists and dancers

Suzannah has been touring and teaching for the past twenty five years, both in the USA and abroad. She began singing with VH in 1994 and touring with Northern Harmony 1996. One of VH most popular teachers since 2000, she became our acting Board President in 2018 and joined the executive team in 2021.

Founder and director of the Wild Asheville Community Chorus—now under the umbrella of VH—Suzannah was also a founding member of VH alumni group, the Starry Mountain Singers. She is also a member of the traditional music faculty and choir director at Warren Wilson College.

As an activist she leads educational talks, marches in the streets and works with local people, businesses, police officers and politicians though her non-profit Community Roots. She is also a counselor, teacher and organizer with a focus on women and Native liberation within the framework of the international peer-based counseling community, Re-evaluation Counseling.

www.suzannahpark.com

Carl Linich has been studying, singing, and teaching traditional polyphonic folk and liturgical music from Caucasus Georgia since 1990, and has been sharing it with Village Harmony for over two decades. Carl first began learning Georgian songs with The Kartuli Ensemble, and soon went on to form Trio Kavkasia with two other Kartuli Ensemble singers. Trio Kavkasia traveled to Georgia in 1995 and 1997 for extended periods to immerse themselves in the culture, and Carl ended up living in Georgia for about a decade. He has traveled extensively around Georgia, meeting singers, making field recordings, and amassing a tremendous repertoire of songs. He has also worked on many Georgian folk music projects and publications. In recognition of his work to promote and preserve traditional Georgian culture, Carl is a Silver Medal State Laureate of Georgia (1995) and has been awarded the Georgian President's Order of Merit (2009). Since relocating back to the US, Carl has directed The Supruli Choir in New York City, the Bard College Georgian Choir, and his own family trio with his two sons. Carl is also a member of Tenores de Aterùe, a men's quartet devoted to traditional music from Sardinia. Carl holds an MFA (2004) in Music / Vocal Performance from Bennington College in Vermont.