Boulder, Colorado based Sherefe (pronounced “SheriffA”) takes its name from a Turkish drinking toast that translates as “to your honor.” This passionate group of American musicians plays mostly Turkish, Greek and Arabic music but also Bulgarian and Persian. They are a decidedly Humanist band, who believe music connects us better than governments and militaries. Their repertoire is diverse, and their renditions are authentic but not academic, with lots of room for individual expression to shine through. All singing is done in its original language, intonation, and style, and is surrounded by Bouzouki, Gadulka, Oud, Cello, Bass, saz, clarinet, accordion, Zurna, Santoor, and various percussion.

Sherefe has 30 years of experience playing festivals, weddings, concert halls, private parties, clubs, coffee houses, religious events and academic conferences in Colorado, New Mexico, Wyoming, and California. It’s members have traveled and studied extensively, and are often hired to play whole evenings of specifically Greek or Turkish music, but they also love to perform multiple countries’ songs in one show for dancing and listening audiences. Moods and sub-genres range from reflective to rowdy, depending on who’s dancing and listening.

Sherefe at its smallest is a trio, and at its largest is made up of James Hoskins, Jesse Manno, Julie Lancaster, Dexter Payne, David Hinojosa or Jonathan Kipp on percussion, Beth Quist and Paul Brown. The band has three albums: Sherefe (1998), Opium (2001) and Sala Sala (2010).

www.sherefe.org