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“He’s remarkable. He really is.
He gets the kids engaged and it really does fit into the curriculum. He is
living history. I respect him and his work.
It takes a lot of dedication.”
Thane Maynard,
Cincinnati
Zoo
“
Greg has been a wonderful
performer at our Celtic festival and would be a
wonderful addition to anyone else’s festival or event.”
Cindy Matyi and JoAnn
Buck, Artistic Directors of
Cincinnati
Folklife and the
Cincinnati
Celtic and World
Music Festival
“He is one of the most multi-talented men I have ever known. He’s much more
than a performer, he’s a music educator as well as a
performer.”
Carolyn Adams,
Heritage
Village Museum
, Sharonville,
OH
“I liked your performance and I liked your singing. Also you were wonderful and
awesome. I learned a lot about the famous people of
Kentucky
. I hope you come to our school again."
Quentin Daniels,
student
“I wanted to show you how greatly you are appreciated! The students have been
talking about you since you left!
…Keep up the good work. Young people really need to see what you have to
offer.”
Monica Dunn,
Southside Elementary Music
Instructor
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| Greg Jowaisas was once a respectable school teacher. 30
years ago he left this noble profession to follow the call of the wild mountain
banjo and make his infatuation with old time music a full time career. He
never abandoned his role as an educator and returned to schools to teach
unconventional subjects concerning banjos and ballads, Appalachian
culture, traditional dances and tall tales. Much
of the school year Greg Jowaisas presents programs of folk music in public and
private schools across the Midwest. He brings a wide variety of
instruments (10!) to an equally broad content of different programs.
Consistent throughout the many program themes
is Greg's evident reverence and enthusiasm for the songs, stories and tunes that
he shares. In fact, his love for the music is so contagious that most of
his audiences become part of the performance as they join in the singing and
celebration of our common musical heritage.
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| One of his most requested programs is a
"Survey of American Folk Music". During this performance Mr. Jowaisas
covers the four basic food groups of folk music: ballads, work songs,
dance tunes and courting songs. He also showcases his ample skill on
ten traditional instruments in a way that "SING OUT" magazine called
"genuine and masterful!"
His other programs involve Ohio River History, Old
Time Square Dancing and play parties, tall tales and whoppers and a
presentation of traditional and original songs about great American
heroes.
Greg's audiences are not limited exclusively to the
younger set. He has worked in the corporate and community arena
where his humor and motivational stories are well received.
Summers find his as a performer at music festivals and instructional
camps. He has been a headline performer and instructor at Kentucky
Music Weekend, Yellow Banks Dulcimer Festival, Winfield Kansas Folk
Festival, The Cincinnati Appalachian Festival and Storytelling at the
Heritage, Nashville, TN. His recording credits include half a dozen
collaborations and three solo efforts.
One of his favorite venues is the family
concert. Here Greg Jowaisas draws upon his talent as a sincer,
multi-instrumentalist and storyteller to "make the link"
between generations as young and old join in the shared joy, sorrow and
wonder of our history and folk songs.
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