Natasha Borzilova House Concert

I took a break from editing, writing, grading, etc… to join my house concert family in experiencing Natasha Borzilova‘s wonderful music. 

I’m definitely glad I took the break. Natasha’s voice is strong and pure. Susan, one of the house concert hosts, described it as a sterling silver pendant. Natasha is also an amazing guitar player, which is no surprise once you learn she was classically trained from a young age. She was also a member of the band, Bering Strait, from 10-years of age.

I don’t feel I have as much to write about the concert as I should, because honestly, I was pretty tired. I walked into the venue at 3:15-ish drinking coffee: something I never do. But I still want to share some of my experiences with you, and I hope you’ll check out some of the videos and her website!

I did have some favorite songs. “Zip It” was a song about how the music industry wished she would quit saying precisely what she thought about things and tow the line. I was empathetic…

She also sang a few Russian folk songs. They were beautiful. People were swaying in their seats, though I’m pretty sure no one but Natasha understand a word…

I also loved the song about her grandmother. Her grandmother still viewed herself as being the same as she was when she was 25, though she was in an older, more fragile body. I can’t remember the name of the song, but the lyrics were moving. I believe that song is on her new album: Wilder Days.

Before her last song, Natasha thanked us all for being there. She said last year was one of the first that she attended a Folk Alliance conference, and she left the conference feeling very depressed. The main them of the conference was “how do we make money from our art?” Many of the musicians at the conference had to work multiple jobs to make ends meet. Natasha is a yoga instructor. Some musicians give musical lessons. Some wait tables. But few are free to solely work on their craft.

I find this to be tragic, but this phenomenon is also why 1) I enjoy supporting house concerts and 2) I think it’s important to blog about the shows I go to. We need the things that move our soul: art, music, poetry, literature… Not everyone is good at creating those things. We should celebrate and honor those who reflect the good and bad of humanity back at us. Certainly they too should have a living wage… So support independent music! Search out house concerts, or host your own. ConcertsInYourHome.com is a great place to start!

On that note, she ended with her song “Wilder Days.”

In addition to being a talented musician, she also seems to be a talented director. She created and directed the video for the song!

I’m definitely glad I took my musical break and was introduced to Natasha’s music. My apologies that my description of the concert may be a bit lackluster today, but I hope the videos will convince you to check out Natasha’s music and buy some of it. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.