The Band in Concert | Ensemble Member Biographies
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GUY MENDILOW
(Director; Vocals, Overtone Singing, Berimbaus, Guitar, Percussion)
A citizen of Israel, Great Britain and the United States, Mendilow spent his most formative years playing hopscotch between continents when his musician-turned-professor father was invited to a succession of teaching posts. From early childhood on, most aspects of Mendilow’s life were a cultural, linguistic and musical mix. He grew up participating in late night song circles and living room concerts with local musicians in his different homes, whether in Jerusalem or Johannesburg and whether the songs were Israeli, South African, English or American. At ten, Mendilow joined the renowned American Boychoir and kept traveling, touring internationally
and domestically and performing some two hundred concerts a year in
venues like Carnegie Hall. Since age fifteen, Mendilow has continued to immerse himself in new cultures, seeking opportunities to learn languages and collaborate with instrument builders and performers. To date, he has lived and performed in South Africa, Israel, Taiwan, Canada, Mexico, Brazil and the United States. He sings in six tongues and is fluent in four. “Mendilow is no dilettante,” writes the Boston Phoenix. “He learned the music of these countries by living and working there — so when he sings about a massacre by paramilitaries in Chiapas, he knows what he’s talking about.”

An educator deeply committed to using musical improvisation as a tool for communication, Mendilow’s innovative workshops, residencies and teacher trainings have led to ongoing collaborations with cutting-edge international social justice organizations like Seeds of Peace, which mediates between Israeli and Palestinian youth, and to invitations to present at schools and conferences across the United States and Brazil. Mendilow holds a Masters in Music and international Dalcroze Eurhythmics certification from the Longy School of Music in Cambridge, MA.

(Photo:Lisa Schaffer)

SHANNON LAMBERT-RYAN
(Vocals, Foot Percussion)
Shannon Lambert-Ryan brings an extensive background with classical and folk traditions to the Guy Mendilow Band. International performance credits include tours in Ireland with the Council Rock Choir and Chamber Ensemble, operetta premieres with the Philadelphia Opera Theatre in Italy, and performances of a holocaust remembrance piece she co-wrote in Poland. Alongside her career as a vocalist, Shannon is an accomplished actor with film credits including M. Night Shyamalan’s The Village and lead roles in such musicals as Oliver! and the new show O Night Divine. She holds a degree in theatre arts and music from Muhlenberg College.
( Photo: Jack Casey)

 

ANDY BERGMAN
(Electric Mbira, clarinet, Jaw Harp, Flutes, Penny-whistle, Saxophones, Percussion)
A key member of the Guy Mendilow Band since 2003, Andy hails from Long Island, NY and has been active in the Boston area music and dance scene since 1993, maintaining a rigorous schedule with Guy Mendilow, the Boston-area dance community, and various theater productions. Andy has studied theory and composition at Boston's Berklee School of Music and the New England Conservatory of Music, and pursues writing in jazz and various world music styles. His compositions may be heard on his website.
(Photo: J. Teddeman Hull)

TOMOKO OMURA
(Violin, Percussion)
Tomoko Omura was born and raised in Shizuoka, Japan. She began playing classical violin at a young age and discovered jazz, rock and a love of improvisation at age eighteen. She received her Bachelor in Music Education from Yokohama National University in Japan. Her passion for jazz and improvisation led her to the U.S. in 2004 to pursue a Diploma in Performance from Boston’s Berklee College of Music. Her teachers have included Hal Crook, Ed Tomassi, Jamey Haddad and Matt Glaser.

 

RICH STEIN
(Cajon, Frame Drums, Percussion)
Percussionist Rich Stein grew up in Virginia Beach, Virginia and began his life-long fascination with percussion at the age of ten. While at the Berklee College of Music he spent most of his time focusing on the traditional drumming styles of West Africa (primarily Ghana), and contemporary frame drumming techniques. Artists with whom Rich has shared the stage or recorded include Lauryn Hill, Lila Downs, Richard Stoltzman, Ustad Sultan Khan, Susana Baca, Clare and the Reasons, Jamey Haddad, Peter Stoltzman, Pharaoh’s Daughter, Joshua Geisler, and Big D and the Kid’s Table. Rich has performed in many of the world’s premiere concert halls and events including the Royal Albert Hall, Carnegie Hall, the Royal Festival Hall, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the United Nations Headquarters, Naradha Gana Sabha, and the Kodak Theater.