Russian American Wedding

In the middle of July 2007 I have received an email from a wedding planner Jeff Hilton from Tennessee. His clients were interested to hire a Russian music and dance group to perform at their wedding in Marietta, Georgia on October 14th 2007. Someone recommended him our ensemble Barynya as the best Russian dance and music group in the US. I thought to myself that these people should get out more often.

Russian dance and music ensemble Barynya from New York

The only thing that bothered me a bit was that the wedding planner did not have a long signature with all his contact information, emails, websites and phone numbers at the end of his email.

5GRAND.US - Russian American Live Wedding Music Band, MC, and dancers. New York based show provide high quality entertainment for Russian-speaking people for weddings, corporate events, private parties, Bar Mitzvahs, Bat Mitzvahs, jubilees in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Pennsylvania.

We already have had an invitation from The Atlanta Balalaika Society to perform a concert on October 13th. We were very happy to stop by in Marietta on Sunday, play a cocktail hour with our musicians, perform a short program with our dancers during the dinner and hit the road with a few extra dollars in our pockets.

We do perform all the time at Russian-American weddings where the groom or the bride has some Russian roots. Usually people are very interested to touch balalaika-contrabass and ask what it is. Most of the time Sasha Menshikov explains in his "perfect" English that only the wealthiest balalaika-players can afford to buy the biggest balalaika in the world – the contrabass.

In September I reminded Mr. Hilton about the deposit. Usually we take 20 percent up-front. Soon I have got an email with an explanation that the groom has left the country on business and he will pay me the full amount before the wedding in cash. I did not argue. Most of the Barynya performers including the musical director Alex Siniavski choose to stay in the United States because of the cash.

BOTTLE DANCERS USA - Jewish, Hebrew, Yiddish, Klezmer show from New York Professional Jewish, Hebrew, Yiddish, Klezmer dance company "BOTTLE DANCERS USA" is based in Brooklyn, New York, USA. Artistic Director and founder Vitaliy Verterich.

One week before the concert in Atlanta and the wedding in Marietta me and Sasha Menshikov took a plane to Reno, Nevada to perform with Zeny Ocean’s The Sierra Nevada Balalaika Society as Gypsy Boys Duo.

Alexander Menshikov and Mikhail Smirnov

On Friday, at 3AM in the morning my phone started to ring. I put my vodka glass and appetizers down and picked up the phone. In the beginning I could not understand who is calling but then I realized that it was the groom who wanted to know if I have got the money. Politely, I asked him to call me again on Monday evening when I will be back home and would be able to check if the money has arrived.

On Tuesday I have received a strange envelope with the Chinese or Korean letters and stamps on it. There were eight money orders for $1500 dollars each inside of that envelope. Five of those money orders did not have the recipient’s name on it. To say the least, I was surprised! The groom has sent me much more money than I have deserved! There was nothing else in that envelope but 12,000 dollars in beautiful money orders. I wanted to run to the bank and deposit the money right away but I waited...

Next morning around 2AM the groom called me and begged me to deposit the money for the band and the dancers and sent the rest of the amount via Western Union to the bride. He was talking about some bad situation in her family… He said if I will not wire the money to his beloved she will not be able to pay for the catering and the wedding will not happen at all. In order to get rid of him I promised him to send the money fist thing tomorrow morning.

Next morning I went to my bank and explained to the manager my situation. I showed him those money orders and printed emails from the wedding planner and the groom.

The guy told me that this is a very common scheme. Every month two or three clients of Washington Mutual are having the same issue. Gullible clients deposit fake money orders or checks into their accounts and instead their own money get send someplace else. It is almost impossible to find anybody after that and as a result the money is gone!

Later I checked the address where that wedding should have took place and it was a dry cleaning business! When I called and ask if they are going to have the Russian wedding reception on Sunday the clerk has told me that the business is closed on Sunday.

Beautiful Russian Belly Dancers - New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, California Russian Belly Dancers from United States of America

I was smart enough to use the blank money orders to pay our contrabass-balalaika player Leonid Bruk and the dancer and choreographer Andrij Cybyk for summer tour of ensemble BARYNYA tour in Ohio.

Now I am wondering why Andrij and Leonid do not return my phone calls?

Mikhail Smirnov (Misha)
Ensemble Barynya from New York


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Barynya - New York based Russian dance, song and music ensemble Barynya is the best ensemble of Russian dance and music outside of Russia from New York, USA. Russian, Russian Gypsy, Ukrainian, Cossack songs, music and dances with accompaniment of balalaika, garmoshka, Gypsy guitar and contrabass balalaika. Artistic Drector and Founder - Mikhail Smirnov. RELATED LINKS Balalaika Balalayka Балалайка Russian folk music free MP3 download Free Russian Balalaika Ringtones Free Russian sheet music Russian costumes Russian lyrics, Russian songs translations into English Russian folk Russian music DOMRA History of Russian balalaika Balalaika made in 1887 Balalaika handmade in Moscow, Russia Contrabass Balalaika and Bass Balalaika Balalaika Contrabass Buying Guide Christmas Diary of the balalaika player Russian American Wedding or balalaika scam Russian music album "What a Balalaika!" by Nikita Siniy Barynya Russian Entertainment database Russian dance and music ensemble Barynya from New York New York balalaika orchestra Russian Band from New York Russian Balalaika duo from Philadelphia, Pennsilvania Russian Balalaika and Garmoshka Duo Balalaika Dance Trio, Philadelphia, PA Brooklyn Balalaikas The Balalaika Russe Russian music duo from Chicago, Illinois Balalaika Stooges Kalinka Duo: balalaika and bayan from Austin, TX Alex Siniavski - Balalaika virtuoso from Philadelphia, PA Lev Zabeginsky - New York balalaika virtuoso Sasha Ressetar - balalaika player from Harrisburg, PA Simon Lemberskiy - balalaika player from Brooklyn, New York Contrabass Balalaika player Leonid Bruk Sergey Vashchenko - Balalaika virtuoso from Austin, TX Balalaika tutorial DVD by Alex Siniavski Balalaika Virtuoso Bibs Ekkel Russian Christmas Music Balalaika Album Balalaika music album "Barynya Russian folk songs" The Balalaika and Domra Association of America BDAA 2007 Festival of Russian Music The Balalaika and Domra Association of America 2006 photos BDAA 2005 conference in Madison, Wisconsin video BDAA 2005 conference in Madison, Wisconsin photos School of playing balalaika contrabass (in Russian) Aleksandr Nikitich Rozhkov (in Russian) How to play tremolo on balalaika (in Russian) Американско-Русская свадьба или как обмануть балалаечника