Here is the Hurdy-Gurdy Band: (from left to right) Julien, Gaspar, Donald, and Anicet
But before there was the band... Donald left his native USA and travelled through Europe during the 70's and early 80's. There he learned Hurdy-Gurdy and carried a big bag of puppets.
In Budapest he studied Hurdy-Gurdy with Csoori Sanyi of Muzsikas Egyutes and at the State Puppet Theater with Urban Gyula.
In 1979 Donald and Anicet marry and travel from Hungary to perform together in festivals in Switzerland, France, Italy, Holland and Germany.
Here (right) they perform in Basel Switzerland with Hungarian Hurdy-Gurdy and Crummhorn.
Their French Hurdy-Gurdies were made in 1980-81 by Stan Montagnon.
VENUES

(partial list)

Mariposa Festival, Canada
Home County Festival, Canada
Lincoln Center Out Doors
Philadelphia Folk Festival
Smithsonian Institute, Washington DC
Friuli Folk Fest, Italy
Basel Altstadt Fest, Switzerland
Jacob Burns Film Center, NY
Maison de la Culture de Firminy, France
Festival des Maitres Sonners, France
Olanda Mula, Dutch Village, Japan
Caramoor Concert Series, NY

Schools, Museums and Libraries throughout USA

"The Hellers' presentation is superb!
Their performance absolutely captivated a large audience of adults and children. I was especially impressed by their ability to present history with humor, and to incorporate a variety of little-known musical instruments into his stories in a perfectly natural way. May the Hurdy-Gurdy Man & Lady live and thrive, and continue to spread joy throughout the land."

Howard Bass, Program Coordinator
National Museum of American History
Smithsonian Institution
Washington, D.C.

"Thank you for your marvelous performance
last week to kick off our Summer Reading Program 2000. You were a big hit! Several people stopped me after the performance to say how much they enjoyed the program and that they were enthralled with your ancient musical instruments.

I was also excited to see your two sons sharing the spotlight with you on violin and harpsichord. It afforded the young members of our audience a marvelous opportunity to see how successful two students can be when they spend the necessary time and effort practicing their instruments. They were certainly excellent role models.

Again, thank you for an outstanding performance. We look forward to seeing you again in the future."

Ann M. Davis, Director
Goshen Public Library
Goshen, CT