Balalaika virtuoso Sasha (Alexander) Ressetar from Harrisburg, PArussian folk | russian music | russian dance | balalaika | russian entertainment | contact
He had a collection of Russian choral and instrumental music which included the Serge Jaroff Male Choir and Sasha Polinoff's orchestra.
At that time, Polinoff played the balalaika in Russian reastaurants in New York City.
At a very early age Sasha decided to be like Polinoff. 
Plaza Hotel, New York City Ressetar started playing balalaika when Mrs. Anastasia Karnow from Philadelphia organized a Russian folk balalaika orchestra at the parish in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Unfortunately, this was not yet the musical instrument of choice.
By age 16 Sasha was playing a guitar in a punk rock band. He picked up the balalaika again 4 years later when he was a student at the Art Institute of Pittsburg. He was stayd with balalaika ever since.
Sasha began working in New York City in 1986 and within one month he was playing russian music at the RASPUTIN Restaurant on West 46th Street. Since that time he was played at many restaurants all over Big Apple. Some of them, like THE RUSSIAN TEA ROOM, are still famous but many others have gone out of business. It is hard to make a living as a musician and Sasha relies on other jobs to make a living. For him the hardship is an acceptable price for playing to an appreciative audience.
Some of the other things Sasha has done including visiting the former U.S.S.R. (now Russia) for Andreev Balalaika Centennial and appearing as a balalaika player in an episode of LAW AND ORDER, SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT, a cerial television program on CBS. Sasha currently lives and works in Harrisburg, Pensylvania and plays balalaika at the Hilton and Towers and other venues. 
Black cats dressed in Russian folk costumes with balalaikasRussian folk costume designer Svetlana Gavrilova has made a set of black cats dressed in Russian costumes with balalaikas. To view all photos you may need to join Balalaika Group on Google Network.  to view all cats with balalaikas dressed in Russian folk costumes More balalaika players, soloists and ensembles
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