Around Queens: Music, Dance & The Golden Festival with Michael Ginsburg ep. 004

In this episode:

Zlatne Uste Balkan Brass Band, founded in 1983, is the foremost presenter of traditional Balkan brass music in the US. They have performed for concerts, weddings, and festivals across the US and in the Balkans, from the esteemed halls of the Kennedy Center in Washington to the illustrious Guča Brass Festival in Serbia, which draws hundreds of thousands of visitors. They were the first musicians from abroad to perform Serbian music at Guča, and they have been invited guests five times. Their 2010 visit was featured in the documentary Brasslands. They have released four albums of music for listening and dancing. In 1986, they created the Golden Festival and have joyously sponsored it ever since. For more information about Zlatne Uste Brass Band visit Zlatne Uste Balkan Brass .

Around Queens is a long-form interview series that explores how people build meaning, systems, and community when the old rules no longer work.

Each episode centers on a single conversation with a Queens-based builder, creator, or organizer—not to spotlight titles or résumés, but to understand the moments that changed their direction and the values shaping what they’re building now.

The show looks beyond charity and success narratives to examine care as design, dignity as infrastructure, and quality of life as a measure of progress. While rooted in Queens, these stories speak to a global audience navigating uncertainty, policy shifts, economic pressure, and the search for what actually matters.

Hosted by Luchia Dragosh, Around Queens treats the borough as a lens—not a limit—for understanding how people respond when institutions fall short, and humans step in.