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25 W ednesday , D ecem ber 15, 2010 O A KVILLE BEA V ER w w w .o akvillebeaver .co m Kolishenco added Reda and his dancers would have been seen in movies in the 60s and his dance troop has spawned other well- known dance greats such as Nour and Mona El Said, who also put on a workshop. He represents the roots of the dance, the dance of the people, the countrys dance, she said. She said the dancers running the workshops would have been very big stars from the 60s to the 80s. The festival featured various styles of belly dance, such as Oriental and folklore. A couple of the women, who travelled with Kolishenco, also brought along their husbands. For the husbands, it was interesting for them because they would come to the shows every night. We took workshops all day and at night there was a big gala show with all the dancers from all over the world performing, she said. She said people who get involved in belly dancing, become very dedicated to the craft. Men lose their wives to belly dance like women lose their hus- bands to football and hockey. Thats what happens, they get com- pletely obsessed with it, she said. There was, of course, more to the trip than dancing. Kolishenco and her fellow travellers arrived in Egypt a few days before the fes- tival and got to tour around. She was amazed at how little Egyptians sleep and how much they smoke. She said men would sit in coffee shops, drinking coffee, smoking shisha and cigarettes. They toured the pyramids in Giza and got driven through the countryside. They shopped in a busy bazaar in downtown Cairo and witnessed the incredibly busy roadways in Egypt. I, myself, enjoyed sitting in the front seat with the cab driver, she said of her experience of being on the road. They always had this great Arabic music and the cabbys singing, hes driving with his knees and lighting a cigarette and is on his iPhone. Its just another world and they never have accidents. Kolishenco opened BellyUp studio in 2006, currently located at 2330 Lakeshore Rd. W., but has been teaching the dance style before then at various venues. Continued from page 24 AT WORK: Joharah Kolishenco (right) is pictured teaching student dancers a belly dance style using a veil technique at the Nile Group Festival in Cairo, Egypt. SUBMITTED PHOTO Oakville dancers got to meet belly dance legends in Egypt Musician donates part of CD proceeds to help children Two years ago violinist Leslie Ashworth teamed up with Free the Children in its efforts to help impoverished children in places around the world where they cannot help themselves. When she released her first CD, titled Precious Musical Moments, Ashworth agreed to donate a portion of the proceeds from the album sales to the organization. Now, at the age of 13, the young musician and composer has just donated that portion with a $1,075 cheque to the organization. I am so fortunate, to have the opportunity to play the violin and take lessons, it is a small way of giving back to others, Ashworth said, in a press release. I believe strongly in what Free The Children is doing for children around the world. In addition to the donation, the young musi- cian also played the violin in Oakville at a fundraiser for Haiti relief efforts. She also composed a piece, titled For The Children, dedicated to children and the organi- zation and performed it for Free the Children staff. She hopes the music will be included in her next CD, which is aimed to be released in 2011. Ashworth has won various awards and competi- tions. Visit www.leslieashworth.com for more infor- mation on the musician. MUSIC MAKES A DIFFERENCE: Leslie Ashworth is pictured making a dona- tion of $1,075 to Free the Children in Toronto earlier this month. SUBMITTED PHOTO With her violin playing, 13-year-old Leslie Ashworth just won first place in her age category at the Toronto Sinfonietta Concerto Competition. By beating out the field of under-16 competitors, Ashworth won the opportunity to play with the Toronto Sinfonietta Orchestra at a gala concert on Feb. 26 at the Isabel Bader Theatre in Toronto. It is very exciting to win a competition, but real- ly it is an opportunity to perfect your musical skills and share it with others, Ashworth said, in a press release. It is also a great opportunity to play with differ- ent orchestras, it is so rewarding and fun I just love it. Ashworth is an award-winning violinist, who has played for nearly a decade and is currently studying at the Young Academy of Performing Artists, in a Royal Conservatory of Music program. She has also released a CD, titled Precious Musical Moments, and is working on her second release. The Sinfonietta competition also had a winner in the age 16-19 category. For more information on Ashworth, visit www.leslieashworth.com. Ashworth wins Sinfoniettas music contest