Michael Farkas

The Wiyos have an eclectic, throwback, Vaudeville sound and founding member Michael Farkas adds to the mix with his vocals, harmonica, kazoo, washboard, and banjo. In demand, the band performed upwards of two hundred shows a year and toured with the likes of John Mellencamp, Bob Dylan, and Willie Nelson. But they also weren’t above busking as street performers, drawing such crowds sometimes that the law had to intervene. Like Vaudeville, Michael draws inspiration from the 1920s and ‘30s. Though formed in New York City, word of the trio's performance skill brought them out to England, France, Holland, and Sweden. When Michael is not writing, recording, and performing, he teaches master classes in performance and harmonica at Universities and Arts Schools.