Beginning Fiddle (Ages 4-8) ½ Day AM $37.50 – JayDean Ludiker
A lot of tunes will be taught. Within these tunes we will work on what technical points we need to learn to make those tunes sound great. EVERY tune itself is a fiddle lesson. We will talk about how to look at a tune from start to finish and recognize what techniques we need to focus on to make that tune sound great. There will be a lot of tips for getting the most out of the practice time you have so you can improve quickly.
Beginning Fiddle (Ages 9+) ½ Day PM $37.50 – JayDean Ludiker
A lot of tunes will be taught. Within these tunes we will work on what technical points we need to learn to make those tunes sound great. EVERY tune itself is a fiddle lesson. We will talk about how to look at a tune from start to finish and recognize what techniques we need to focus on to make that tune sound great. There will be a lot of tips for getting the most out of the practice time you have so you can improve quickly.
Advanced Beginning Fiddle (Ages 8-12) Full Day $75.00 – Justin Sherfey
Description: This is a full day Advanced Beginning Youth Fiddle class for students between the ages of 8 and 13.
Prerequisite: Basic understanding of your instrument with ability to play a few tunes.
Style: Learn how to play more basic fiddle tunes, improve your technique, learning by ear, and SINGING!!!
Materials Needed/Provided: Music Stand.
Books and CD’s provided please bring stands and something to write with.
Lower Intermediate Fiddle (All Ages) Full Day $75.00/youth $175/adult – Leslie Beck
Prerequisites: have played 2-3 years
Styles/tunes taught: various styles and tunes
Course objective: This class is designed for a moderate pace. In the past, some have found it too fast, some too slow and others just right, so……it fits the idea of lower immediate. The class will have one tune to learn by ear. (You can do it) Tunes taught in class will have a great framework in order for students to take home and perfect. A book (notation with tab) and a CD of the tunes will be handed out the first day of class. Please bring a music stand, pencil and/or highlighter.
Please email me with any questions. Looking forward to fiddling with you!!
Leslie Beck – lesliemeridian@cableone.net
Lower Intermediate Fiddle (All Ages) Full Day $75.00/youth $175/adult – Katherine Beck
Prerequisite: Student should have a basic Old Time repertoire including hoedowns, waltzes, rags, polkas, and jigs. Students who know a variety of common songs such as Soldiers Joy, Tennessee Waltz, Cripple Creek, Pig Ankle Rag, Swallowtail Jig, Florida Blues, or basic versions of Beaumont Rag would do very well in this class. My class is for any age. Must be able to read either notes or tab, or be willing to learn by ear.
Style: I enjoy teaching a variety of styles, such as Old Time, Irish/Celtic, twin fiddling, gospel, and bluegrass music so that the musician has many options to choose from for use in a variety of settings they may find themselves in. I may also teach one or two songs by ear, which makes for a small but fun challenge for some.
Materials needed/provided:
Students should be prepared with a music stand, shoulder rest, rosin, recording device (optional, but suggested), and pens/pencils/highlighters/paper for marking music and taking notes.
I will provide a booklet of music for each student, with all/most songs in both music and tab.
Katherine Beck – 29 Boise, ID.
I currently work in Boise as a preschool aid at a local elementary school. I tutor students and teach lessons out of my home during the week. I also teach for the Idaho Junior Jammers, a Treasure Valley based fiddle group under the direction of Roberta Pearce and Katrina Nicolayeff.
My mom, Leslie Beck, is one of my best friends and it’s thanks to her that I have a love for fiddle music.
Intermediate Fiddle (All Ages) Full Day $75.00/youth $175/adult – Roberta Pearce
This class will be taught by both notation and tab. Focus will be on developing good technique to better assist you in playing more difficult music.
Bowing techniques, vibrato, double stops and position work will all be addressed.
12 songs will be taught during the week. Styles will include; Old time, Irish, Bluegrass, Texas Swing and Country Gospel.
Intermediate Fiddle (All Ages) Full Day $75.00/youth $175/adult – Mabel Vogt
Description
The class will be a supportive setting, with moderate pace and plenty of repetition, for students to learn 12 new tunes. I hope for you to have fun, improve your fiddling skills, and gain confidence in playing by ear. Music learned by ear is retained better than music “memorized”. Music learned this way captures, not just the notes, but also the feel and style of the fiddler you learned from. You’ll be learning with your eyes, as well as ears. I’ll show you the bowing, embellishments, and double stops to give the tunes life. I’ll refer to the chords of a tune, and show how their scales and arpeggios can help you learn the melody.
Prerequisites: Several years playing, ability to play most common jam tunes. Want to add to your repertoire and get a chance to improve your ability to play by ear with the help of a knowledgeable, experienced and patient fiddler.
Styles/tunes taught: Some of my favorite tunes taken from oldtime, contest, bluegrass, swing, celtic and Canadian fiddling.
Materials Provided: A packet of transcriptions of all tunes provided at end of the week for continuing practice at home. MP3 recordings of the tunes to download; CDs by notifying instructor in advance. Music stands not needed.
Intermediate/Advanced Fiddle (All Ages) Full Day $75.00/youth $175/adult – Stuart Williams
Prerequisites: Play dance tunes up to speed, learn by ear and/or written notation.
Styles/tunes taught: Old Time Fiddle tunes mostly from the greater Northwest: Drawing on Western Canadian/Metis, Scandinavian American, Midwestern (especially Missouri) influences and styles as well as home grown NW fiddling: hoedowns, jigs, waltzes, schottisches, rags etc.
Course objective: To share a traditional repertoire along with details of rhythmic style, phrasing and personality that I’ve picked up from our local fiddlers. I’ll aim for tunes that are fun to play and make for good dance music. Most will be somewhat straightforward, but some will be more challenging. I will incorporate applied and easy to understand scale and chord theory with the objective of making the tunes easier to learn, as well as to explore variations, seconding and harmony and for ear training.
Materials Provided: Recordings of the tunes will be available to download ahead of time via Drop Box or as a cd (by request). Transcriptions in standard notation or my color coded TAB will be provided. I also have a whole host of handy dandy handouts on a variety of topics.
Intermediate/Advanced Fiddle (All Ages) Full Day $75.00/youth $175/adult – Vivian Williams
Prerequisites: Ability to play intermediate level tunes (for instance Turkey in the Straw, Tennessee Waltz, Redwing) up to dance speed and with nice tone.
Styles/tunes taught: At least a dozen tunes, mostly from America, Canada, and the British Isles, appropriate for old time dancing, including waltzes, hoedowns, reels, polkas, and two-steps. There will be a couple of easy tunes and a couple of pretty challenging ones; the rest will be somewhere in between. We will be picking each tune apart phrase by phrase, so you can learn them by ear and don’t have to be a note reader.
Course objectives: Playing with authority, which requires solid rhythm, appropriate dynamics, and a reasonable tone: all of these can be achieved by proper control of bowing. Thinking chordally to help develop the ability to “hear” chord changes, for playing backup on the fiddle, finding harmony parts, and improvising over a chord progression without relying on memorized licks. Making scales and arpeggios automatic to facilitate intonation, finger dexterity, improvisation, and picking up new and technically advanced tunes. Becoming comfortable with position playing, and playing in challenging keys such as B and B flat, using the “first finger capo” technique. Using bowing patterns such as the “Nashville Shuffle” and the “Georgia Bow.”
Materials provided: Packet of written music (no tab) and CD.
Advance Fiddle/Hotshots (All Ages) Full Day $75.00/youth $175.00/adult – Katrina Nicolayeff
Prerequisite: Student should be able to play in 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th positions. Student needs to be comfortable playing double-stops because I will teach tunes that have whole sections/parts in double-stops. Student MUST be able to learn by ear and/or tab. Most tunes will be taught with tab and a few taught by ear.
Style: Texas style, Swing, Bluegrass, Twin Fiddle and Celtic.
To play many different styles of music, have fun playing and push yourself to be a better musician.
Tab and CD only
Beginning Guitar (All Ages) ½ Day AM $37.50/youth 87.50/adult – Rod Anderson
Necessities: Guitar, strap, Picks, tuner, folder for papers, and recording/video device.
You will be taught basic tunes to help back up basic tunes such as Boil the cabbage, Old Joe Clark, Sweet Marie, etc. By the end of the class you will have the knowledge to chords such as A B C D E F & G, also you will know the different strum patterns from ¾ rhythm to 4/4 rhythm.
I will provide chord charts and songs in chord form
Lower Intermediate Guitar (All Ages) ½ Day PM $37.50/youth $87.50/adult – Rod Anderson
Necessities: Guitar, picks, tuner, folder for papers, note book, something to record with, a basic knowledge of the chord A B C D E F G with some knowledge of a basic 145 chord structure (Will go over in class though so don’t worry if you don’t), and any & all questions you have to bring.
You will be taught basic Texas Style and Bluegrass back up. I will also build up your chord knowledge by Adding 7’s and minors (if already known great!). This class is help you enhance the tone of your guitar by increasing your play ability.
I will provide chord charts and songs in chord form
Intermediate Back-Up Guitar (All Ages) ½ Day AM $37.50/youth $87.50/adult – Pam Borso
Prerequisites: Ability to play basic chord formations in A, C, D, E, & G comfortably.
Styles/tunes taught: Most fiddle tunes: Hoedowns, Jigs, Waltzes, Rags, and others.
Course objectives: We will learn bass runs from the beginning including 1,2,3,4,&5 note runs into other chords in all the basic keys. We will explore dynamics of what makes a good back up musician, including chord positions and substitutions, and rhythm styles. We will learn basic music theory. Explore how to play in a jam and figure out what the next chord is likely to be even if you don’t know the tune.
Materials provided: Numerous printed tunes and practice CD.
Swing Guitar (All Ages) ½ Day PM $37.50/youth $87.50/adult – Pam Borso
Prerequisites: Some familiarity with playing chords smoothly. You will be learning all new chords if you have never played closed, swing chords before.
Styles/tunes taught: Traditional swing tunes, Western swing tunes, some rags, blues and country tunes
Course objectives: Want to unravel the circle of 4ths and 5ths? This introduction to Swing Guitar will teach basic theory as applied to standard swing, western sing and blues tunes. It is primarily a rhythm guitar class. We will start with basic open chords, learn some closed and moveable chords and even passing chords. We will learn key, chord and tune structure. You do not have to read music. We will be using chord charts.
Materials provided: Music for tunes covered in class, including chord diagrams, and a practice and source material CD.
Flatpick Guitar ½ Day AM $37.50/youth $87.50/adult – Obie DeWeber
Description: This class is designed for beginning to intermediate players. We will focus on learning a variety of bluegrass and fiddle tunes. We will learn some of the same tunes as Pam Borso’s guitar class, for jamming and collaboration purposes.
Prerequisite: Ability to play some chords and pick through C, D, and G major scales in open position. Closed chords (Bm, F#m, etc), and ability to pick some tunes will help for the more advanced material.
Style: Fiddle, Bluegrass, and a Swing tune or two.
Materials Needed/Provided: Acoustic guitar, strap, tuner, capo, picks.
Optional: Music stand, recording device. Handouts and audio file will be provided.
Beginning Mandolin (All Ages) ½ Day AM $37.50/youth $87.50/adult – Tom Moran
PreRequisites: As the title implies, there are no prerequisites to this class other than a mandolin and a desire to learn more about the instrument and how to play it.
Styles: This class will begin with the mechanics of playing the mandolin, including concepts and exercises aimed at developing correct left and right hand techniques. Along the way we’ll also be learning some simple tunes and chords that will reinforce these ideas and allow you to begin developing your repertoire of melodies and songs to provide a solid foundation for the study and practice of the mandolin.
CD, Musical notation and tablature provided.
Lower Intermediate Mandolin (All Ages) ½ Day PM $37.50/youth $87.50/adult – Tom Moran
Prerequisite: The ability to play some simple tunes would be foremost among the requirements for this class. This would imply some familiarity with the fingerboard in the first position as well as knowledge of a few simple chords to accompany these tunes.
Style: We’ll concentrate primarily on learning more tunes from the old-time fiddle repertoire using different keys to illustrate concepts concerning position, technique and execution. Supporting exercises and some very basic music theory will also be presented to provide a strong footing for advanced beginners to raise their playing to the next level.
CD, Musical notation and tablature provided.
Intermediate Mandolin (All Ages) Full Day $75.00/youth $175.00/adult – Isaac Callender
Prerequisite: A basic knowledge of the mandolin i.e. playing simple melodies and using basic chord shapes such as open G, C, and D.
Description: This class is aimed at moving you beyond the basics and developing an understanding of group playing in different genres of folk music. We will be learning tunes and accompaniment in Appalachian, Bluegrass, Irish, Swing, and any other styles that pop up. We will learn and implement moveable chord shapes and study rhythmic variations and applications to different styles.
Styles: Bluegrass, old-time, swing and Celtic.
Recordings and music notation will be provided.
Advanced Mandolin (All Ages) Full Day $75.00/youth $175.00/adult – Matt Sircely
This is a full-day Advanced Mandolin class taught by Matt Sircely. This will be a fast-paced, entirely hands-on class. Songs, melodies, and concepts of harmony will illuminate elements of mandolin fundamentals related to technique, timing, tone, speed and clarity. The songs, melodies and variations introduced will encourage students to map the fretboard in different ways, often leading to new ideas for chord shapes or improvisations with rich harmonies. The workshop intends to identify areas for improvement among individuals, and to introduce and employ strategies that support self-improvement over time. The advanced mandolin class will forge new ground every day, while also taking time to revisit the tunes, techniques and concepts that will be introduced throughout the week. Students are encouraged to bring ideas and inspiration, and preliminary comments or questions via email prior to the class are always welcome.
PreRequisites: Advanced students should be able and/or willing to learn quickly by ear. Reading standard notation and/or tablature at an intermediate level is encouraged, but not required. Students should be willing to focus on a specific element or technique, such as learning new chord shapes or using the pick in a particular way. Students should be comfortable with a cumulative class that moves quickly across a breadth of mandolin material.
Styles: Swing, bluegrass, folk songs, old-time styles, blues, and samplings of mandolin traditions from across North America and other parts of the world.
Materials: Students who request a preliminary PDF packet will receive sheet music (standard notation and tab) to consider prior to the camp.
Contact matt@mattsircely.com to offer ideas or request music. Other materials may be introduced during the week, depending on the interests and abilities of individual class members.
Bass (All Ages) ½ Day PM $37.50/youth $87.50/adult – Obie DeWeber
Description: This class is designed for beginning to intermediate players. We will focus on learning accompaniment to a variety of bluegrass and fiddle tunes. We will work on some of the same tunes as Pam Borso’s guitar class, for jamming and collaboration purposes.
Prerequisite: Have a bass and be willing to try!
Style: Fiddle, Bluegrass and a Swing tune or two.
Materials Needed/Provided: Bass and tuner. Optional: music stand and a recording device. Handouts and audio file will be provided.
Singing & Moving Kids (Ages up to 8) ½ Day AM $37.50 – Catherine Graham
Description: The pom-poms (and other instruments) are back with even more songs and tunes! Your preschooler or primary-aged child will enjoy a morning of music-based play. We’ll sing, we’ll dance, and we will see just how many things we can do with a pom-pom. We’ll also read some books and play outside.
Prerequisite: Toilet training. Diapered children are fine so long as they are accompanied by a parent. (You can accompany your toilet-trained child, too, but you don’t have to.) Children of all ages are welcome, just like last year.
Style: Not exactly applicable, but last year I was on a French Canadian kick so who knows?
Materials Needed/Provided: I’ll provide instruments, wet wipes, and read-aloud books. You provide children and anything they need to be successful (water bottle, blankie, sun hat . . .)