CTO … Sue Wilson Offering Workshop for Novice / early Intermediate Players

Attention: Trapezoids of the Triangle
Looking for a local hammered dulcimer workshop? A little inspiration as we await the coming of spring? New tunes? New ideas? New music buddies?

Check This Out … Sue Wilson will be teaching a workshop for novice / early intermediate players, "Tunes People Know -  and Maybe You Should, Too!" on Sunday afternoon, March 9, 1:30 - 4:00pm at the Community of Christ Church, 912 West Chatham Street, Cary. The workshop will be taught in place of the monthly HD Slow Jam. All are welcome to join the fun!

This will be the 4th annual "winter" workshop hosted by the Slow Jam group and taught by Sue. This year, look forward to using a couple of popularly well-known tunes to practice arranging ideas, with some emphasis on syncopation. Sheet music for the basic melody of the tunes will be provided prior to the workshop to those who preregister. Fee:  $30

For more information, or to preregister, contact Viola Suddaby or Sue Wilson.

CTO ... Maggie Sansone and Marya Katz present workshops and concert

This a bit further afield than the Triangle of central NC, but a worthwhile opportunity within a reasonable driving distance.

Check This Out ... Music in the Mountains, hosted by Marya Katz, Saturday, November 2, 11:30 - 5:00pm, Northside Presbyterian Church, 1017 Progress Street NW, Blacksburg, VA. Maggie Sansone and Marya Katz present a fun-filled hammered dulcimer workshop in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains. Cost: $50, payable at the door. Includes 3 workshop sessions and a class jam, plus a mini-concert with Maggie and Marya. Bring a bag lunch to eat while setting up and tuning.

The day's schedule looks like this:

11:30 -12:15    Arrive, tune, meet & greet (bring a bag lunch, or eat ahead of time)

12:15 -  1:00    Mini-Concert with Maggie and Marya

  1:00 -  2:00    1st workshop session, led by Maggie (slow tune, possibly a celtic waltz)

  2:10 -  2:50    2nd workshop session, led by Marya ("chord choreography")

  3:00 -  4:00    3rd workshop session, led by Maggie (faster tune, probably a Scottish jig)

  4:15 -  5:00    Class jam for all who are interested

Other instrumentalists are welcome at the jam. Maybe there'll be a guitar or two, a bass, some percussion... Encourage anyone interested to join the jam at 4:15.

Contact:  For more information and registration contact Marya Katz at MaryaKatz@gmail.com 

Another successful workshop and concert in Pittsboro

Wish I had taken more photos, but I was sort of busy at the time. I regret that I didn't get the official group shot! And no photos from the concert. If you have some, please share!

19 students attended Ken Kolodner's all-day hammered dulcimer workshop.
The Tennessee Waltz and Cumberland Gap were on the agenda.

Circle the recording devices!

10 students attended Brad Kolodner's clawhammer banjo workshop.
A few folks hung around afterwards to play some tunes.

Late night jam after the concert

Ken & Bart

Bill & Rachel

Ken & Betsy 

MaryLynn & Carol

Ken and Brad Kolodner in Pittsboro July 27

Mark your calendars now for a full day of music fun!

Hammered Dulcimer Workshop

Ken Kolodner will be teaching an all-day hammered dulcimer workshop for advanced beginners and up at the Eastern Chatham Senior Center, 365 NC Hwy 87, Pittsboro, NC on July 27. This is expected to be a mixed-skills class, with instruction geared to the less experienced player and extra ideas thrown in for the more advanced player. Topics to be covered: arranging, backup, chord theory, technique, and more!

The Schedule:
Sessions are set for 10:00am - noon and 1:00pm - 4:00pm.
Lunch plans are yet to be determined.
Doors will be open at 9:30am for participants to set up, tune, etc.
Stick around for the concert and jam session that night! (see below)

Cost of the Workshop:
$75 in advance; $80 at the door

Registration:
Contact Sue via email or by phone (919)542-5854 to express your interest.
Your name will be added to the roster. Then ...
Secure your space!
Send a check (made out to Sue Wilson) to:

Sue Wilson
P.O. Box 940
Pittsboro, NC  27312

Concert

There will be a concert that evening featuring: Ken & Brad Kolodner, with Sue Wilson & Betsy Kraus, 7:00 - 9:00pm,
St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church, 204 W Salisbury St, Pittsboro, NC.

It promises to be quite the variety show! Enjoy an evening of traditional music performed on the hammered dulcimer, fiddle, banjo, guitar, concertina, hammered mbira ... plus a tune or two on twin fiddles and some vocals thrown in for fun!

Ticket Price:

$17 in advance

$20 at the door

To reserve your seat(s):

Contact Sue via email or by phone (919)542-5854. Your name will be put on the list. Then ... Send a check (made out to Sue Wilson) to:

Sue Wilson
P. O. Box 940
Pittsboro, NC  27312
Seats are NOT reserved until check is received.

Hang around for the JAM SESSION after the concert, 9:00 - 11:00 pm.
We're making plans for a good time. Hope to see you there!

CTO ... Tune List from April 5 - 7 Jam Sessions

15 trapezoids gathered for all or part of the weekend of April 5-7 on top of a mountain near Roaring Gap, NC, for Martha's Dulcimer Day on the Mountain. We worked hard all day that Saturday, practicing chord patterns and rhythms to back up common fiddle tunes. We entertained the neighbors Saturday night. We ate and laughed, shared ideas and played tunes.

Check This Out ... Viola kept notes! Here's a list of tunes in the order they were played during the jam sessions. While some of the "favorites" might have been played several times during the weekend, they are listed here only once. It's a pretty good list ... but there are plenty of great tunes missing! What would YOU have called for next?

Forvantan
Whiskey Before breakfast
Lady of the Lake (Can you play the bass line back up?)
Nail that Catfish to the Tree
Frosty Morning (NOT Cold Frosty Morning)
Midnight on the Water
Ash Grove
Missouri
Waynesboro
Ruth sang The Rooster Song
and Seven Nights Drunk
Willafjord
Little Red Wing
Rights of Man
Black Nag
South Wind
Oklahoma Rooster
John Ryan's Polka
Soldier's Joy
Shepherd's Wife's Waltz
Hangman's Reel
Spotted Pony
NC Breakdown
Smash the Windows
Planxty Fanny Poer
Blackberry Blossom
Ashokan Farewell
Lovers' Waltz

CTO ... Dulcimer Day on the Mountain 2013

What a hard-working group! Chord patterns - inside, outside, upside down. I think that's how it felt at times. But here we are in the middle of the afternoon with smiles on our faces.

Check This Out ... Last Saturday, 14 experienced hammered dulcimer players came together to spend the day practicing back-up strategies. We were stuck in 'reel' time all day, but nobody seemed to mind. Bass lines, various rhythmic patterns, chord inversions, snippets of harmony ... I just kept bringing it on and they soaked it up!

At one point, we had fun backing up Cindy Ribet's band using her recording, The Slow Zone, which includes 8 fiddle tunes played at a slower than usual tempo for practicing lead or backup. Check out her web site, or see her in person next month at the Winston Salem Dulcimer Festival May 3 - 4. She'll be teaching a couple of repertoire classes ... "Old Time Tunes" and the popular Christmas tune, Sleigh Ride. Hope to see you all there!

CTO ... Need help figuring out how to play back-up?

There’s nothing magic about playing back-up. It must be practiced! Jam sessions have a spontaneous feel, but you can be sure that those who appear to be playing with abandon have spent plenty of time honing their chops. If there’s a session tune you love, work out a back-up plan so you’re ready to spring into action!

The thrill of knowing a tune that’s being played in a group setting can quickly turn to boredom after you’ve played it through the umpteen^th time.  What to do?

• Know the tune
• Know the chord progression
• Know how to play chord patterns
• Know the rhythm of different types of tunes
• Work out your ideas and practice them
• Have fun!

Check This Out ... Don't know where to start? Need some guidance? I'm teaching a two-hour workshop for advanced beginners this Sunday afternoon, 2 - 4pm in Cary. We'll be playing chord and scale patterns in a variety of rhythms to develop back-up ideas for a couple of familiar tunes. Come play with us!

Sue Wilson, teaching at the monthly HD Slow Jam
January 13, 2:00 - 4:00pm
Topic: Playing Back-up, Level of Play: Advanced Beginners
Registration fee:  $25
Community of Christ Church, 912 W Chatham St, Cary
For information or to register for the workshop contact Viola 

Playing More Music ... High on Your New Year's Resolution List?

Happy New Year!

Friends and family have returned home. I've just put the last of the egg nog into a bundt cake batter. Today's the first workday of the year for many. And while the Christmas tree still looks good in the corner over there - I may hold out for the entire 12 days of Christmas this year - holiday festivities are behind us, punctuated by the grand celebration of the arrival of the new year. It's time to assess where we are in life and move forward with intention!

Are you thinking about taking your hammered dulcimer skills up a notch? Maybe you need a little boost in the right direction? A few lessons can really give you a jump-start, increasing your understanding of what is needed to master the instrument and providing good motivation to keep at it.

There are several good instructional opportunities coming up in the not-too-distant future.

• Dulcimer Winter Weekend, January 3-6, Lake Junaluska (this coming weekend!)
• Chords and Back Up, for advancing beginners, Yours Truly, January 13, Cary
• Tunes from the Time of the Underground Railroad, Marya Katz, January 21, Winston-Salem

Click on the "Schedule of Events" tab at the top of the page for more info about these events and more. Make plans to attend workshops in 2013. Learn new stuff while having fun with old and new friends.

If private lessons are on your list of things to do in the new year, come and see me in Pittsboro. Lessons begin again next week. Your time slot is waiting! Details at www.SueWilsonDulcimer.com

CTO ... Winston-Salem Dulcimer Festival Poster, Corrected

I posted this announcement several weeks ago.  It turns out the date for the concert was incorrect on the original poster.  Here's the corrected version.  Feel free to share with other dulcimer enthusiasts.  Don't miss this fantastic dulcimer event, right here in our own "backyard". Make plans to attend.  Mark your calendars today!

Check This Out ... The website is still under construction, but you can get a sneak preview of what's being planned for the Winston-Salem Dulcimer Festival at W-S Dulcimer Fest 2013

CTO ... Plans for Winston-Salem Dulcimer Fest are Underway

Check This Out ... Hot off the press! What a line up!

The Winston-Salem Dulcimer Festival takes place annually on the first full weekend of May. It's a great place to meet up with old and new dulcimer buddies. Expect top-notch instruction, inspiring and entertaining concerts, jam sessions, dulcimer related cd's, books, and accessories for sale, and a whole lot of fun ... right here in central NC. Mark you calendar now and make plans to attend!