Beginning Track

Bob Altschuler

Beginner’s Track, Bluegrass Banjo - Bob presents his comprehensive introduction to BG banjo playing in five concentrated sessions, spaced throughout the weekend so you will have time to also take other classes. You will receive extensive handouts for each session, which include additional material to work on when you get home. (N-B)

·         Getting Started- Part 1: foundations of playing bluegrass banjo, including banjo anatomy, tuning, using picks, playing position, hand positions, reading tablature and basic chords and rolls.

·         Getting Started- Part 2: review of Part 1, additional rolls, important left-hand techniques featuring slides, hammer-ons and pull-offs, a basic two chord song and practice exercises.

·         Review of the Foundations of Bluegrass Picking- Putting It Together: review of Parts 1 and 2 plus additional playing techniques, timing, practice exercises, a three chord song and an overview of bluegrass banjo styles.

·         Bluegrass Rolls and Left-Hand Techniques for Beginners: explore the most useful rolls and left-hand techniques that create licks. Bob will guide you in playing slides, hammer-ons and pull-offs added to rolls to create the licks and patterns that form the basis of Scruggs-style playing.

·         Basic Backup and Chord Shapes: foundation and theory of backup, from simple techniques using barre chords and basic rolls to an overview of moveable "F" and "D" chord shapes, vamping, hand position and tone. This session will provide the tools to enable you to begin playing basic backup right away.

Martin Grosswendt

Beginner/fresh start track (five sessions) - Here’s the chance to play old-time banjo for the first time, or dust off the case that was at the back of the closet, take out that lonely banjo, and start fresh. We’ll be frailing in no time and moving on to chords and melodies.

Lorraine Hammond

Beginner/fresh start track - Here’s the chance to play old-time banjo for the first time, or dust off the case that was at the back of the closet, take out that lonely banjo, and start fresh. We’ll be frailing in no time and moving on to chords and melodies.

 

Mandolin Basics Track

 

Grosswendt 

Mandolin Basics: Blues for Beginning Mandolin – (N-B)

Hammond

Mandolin Basics: Two Chord Wonder!  After a quick check of right and left hand positions we’ll learn the old-time version of “Angelina Baker”, lead and back-up. (N-B)

Bowden

Mandolin Basics: Simple Bluegrass Building Blocks - Focus will be on playing songs you already know how to sing, “turnaround” intros, and some standard bluegrass "licks" to play at the end of phrases, as well as learning different keys, and how to play for enjoyment. (N-B)

Holmes

Mandolin Basics: Getting Started Right - Mistakes people make that impede their progress and can hurt or even do permanent damage. (N-B)

Reiner

Mandolin Basics: Easy Irish Tunes for Mandolin (N-B)

Rossbach

Mandolin Basics: Drone Chords - A hands-on overview of two and three-finger, ringing “drone” chords. These moveable positions are especially handy in creating an authentic old-time sound and can be used to create chords in several keys. (N-B)

Weissberg

Mandolin Basics: This Land is Your Land – This Woody Guthrie classic is a great way to learn scales and two-finger chords in the key of G. (N-B)

Zimmerman

Mandolin Basics: Woody’s Rag – Your first mandolin tune in the key of D (N-B)

 

Master Classes

Steve Arkin:

Finding and Playing the Melody in Scruggs-Style Breaks - Nothing beats Scruggs style for drive and power. In this master class, advanced students will be evaluated on their ability to harness a variety of rolls, licks, and transitional phrases to play the melody with creativity, style, punch, bounce, and agility. The class will focus primarily on the open G tuning and on Scruggs style, but will also provide guidance on how to seamlessly bring in some melodic and single-string moves without sacrificing melody and drive. Please bring some sort of recording device with you. (M)

Riley Baugus

Southern Mountain Clawhammer Banjo Technique - Not repertoire, but skills to help with learning and stronger playing. (M)

Janet Beazley

Tasteful Backup to Bluegrass Vocals - This class gives advanced students an opportunity to demonstrate, contemplate and discuss the various elements of supportive, tasteful backup playing behind bluegrass vocals, guided by the examples of the great “band” banjo players including Scruggs, Stanley, Crowe, Osborne, Munde, Shelor, Block, Mills, etc. (M)

Dick Bowden

Creating Traditional Bluegrass-Style Breaks & Back-Up, Almost Cold - This class is about inventing something musical on the spot, within the traditional bluegrass banjo genre. You've just been asked to fill in as banjoist for a bluegrass band on a traditional-style vocal number that you've never heard. You have one hearing/rehearsal backstage to get ready. You must "hear, feel and learn" the vocal melody, and support it with your banjo. Class will be a mix of hearing the unknown song(s), discussing approaches, briefly rehearsing, and then performing your own solo and back up. (M)

Paul Brown

Turn On Your Ears - This banjo-fiddle group tutorial will help you leap to a new level of musicianship.  In a small group setting, you'll play banjo one-on-one to Paul's fiddle.  It's the classic instrumental combination too few people get to try these days.  We'll critique and learn together in a totally safe, welcoming, positive environment with clear ground rules. Paul will demonstrate on both instruments, and you'll leave with a new awareness of rhythm, phrasing, and how to listen and play with another musician.  If you really want to improve your duo and ensemble playing, this is a great chance. (M)

Jim Mills

Playing to Your Audience With Confidence and Authority – When you’re on stage, you have to be on your best game at all times. Learn to be aware of what you want to play before stepping up and you’ll realize that you're playing with more confidence every time. This class will help get your mind focused on this way of thinking. (M)

Bruce Stockwell

No-Roll Solutions to Really Slow Tunes - Many bluegrass tunes are too slow to be played effectively with Scruggs style rolls: waltzes, ballads, and traditional country songs with a swinging 4/4 feel ( think "Your Cheating Heart"). In the spirit of Don Reno and Sonny Osborne, we'll look at some alternative soloing approaches- phrasing and harmonizing the melody then embellishing it, with passing chords, color tones, triplets, and electric guitar, pedal steel and piano effects. (M)

Eric Weissberg

Composing for Banjo - Chord progression, tempo, time signature, phrasing and structure are just some of the considerations. In this Master Class you'll apply various strategies to refine your own compositions. If you’ve tried to write a tune and haven’t been able to get the creative juices flowing, or if you’re wrestling with a work-in-progress, this class is for you (M)

 

All Classes

 

Bob Altschuler

1. Beginner’s Track, Bluegrass Banjo - Bob presents his comprehensive introduction to BG banjo playing in five concentrated sessions, spaced throughout the weekend so you will have time to also take other classes. You will receive extensive handouts for each session, which include additional material to work on when you get home. (N-B) 

·         Getting Started- Part 1: foundations of playing bluegrass banjo, including banjo anatomy, tuning, using picks, playing position, hand positions, reading tablature and basic chords and rolls.

·         Getting Started- Part 2: review of Part 1, additional rolls, important left-hand techniques featuring slides, hammer-ons and pull-offs, a basic two chord song and practice exercises.

·         Review of the Foundations of Bluegrass Picking- Putting It Together: review of Parts 1 and 2 plus additional playing techniques, timing, practice exercises, a three chord song and an overview of bluegrass banjo styles.

·         Bluegrass Rolls and Left-Hand Techniques for Beginners: explore the most useful rolls and left-hand techniques that create licks. Bob will guide you in playing slides, hammer-ons and pull-offs added to rolls to create the licks and patterns that form the basis of Scruggs-style playing.

·         Basic Backup and Chord Shapes: foundation and theory of backup, from simple techniques using barre chords and basic rolls to an overview of moveable "F" and "D" chord shapes, vamping, hand position and tone. This session will provide the tools to enable you to begin playing basic backup right away.

  1. What Can I Play When I Don't Know the Song? From playing basic rolls with chords to incrementally adding interchangeable licks and phrases plus melody notes, Bob will guide you through a layered approach to playing along with any song. This skill is invaluable for playing with others and in jams. The class will also help you put into practice the licks, rolls and techniques you already know. (AB-I)
  2. Moveable Chord Shapes, Positions and Licks - A Fretboard Roadmap: With a comprehensive handout and hands-on practice, Bob will guide you through practical rules to find and link moveable chords and progressions all over the neck. Seeing the neck as a whole (not as unrelated pieces) and chord and lick positions as moveable geometric patterns will give you tools for creating breaks and playing better backup. (B-I)

Martin Grosswendt

  1. Beginner/fresh start track (five sessions) - Here’s the chance to play old-time banjo for the first time, or dust off the case that was at the back of the closet, take out that lonely banjo, and start fresh. We’ll be frailing in no time and moving on to chords and melodies.
  2. Blues on the Banjo – with Brown, Baugus (All/Demo)
  3. Mandolin - TBA

Lorraine Hammond

  1. Beginner/fresh start track (five sessions) - Here’s the chance to play old-time banjo for the first time, or dust off the case that was at the back of the closet, take out that lonely banjo, and start fresh. We’ll be frailing in no time and moving on to chords and melodies.
  2. Mountain Soul: Appalachian Singing Styles - Songs, ballads, harmonies and hymns, with Baugus and Brown (All/Demo)
  3. Mandolin – TBA

Mike Holmes

  1. Mandolin Basics - Mistakes people make that impede their progress and can hurt or even do permanent damage. (N-AB)

Steve Arkin:

  1. Finding and Playing the Melody in Scruggs-Style Breaks - Nothing beats Scruggs style for drive and power. In this master class, advanced students will be evaluated on their ability to harness a variety of rolls, licks, and transitional phrases to play the melody with creativity, style, punch, bounce, and agility. The class will focus primarily on the open G tuning and on Scruggs style, but will also provide guidance on how to seamlessly bring in some melodic and single-string moves without sacrificing melody and drive. Please bring some sort of recording device with you. (M)

2.       What Bill Monroe Taught Me About Playing Bluegrass - In 1964 I toured with the Blue Grass Boys--the second northerner and second melodic style banjo player to do so. I came into the band with my own style of playing and left it with a whole new outlook on the role of the banjo in bluegrass. Here are the lessons Bill taught me about playing bluegrass. (I/A)

3.       Off-the-Beaten-Path Melodic Licks to Spice Up Your Solos - hot, bluesy, and little-known licks invented by Steve or learned from such friends as Bill Keith, Allen Shelton, Bobby Thompson, Marty Cutler, and Pete Wernick. (A)

4.       Bluegrass for Old-Time Banjo Players - How old-time banjo players can survive a bluegrass jam and what you need to know about fills, tags, licks, solos, protocols, backing songs, and holding your own in a bluegrass jam (All/Demo)

5.       Three-Finger Backup for Old-Time Dance Tunes - How to adapt bluegrass 3-finger styles to playing with an old-time fiddler. With Brown (I/A)

6.       The Power of Three-Finger Clawhammer - How using both your index and middle fingers in your clawhammer playing increases your right-hand agility and get more speed, accuracy, agility, tonal variety, and percussive punch. (A)

7.       Putting Together an Old-Time String Band - To this day, the template for a bluegrass band remains the 1946 version of Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys. Is there any such template for an Old Time band? Explore the principal ingredients and possibilities of an Old Time band with experienced master OT musicians. With Brown and Rivers (All)

Riley Baugus

1.       Southern Mountain Clawhammer Banjo Technique - Not a standard repertoire class, but an explanation and demonstration of many of the techniques that you would hear in recording and from other banjo players. A selection of "Tools" if you will, for helping you to play different styles of Clawhammer and help you to create more music and become a better player.(M)

2.       Round Peak Banjo "Show Pieces" - These are the tunes that you might want to play alone as performance pieces. Tunes like Frankie and Albert, Cumberland Gap, John Brown's Dream with the Low Bass String, Fred Cockerham's Roustabout, As Time Draws Near, which is actually played in 3/4 time on the Clawhammer Banjo, and several other tunes, which we'll talk about in class. (I/A)

3.       Dock Boggs Style Finger Picking - This class is an excellent opportunity to think in a different direction about the banjo, focusing on the fingerstyle techniques of Virginia's famous ballad singer and banjo player, Dock Boggs from Norton, Virginia, a very rugged and mountainous area in the Western tip of Virginia, near Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina and Georgia. His melodies are quite haunting and the techniques are done with no picks on the right hand. It is an old time style of song accompaniment and melody playing, not in the clawhammer style.(I/A)

4.       Southern Mountain Clawhammer Banjo Repertoire - Here is a chance to get some hands on experience with some of the stylistic differences in clawhammer banjo from different players and areas in the Southern Appalachians. Tommy Jarrell, Kyle Creed, Buell Kazee, Matokie Slaughter, Fred Cockerham.....just some of the names of some of the great old players whose styles have greatly influenced the way that I play. Every effort will be made to break the styles down to their individual parts and sounds. Bring your banjo, tune it in "G" and lets have some fun. (I/A)

5.       Heart & Soul of Round Peak - What is the essence of the world-famous Round Peak style from North Carolina? In this session you'll come to understand the tunes, the songs, the approach to music, the interplay of banjo and fiddle, and the culture of a unique and powerful music community. Riley and Paul spent lots of time together with the last of the great old Round Peak players. Their recollections and impressions are penetrating and often hilarious. With Brown. (I/A, Demo)

6.       Blues On The Banjo with Brown and Grosswendt (All/Demo)

7.       Mountain Soul: Appalachian Singing Styles - Songs, ballads, harmonies and hymns, with Brown and Hammond (All/Demo)

Janet Beazley

  1. Tasteful Backup to Bluegrass Vocals - This class gives advanced students an opportunity to demonstrate, contemplate and discuss the various elements of supportive, tasteful backup playing behind bluegrass vocals, guided by the examples of the great “band” banjo players including Scruggs, Stanley, Crowe, Osborne, Munde, Shelor, Block, Mills, etc. (M)
  2. Sing on the Chorus - intro to bluegrass harmony singing (All)
  3. Killer Timing - tips, tunes, & the user-friendly metronome (AB/I)
  4. Play the Melody “By Ear” - construct your own solos to common jam songs by finding and picking the tune one note at a time. (N-B)
  5. Have Fun Jamming and Be Invited Back - essential techniques to take to any jam (B/I)
  6. Drive & the Forward Roll - Scruggs’ solos to “No Mother No Dad” and “Will You Be Loving Another Man” (I)
  7. Bluegrass Technical Tuneup - honing Scruggs fundamentals with fun & grueling exercises (AB/I)

Dick Bowden

  1. Creating Traditional Bluegrass-Style Breaks & Back-Up, Almost Cold - This class is about inventing something musical on the spot, within the traditional bluegrass banjo genre. You've just been asked to fill in as banjoist for a bluegrass band on a traditional-style vocal number that you've never heard. You have one hearing/rehearsal backstage to get ready. You must "hear, feel and learn" the vocal melody, and support it with your banjo. Class will be a mix of hearing the unknown song(s), discussing approaches, briefly rehearsing, and then performing your own solo and back up. (M)
  2. Ralph Stanley style – Ralph’s instrumentals, song solos, and back-up. (I/A)
  3. Simple songs you should be able to sing - Beginner/intermediate bluegrass playing of (Bile Them Cabbage Down, Walking Cane, This Land is Your Land, Weeping Willow Tree, Will The Circle Be Unbroken) with NO VAMPING! (B/I)
  4. Fireball Mail - playing it just like Earl's Foggy Mt. Banjo recording (I/A)
  5. Earl Scruggs 3-finger gospel guitar style - Classic Earl Scruggs solos: So Happy I'll Be, God Loves His Children, Gone Home, Jimmy Brown the Newsboy (not 3 finger, but another important aspect of Earl's guitar), Paul & Silas, You Are My Flower (Earl's and Mother Maybelle's), It Won't Be Long, Who Will Sing For Me, Georgia Buck, I'm On My Way to Canaan's Land (A/Demo)
  6. Bluegrass Band Development - A bluegrass band is as intricate as a classical chamber ensemble. Add vocals to that and the challenges increase exponentially! Veteran players will explore and demonstrate the complexities of bluegrass band performance. Among the topics: dynamics, vocal harmonies, lead and backup etiquette, arranging, and working the mic(s). (All)
  7. Mandolin - TBA

Paul Brown

  1. Turn On Your Ears - This banjo-fiddle group tutorial will help you leap to a new level of musicianship.  In a small group setting, you'll play banjo one-on-one to Paul's fiddle.  It's the classic instrumental combination too few people get to try these days.  We'll critique and learn together in a totally safe, welcoming, positive environment with clear ground rules. Paul will demonstrate on both instruments, and you'll leave with a new awareness of rhythm, phrasing, and how to listen and play with another musician.  If you really want to improve your duo and ensemble playing, this is a great chance. (M)
  2. Become an Old Time Finger Picker in One Hour - Here's the fun workshop that unlocks secrets of the Universe. You'll leave able to play at least one tune in an old finger picking style.  More important, you'll take away tools that will help you learn in the weeks and months after banjo camp is over. (AB/I)
  3. Three-finger Backup for Old Time Dance Tunes - Some of the best old time dance tunes sound great with 3-finger and Bluegrass backup.  Join Paul and Steve on fiddle and banjo. Learn what's needed to back up dance tunes and other old time fiddle tunes in a solidly traditional way, and how to deliver it. with Arkin (I/A)
  4. Heart & Soul of Round Peak - What is the essence of the world-famous Round Peak style from North Carolina? In this session you'll come to understand the tunes, the songs, the approach to music, the interplay of banjo and fiddle, and the culture of a unique and powerful music community.  Riley and Paul spent lots of time together with the last of the great old Round Peak players. Their recollections and impressions are penetrating and often hilarious. (I/A, Demo) -- with Baugus

5.       Blues On The Banjo with Brown and Grosswendt (All/Demo)

6.       Mountain Soul: Appalachian Singing Styles - Songs, ballads, harmonies and hymns, with Baugus and Hammond (All/Demo)

7.       Putting Together an Old-Time String Band -  To this day, the template for a bluegrass band remains the 1946 version of Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys. Is there any such template for an Old Time band? Explore the principal ingredients and possibilities of an Old Time band with experienced master OT musicians. With Arkin and Rivers (All)

Jim Mills

  1. Playing to Your Audience With Confidence and Authority – When you’re on stage, you have to be on your best game at all times. Learn to be aware of what you want to play before stepping up and you’ll realize that you're playing with more confidence every time. This class will help get your mind focused on this way of thinking. (M)
  2. Foggy Mountain Special - Earl Scruggs made his first recording with Bill Monroe, “Heavy Traffic Ahead,” on September 16, 1946. Earl sure got lots of mileage out of the solo he took on that tune, eventually developing it into his full-fledged instrumental “Foggy Mountain Special.” Learn the whole tune, or just pick up a pile of very cool licks. (A)
  3. Controlling the Power and Dynamics in your Right Hand – Bring your playing to life with dynamics - tempo, rhythm, volume, and overall intensity. Learn to apply the principles of right-hand dynamics to make your music more exciting. (AB-I)
  4. Practice what you Preach – Make your practice time count. This class will focus on simple techniques for rehearsing what you already know and growing that knowledge by techniques that can be used throughout your life. (AB-I)
  5. The ABC's of  Scruggs Style Banjo - Studying Earl's extensive "Bag of Lick's" that are the alphabet, vocabulary, and foundation to building any 3 finger style from traditional to progressive. (AB-I)
  6. Handbook for Professional Musicians- An exploration of issues confronting professional musicians, including prospecting for gigs, contracts, travel, recording, publishing, licensing rights, Session work, and more. With Weissberg (A)
  7. Bluegrass Band Development - A bluegrass band is as intricate as a classical chamber ensemble. Add vocals to that and the challenges increase exponentially! Veteran players will explore and demonstrate the complexities of bluegrass band performance. Among the topics: dynamics, vocal harmonies, lead and backup etiquette, arranging, and working the mic(s). (All)

Glenn Nelson

  1. Banjo Care and feeding:  How to get the most out of Your banjo - We will discuss banjo setup, maintenance and modifiable factors that affect its tone and playability. Bring your banjo! (All)
  2. The Great Bluegrass Lick Lexicon Returns Again! The great signature licks used for fills and tags will be presented. Learn the right way to play them a la Earl, J.D., Sonny, et al. Here’s your chance to learn the licks of the pros. (I)
  3. Beginning Chord Studies: Arpeggios and Re-naming Chords - A look at the all-important chord!   How to use it, abuse it, substitute it and rename it! Use more chords/arpeggios to increase your knowledge of the fretboard and more importantly, create better music. Tri-tones, Altered chords, Dominant chords will be discussed as will great sounding and more importantly, easy to remember substitute chords. Add some spice to your playing! These concepts will be discussed within the context of familiar tunes (I-A)
  4. Beginning Single String Style - Get off to a good start playing single string style banjo. Beginning scales, arpeggios, good technique, appropriate tone, chords, etc. will be discussed.  Single string style, also known as Reno style banjo is a great way to augment your playing and to help you improvise melodically in all keys. (I/A)

Dave Reiner

1.       A Fiddler’s Bag of Tricks - There’s no silver bullet, but these can take your playing to the next level. I *really* wish I had known this when I started out. (B-I)

2.       Banjo players – Play with a live fiddle player! - Try out the tunes of your choice (any level) with a supportive and friendly fiddle player. (All)

3.       Chords for OT and BG Fiddlers - Backup, doublestops, harmony, breaks — demystifying theory. (B-I)

4.       OT and BG Fiddle Bowing Workshop - Patterns and accents to make your tunes come alive. (B-I)

  1. Bluegrass Band Development - A bluegrass band is as intricate as a classical chamber ensemble. Add vocals to that and the challenges increase exponentially! Veteran players will explore and demonstrate the complexities of bluegrass band performance. Among the topics: dynamics, vocal harmonies, lead and backup etiquette, arranging, and working the mic(s). (All)
  2. Easy Irish Tunes for Mandolin (AB – I)

Mike Rivers

  1. Choosing and Using a Portable Recorder - Got one? Thinking of buying one? They've evolved since the $2,000 Sony of 2005. Newer designs feature longer battery life, more storage, more features, smaller size and weight, and lower cost. $100 can get you a dandy recorder, usually packed with musician-oriented features that you might not expect if you grew up with a cassette recorder. We'll look at some of these features in addition to straightforward recording capability to help you decide what's useful and what you can live without. We'll also discuss some fundamentals of recording such as microphone placement and proper level setting, connections, managing your recordings, and some tips for getting better sound.
  2. Microphones Exposed - There are many kinds of microphones with important differences which make certain mics appropriate (or inappropriate) in both recording and PA applications. You'll learn about condensers and cardioids, ribbons and impedance, large and small capsules, plosives, pickups, even stands, booms, and cables. This is not a prerequisite to Making Your PA System Work, but a helpful companion session to fill in some technical details. 
  3. Essentials of Old Time Guitar Backup - Knowing the chords and where the changes come, playing bass runs in between chords or instead of chords, faking it when you don’t know the tune or the chords, why what’s appropriate for playing in a band may not be appropriate for playing in a jam..
  4. Making Your PA System Work for You (and your Audience) - Got feeback? Can't hear yourself? Does your pickup sound bad? Do you know what all those knobs and buttons do? In this workshop, we'll discuss the various parts of a PA system and how they're interconnected, what you need and what you don't, and tips for setup, and operation.
  5. Putting Together an Old-Time String Band -  To this day, the template for a bluegrass band remains the 1946 version of Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys. Is there any such template for an old time band? Explore the principal ingredients and possibilities of an old time band with experienced master OT musicians. With Arkin and Brown (All)

John Rossbach

  1. Banjo and Mandolin Picker's Field Guide to Guitar Chord Shapes - Learn to follow the bandleader or guitarist in  a jam by recognizing and transposing the guitar chord forms to the banjo. Understanding the commonality and differences  between banjo G tuning and guitar standard tuning. (B-AB)
  2. Jam Etiquette: Plays Well With Others - How to get along musically with others in a variety of jam settings. String Band Etiquette The nuts and bolts and do's and don'ts of playing "nicely" with others. (All)
  3. Different Strokes for Different Folks: Bluegrass Back-up - We?ll explore the differences in attitude and technique necessary for backing up the various instruments and voices in the bluegrass band. (I-A)
  4. Tuners, Capos, Picks & Axes - Better use of the essential tools of the trade. (N-I)
  5. New Dimensions in Bluegrass Banjo - Eric Weissberg’s contributions to the current popularity of the five-string banjo are enormous. His New Dimensions in Bluegrass Banjo album (Elektra, 1963) introduced many budding players to new realms of playing. In this class, we?ll examine several of his signature tunes, including Pony Express, No Title Yet Blues, and Eighth of January. The use of non-traditional tunings and inventive melodic-based instrumentals will also be explored. With Weissberg (All)
  6. Mandolin Basics: Drone Chords - A hands-on overview of two and three-finger, ringing ?drone? chords. These moveable positions are especially handy in creating an authentic old-time sound and can be used to create chords in several keys. (B-I)

Rich Stillman

  1. Unlocking the Power and Versatility of TablEdit - TablEdit and the free tablature viewer/player TabView are the most popular tools for the creation, sharing and playback of banjo tablature. It's possible to use TablEdit to write down almost anything that can be played on a banjo, including Scruggs tuner notes and odd tunings and capo positions. The program's ability to create practice loops can even turn it into a song-specific metronome. But TablEdit is not the easiest program to use. This class will reveal some of the secrets to using TablEdit to create your own tabs and get the best use of downloaded tabs, including special tunings, banjo effects, accompaniment and playback control. This class will focus on bluegrass banjo. (All)
  2. Turning piano music into banjo tunes - There's a world of music out there that wasn't written for the banjo. This class will show how to work from standard musical scores for piano, violin and other instruments, and adapt that music to the special constraints and abilities of the banjo. (I-A)
  3. Earl Off the Record - An analysis of Earl Scruggs' non-studio performances.  We'll listen to recordings from live radio shows and performances that show aspects of Earl's style that didn't always make it onto vinyl. (I-A)
  4. Rolls and melody in Scruggs-style banjo (subtitle: how "Hot Corn, Cold Corn" is the key to Earl Scruggs) - One thing that sets an Earl Scruggs' break apart is its musicality - the way Earl brings out the unique character of the tune. Starting with the Flatt and Scruggs classic performance of "Hot Corn, Cold Corn" from the Carnegie Hall recording, we'll move through the classic Scruggs arrangements and see how Earl picks his rolls to reinforce the musical phrasing of the songs he's playing, and the singers he's playing with. (All)
  5. Better Playing Through Exercises - Most of us learned to play banjo by working note-for-note with tunes from books or DVDs. Tunes can teach some important banjo technique, but there are some skills that can be learned best (or only) through targeted exercises. I'll show you exercises to help develop dynamics, speed control and volume, and to help understand how to find notes on the neck. (All)
  6. Arranging tunes for the banjo - A practical approach to music theory for bluegrass banjo. For the left hand, finding melodies by learning how to play scales using closed chord shapes. For the right hand, breaking rolls own to the smallest possible building blocks and using those blocks to build the melody of a break. If your banjo breaks currently consist of holding chords and playing rolls, or if you just want a different way of thinking about bluegrass banjo, this workshop is for you. (Intermediate)
  7. Twin Banjo - Explore playing note-for-note harmonies with another banjo. Learn how to take any familiar tune and add a harmony part or two.  With Weissberg (I-A)

Bruce Stockwell

  1. No-Roll Solutions to Really Slow Tunes - Many bluegrass tunes are too slow to be played effectively with Scruggs style rolls: waltzes, ballads, and traditional country songs with a swinging 4/4 feel ( think "Your Cheating Heart"). In the spirit of Don Reno and Sonny Osborne, we'll look at some alternative soloing approaches- phrasing and harmonizing the melody then embellishing it, with passing chords, color tones, triplets, and electric guitar, pedal steel and piano effects. (M)
  2. The Key of D - a half dozen ways of approaching this uniquely versatile key, focusing on a couple uncapoed arrangements (I-A)
  3. Foggy Mountain Banjo - we'll slow down Earl's landmark recording via Superscope and examine as many points of interest as time allows (All)
  4. Music Fundamentals - a little theory background can help you decipher and organize what you hear and communicate more clearly with other musicians (B-AB)
  5. Beyond G - popular options for playing in the other bluegrass keys, using a capo (or not) and alternate tunings (I)
  6. Playing in 3/4 Time - right hand mechanics, backup ideas and a couple of Earl's classic solos (I)
  7. Creative Bluegrass Rhythm - ideas for varied and musical rhythm vamping (I)

Eric Weissberg

1.       Composing for Banjo - Chord progression, tempo, time signature, phrasing and structure are just some of the considerations. In this Master Class you'll apply various strategies to refine your own compositions. If you’ve tried to write a tune and haven’t been able to get the creative juices flowing, or if you’re wrestling with a work-in-progress, this class is for you (M)

  1. New Dimensions in Bluegrass Banjo – Eric Weissberg’s contributions to the current popularity of the five-string banjo are enormous. His New Dimensions in Bluegrass Banjo album (Elektra, 1963) introduced many budding players to new realms of playing. In this class, we’ll examine several of his signature tunes, including Pony Express, No Title Yet Blues, and Eighth of January. The use of non-traditional tunings and inventive melodic-based instrumentals will also be explored. (All) with Rossbach
  2. Handbook for Professional Musicians- An exploration of issues confronting professional musicians, including prospecting for gigs, contracts, travel, recording, publishing, licensing rights, Session work, and more.  With Mills (A)
  3. Twin Banjo - Explore playing note-for-note harmonies with another banjo. Learn how to take any familiar tune and add a harmony part or two.  With Stillman (I-A)

5.       You Got to Have Melody – An introduction to Solfeggio. This exquisitely versatile language of the Sound of Music’s “do-re-mi” is a powerful tool for learning and transposing melodies, whether singing or picking them in EVERY key. From Juilliard to Doyle Lawson gospel, it's the key to the universe of melody.

6.       Mandolin – TBA

Phil Zimmerman

  1. Mandolin Basics: Woody’s Rag – Your first mandolin tune, key of D (N-B)