australianbluegrass.com

Having already endeared themselves to many Australian audiences last year, The Whitetop Mountaineers, Martha Spencer and Jackson Cunningham from Virginia, USA,  are set return to Australia by popular demand. This year they are taking in a host of Australian dates and festivals courtesy of their Australian agent, Across the Borders, based in Melbourne.

At the 2008/09 Woodford Folk Festival, unknown and unheralded, the duo stunned and delighted audiences with their performance of American mountain music and song and dance. The group also performed to audiences in Gippsland, taking in the region’s famous Yinnar Hotel a popular acoustic music venue.

Both musicians are skilled multi-instrumentalists – Jackson plays guitar, mandolin and clawhammer banjo, while Martha plays fiddle, guitar and banjo and dnaces. They are both strong vocal performers and their close harmonies are indicative of the old time and bluegrass traditions from which they draw their repertoire.

Martha and Jackson will be appearing at the following confirmed destinations in 2010:

• 5th – 8th March – Pt Fairy Folk Festival, Vic
  
• 12th – 14th March – Blue Mountain Festival, NSW
  
• 18th March – Brunswick Music Festival, Vic
  
• 19th – 20th March – Yakandanda Folk Festival, Vic
  
• 25th March – Bendigo Folk Club, Vic
  
• 26th – 28th March – Apollo Bay Folk Festival, Vic
  
• 31st March – Yinnar Hotel, Gippsland, Vic
  
• 1st – 4th April – National Folk Festival – ACT

Artists, Festivals National Folk Festival, Whitetop Mountaineers, Yinnar

This year’s National Folk Festival presented another fantastic mix of musical experiences for the packed crowds who attended Canberra’s Exhibition Park over the Easter weekend. Across 18 venues, more 170 acts from Australia and overseas demonstrated why this Festival maintains its status as the number one Folk gathering in Australia.

Flying the Bluegrass flag amongst these performers was Victoria’s Bluestone Junction & Coolgrass,  each of whom performed several shows separately to packed rooms.

Coolgrass’s irreverent take on the genre was very popular with large crowds at their two shows, with new material demonstrating their vocal and instrumental arranging capabilities are still top notch. This band has a great grasp of dynamics, and after many years with the same line-up, have developed a seamless stage show that is very entertaining.

Bluestone Junction’s Easter weekend was particularly busy, combining four high quality performances showcasing their traditional sound with five Bluegrass-related workshops over the weekend. Amongst their shows was a live national broadcast on ABC radio from the 2,000 seat Budawang auditorium, where they demonstrated why they are considered one of the better bands on Australia’s Bluegrass scene.

The Bluestone Junction workshops covered Bluegrass fiddle, banjo and dobro, each lead by the respective players who provided great tips on the finer points of performing bluegrass on their chosen instrument. Complimenting these were a gospel harmony workshop (packed to the rafters), and an intimate workshop session on How To Get That Bluegrass Sound which consisted of a free-flowing discussion on building the essential instrumental elements, player awareness (etiquette) and a general history of the genre. This workshop was extremely informative, which was evident by the high level of audience feedback and participation.

Late on Sunday night, members from both bands were spotted belting out tunes together in the legendary Session bar, displaying that brotherly perspective that makes our Bluegrass fraternity so great. Onto the next festival…

Submitted by John

Review National Folk Festival

Wondering about the 2009 Festival?

Well here it is and the versions now available were updated on 20 March.

Please remember that things can still happen between now and Easter however we have done everything we can to ensure that this timetable is correct.

The full Timetable for the 2009 National Folk Festival includes the National Library of Australia Live @ the Lounge interview series, a book launch by author Najaf Mazari and much more. To download the timetable visit the Festival Program page of the website.

Festivals National Folk Festival

Some Festival Facts

Jane Speechley from the media unit of the National Festival sent through some interesting  facts on the National Festival today that are worth sharing.

• The broader term ‘folk music’ actually comprises a range of different musical styles – for example, at the Festival you’ll find contemporary and traditional folk as well as world music, Cajun, indigenous, blues, boogie, roots, bluegrass, gypsy swing, acapella, country and western and even rock ‘n’ roll.
• The National Folk Festival attracts some of the world’s finest musicians and performers from all over the globe, and in 2009 will showcase artists from Ireland, England, Scotland, Germany, Canada, the USA, Chile and Gambia to name just a few.
• An annual event since 1967, the National was held in a different state each year up until 1992. It is now held in Exhibition Park in Canberra and an Australian state or territory is  featured each year. This year the feature state in 2009 is South Australia.  SA residents receive discounted tickets as well as special promotions.  Artists from the current feature state are also encouraged to apply to perform so their state’s talent can be showcased.
• The Festival is attended by around 50,000 people each year – 40% of the current audience are from Canberra, with other patrons hailing from the surrounding districts as well as interstate and overseas.
• The Festival provides on-site transport, extensive parking, all-amenities camping and an on-site supermarket. EPIC is less than fifteen minutes from the city centre and buses stop at the gate, so interstate Festival visitors can easily explore the other unique attractions on offer in Canberra.
• The Festival presents over 16 hours of entertainment each day in more than 20 separate comfortable venues within the boundaries of EPIC – 600 hours of performances in total, from street theatre and buskers, to stage performances by musicians and choirs, to spoken word and poetry around the stockman’s campfire, and late-night jams in the Session Bar.
• Throughout the year, festival operations are managed by a team of 12 personnel comprising 6 paid staff and 6 key volunteers in full- or part-time positions. During the festival a team of more than 1400 highly valued volunteers perform critically important roles in hospitality, ticketing, services and operations.  The approximate value of the support provided by volunteers is $345,000.

This year’s festival will be held (Easter Weekend) from 9th – 13th April. - Visit the NFF Website.

Events, Festivals National Folk Festival

See yourself at the National Folk Festival – 2nd Early Bird Tickets close soon.

Early Bird ticket sales for this year’s Festival finish on March 15. After the 15th tickets for the Festival will increase in price and will only be available from 9 April at the Festival site. Purchasing your tickets before March 15 will ensure you get the best value and if you are thinking about camping at the Festival then we encourage you to purchase your tickets now rather than leaving it to the last minute.

To order your Early Bird Tickets follow this link – Online Ticket Sales

To see the timetable as well as audio and video files follow this link – Program Information

Festivals National Folk Festival

National Festival Program is Developing.

We reported earlier that the themes for the 2009 festival will feature South Australia, Natural Fibres and The Music of the Americas. Some of the international names have already been announced for 2009 and more are pending.

Old Man Luedecke

Old Man Luedecke is described on his website as one who sings his songs – melodic gems blending old time sensibilities with an unusual vision and poetic sense – accompanied only by his loving five string, foot stomps and the occasional yodel. He left the big old city of Toronto, met a girl in the Yukon, fell in love, bought a banjo and fell in love again. After a couple of years of love and banjo and the makings of a brilliant performing career in sunny Halifax, he returned to the Yukon with his sweethearts. There he woodshedded. He wrote a tone of songs over the next year and a half. He held regular gigs playing banjo in a gambling hall with can-can girls and in a honky tonk called the Snakepit accompanying piano barnacle Bob.

April Verch

Born, raised and now living in Pembroke, Ontario – where her family has lived for generations. April grew up in an area with a rich, distinctive musical and stepdancing tradition shaped by the diverse roots of the immigrants drawn to the region’s lumber camps. Emulating her older sister, she began taking stepdancing lessons when she was three, but right from the start, she was drawn to the fiddle, too-though her parents made her wait for three years before giving her a fiddle for her sixth birthday. Her talents in both arenas quickly became evident, as she began winning fiddle and dance contests on her own, and performing with her sister and the Pilatzke brothers as a member of the Dueling Dancers, a troupe that earned regional and national attention for its blend of innovative and traditional Ottawa Valley stepdancing.

Ticket Sales

The Festival is using a new ticketing system for the 2009 Festival. The new system will issue individually barcoded wristbands and PDF Tickets sent via email. The wrist bands – WrisTickets – will replace the wristbands used during previous Festivals and will require all attendees to scan in and out of the event.

Early Bird ticket sales finish on January 30. Until this date an Adult Season Ticket is just $166. With a Season Ticket you can attend the Festival every day and experience hundreds of concerts, workshops, dances and much, much more.

National Folk Festival Website

Festivals National Folk Festival

While surfing the net today I noticed that the theme for the 2009 National Festival has been published.
The theme for the 2009 festival will feature South Australia, Natural Fibres and The Music of the Americas. This would appear to be great news for bluegrass fans.

The National Folk Festival has been a hub of folk arts in Australia for some 40 years. The Festival is a 5-day celebration of what makes our cultural life so strong and uniquely Australian – the music, songs, dances and spoken word that reflect the great waves of migration that flowed into a country already rich in Indigenous heritage.

Festivals National Folk Festival

National Folk Festival – Easter 2008

Donal Baylor will explore tunes, solos, techniques and the classic Monroe sound of twin fiddling at this year’s National Folk Festival and part of the festival’s ever growing bluegrass music component. Donal is one of Australia’s finest bluegrass fiddlers and highly regarded as both a player and teacher.
I spoke to Donal this week and asked what is in store for master class participants at his workshop.

Who is the workshop aimed at?

Fiddle players from any background at an intermediate to advanced level. It is a class for those fiddlers who are curious as to the intricacies of bluegrass but haven’t yet fully explored it. It is also for those who do have an understanding of the music, but want to significantly build on their abilities with an experienced guide.

What should we bring?

Your fiddle obviously! – it is very much a hands-on session – pen and notepaper is also handy for any notes and personal recording devices are welcome.

What will be covered in your workshop sessions?

My workshops focus heavily on playing and active participation by participants rather than a lecture. Throughout the sessions, participants are encouraged to ask questions and raise any issues that are relevant.

• Brief history of the style and its development over time. Influence of Bill Monroe and key players.
• Stylistic characteristics; Tempo, Keys, Back up, Shuffles, Blue notes, Double stops and chords, Up the neck (second and third positions), Playing breaks to songs, kick-offs and endings, Fiddle tune repertoire building, Playing variations.
• Fiddle set up, Strings, Bridge, Rosin, Bow tension.
• How to practice, Organisation, Space/time, Tuning up, Focussing a session, Practice tools. Bluegrass Licks – learning the language and developing a personal style.
• Improvising – when, where and how.
• The shuffle and the double shuffle – how to build it up – and use tastefully.
• Playing in Harmony – the bluegrass wall of sound.
• Playing in a band or jam session – Etiquette, What to play, What not to play.
• Tunes used in examples – Can’t You Hear Me Calling – a classic solo from a bluegrass pioneer, Sally Goodin – how to make a tune come to life, Florida Blues – improvising and tasteful variations, Texas Gallop – twin fiddles, Bill’s Dream – triple fiddles, Back up and Push – double shuffle and more….

By the end of the week the participant will have a good understanding of the bluegrass fiddle style, a greater appreciation for the music and be well placed to advance further. I provide written material and a CD, recommendations for further listening and a guide to books and other useful resources.

Feel free to contact me with any queries: Donal Baylor.

Workshop Donal Baylor, National Folk Festival