australianbluegrass.com

Australian Banjo Conference are 6th to the 9th January 2011.

Peter Nahuysen has confirmed the  dates for the next Australian Banjo Conference to be held at Tranquil Park, Maleny in Qld. are 6th to the 9th January 2011.

This means that the conference has moved back 4 weeks from the dates previously held in December, now 6th to 9th  January 2011. The dates and limited, details are as follows:

Peter advised that the final list of instructors is yet to be confirmed and will be depend on final registration numbers. However, there is a total of 55 places available with access to 5  instructors during the conference.

I can confirm  that master banjo player and teacher Ross Nickerson will once again be our  principal instructor, ably accompanied by Gary Vann and myself. Martin Louis  will again be our 4th instructor with our 5th one yet to be decided. Rest  assured I will find and excellent player/teacher to add a new and exciting  dimension to Banjo Conference 2011 - Peter Nahuysen.

Conference registration is open and available from the Bellbird Banjo Website.

Peter Nahyusen has announced the dates for the next Australian Banjo Conference as 6th to 9th January 2011.

I am very happy to announce officially the dates for the next Australian Banjo Conference. I have called it Conference 2010/11 just for now, because the dates have been moved 4 weeks back from the regular December spot to early January. This means the Conference is 6th to 9th January 2011 – Peter Nahyusen.

The final list of instructors is yet to be confirmed and will be determined by the final numbers that register. However in 2011 there will be 50 places available with potentially 5 instructors on the faculty.

Ross Nickerson will once again be the principal instructor, ably accompanied by Gary Vann and Peter Nahyusen. Other instructors will be confirmed closer to the date.

The band and undoubted conference sensation Hungry Hill will be in attendance for the 2011 conference to provide their invaluable support and instruction once again.

2nd Australian Banjo Conference was held from 2nd to 6th Dec 2009.

The 2nd Australian Banjo Conference was held in an awe inspiring site in the town of Maleny called Tranquil Park. That so many banjo players could accumulate and descend upon a venue called Tranquil Park is in itself an irony lost to many. Nevertheless, around 40 pickers shared the resort with a few other groups of people over the course of the weekend.

Renowned USA banjo instructor banjo teacher Ross Nickerson was the principal instructor at last year’s banjo conference and on returning home, convinced other members of his band, Hungry Hill, that they too should make the long trek across the Pacific to be a part of the weekend. Thankfully for us they all agreed. Hungry Hill comprises Ross Nickerson on banjo, Nadine Landry on bass, Mark Thibeault on guitar and dobro, Bob Hamilton of mandolin and Jenny Lester on fiddle and guitar.

The 2nd Australian Banjo Conference commenced on the Thursday evening with a magnificent concert at the Maleny Community Centre. The concert featured not only Hungry Hill but several local scratch bands and soloists all combined to make up an entertaining evening of variety.

By the start of the 2nd Australian Banjo Conference, Hungry Hill had generously appeared in concerts and workshops in Harrietvile, Yinnar, and Sydney. By the time they had arrived at Maleny they had already endeared themselves to many of us with their willingness to generously share their skills, and abilities.

The next morning saw a cacophony of banjo players assemble for their pre-conference briefing by the weekend’s director Peter Nahuysen. Peter and his fellow conference instructors had divided the group up by their self-nominated skill level and assigned them to various classes across the course of the weekend.

Across the weekend four very capable instructors took some 50 people through intensive workshops, delivering tailored tuition at all levels of playing ability. Each of the days tuition and practice sessions culminated in an evening performance by each of the students, with Hungry Hill as their own support band. Some had never played in public before, let alone getting up on stage with bluegrass band. The evening concerts were the highlight of the weekend, entertaining, hilarious and very rewarding.

The banjo instructors for the weekend included Ross Nickerson from the USA and banjoteacher.com, two-time National Banjo Champion and full time music teacher Mr Gary Vann, the 2008 National Banjo Champion, Martin Louis and experienced player, teacher and banjo author Peter Nahuysen. Peter is also founder and maker of Bellbird Banjos, one of Australian finest banjos.

I am so proud to be associated with The Australian Banjo Conference and all the fantastic people who contributed to its success.  Although only our second one ever, the 2009 conference felt so comfortable and like a reunion of old friends, plus a whole lot of new ones added in for good measure. Our numbers nearly doubled from 2008 to a total of 56, which included 41 banjo players in 4 classes, 4 instructors, the fabulous members of Hungry Hill, a live-in guitarist and some wonderfully supportive husbands, wives and parents. What was really fantastic was the fact that 10 of our banjo pickers were female. More power to the ladies. We felt we had the balance just right between formal instruction, jamming, personal practice time, performance and of course the all important eating and socialising.

Our next conference is planned for the 3rd weekend in January 2011, (Thurs-Sun). We are planning once again to have Ross Nickerson and Hungry Hill as our very special guests. More details will be available in the New year on the Australian Bluegrass Blog and at ww.bellbirdbanjos.com

A huge thank you to Ross Nickerson, Gary Vann, Martin Louis, Stu Porter, Greg McGrath, the wonderful Tranquil Park staff and of course the fabulous, talented, generous members of the Canadian bluegrass supergroup, Hungry Hill.  Peter Nahuysen. Conference Convenor.

The Hungry Hill team also delivered their harmony workshop. The same workshop which saw Jenny Lester’s DVD (singing harmony) sell out immediatly after the workshop at this year’s Harrietville festival. There were many factors contributing to the overall success of the weekend, not the least of which was Hungry Hill‘s most generous contribution.

Many of us are already lobbying Bellbird Banjo’s Peter Nahysuen to bring Hungry Hill back for the 2010 conference.

The Australian Bluegrass Blog hosts a page dedicated to news and updates on the Australian Banjo Conference.

2nd Australian Banjo Conference – 3rd to 6th Dec 2009.

Conference Convenor Peter Nahuysen, has advised us that there are now only six spaces left in this year’s Banjo Conference scheduled for 3rd to 6th December.

Last year’s event was extremely popular and featured a range of local instructors along with BanjoTeacher.com’s Ross Nickerson from the USA. This year Ross returns with his band Hungry Hill who will also be attending the conference providing some entertainment and added support.

Local instructors include two-time National Banjo Champion and full time music teacher Mr Gary Vann, current National Banjo Champion Martin Louis and experienced player, teacher and banjo author Peter Nahuysen, founder and maker of Bellbird Banjos.

This is an idea opportunity for banjo players of all levels to gain some high quality tuition and to rapidly improve their playing, while bieng be truly inspired while meeting a host of other players. If you haven’t done so already, we urge you to download a form and sign up. today.

Australian Banjo Conference – 3rd to 6th Dec 2009.

Peter Nahyusen has sent through an update on this year’s Banjo Conference scheduled for December this year.

Well, not too long now till camp 2009 and anticipation is growing along with very healthy registration numbers. I now have 43 confirmed bookings from folks saying they are definitely coming, which is already 16 more than last year.  This is fantastic.  I also have secured some extra rooms and can now take up to 55 participants in total, at which point I will be booking a 5th instructor. What a great problem to have. Peter Nahyusen, Australian Banjo Conference.

Peter Nahyusen has sent through an update on the 2009 Banjo Camp’s progress.

Official registrations are standing now at 24, which means there are still 21 spots still available.

Please spread the word about the conference to any fellow players, as it would be great to see these spots filled as soon as possible.

Pete also advises that if you are thinking of attending the camp, you can secure a spot with a deposit of just $150.00, with payments to be finalised by the end of September.

As mentioned in previous posts, Ross Nickerson’s band Hungry Hill will be at this year’s conference and the plan is to feature a major bluegrass concert in downtown Maleny on the Thursday night to get our weekend off to a flying start. The concert will take place in the Maleny Community Centre a 200 seat hall, and will feature Hungry Hill with Ross Nickerson of course, all of the conference instructors, and some other groups as well. It will be a fantastic way to kick off our confference this year, and will be lot’s of fun. More information to follow shortly. – Peter Nahyusen.

Earlier this month we reported that registrations are now open for the 2nd annual Australian Banjo Conference.

News from Peter Nayhusen is that Ross Nickerson and his band Hungey Hill will be special guests at this year’s Australian Banjo Conference.

The convention will be held from 3rd to 6th December in Maleny, Qld. Peter advises that 13 of the 45 spaces have already been reserved by pickers, many of whom attended last years conference.

Ross Nickerson and Hungry Hill will also perform at a special concert held in Maleny on the evening of Thu, 3rd Dec.

To download a registration form for the conference click here

2nd Australian Banjo Conference – 3rd to 6th Dec 2009.

Pater Nayhusen has announced details of the 2009 Australian Banjo Conference to be held in Queensland from 3rd to 6th December.

Get ready to pick, because it is on again, bigger, longer and better than ever. After the major success of the inaugural Banjo Camp in 2008, organisers are looking to once again gather at Tranquil Park Maleny for a long weekend of intensive banjo tuition. Utilising the long-weekend now provides for 3 full days for the event with 4 instructors, and 45 places available.

This is a great opportunity for 5-string banjo enthusiasts to rapidly improve their playing, to truly be inspired and most importantly to meet other players.

Bookings are now open for the 2009 Australian Banjo Conference.

It was great to see many of you at Redlands Bluegrass Convention last weekend, and we who were able to attend all had a fantastic time. I am happy to say that after my banjo slow jam workshop I handed out a number of banjo conference information sheets to a batch of new players, many of whom showed keen interest in attending.
As you can see in the attached details sheet, we have followed up on suggestions from your feedback on camp 2008 and extended it by a whole day, so that it now runs from Thursday 2.00pm till Sunday 2.00pm. Fantastic value and a whole extra day of workshops and jamming! Throw into the mix a planned concert in Maleny on the Thursday night and we are looking at a fantastic 3 days of all things banjo - Peter Nayhusen Conference Coordinator.

To download a registration form click here