Classes & Teachers - 2015
WEEK 1
Steve Baughman
Steve Baughman is a Rounder Records recording artist who has published five guitar books with Mel Bay. He has taught at over 50 camps across the United States, Canada, and Europe. He has the same name as the Steve Baughman who won a Grammy.
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In Harmony’s Way/Folk Singing Session (level 1–3) Let’s sit and make the rafters ring, with shanties, gospel, drinking songs, ballads, and all manner of folk songs with choruses. This is more of a song session than song class. Steve will teach no vocal technique because he has none. Instead he will share a repertoire of chorus songs that we can all use at parties for the rest of our lives. Includes some discussion also of session etiquette and leadership skills.
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Folk Fingerstyle Boot Camp (level 3–4) Add groove and life to your playing with a week of drilling and total immersion in Travis picking, Carter picking, percussive slap techniques, and more. We will focus on accompaniment rather than lead, and we will practice what we are learning in the context of real live songs. Sore fingers and increased abilities guaranteed!
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Cary Black
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Cary Black is an acoustic and electric bassist, teacher, producer, and vocalist living in Washington State. Described by Alan Senauke in Sing Out! magazine as “a musician’s musician,” Cary is at home in a wide variety of musical settings; he has been fortunate to have been given the opportunity to work and play with a number of noteworthy musicians in the music camp community and beyond.
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Proceed to the Root (level 1–2) We’ll begin with a few technique basics. Then we’ll listen for how to find the best notes to play, and learn the easiest ways to play them steadily and in tune. By the end of the first class, we’ll be playing a song. By the end of the week you’ll be well on your way to having fun jamming!
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Bluegrass Bass (level 3–4) We’ll be: Focusing on the role of bass in traditional and progressive bluegrass. Exploring ways to produce a dynamic and supportive sound, with precise pitch and timing, as effortlessly as possible. Learning to add interest to the music by increasing our range of notes, using leading tones, passing tones, bass runs, rhythmic accents, and syncopation. Working on listening, including how to hear simple and more complex chord progressions; how to interpret audible and visual cues; and how to navigate count-offs, intros, tags, and endings. Investigating the basics of walking and soloing, with emphasis on improvisation skills.
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Sharon Gilchrist has long made her home in the American acoustic music scene. You may have seen her playing mandolin or upright bass, singing a traditional ballad, or performing an original piece. Sharon has performed with Darol Anger, the Peter Rowan and Tony Rice Quartet, Scott Nygaard and John Reischmann, Laurie Lewis and the Right Hands, Scott Law and the Bluegrass Dimension, The Kathy Kallick Band, and Uncle Earl. She earned a degree in Mandolin Performance from Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, and has taught mandolin for nearly 15 years both privately and at some of the nation’s finest music camps. From 2004 to 2012 she served on staff at the College of Santa Fe teaching mandolin. Sharon currently resides in the Bay Area of northern California.
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Beginning Mandolin (level 1–2) This class is for true beginners. We’ll cover basic right- and left-hand posture and technique. We’ll learn fiddle tunes by ear and their chord changes. We’ll also discuss tone, pick direction, “groove,” and playing with others.
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Intermediate Mandolin (level 3–4) This class is for players who are looking to improve their fluency on the instrument. We’ll use arpeggios to outline the fingerboard and to develop phrasing for solos, and we’ll apply them to single-note leads, double stops, and chord inversions.
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Patrice Haan is a harper, singer, songwriter, composer, and wordsmith, devoted to the healing presence of listening. Patrice has an ear for melody, a heart for feelings, and a gift for lyrics, which she combines into beautiful music, whether singing and playing her own songs or interpreting others’ creations. As well as playing therapeutic music with Healing Muses, a non-profit that provides music for healing in local hospitals, Patrice is increasingly being recognized for her songwriting and poetry. Her music has been called “gorgeous, poetic and evocative, healing our souls and our heartache with the palpable love and the poetry of the music.”
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Songcraft—Writing Songs with or without Instruments (level 1–4) Find a(nother) song. We’ll write and listen every day, paying attention to lyrics, meter, melody, and form. Bring your curiosity, a notebook, and your instrument of choice. We’re goin’ on a lion hunt!
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Listening 101 (level 1–4) Listening is a primary tool for music-making. You’ve got two ears. Are you interested in learning to use them more fully? We’ll use daily games such as The Fabulous MindMeld to enhance your musical skills and practice listening deeply.
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Paul Hemmings performs regularly with his ukulele-fronted jazz trio, The Paul Hemmings Uketet, at jazz clubs and festivals across the country and around the world. He has released five albums on Leading Tone Records, including critically acclaimed recordings with saxophonists John Tchicai and Eric Alexander. Paul lives in New York City where he has been a faculty member at the Third Street Music School Settlement for the past twelve years.
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Elemental Ukulele (level 1–2) Learn how to synthesize the basic elements of music—melody, harmony, and rhythm—into songs you know and love using the disarmingly diminutive ukulele as a catalyst for fun. Just the right class for beginners with little-to-no musical experience.
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Arranging for Ukulele Ensemble (level 3–4) Arrange songs for any ukulele ensemble by learning the basics of counterpoint, 4-part harmony, how to use dynamics, and much more. Perfect for players looking to write arrangements for their ukulele group or club.
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Sylvia Herold has taught guitar and song repertoire for three decades. Her performance credits include Cats & Jammers, Wake the Dead, Euphonia, The Hot Club of San Francisco, Sylvia Herold and the Rhythm Bugs, and The Sylvia Herold Ensemble.
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Intro to Swing Guitar (level 3) An easy-to-understand system gets you on the road to playing jazz and swing. Learn the basics in this supportive introductory class: chords, strums, fretboard navigation, changing chords, and making it swing. Learn good habits and play a selection of jumpin’ jazz and western swing songs.
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Swing Repertoire for the Singing Guitarist (level 4) Immerse yourself in the joys of swing guitar as you play songs beloved by jazz singers. Build chord vocabulary and flex your guitar muscles as you learn sophisticated standards and obscure gems of the Great American Songbook.
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As a vocalist, Ed Johnson is frequently compared to Ivan Lins, Milton Nascimento, Kenny Rankin, and Michael Franks. As a guitarist and bandleader, critics often cite the lushly exotic, accessible sounds of Airto and Flora Purim. Ed has seven recording projects to his credit, several producer credits, and is a founding member of CCMC as well as a perennial fixture on the teaching staff at the Puget Sound Guitar Workshop.
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Songwriting: Melody and Harmony (level 2–5) Crafting a tune, including how it works with chord changes, is a skill that any songwriter wants to master. We’ll explore techniques for being creative and spontaneous in composing melodies, and the ways in which lyrics are best incorporated into melody. We’ll also look at the many ways that chord changes can enhance melody.
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Singing Beautiful Harmonies (level 3–4) If you enjoy singing multi-part arrangements with fun, luscious harmonies, this is your class! What could be more enjoyable than joining your voice with others in singing a varied repertoire of jazz, rock, pop, and gospel? Pure delight!
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Veteran Bay Area singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Steve Kritzer is “A Man of Many Musics” (San Jose Mercury News), as comfortable with Celtic, bluegrass, folk, and country as he is with rock, big band swing, and pop. Steve’s relaxed, personable style on stage and in teaching makes him a popular call-back at festivals and teaching camps from California to Ireland. When not teaching or performing, he’s writing, recording, or being “his own grandpa,” hanging out with his 6-year-old daughter.
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Performance (level 2–4) A supportive and problem-solving class, where we’ll study the art and craft of performing on stage. Please bring a song that you will sing or play as your vehicle for trying what you learn. This is a workshop—we’ll find out what works for each performer. Everyone gets on stage!
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Get Your Flatpicking Groove On! (level 3) Being able to play solid, versatile rhythm/backup guitar will make you the most welcome person in any jam or band (unless you bring beer). We’ll take basic boom chuck (bass/strum), add bass runs between chords, cool licks based on scales, and so much more!
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Chris is one of the hardest working musicians from the Seattle music scene, seamlessly switching from international music to jazz and from rock to bluegrass. His acoustic guitar playing stands out, but this virtuosic, multi-instrumentalist is equally at home playing mandolin, drums, bass, electric guitar, banjo, and Greek bouzouki. Chris was a founding member of Seattle-based Northern Departure, and has sat in with Jerry Douglas, Emmylou Harris, Rob Ickes, and many others. Chris is the 2013 IBMA Momentum Award winner for Instrumentalist of the Year, and performs full time with the 2014 IBMA Instrumental Group of the Year, Frank Solivan and Dirty Kitchen.
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Lead Flatpicking/Bluegrass Guitar (level 3–4) We’ll focus on traditional bluegrass songs, fiddle tunes, swing tunes, and country classics. Starting with an in-depth study of rhythm fundamentals, we’ll also look at chords, scales, dynamics, bass runs, and the use of fingering patterns to mentally map your fretboard. You'll walk away with new tools and ways to approach your guitar. Discussion on gear, tone improvement, and questions about the class material are welcomed.
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Lead Guitar in Flatpicking/Bluegrass (level 4–5) We’ll take an in-depth look at scales and their application in lead guitar and soloing. We’ll then use these tools to build musical solos, improve tone, and enhance the tunes you already know. We’ll study several connecting scale patterns, exercise patterns, and warm-up approaches to build speed, clarity, and timing. We’ll dissect a popular fiddle tune found in jams and look at adding improvisation and creating solos.
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Since realizing at age 16 that people could make music themselves, Tony Marcus has pursued that goal with joy and abandon. Learning to play most acoustic stringed instruments, he has found himself playing many styles of music. He has played bluegrass with Frank Wakefield, jug band music and blues with Geoff Muldaur, string swing with Cats & Jammers, big band jazz with the Royal Society Jazz Orchestra, weird old Hawaiian and hokum with R. Crumb and the Cheap Suit Serenaders, and honky tonk/country with Rose Maddox. He also has a career in theatre, appearing in shows all over the United States for the 20 years. He currently performs with Patrice Haan in the vocal duo Leftover Dreams.
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Camp Instrumentalist As Camp Instrumentalist Tony is on call to provide leads and backup (on almost any instrument you can name) for classes and performances. All you need do is ask!
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First Steps at Soloing (level 3) You don’t have to be a great improvisor to play a lead. We’ll learn some simple melodies and experiment with phrasing to make them more musical. Any instrument that can play a melody is welcome. Get over your fear of soloing!
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Singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, Kristina Olsen has added “author” to her quiver with the release of her e-book with embedded songs. Ms Olsen is an award-winning songwriter with a big bluesy voice that ranges across lilting ballads, blues, swing jazz, to rauch and roll. A famously funny performer, she takes the audience through a rollercoaster of wild humor to deeply poignant songs. Artists Eric Bibb, Mary Coughlin, Maddy Prior, and Fairport Convention among others have covered her songs. With thirteen recordings of original songs (four on Rounder/Philo Records), she is typically on the road ten months a year, having way too much fun.
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Instigator As Camp Instigator, Kristina helps connect people with similar interests, helps students find the right classes, helps start jams, helps newcomers find their way around, and generally serves as a musical problem-solver and source of encouragement. If you’ve got a question, worry, or idea, talk to Kristina!
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Steve Pottier
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Steve Pottier has been playing bluegrass guitar, bass, and mandolin in the Bay Area for over 30 years. Well known for his Clarence White-style guitar, he has a CD with Sandy Rothman, the highly acclaimed Bluegrass Guitar Duets. He also writes a column for Flatpicking Guitar magazine.
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Beginning Flatpicking (level 2) Something caught your ear—was it Doc Watson, Tony Rice, Peter Langston? You stare longingly at the advanced flatpicking classes. You hear yourself playing bass runs and fills, and solos to songs. Ahh—but where to start? Start here. Bring a flatpick.
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Bluegrass Guitar, Clarence White Style (level 3–4) Learn tunes, licks, and techniques of Clarence White, whose playing was infused with blues, jazz, and country. He inspired the likes of Tony Rice, David Grier, and Marty Stuart. You should be comfortable playing fiddle tunes and breaks to songs.
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In addition to having been a member of the San Francisco Folk Music Club for 40 years, Bob’s family owned a record store in West Berkeley, Reid’s Records, and he grew up surrounded by rhythm and blues and popular music of the day. Many an oldies session has benefited from his knowledge of those songs. In the past 30 years, he has performed in schools conducting songwriting/recording workshops and assemblies and with Pete Seeger at United Nations headquarters in New York. He recently performed as a guitarist/singer with the Hot Rods, playing songs from 1954–1964.
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Beginning Guitar (level 1) An entry into the guitar. We’ll uncover some of the mysteries of chords and how to play them, laying down a foundation that can be built upon to take you to the next level. No knowledge is necessary and the more questions you have the better! We’ll pursue the answers together.
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Oldies (level 2–4) We’ll revisit songs that enlivened the ’50s and early ’60s and learn how to capture the rhythmic feel of those songs using just a guitar. We’ll also learn how to include those great background vocal parts.
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“Rey is one of the greatest modern players of the metal-bodied resonator guitar.” —Acoustic Guitar Magazine
“Whilst known for her amazing instrumental skills . . . it should not be overlooked that she always provides a very entertaining show, full of variety, drama and humour.” —Blues In Britain
“Del Rey is one of the most sublime modern guitarists.” —La Hora del Blues Barcelona
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Off the Record: Figuring Out Memphis Minnie (level 3–5) Be able to maintain an alternating bass with your thumb and be comfortable with first position chords. Learn the guitar vocabulary you need to figure out most any Memphis Minnie song in G, C, and D. We’ll listen to Memphis Minnie originals in class and learn how to figure them out. We’ll also learn ways to make duet guitar parts work on solo guitar. By ear, recorders okay.
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Moving Bass Lines (level 4–5) Want to play guitar like a pianist? Walking, internal, and boogie-woogie bass lines for fingerstyle guitar. Learn the positions where you can find both chords and moving bass. Mostly standard tuning. By ear, recorders okay.
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Mike Simpson has been playing, singing, songwriting, and teaching for many years. He has taught and instigated at CCMC. He enjoys seeing campers find new joys and rediscover familiar ones. Let’s jam!
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Physical Singing (level 1–2) Physical Singing will establish a strong, capable body foundation for singing. We will then effect happy changes to our singing, bolstering tone, range, volume, and emotion with the power of good physical praxis. This class welcomes all levels of singers, but focuses on singers with little prior study of singing. New songs and exercises for potential “repeat customers”! Wear clothing suitable to movement.
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Practical Theory (level 2–3) Practical Theory will use the fundamental elements of music theory to build useful technique on guitar, mandolin family, ukulele, and bass. Melodic, chordal, and harmonic elements will move in each lesson from mind to hands. Students should know first position chords and have some idea of the I-IV-V families. Bring your instrument.
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Acoustic guitarist Doug Smith is a Grammy award winner and 2006 winner of the prestigious Winfield International Fingerstyle Guitar Competition. His playing can be heard everywhere from the movies August Rush and Twister, to Good Morning America and National Public Radio. Doug teaches at music camps and workshops all over the country.
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Lose the Flatpick: Fingerstyle from the Ground Up (level 2) For folks who have a few chords down and can strum (mostly) in time and would like to enter the world of fingerpicking. (Warning: there may be no turning back!). You’ll start with basic bass/chord, bass/arpeggio patterns with your thumb and fingers, and learn many more fundamentals that will benefit all aspects of your playing.
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The Music of Paul Simon (level 4) Whether you grew up on Paul Simon’s guitar playing or are just discovering it, his style and songs have become classic, and perfect for the solo fingerstyle repertoire. We’ll go from the flowing picking patterns of “April Come She Will” and “Scarborough Fair” to the bluesy arrangement of Davey Graham’s “Anji.”
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Sue Thompson is a noted bluegrass and roots-Americana vocalist, and a dedicated teacher whose Sing Harmony Now! method has won praise on three continents. Sue performs and teaches at festivals and workshops in Europe as well as in the U.S., Canada, and Japan. “Singing harmony by ear, on-the-fly, is one of the greatest joys of making music,” she says. “It’s rewarding to see my students sharing that joy.” Sue is an accomplished flatpicker, and her recordings include the late Mike Seeger’s Grammy-nominated Third Annual Farewell Reunion and the western music extravaganza Tall Boots. Sue performs with Field and Thompson, a bi-continental band that specializes in rare gems of bluegrass, country, and Americana.
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Three Chords and the Truth! Country Song Repertoire (level 1–2) We’ll learn some great hits and little-known gems of country, bluegrass, hillbilly, western, and old time music. Duets, trios, and maybe even quartets—all songs chosen for high fun quotient. Everyone is welcome!
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Singing Together: Vocal Technique and Harmony by Ear (level 3–4) Come explore the magic of joining our voices in harmony. We’ll learn to find harmonies by ear, without needing anyone to teach us what notes to sing—plus techniques, licks, and tricks for blending and sounding great together.
WEEK 2
Danny Carnahan
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Danny Carnahan has been recording Celtic and his own original songs for over 30 years, playing octave mandolin, guitar, fiddle, and singing. He performs most often with the popular septet Wake the Dead. He has taught performance and songwriting in community colleges and at music camps for 25 years, writes for music magazines, and has published a book, Irish Songs for Guitar, and two musical murder mysteries.
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Beginning Songwriting (level 1–3) Bring your songs to life. We’ll work on kick-starting creativity, lyrics, melody, structure, and editing for clarity, style, and commercial appeal. Be ready to write a lot, laugh a lot, and go home with a finished song.
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Irish Pub Session (level 2–4) More than just learning cool jigs and reels, we’ll explore style, ornament, and nuance, build repertoire including popular and exotic tunes, learn to play like a band, learn accompaniments and melodies, and get comfortable in the culture of pub session etiquette.
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Nova Devonie
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Nova Devonie toured nationally for several years as accordionist and backup singer in the swingabilly cowgirl group Ranch Romance. Since then she’s divided her time between performing, composing, and teaching. Currently a member of five Seattle bands, including Miles and Karina (with multi-instrumentalist David Keenan), Nova enjoys spreading the joy and versatility of the accordion.
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Instrumentalist As Camp Instrumentalist Nova is on call to provide leads and backup (on accordion, keyboards, or voice) for classes and performances. All you have to do is ask!
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Intermediate Squeeze (level 2–3) Comfortable with basic left-hand piano accordion patterns and good bellows control? Add bass lines and fills to arrange three tunes from different styles. Lots of playing by ear, with standard notation provided. Also: tips and techniques for playing in a group and accompanying others. Fun!
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Pat Donohue
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Pat Donohue has earned recognition for his mastery of acoustic fingerstyle guitar, which he exhibited for years as the guitarist for the Guys All Star Shoe Band on Garrison Keillor’s radio program A Prairie Home Companion. Chet Atkins called him one of the greatest finger pickers in the world today; Leo Kottke called his playing “haunting.” Pat manages to blend jazz and blues with folk, and the mix is seamless. He has captivated audiences with his compositions, from dazzling instrumentals to humorous song parodies, including “Sushi-Yucky” and “Would You Like to Play the Guitar?” Honors include several Minnesota Music Awards and the 1983 National Finger Picking Guitar Champion.
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Striking the Right Chord (level 2–3) Learn all about guitar chords, simple and complex. How to find them. Make them, and more importantly, put them together to form beautiful, familiar progressions. Learn the three classifications of chords: major, minor, and dominant, and how they work together to create a demystified chordal palette that you can really use.
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Fingerstyle Guitar Moves (level 3–5) A fingerstyle expedition through chord progressions, licks, tricks, turnarounds, triad harmonization, and many other guitar moves and techniques, which will open up your playing, improvising, arranging, composing, and soloing.
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Marie loves singing harmony to any good song. She teaches songwriting at Fairhaven College at Western Washington University, and has taught songwriting and repertoire classes at Puget Sound Guitar Workshop, Northwest Writer’s Weekend, and the Georgia Strait Guitar Workshop. A longtime member of Motherlode, a four-woman band performing songs that tickle the funny bone and open the heart.
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Instigator As Instigator, Marie helps set the friendly, supportive tone that pervades CCMC. She gets jams rolling, helps people with similar interests find each other, helps students find classes that fit their needs, and provides both information and encouragement.
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Topher Gayle writes funny songs and pretty instrumentals, and he likes to lay down grooves to get dancers moving. Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, he’s a popular teacher and accompanist, and also makes resonator instruments. He plays lots of stringed instruments and some percussion. He wants to jam with you! Pretty nearly any style, any time. Let’s do it!
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Are You Hungry? (level 1–2) Food songs, food songs, food songs! From barbecue to fish fries, to peanut butter, to tomatoes, all the songs you can eat. Come chow down on some fun, mostly easy songs about gobbling grub. Singers and all instruments are very welcome! Bring a big melodic appetite!
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Beginning Mandolin (level 1–2) The mandolin is a versatile, fun little instrument! And, unlike that pesky guitar, it’s logical. For absolute newcomers and those who’ve tried before and want to try again. We’ll take it … n-i-c-e … a-n-d … s-l-o-w.
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Mary Gibbons has played and sung bluegrass and country music with the Fog City Ramblers, The All Girl Boys, Laurie Lewis and Her Bluegrass Pals, Michael Stadler, and others. Her playing and singing are in evidence on a number of recordings by some of the above bands and various other artists. Her highly regarded dynamic rhythm guitar playing has earned her teaching slots at major music camps and a feature article in Flatpicking Guitar Magazine. When the Muse cooperates, Mary is also an accomplished songwriter.
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Introduction to Flatpicking (level 2) This course is designed for those newer guitar players who feel like they are playing with a slippery fish when attempting to use a flatpick. It is time to get a grip! …and acquire the basic skills necessary for solid rhythm playing. Pick selection, grip, orientation to the strings to achieve best tone, and acquiring a loose, loose wrist will be our focus, as well as the use of rest strokes and proper pick direction when playing bass runs and other passages between chords. There will be lots of opportunity for guided practice. Students should know some chords and be able, for the most part, to change them in time.
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Bluegrass and Country Guitar (level 3) We’ll cover rhythm guitar styles appropriate to bluegrass and country material. Instruction will emphasize elements necessary to a full, powerful sound. Keys and chord shapes appropriate to the feel of the song will be illustrated. Students will also learn techniques that are most effective for backing singers—including themselves—and different lead instruments. Time permitting, we’ll study a few songs containing classic guitar riffs that have to be played or the song ain’t right.
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Wayne Henderson is a musical legend known worldwide for both his lightning-fast “pinch picking” guitar style and the beautiful guitars, mandolins, and banjos he crafts in his shop in Rugby, Virginia. Wayne was honored at the White House in l995 for his playing as well as his craftsmanship with the prestigious National Heritage Award. He has toured widely in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East under the auspices of the Smithsonian Institute and the Office of Arts America.
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Mountain Picking (level 3) We’ll work on standard fiddle tunes played in the Blue Ridge Mountain area. “Pinch picking” (fingerpicks on the thumb and forefinger) is an unusual technique but fingerpicks or flatpicks are fine for this class. We will be playing by ear, so bring an audio recorder, and we’ll go over the tunes until you get them.
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More Mountain Picking (level 3–4) We’ll play fiddle tunes from Doc Watson and other pickers from Western Virginia. We’ll work on endings and three-finger chord shapes that can be played up the neck. Bring an audio recorder.
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Dave Keenan is a multi-instrumentalist, singer, composer, and teacher. He is a busy performing musician, playing in five bands in his hometown of Seattle. In 2013, Dave, with Nova Devonie, composed scores to Lotte Reiniger’s films Sleeping Beauty and Dr. Dolittle, scores to Alfred Hitchcock’s Pleasure Garden and Easy Virtue, and in 2014–15 a new score to Buster Keaton’s Steamboat Bill Jr. That’s a lot of music!
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Bluegrass on the Bottom Strings (level 3–4) In this class we’ll take you from the familiar boom-chuck bass lines and apply those skills to some bluegrass solos in the keys of G and C. I’ll select several standards and write out the melodies in tab and we’ll work thru them. After playing a few you’ll start to see the patterns and you’re on our way to soloing!
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Honky-Tonk in the Bluegrass—The Songs of Flatt & Scruggs (level 4–5) After leaving Bill Monroe’s Bluegrass Boys, Lester and Earl went on to play and record their own country-influenced style of bluegrass. I’ll have lyrics, chords, and recordings to a pile of these that we can all sing, plus tab for playing some of these melodies on guitar.
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Margo Leduc is a much-sought-after vocal coach in both San Francisco and Los Angeles. She coaches artists under contract with Sony Music, Capitol Records, and many other labels. Margo views the singer as a whole person—not just a set of vocal chords. Lessons with Margo are about hard work and heart, correcting technical problems and nurturing the creative artist within. Margo performs extensive session work, supports corporate clients, and is a voting member of the Recording Academy. Her powerful, expressive, and sumptuous voice lends itself to any style or setting.
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Beginning Vocal Tech (level 1–2) Discover your inner artist and learn how to take creative risks in the world of vocal music. You’ll improve your singing in a supportive and empowering environment that will strengthen you and your voice. Breathing, stance, range, power, and control will be the central issues addressed.
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Intermediate Voice (level 3–5) Connect with the artist within and express your deepest emotions through your singing. We’ll balance technical discipline and letting go, to experience singing freely with skill, in a safe and supportive environment. Students should bring songs to interpret and perfect.
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Carol McComb is a vocalist, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist with over 40 years of performing, recording, and teaching experience. She wrote a best-selling guitar instruction book and has taught thousands of people to play guitar and sing in her workshop series at Gryphon Stringed Instruments in Palo Alto. She is a frequent contributor to Acoustic Guitar magazine and has taught at several music camps around the country. Carol was a member of the popular California based band, the Gryphon Quintet, and has toured with both Linda Ronstadt and Joan Baez. She is currently one half of the duo Kathy and Carol.
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Sing ’Em and Weep (level 1–3) Folk, country, and Celtic tearjerkers and exquisitely beautiful gems. Come just to sing, or come to sing and play some of the saddest and loveliest of songs. Kleenex provided.
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Sweet Harmony (level 2–4) Duets and trios carefully transcribed for our singing pleasure in a wide variety of styles. Starting with the building blocks of harmony, we will delve deeply into the interval shifts and nuances that make for perfect harmony.
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John Miller has over 40 years’ experience as a performing/recording musician, music teacher, composer, and record producer. He started out playing country blues and has played jazz, Brazilian, and old-time. John has been in demand as a teacher at music camps, and has taught at Puget Sound Guitar Workshop, Port Townsend Country Blues Workshop, BC Swing Camp, Guitar Intensives, CCMC, and others. In recent years, John has been making instructional DVDs for Stefan Grossman’s Guitar Workshop (John currently has 18 instructional DVDs to his credit) and wrote the book John Miller’s Country Blues Guitar Collection.
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Country Blues Repertoire by Ear (level 2–4) We’ll learn a song a day, working phrase by phrase, in a listen-watch-imitate-repeat fashion. The songs presented will be in different keys and tunings, so that you’ll learn different playing positions. Lots of playing in class, and lots of repetition. Bring a recording device.
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Building Swing Chordal Vocabulary Through Repertoire (level 3) We’ll provide a fundamental vocabulary of movable chords used to play swing—6th and 7th chords of various types. We’ll learn three- and four-note chord voicings to play songs, emphasizing economy of motion in the left hand. Lots of playing in class.
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Terre Roche is a singer-songwriter, best known as a founding member of The Roches and Afro-Jersey. She teaches guitar where she lives in New York City. She has just recorded an album of her songs entitled Imprint, due in 2015. She’s honored to be included in the lineup of teachers at California Coast Music Camp this year.
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Beginning Guitar (level 1) Thirty-five years ago King Crimson guitar virtuoso Robert Fripp produced the first Roches’ album. At the start of the project he told me he believed 50% of the result you achieve has to do with the way you begin something. I’ve found this to be true. That’s why I love being someone’s first guitar teacher. I get to start you off on a good foot. This class uses simple songs to get you started on your guitar path.
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Finger Picking Apart (level 2) Does your right hand know what your left hand is doing? This class will introduce them to each other, picking apart the elements involved. Slow, precise attention paid to minute details will deepen your practice and yield beautifully smooth and watery fingerpicking technique. I’ll show you some very cool exercises you can practice for the rest of your life.
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West Side Folk called Cosy Sheridan “one of the era’s finest and most thoughtful singer-songwriters.” She caught the attention of national folk audiences in 1992 when she won the Kerrville Folk Festival and The Telluride Bluegrass Festival songwriting contests. She has released 10 CDs; her music is featured in the Robert Fulghum multi-media novel The Third Wish, and she tours consistently throughout the US. Her concerts are wide-ranging explorations of modern mythology (meet Hades the Biker), love songs for adults, contemporary philosophy for the thoughtfully-minded, and her signature parody on aging and women. She co-founded The Moab Folk Camp and has been a sought-after teacher and clinician for the past 20 years.
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Let’s Write A Song This Week (level 2–5) Come write a song in a supportive community of songwriters. We’ll look at where to find inspiration—and then how to build the song. We will experiment with different ways of bringing a song into the world using individual attention and group process.
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Performance: Being Here Now (level 2–5) Our time on stage is a journey of discovering what is distinct about ourselves and projecting that out to our listeners. This week we will learn about the technical part of stagecraft and also the creative part: being a dynamic performer.
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Ever since bursting onto the scene in the early 2000s, Jamie Stillway has been a fixture at guitar festivals and camps, as well as her local Portland, Oregon acoustic music scene. As her recordings demonstrate, she is equally at home in solo and band settings, and her quirky original style is heavily influenced by early jazz and ragtime styles. Jazz Times aptly described her approach to the guitar by saying that, “Stillway moves freely and with wit and creative restlessness, between the worlds of, say, Leo Kottke and Django Reinhardt.”
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The Joy of Fingerpicking (level 3) Are you tired of the same old strum pattern, and of looking for your dropped pick on the floor? Despite what you may have heard, fingerpicking is nothing to be afraid of, and you can play many styles of music with just a few simple patterns. Come find out for yourself!
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The Well-Tempered Guitarist (level 3–4) It’s time to increase your versatility as a musician. We’ll talk basic ideas for improvising, ways to enhance your accompaniment styles, mindful practice techniques, and last but not least, ways to develop a meaningful relationship with your metronome. Fingerpickers and flatpickers are welcome.
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Phil played over thirty years internationally with John Cephas in the acoustic blues duo Cephas and Wiggins. His many current projects include the Chesapeake Sheiks, an acoustic band featuring bass, guitar, piano, violin, and harmonica, and House Party, which features finger style guitar, violin, harmonica, and a dancer, and focuses on reconnecting the dance with the dance music. Phil has over twenty years’ experience teaching at Augusta Blues Week, and has also taught at PSGW and served as Artistic Director at Centrum Blues Week. He has two new recordings, No Fools No Fun with the Chesapeake Sheiks and Owing the Devil a Days Work with Dom Turner.
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Intro to Blues Harmonica (level 1–2) Is this note broken or just bent? What key are we in? What’s a 12-bar blues? What is 1–4–5? How do you jam? These questions and many more will be answered. We’ll do lots of playing and singing. Bring an “A” harp.
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Intermediate Harmonica (level 3–4) We will learn lots of beautiful songs in the Piedmont, Delta, and classic blues styles as well as some swing tunes. Bring harps in as many keys as you can get your hands on. We will do lots of playing by ear and singing.
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Guitarist Mike Wollenberg has performed solo and in Bay Area bands for the past 30 years. He has released two solo guitar CDs: The Hand That Feeds Me, and Just Another Fool on the Hill. In his most recent recording, A Common Language, he partners with Seattle violin great Julian Smedley.
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Your First Lead (level 3–4) This is a class to get you started playing swing and blues leads. By concentrating on learning how to do a lot with just a few notes we’ll explore ways to vary the melody, develop rhythmic and melodic motifs, and translate what’s in your head to your instrument. All instruments welcome.
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Advanced Swing/Jazz (level 4–5) We’ll explore strategies to develop single line and chord soloing, comping, and arranging. We’ll look at effective ways to support the soloist, how to use phrasing and space to let one’s solo “breathe,” as well as fun ways to blur the lines between the roles of soloist and accompanist. Oh, and licks. Did I mention licks?
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Rene Worst has been performing, recording and producing music since 1973. He has been teaching in colleges, as a clinician and at music workshops/camps for just as long. Rene has worked with many artists: Joe Pass, Herb Ellis, Chet Baker, David Bowie, Freddie Hubbard, Jennifer Scott, Paul Horn, plus many others. As a producer he has worked with many singers and musicians such as Skywalk and Rita McNeil. He and music and life partner, Jennifer Scott, have just released their tenth CD. Rene is in demand as a session and live bassist and clinician.
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Beginning Bass (level 1–2) We start with very basic holding, carrying, and left- and right-hand techniques. We’ll move from root-five to blues and even walking by the end of the week. A new tune each day will be notated and comes with a play-along to take home. All bass instruments welcome.
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Intermediate Bass (level 3–5) This class is designed to improve your playing. We will find weak spots and work on them. We’ll discuss feel, reading charts, technique, and tunes with different feels to explore our playing. We’ll maybe even do a little soloing. Charts and play-along provided.