Workshop/Class Topics
2025
I am pleased to announce the following scheduled workshops, concerts, and events for 2025. In addition to the events listed below, there are other events that are being considered and I will add those as they become finalized.
2/6-7/2025: Central Florida Dulcimer Festival, Mt. Dora, FL
Looking forward to being back at the Central Florida Dulcimer Festival in Mt. Dora, FL this year. This wonderful festival should be much fun as we get together again in Florida and leave winter for the sunshine! I will be teaching 6 different workshops including some for Beginners and Novice players as well as Intermediate and Advanced players. Come join the fun! For more information and workshop descriptions contact Ellen at: centralfloridadulcimerfestival@yahoo.com.
6/22-27/2025: Kentucky Music Week, Bardstown, KY
I'm very pleased to be returning to Kentucky Music Week this summer. This weeklong event is filled with learning, jamming, meeting new and old friends, and fun! Each workshop will happen at the same every day this week. This structure allows us to build your skills and apply them to a wide variety of music. I will be teaching 2 weeklong classes for the Mountain Dulcimer (1 for Adv Beg/Int and 1 for INT level players). I will also be teaching two weeklong Clawhammer banjo classes (1 for Adv Beg/Int level and 1 for Nov/Int level banjo players). The emphasis for these classes will be to work on developing proper techniques with your right and left hands, to get comfortable with the fretboard, to increase your familiarity and comfort with chords, and to learn to play tunes without relying on tab...just like the mountain folk who developed this style of playing! For more information, contact Nancy at Kentucky Music Week.
7/20-25/2025: Dulcimer U 2025, Cullowhee, NC
What a treat it is to go to Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, NC for this great weeklong event! I am so pleased to be teaching there again this year. For the weeklong Morning Class, I will be teaching the Level V group (advanced players). This class is named "Playing Beyond the Notes!" We will have a lot of time to expand and improve your playing skills, including: adding variation to tunes you play, putting more feeling into your music for more personal expression, adding more creativity to tunes you play, discussing starting and stopping tunes for increased variation, and emphasizing the importance of listening and understanding what we feel so we can enrich our music. Bring an open mind and be prepared to learn and add to your playing skills. For further information, you can visit the Dulcimer U 2025 website by going to: wcu.edu and clicking on Dulcimer U Summer Gathering. Hope to see you there!
8/8-10/2025: New England Dulcimer Festival
So happy to announce that I will be teaching again in New England! What a beautiful place and wonderful people! I have been asked to teach 3 workshops. One will be: "Adding Variation to the Tunes You Play!" This will be for the Advanced level. We'll discuss and demonstrate how you can play a tune a little differently each time you play it. Along the way we will emphasize fingering choice for more sustain, smooth transitions. And of course we'll emphasize listening to what you are playing! Another Advanced class will be applying your techniques and skills to different types/styles of music. And a third class I will be teaching is "Great Old-Time Tunes Not in the Key of D!" Who can resist playing music in the beautiful New England with dear folk?! Looking forward to seeing in New England this August!
10/11-16/2025: Black Mountain Music Festival, Black Mountain, NC
I am so looking forward to going back to Black Mountain this year...especially after last year's event was cancelled because of Hurricane Helene. But, fortunately, things are slowly getting better in the mountains and I have been informed that the Black Mountain Music Festival will be able to happen! This is always a great event, but it's especially important to support this event this year to do what we can to get things closer to "normal" in western NC. I'll be teaching 3 workshops there. One will be for Adv Beg/INT players which will focus on refining our techniques for our right and left hand and improving our listening to what we play. We will apply this to some great tunes! I will also be teaching an INT class emphasizing adding variation to tunes that you play, regardless of the type/style of music! And I will be teaching an INT/ADV class on "Playing beyond the Notes." We will focus not just on your fingers but also how your ears, your brain, and your heart can influence what/how you play. Hope to see you there!
12/7-13/2025: John C Campbell Folk School, Brasstown, NC
It is with great pleasure that I will be teaching again at the renowned John C Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, NC. This will occur during their "Holiday in the Mountains Week" 2025. This will be a weeklong class from 12/7-13/2025. This class will be "Seasonal Mountain Dulcimer Tunes and More!" and it will be for Advanced Beginner and Intermediate levels. We will focus on improving your playing skills and techniques on the mountain dulcimer, and applying them to some wonderful tunes! As usual, I will give you plenty of exercises to enhance your playing (for both right and left hand) and a lot of music for you to play and apply these skills! I hope to see you there and help you along your musical journey!
| Workshop/Class Topics |
Skills/Techniques
Beginners
Novice
Novice/Intermediate
Intermediate/Advanced
Advanced Master Class
Right Hand Techniques
Left Hand Techniques
Improving Your Rhythm and Strum
Flatpicking
Fingerpicking
Basic Principles of Dulcimer Playing
Smoothing Out Your Playing
Expressing Yourself Through Your Playing
Making a Tab Yours
Improving Your Sound
Jamming Skills
The Wonderful World of Chords
Improve your Chording
The Circle of Fifths Made Easy!
Improving Your Ear - Hearing and Listening
Hearing Chord Changes
Intervals and Ear/Finger Training
Adding Notes and variability to your Playing
Playing Tasteful Back-Up
Playing Duets and Ensembles
Playing Dulcimer with Other Instruments
Playing With a capo
Playing Above the 7th Fret
Exploring Aeolian Tuning
Exploring Alternate/Different Tunings
Playing Clawhammer/Old-Time Banjo
Playing in Keys Other than D!
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Repertoire
Beautiful Celtic Airs
Embellishing Celtic Airs
Celtic Tunes
Songs of Stephen Foster
Waltzing with your Dulcimer
Lullabies from America and Around the World
Old Time Tunes in G, A, and C (as well as D)
Creative Old-Time Music
Expanding Your Old-Time Repertoire
Singing With the Dulcimer
Common and Not-so-common Old Time Songs
Miscellaneous
Arranging Your Music
Playing 5 Equidistant Strings
How to Teach the Dulcimer (or Banjo)
Performing
All classes/topics can be taught at all skill levels from beginner to advanced Master classes
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