2005-07-07
Class Acts On Tour
Dear DVFGA,
I just wanted to send you this information about Robin Bullock's and Steve Baughman's upcoming workshop in
the Outer Banks of North Carolina this October. It's an excellent oppotunity, and we'd like to make sure the
music community is aware of it. Would you mind spreading the word among your friends, colleagues, and students?
Maybe you could mention it at your July 10 meeting. Please let us know if you have any questions.
If you think your members may be interested, let us know. We can also send you some postcards with more
information on the camp.
The Outer Banks Guitar Workshop
with Steve Baughman & Robin Bullock
For Intermediate and Advanced Players
October 9th-14th, 2005
Northern Outer Banks, North Carolina
Retreat limited to 20 adult participants
To enroll and for more information, please visit
www.classactsontour.com/special/program5.htm.
The Outer Banks Guitar Workshop is a unique opportunity for intermediate and
advanced guitarists to study with Steve Baughman and Robin Bullock, two of
North America's leading players and instructors, on the scenic Outer Banks
of North Carolina. The workshop will take place over the week that includes
Columbus Day, considered to be the most idyllic season on the banks.
The camp schedule allows for unprecedented interaction between twenty adult
participants and two of the most acclaimed guitarists in their field. The
camp will include master classes, opportunities for student jams and
performances, and nightly concerts from Robin and Steve.
Campers will be lodged together in a luxury beach cottage in the oceanside
community of Ocean Sands. Amenities include: gourmet dining, expansive
meeting rooms for classes, Jacuzzis, decks, a private pool, and the
breath-taking sunrises and endless un-spoiled beaches of the Outer Banks.
Students may choose to lodge in their own private suite, to share a room
with another student, or to bring a non-participant guest who can enjoy the
beach and local attractions.
Don't miss this opportunity to jumpstart your guitar playing in a beautiful
setting!
For more info, please visit: www.classactsontour.com,
or contact us at:
(410) 374-9059 (home)
(252) 202--865 (cell)
mtfarmer@classactsontour.com
ROBIN BULLOCK
Robin Bullock is a prolific composer and multi-instrumentalist, whose
virtuosity on guitar, cittern and mandolin blends the ancient melodies of
the Celtic lands and their vigorous Appalachian descendants into one
powerful musical vision.
The 17th-century harp tunes of legendary Irish bard Turlough O'Carolan, the
spirited jigs and reels of rural Ireland, the haunting ballads of the
southern Appalachians and evocative original compositions all find a musical
common ground in Robin's music, where lightning-fast fingerwork one moment
is perfectly balanced with tender, quiet intimacy the next. Originally
rising to prominence as a founding member of the innovative acoustic
world-music trio Helicon (winners of the Association for Independent Music's
prestigious INDIE Award for Best Seasonal Recording), Robin's solo career
has won him three Washington Area Music Association WAMMIE Awards, a
Governor's Award from the Maryland State Arts Council, and a feature
broadcast on National Public Radio's hugely popular Celtic music program
"The Thistle and Shamrock." His recorded work includes six critically
acclaimed solo CDs (Green Fields, Midnight Howl, Between Earth and Sky, The
Lightning Field, A Guitar for Christmas and The Enchanted Woods), and four
collaborations: Travellers with legendary bluegrass mandolinists Butch
Baldassari and John Reischman, A Midnight Clear: A Celtic Christmas with
fellow INDIE winners Al Petteway and Amy White, The Irish Girl with French
flute and whistle champion Michel Sikiotakis, and Celtic Guitar Summit with
innovative California fingerstylist Steve Baughman.
www.robinbullock.com
"Dazzling spirit...what he offers is not just virtuosity for the sake of
virtuosity, but also the sensibility of one on a quest between past and
present, traditional and modern." -Trad Magazine (France)
"Breathtaking...brilliant technique, always in service of the
music." -Guitar Player
"A musician whose technical skill and stylistic expertise are second to
none...a time-served folkie of the highest calibre." -Classical Guitar
(U.K.)
"Celtic guitar god." -Baltimore City Paper
STEVE BAUGHMAN
Described by Dirty Linen as one of the best Celtic fingerpickers in the
country, Steve Baughman is a Rounder Records recording artist who appears
with Pierre Bensusan and Martin Simpson on the Blarney Pilgrim video and CD
series. He is the author of five books published by Mel Bay (Celtic Guitar
Method, Celtic Fingerstyle Guitar Solos, An Open Tunings Christmas,
Beginning Open Tunings, and his latest, Frailing the Guitar), has released
three solo CDs (A Drop of the Pure, The Angels' Portion and Old World
Christmas), and has toured internationally, solo and with Robin. Steve is
one of the earliest 'Orkney tuning' pioneers and is currently exploring the
many uses of clawhammer banjo technique on the guitar. He is a demanding but
fun teacher who believes that class time should be spent with as much
playing and internalizing of the material as possible to insure that
students have new skills to take with them when they leave camp. "Less talk
and more rock."
www.celticguitar.com
"Steve's technique is impeccable...transcended guitar music with heart and
spirit." -Pierre Bensusan
"Someone who can improvise within the basic traditional framework and equal
the likes of Pierre Bensusan and John Renbourn. For ultra sweet guitaring,
look no further." -John O'Regan, Irish Music
"A star of fingerstyle guitar.very deft, thoughtful, quietly adventurous,
deeply lyrical & playful." -Radio National, Australia
ROBIN & STEVE
Robin and Steve are both recognized as master teachers as well as players,
having led workshops at such well-regarded music camps as The Puget Sound
Guitar Workshop, Steve Kaufman's Acoustic Kamps, Valley of the Moon, Common
Ground On The Hill, The Augusta Heritage Center and The Swannanoa
Gathering.indeed, they originally met in an informal jam session at
Swannanoa. This chance encounter spawned an internationally touring duo and
the CD Celtic Guitar Summit, honored by Acoustic Guitar Magazine with an
"Editor's Pick" as one of the top CDs of 2003. Celtic Guitar Summit "sheds
new light on O'Carolan's enchanting melodies and on the long history of
Celtic music they inspired," according to The Washington Post. Sing Out!
hailed Celtic Guitar Summit as "a shimmering collection of haunting
melodies, ringing tones and consummate musicianship," while Dirty Linen
warned that the CD was "guaranteed to lower your blood pressure. Other side
effects may include uncontrollable smiling or blissful humming."
CLASS DESCRIPTIONS - Steve
Orkney Tuning Intense Immersion Experience: Orkney is a wonderfully
versatile tuning that works for many genres of music. This class, as the
title suggests, will he a hands-on guide through the tuning. Chords, tunes,
accompaniment, leads, and heavy jamming are all on the agenda for the class.
Steve will first provide chord charts to get the class jamming on basic
progressions. We will then turn to alternate chord formations, and then ask
each student to incorporate the material into either vocal accompaniment or
an instrumental solo and present their work to the class. Each student will
emerge with a working knowldege of Orkney sufficient to enable them to
explore the tuning's application to their own music. Intermediates and
Advance players will benefit most from this class. No open tunings
experience is required.
Right Hand for the Frustrated Picker: It has been said that the left hand is
what you know but the right hand is what you are. In this class Steve will
present several right hand techniques designed to enable each student to
find their "inner groove." Guitarists tend to focus too much on gettting
the notes right rather than on "internalizing" a groove that makes their
playing flow. This is a hand-on class in which participants will spend most
of each class playing. This is an intermediate and advanced class. Early
intermediates are welcome. If you can do basic fingerpicking you're likely
to benefit from this class.
Arranging For Fingerstyle Guitar: Open Tunings have been both a blessing and
a scourge on the guitar world. While they provide wonderful melodic and
tonal possibilities, they also encourage laziness in arranging and
composing. In this class Steve will discuss the numerous pitfalls of open
tunings, how to spot and avoid them, and how to approach arranging so that
one plays with integrity and soul. Each student will be required to play at
least one of their arrangements to the class. We will then, as a group,
discuss how they might re-arrange the piece in light of the principles Steve
has offered. This is a class for intermediate and advanced players.
Clawhammer/Frailing the Guitar: Pickers interested in blasting off in a new
direction will be interested in this class. Frailing is an intensely fun and
exciting technique that is rarely used on guitar. It injects an instant
groove into the music that is reminiscent of Appalachian banjo, but that is
also very useful in blues and percussive funk styles. Very few players know
about this technique and even fewer have tried it. In this class Steve will
introduce two basic techniques and students may choose to focus on one or
both. One technique is a guitar-friendly banjo technique that is explained
in Pete Seeger's banjo book. The second is pure clawhammer, which involves
using the back of the index fingernail like a flatpick in a downward
fashion. In both patterns the thumb is used on the off beat. This gives
the music a drive and a groove that is quite unlike what most students will
have ever played on their guitars before. This is a paradigm-expanding
class. Intermediate and advanced players only.
CLASS DESCRIPTIONS - Robin
ACCOMPANIMENT AND OPEN TUNINGS: Accompanying the voice or another instrument
is one of the acoustic guitar's most universal roles, yet methodology rarely
focuses on it and consequently players often feel frustrated with their
limited well of accompanimant ideas. This class will delve into the world of
possibilities for the guitar in a support role, along the way exploring and
familiarizing students with various altered tunings, including (but probably
not limited to) DADGAD, open G, and Werewolf tuning (CGDGAD). Your view of
"rhythm guitar" will never be the same! Bring a song or two you'd like to
develop an accompaniment for.
FLATPICKING: The sound of flatpicking guitar is an integral voice in
bluegrass, old-time and Americana music - and increasingly in Celtic and
mainstream folk styles as well. In this class we'll learn some fiddle tunes,
some "hot licks" (and how to use them musically) and some bluegrass
improvisation survival skills, as well as developing clean and efficient
technique. No previous flatpicking experience is necessary; the class will
be tailored based on the amounts of experience represented. (You will need a
flatpick, though, at least a medium and preferably heavier.) We'll pick a
lot together and have a lot of fun.
ACOUSTIC GUITAR PERFORMANCE LAB: Playing your guitar is only part of the
story. If you want to play in front of people, whether a casual group of
friends or a sold-out concert hall, the other part of the story is the art
of performance. This class won't be much about guitar playing per se (that's
what all the other classes are for); rather, we'll deal with performance
topics such as set programming, sound reinforcement, connecting with the
audience and handling stage fright. Each student will have a chance to
perform for the class several times during the week (as well as at the
nightly open mike), and afterwards we'll discuss possible avenues of
improvement in a safe, non-judgmental atmosphere. By the end of the week
you'll find you've become a more seasoned, confident performer.
Tuition includes an opportunity for a free massage, which can be scheduled
when you arrive on Sunday.
The Outer Banks Guitar Workshop is designed to accommodate traveling
companions, who could enjoy the beach and local attractions while camp is in
session. These guests are entitled to meals, nightly concerts, and the
vacation home's amenities.
To enroll and for more information, please visit
www.classactsontour.com
Or contact us at:
Margie T. Farmer, Executive Director
Class Acts on Tour
P.O. Box 653
Hampstead, MD 21074
410-374-9059 (home)
252-202-0865 (cell)
mtfarmer@classactsontour.com
For more information please visit:
www.classactsontour.com
www.robinbullock.com
www.celticguitar.com
www.outerbanks.com
2005-06-22
Minor 7th
Online Reviews of Acoustic Guitar Music
July/August issue announcement
Please visit Minor 7th's July/August issue at www.minor7th.com
where the best in new guitar CD releases are reviewed, with an emphasis on acoustic, indepedent and obscure guitar music.
This month: Eduardo Isaac (classical/jazz), Jim Tozier (fingerstyle), Shelby Lynne (roots rock), Sylvain Luc (jazz),
Pierre Bensusan (fingerstyle), Ray LaMontagne (folk), Fareed Haque Group (jazz/world), Joe Rohan (roots rock),
Antje Duvekot (singer-songwriter), Alan Thomas (fingerstyle), Andrew Wrigglesworth (fingerstyle),
Amadeus Guitar Duo (classical) and Justin Roth (singer-songwriter).
Also be sure to check out the brief reviews of Eltjo Haselhoff (fingerstyle), Ernie Payne (blues),
Dave Dill (pop), Mark Sganga (smooth jazz), Barbary Coast Guitar Duo (neo-classical), Joe Crookston (roots/folk),
Drayton Michaels (rock), Jay Legaspi (folk), and Amir Beso (fingerstyle) at "Short Takes".
WE ARE GIVING AWAY (FREE!!) copies of four CDs reviewed in this issue of Minor 7th: "One for Helen" by Eduardo Isaac,
"Solo Guitar" by Jim Tozier, "Suit Yourself" by Shelby Lynne, and "Ambre" by Sylvain Luc, so be sure to register to win!
Remember that if you make any purchase from Amazon.com (even non-musical), clicking through via a Minor 7th link
helps support our mission of bringing you acoustic music reviews.
Happy listening!
2005-06-16
Guitar Journal
An Online Guitar Magazine
EVA FAMPAS plays FAMPAS
New cd release on AULIA record label
Renowned Greek classical guitarist Eva Fampas
has just released her new cd on the Italian classical label AULIA.
The whole cd is dedicated to the music of the composer Dimitri Fampas, artist's father, who is recognised as the most
important Greek guitarist, composer and professor of the 20th century and one of the most acclaimed artists
internationally.
Dimitris Fampas (1922-96),
maybe best known as a composer for his wonderful Greek dances is being presented
here with a very interesting collection of his works for solo guitar:
- 3 Greek Dances: Sousta, Vlacha, Karaguna
- Concert Study no. 8
- Greek Suite (the Country of Centaurs, Dance Tsamikos, Ravines - Dance Syrtaki)
- Concert Study no. 23
- 3 short Romantic Preludes
- Segovia's Portrait
- Poem
- Fantastic Dance
- Fairy tale
- Suite in an Old Style
His music very lyrical, virtuosic, passionate with strong melodic themes and vivid rhythms,
enriched with lots of influences by Greek traditional elements and colours, expresses his great talent and originality
as a composer, his dedication to the guitar and his love to his country. Among the editors of his music:
RICORDI (Milano & Sao Paolo), COLUMBIA (USA), MAX ESCHIG (Paris), LATHKILL music publishers (UK), P.NAKAS,
K.PAPAGRIGORIOU-H.NAKAS, M.NIKOLAIDIS (GR).
This is the 4th recording for the virtuoso guitarist Eva Fampas, who being praised by both the audiences and the
press for her great musical personality, excellent technique, deep musicality, passion and Greek temperament,
enjoys a wonderful international career with concerts, recordings and other artistic activities all over the world,
editions and premieres of new works, including the Chinese-contemporary FOR EVA guitar concerto by Yiu-kwong Chung,
awards and distinctions.
Eva was born in Athens into a musical family and started playing the guitar at a very early age under the instruction
of her father D. Fampas. She has performed extensively in Greece, Bulgaria, India, Brazil, Sweden, Zimbabwe, Italy,
Thailand, Russia, Belarus, Albania, Serbia, Nepal, Poland, former Yugoslavia and USSR, Peru, Paraguay, Bolivia,
in famous festivals, cultural centres and concert halls, in Radio and TV programmes around the globe.
Eva signed with AULIA-SIMT for the production of this cd after the great success of her recital in the wonderful
Marrucino Theatre in Chieti (Italy)!
The Italian classical label AULIA collaborates with Eva Fampas to produce this cd of unique interest and great
music and shares the goals of creating wonderful recordings with exceptional interpretations by very talented artists
of some neglected masterpieces of the classical repertoire, to transmit the music, culture and knowledge of this
heritage to future generations.
For more information about Eva: www.evafampas.gr and do pay a visit to the new June edition of the
Guitar Journal
for more news and future projects.
This cd is available through AULIA record label.
For bookings, OR if you'd like more information about the cd or to schedule an interview with Eva Fampas,
please email us at: guitarjournal@hotmail.com or info@evafampas.gr
Official Website: www.evafampas.gr
The Guitar Journal Team