SUMMIT SCHOOL OF TRADITIONAL MUSIC AND CULTURE
Fall 2023 Classes
Registration is open!
INTERMEDIATE/ADVANCED BLUEGRASS GUITAR with Korey Brodsky
Mondays, 6:00 – 7:15 pm, 8 weeks, starting October 16, $200
In this class we will use a couple classic bluegrass songs as examples to discuss establishing good technique, rhythm guitar ideas, crafting solos, and training our ears. There will be a lot of playing in class and room for creativity within the boundaries of this style. We will check out ways of developing individual practice routines based on what each one of us wants to improve upon. This is perfect for people who are going to jams or playing gigs and are motivated to improve their playing in those situations.
INTERMEDIATE/ADVANCED BLUEGRASS MANDOLIN with Korey Brodsky
Mondays, 7:30 – 8:45 pm, 8 weeks, starting October 16, $200
In this class we will use a couple classic bluegrass songs as examples to discuss establishing good technique, rhythm mandolin ideas, crafting solos, and training our ears. There will be a lot of playing in class and room for creativity within the boundaries of this style. We will check out ways of developing individual practice routines based on what each one of us wants to improve upon. This is perfect for people who are going to jams or playing gigs and are motivated to improve their playing in those situations.
Korey Brodsky is a New England based mandolinist and guitarist. Growing up in Connecticut, he built strong roots in bluegrass music. He has been featured in numerous publications such as Flatpicking Guitar Magazine and Bluegrass Unlimited, was a 2013 IBMA Youth All Star, a member of the 2018 Acoustic Music Seminar, a graduate of the Berklee College of Music, and a finalist in the 2021 Freshgrass guitar awards. Over the years, he has toured and recorded with various national and local bands including the April Verch Band, Nefesh Mountain, and Circus No. 9. Currently, he is a member of the international touring group Mile Twelve who released their third full length album in February of 2023. In addition to performing and recording, he teaches weekly online and in person music lessons.
BEGINNER OLD TIME FIDDLE with Jenny Monfore
Tuesdays, 6:30 – 7:45 pm, 8 weeks, starting October 17 (no class 11/7), $200
Learn how to play old time Appalachian fiddle! Students will learn the basics of playing traditional southern Appalachian fiddle including: how to handle and care for their instrument, different old time fiddle tunings, easy bowing tricks to make their playing sound ‘fiddley,’ and a little bit of simple music theory so they can navigate old time jams in the real world. Over the course of the class we’ll learn several fun beginner-level fiddle tunes by ear in different keys. In the last class we’ll have a slow jam with local old time musicians so students can experience playing with other instruments. There is no sheet music in this class. Please bring a phone or recording device. Beginners welcome!
Jenny Monfore has been playing old time music since her early 20’s. Starting out on clawhammer banjo at Warren Wilson College near Asheville, NC, she picked up the fiddle and hit the road! She’s traveled around the country playing at regional old time festivals, from Clifftop to the Alaska Folk Fest and many in between. She enjoys playing and calling square dances, small jams at house parties, and introducing new folks to the wild world of old time music! She lives near Montpelier and has a flower farm called Old Time Flowers. Visit her website to learn more: https://www.oldtimeflowers.com/
SONGS OF HOPE, JOY AND RESILIENCE with John Harrison
Tuesdays, 6:30 – 7:45 pm, 8 weeks, starting October 17, $200
Singing is everyone’s birthright, as is the sense of community that singing together in harmony creates. This 8-week singing group will draw on traditional and contemporary a cappella songs of hope, joy, and resilience. We will sing songs in harmony as well as rounds, and all will be taught by ear from word sheets, so ability to read music is not required. Most songs will be in English, but we may do a few from other parts of the world, too. All adult and teen voices are welcome, and children are welcome with an accompanying adult.
John Harrison leads Rock City (Barre’s rock and soul chorus), and was the director of the Montpelier Community Gospel choir for 26 years. He also runs a rock chorus for seniors at Montpelier Senior Activities Center, taught music K-12 for 10 years, and worked with teenagers and adults in Village Harmony for many years. He brings to his teaching a deep love of choral singing and its power to create a joyful community, as well as a good dose of humor.
INTERMEDIATE/ADVANCED CLAWHAMMER BANJO with Ted Ingham
Thursdays, 7:00 – 8:15 pm, 6 weeks, starting October 26, $150
Double it up and go! In this 6-week class we’ll be focusing on the “Double” banjo tuning, which can be used for C tunes and D tunes in the Old-time repertoire. We’ll explore the terrain of this tuning and its chord formations through fiddle tunes like Rye Straw or Valley Forge and old-time songs like Mole in the Ground or Polly Put the Kettle On. You should be an intermediate or advanced player, familiar with the fundamental clawhammer techniques and ready to explore how this tuning works to back a fiddler or frame a song. I teach “on the fly,” in the old-time way, but also provide tablature for reference and encourage folks to record the tunes in class. I may recruit a fiddler to come in and play with us during the final class as a bonus. Hot dog, buddy let’s go.
Ted took up the banjo in the mid-1990’s after playing the guitar for 20 years. He has attended old-time music workshops and festivals since, and learned from master banjo players such as Tom Mackenzie, Pete Sutherland, and Dan Margolies. Ted has taught clawhammer classes for beginning, intermediate, and advanced students at the Summit School since 2008. He has also served on the Summit School Board since its inception, and is currently the Board Chair. In addition to teaching, Ted plays banjo with “Kick ‘Em Jenny,” a volcanic old-time stringband from Central Vermont: https://www.facebook.com/kickemjennyvt/
A BANJO TEASER WORKSHOP with Jacob Stone
Tuesday 11/28, 7:00 - 9:00 pm, $40
Interest in the five-string banjo has increased in the past few years, but aspiring banjo players can sometimes struggle to get started on this instrument. This class is specifically designed to cover the basics of the five-string banjo, and give aspiring pickers a head start in this musical journey. Useful for anyone regardless of musical experience or skill. Even if you’ve never played any musical instrument this class will be accessible and useful.
Some of the topics we’ll cover are:
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The different types of banjos: five-string resonator banjos, five string open-back banjos, four string tenor banjos, and four string plectrum banjos. We’ll be focusing on the five-string banjo, but it is useful to understand the different types of banjos.
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The different ways of playing the five-string banjo: Scruggs (bluegrass/folk style), Clawhammer (frailing) for old-time music, and melodic finger style banjo.
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Understanding the three basic banjo playing skills: the three basic chord structures on the left hand, the ways that the right hand is used (picking, banjo rolls, and clawhammer), and the various connecting runs. These three skill sets are all there is to playing banjo!
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Working on a song, to get you started actually playing. It will probably be “Tom Dooley” or “I Walk the Line”. Some written tablature will be provided.
If you’re interested in joining this class but don’t have a banjo, we have a few available for loan, on a first-come first-served basis.
TRANSITIONING TO THE FIVE-STRING BANJO: A Two-Session Class for Guitarists (and Mandolin Players too) with Jacob Stone
Tuesdays 12/5 and 12/12, 7:30 - 8:45 pm, $50
If you’re a guitarist who has ever been interested in exploring the five-string banjo this two-session class can be just what you need to get started.
Some of the topics we’ll cover are:
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The many similarities between banjo and guitar; the same twelve tones work on bothinstruments, and a chord is a chord regardless of what instrument is creating it,
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The differences: the various tunings that are used on the five-string banjo, and the mysteries of the short fifth string.
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The three basic chord positions that are used to play in any key.
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Right hand techniques: Scruggs style, melodic style, and clawhammer. All of these styles are very similar to guitar techniques; guitarists are often surprised by their similarity to guitar techniques.
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Working on a song or tune. We’ll work on a basic song or tune that incorporates many of these techniques.
If you’re interested in joining this class but don’t have a banjo, we have a few available for loan, on a first-come first-served basis.
Jacob Stone has played acoustic instruments for sixty years, and five-string banjo for forty years. He has been a member of numerous bluegrass and folk bands, and has taught banjo for many of those years. He also currently is the only banjo player with the Vermont Fiddle Orchestra.
Youth Classes
INTERMEDIATE YOUTH TRAD BAND with Joanne Garton
Sundays 4:00 - 5:15 pm. 5 weeks, starting October 29, no class 11/19 or 11/26, $75
For advanced level trad musicians of all varieties of any (youth) age who can learn tunes by ear from the Scottish, Irish, Cape Breton, and Old Time tradition. Join the group to learn a few new tunes, practice familiar tunes, create some harmonies, and meet other trad kids and teens in the area. For fiddlers, piano players, guitarists, or mandolin players, or whatever instrument is your jam! Contact Joanne Garton with questions via www.joannegarton.com.
ADVANCED YOUTH TRAD BAND with Joanne Garton
Sundays from 5:15 - 6:30 pm. 5 weeks, starting October 29, no class 11/19 or 11/26, $75
For advanced level trad musicians of all varieties of any (youth) age who can learn tunes by ear from the Scottish, Irish, Cape Breton, and Old Time tradition. Join the group to learn a few new tunes, practice familiar tunes, create some harmonies, and meet other trad kids and teens in the area. For fiddlers, piano players, guitarists, or mandolin players, or whatever instrument is your jam! Contact Joanne Garton with questions via www.joannegarton.com.
Fiddler and dancer Joanne Garton mixes her pervasive passion for Scottish culture with the drive and rhythms of the New England dance floor. She performs, teaches, and records traditional music and dance from Scotland and Cape Breton with big influences from Ireland, England, Quebec, Appalachia and New England. A resident of Montpelier, Vermont, for the last 12 years, Joanne teaches kids and adults, performs on stage, plays in sessions, and of course, steps out on the dance floor at contra, Scottish, and English dances. Visit www.joannegarton.com for videos, sound bites, gig listings, and more.
DROP-IN CLASSES and JAMS
COMMUNITY JAM led by Susan Reid, Gretta Stone and Jacob Stone (and others)
First Thursday of each month, 6:15 - 8:00 pm, drop-in, $5 donation/session
Montpelier Senior Activities Center, 58 Barre St., Montpelier
The Community Jam is an opportunity for acoustic musicians at all skill levels to come together, learn new tunes, learn jamming skills, practice learning tunes by ear, connect with others in the rich music community in Montpelier, and have a fun evening. At each jam there will be a short instructional segment at the beginning, to welcome and encourage new attendees.
We welcome fiddles, mandolins, acoustic guitars, banjos, accordions, concertinas, dulcimers, harmonicas, pennywhistles, recorders, ukuleles, and bass. (No amplification except for bass guitars.)
We will be playing a wide variety of tunes: Celtic, old-time, contra dance and square dance tunes, bluegrass, and whatever else participants bring to the jam.
We welcome players at every skill level; if you know a few chords on your instrument you will be able to participate and grow your musicianship. Playing with others is an essential path to becoming an accomplished musician, and even the most passive participation in a jam can be a wonderful growth experience.
This is a drop-in event; no registration needed. We request a donation of $5 per session to support both the Summit School and the Senior Activities Center.
GENERAL CLASS INFO
Registration and Payment:
You can securely pay online securely via Paypal by clicking the button next to the class of your choosing. The Summit School appreciates payments by check or cash when possible in order to minimize service fees. Checks for the amount listed should be sent to: Summit School, 46 Barre St. #5, Montpelier, VT 05602. Please note the relevant class in the description line on the check. When you pay for a class online, you will automatically be registered. If paying by check or cash, please email the registrar, Tracy Loysen, at traloysen@gmail.com with student name (if not yourself) and the name of the class you wish to register for.
Location:
Unless otherwise indicated, weekly classes are held at the Center for Arts and Learning at 46 Barre St. in Montpelier. The Community Jam is held in the downstairs Community Room at the Montpelier Senior Activity Center, 58 Barre St. Masks are optional and welcome in both buildings. Please do not come to class if you are not feeling well.
Refund and Payment Policies:
After the first week of programming, no refunds will be provided. Student cancellation a week or less before the program begins results in a refund of half of the tuition. No refunds or make-up classes offered for student absences due to illness or family emergency.
Questions?
Contact the class coordinator, Tracy Loysen, at traloysen@gmail.com or 802-522-3083.
