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Growing a Folk Community from Seed
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Subject: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 03 Jun 02 - 01:11 PM How do you do it? We are rural and our area thinks it is more bluegrassy here than folkie, but I KNOW there are people here who are not playing their guitars because they don't think they are any good, or because they are too busy, or because they have no idea anyone else is around to play with. Word of mouth, alone, around here, is awful slow-- if that would do the trick, it would be done by now. What I think is that a few people who do want to play or going an hour away, over into NY, to do it. If I could get them here, I bet others who are now NOT playing, would join in. So I should contact someone from that little group and invite them here. We live near a busy crossroad. I was thinking that I need a sign for out there, to promote our monthly jam, which is just some friends picking. (And a corresponding sign for the yard.) And we have a signpainter in our band.
PORCH-PICKIN' FRIDAY NIGHT Traffic is too fast for a phone number.
But in the yard: Ideas? Success stories? Oh, my goals.... well, everything. We have a venue, a great one, in our church, but we do not yet have enough bodies to fill it. (We checked. It was a bomb.) But if we grew the group of players, they would become the ticket agents. And then we could bring in people (like Seamus Kennedy when he's crossing through the area), and they could sell a boatload of CDs, too. Do I need to nab someone to present a guitar/banjo workshop to kick this off? Someone who will not be hurt if we only have four people show up, but who can handle it if MORE show up? (Any volunteers?) ~Susan |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: GUEST,Just Amy Date: 03 Jun 02 - 05:07 PM I think that all the things you mentioned would be good. Also, flyers (doesn't have to be fancy) that you could hand out to everyone (and I mean everyone) that you or your family knows. Make sure you stress that EVERYONE is welcome. Hit schools. Do you have a local paper? Perhaps you could get them to do something on you. Having done this recently I would say that you'd best wait for folks to hear about it and come. A year or more might be before lots of folks hear about it. |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: McGrath of Harlow Date: 03 Jun 02 - 05:07 PM Sounds fun. A bit far for me. I think the idea of, right from the start, thinking in terms of people getting together to play for each other and along with each other is the right way to go. If there are people who want to turn up and listen fair enough, but it wouldn't be a matter of performing for an audience.
And maybe when you've built up the right kind of familiarity and so forth, something more formal like a dance or a concert, or a combination of the two, might make sense. Or a party.
I think this kind of thing works best when the feeling is that people are there primarily for socialising rather than as performers or punters. Making music together is just a specially good way of socialising. (That's why I like sessions in pubs and places like that.)
Good luck. |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: Rick Fielding Date: 03 Jun 02 - 05:21 PM Susan, that is the fastest, most foolproof way to do it. Put up a couple of posters with the same message at a store or church, and I flat out GUARANTEE you that within a couple of weeks your sessions will be up and running. Don't worry about the"bluegrass/folk" thing.....singers wanna sing, pickers wanna pick, birds gotta swim, fish gotta fly......... Cheers Rick |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: MMario Date: 03 Jun 02 - 05:23 PM Told ya! |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 03 Jun 02 - 05:32 PM Yup. All fun, and occasional talent to come entertain us. Since starting this thread, I did contact an instructor from the next county over, where the music store is. He and his daughter are prepared to teach a pair of hour-long workshops and lead an after-workshop jam, and we are discussing whether to increase the numbers at our monthly jam first or use the workshop publicity to get the numbers rolling, and then mention the regular jam opportunities. Also, a certain Mudcatter I know who visits here soemtimes has been encouraged to think about giving lessons at our house on a regular basis, so we will see if he agrees! *G* More ideas, please!!! Do you think I should just name this the Local Folk Music Society and be an organization right away? We could have a website......... hm............... Should I make the jam weekly now instead of monthly as it has been??????? Not sure Hardi would be OK with that-- it's his only day off each week and we lke to wander. Although if Hess wanted to stay home to run it, it would be OK. Geeze, she's not even HERE yet...... ~Susan |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: Susan of DT Date: 03 Jun 02 - 07:19 PM If there is any sort of concert/house concert/gathering have flyers and ask to speak. Is there a community college anywhere around (go pretty far, if necessary)- hang posters there and attend anything vaguely folky they have. Put a notice in your local paper. I was a charter member of the Salt City Song Miners in Syracuse. Two men organized it. There was a concert sponsored by the "Peace Council" and a signup sheet was available. They were willing to pickup nondrivers. Granted Syracuse has a lot more people around... |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 03 Jun 02 - 07:33 PM Thanks... great ideas. Hey! I could always read the Folk Mafia thread and do like that.... And Mmario, are you giving me a little butt-whoppin' there? *G* ~Susan |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 04 Jun 02 - 01:22 AM ... apparently (at least for US folk communities) this is something that can only be done by people who tend to go to bed very, very early.... one of them early-bird/worm thingies... ~S~ |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: Mudlark Date: 04 Jun 02 - 06:22 PM Susan.. From my own experience of trying to FIND people to play with in a very rural area, I think I would wait on the workshop until you have a core of people that are comfortable with each other. It is surprising how shy lone pickers/singers can be about getting together, sure that everybody else is better than they are (haha..not ME, of course!). And the idea of a workshop, the formality of that, no matter how informal it might actually be, might put these folks off... If I weren't so isolated (and alone) I'd try something like this myself... Good luck! |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 04 Jun 02 - 06:29 PM Great to hear your perspective, Mudlar. How isolated are you? We could be on a buddy system. What could you do, in your area, that would be easy and effective? ~Susan |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 04 Jun 02 - 06:31 PM Great to hear your perspective, Mudlark. How isolated are you? We could be on a buddy system. What could you do, in your area, that would be easy and effective? ~Susan |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: Mudlark Date: 05 Jun 02 - 04:53 PM Susan...I leave about 20-30 minutes from the nearest small town in the coastal hills of central Calif. There is a thriving music communitity in the nearest big town (San Luis Obispo...college town) but it is an hour's drive over a bad road, particularly untempting after dark.
The first thing I did was to start playing for local convalescent hosp. under auspices of Hospice (little alliteration there!), just as a way to be making music not all by myself. I've thot of putting ads in local papers but with John gone now, and being here all alone, I'm a little wary of just inviting "the public" (a worry that never crossed my mind when there was 2 of us).
My current cunning plan is just to mention--a LOT--to anybody who seems likely, that I love folk music and am looking for someone to play with...and this has finally paid off. My chiropractor's office mgr and I got to talking, he and his wife had a band in the 80's, are now out of the music business but looking for informal jams. So we are now getting together about every 2 wks...great fun. Would be even better with more and I'm still hopeful for a real music circle eventually.
Would love to be buddies in any way that works. Where do you live? Email me if there is anything I can do to help...and again, good luck. Nancy
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 05 Jun 02 - 05:02 PM Nancy, I am in north central PA an hour from medium sized cities in any direction, in a large, sparsely-populated rural county, with bad road conditions in winter and, at night, due to deer and drunk drivers. What you are doing sounds great. I also asked around at the nearest music store, to see if they had customers near us. They were busy that day and could only recall one, though they were sure there are more. I know they will be generous about giving flyers to people. Would you want to play in church? I know that if you were here, I would glom onto you real fast! ~Susan |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: Ebbie Date: 05 Jun 02 - 11:04 PM Good for you, Wizzy! I have said for a long time that if I'm in an area with a thousand people and there's "no one to play with", out of that 1000 there must be at least 30 people who play some kind of instrument. Out of those 30 there are at least 10 people who would like to play with other people. Ergo I will find those people. The only suggestion I would add is to keep all of your posters very similar, whether it's the wording or the color or the font. Otherwise some people, I discovered, think there are competing factions. Good luck! You're going to be a busy woman. (busier?) |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 05 Jun 02 - 11:10 PM Thanks! Me-- reorganized and reprioritized! ~S~ |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: open mike Date: 06 Jun 02 - 12:56 PM We have a folk music society which produces concerts both in public venues and in private homes. One of our favorite activities in the singers and pickers circle--the best thing that helps it continue is a regular, predictable time--first sat. of the month- 2-5 p.m.--so that people can burn it into their memories when to come...I also host an open mike each wed. eve at a local "pub" (cafe-bar) and the motto is turn off your t.v. , turn on your creativity- people are so programmed to BE entertained, and have lost the knack of doing it them selves.. we need to brak the couch potatoe syndrome!! some folks are just plane too shy to perform in front of many others, and there are those folks who olny play in secret who should be out there sharing--then, on the other hand, there are those who should remain in the shadows.. one time we had a guy with 3 strings on his guitar- he was missing a few other important elements of amusician too--like tone, rhythm, etc. yikes! but we still try to encourage all to give it a try- in the circle (a.k.a. pluckers and cluckers) we have a tradition of passing the choice of tune/song around the circle and every one gets a chance to request-whenther they play, sing or just enjoy listening.. also a good catalyst is the Rise Up Singing book- from Sing out! publishers--1200 songs--good starter material.i suggest getting a few of these and then there is a common bond--turn to page such and such for a memory jogger for lyrics and chords..no musical notes, though, so you kind of have to already know the tune, but guaranteed to find songs you know and love on most any page...spiral bound beauty--we call it the bible.....good luck to you and i like the PORCH idea!! hope your porch is full of music soon!! Laurel |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: GUEST,Et Date: 06 Jun 02 - 03:18 PM From a small town girl - about 7,000 - play for the Kiwanis, the FFA pancake breakfast, etc etc. There are lots of civic organizations that are happy to get someone to "talk" to them that they haven't already heard. Do you have an area church with "alternative" music services? I'm program chair for a small group and if there's a good program/talk word spreads like wildfire. All you really need is the idea - Let Us Entertain us! and a time/contact number and you're off. ET |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 06 Jun 02 - 03:25 PM Oh, yeah, I already play like that-- and our church IS the one you mentioned, and I lead the music for that service. What I want is more players to have fun with, and people with a wider range of folk music they enjoy and play. Although I guess if I were out there more playing, I could hawk any concerts I organize, with name performers (NAME to me but not to our community....). Problem there is that if you offer tickets, often people here will buy a pair with no intention of attending at all-- it's just a donation to whatever local cause you are promoting, and that's how people are good neighbors to each other here. But isn't it funny that when you play like that close to home you can't get paid, and if you go a couple of counties over they will pay you? That's how it is here, anyway. ~Susan |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: GUEST,Episcopal Vicars Wives Anonymous (EVWA) Date: 06 Jun 02 - 03:36 PM AHA! So yours is the church with the burgeoning music ministry. YOU are the reason the bishop is saying "spouses of clergy should be more involved in the ministry of the church". YOU are the reason our parishioners are asking for "something different" during worship! when you least expect it, EVWA will take revenge! |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 06 Jun 02 - 04:44 PM Old news if you been around Mudcat very long. *G* ~S~ |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: Mudlark Date: 06 Jun 02 - 04:53 PM Hi again, Susan...I'm not a church type person, but maybe I would be with more people like you and the Vicar's Wife involved! I DO wish we lived closer...why don't you come here? Sure there are bad roads, but the weather is better! (Altho it's 110 on my shady front porch at the moment). |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 07 Jun 02 - 01:33 AM Mudlark, we'll have to meet halfway, scattering folky seeds as we go. (Get that Winnebago and hit the road!) Our church service.... Mmario kicked off a long, reflective discussion about it during his last visit by saying it's strawberry shortcake. We ended up that it's an old-fashioned dish-to-pass supper that includes shortcake (and a LOT of beans!!!!). Each one brings what they have, and each one takes what they need. Hardi and I (and whoever is playing with us that night) start by providing a certain loose-jointed, joyful attitude bordering on silly; the people, as they arrive, contribute a willingness to show us their joy and silliness, and an eager curiosity to see the songsheets of the week and see what kind of crazy thing we have for them to learn THIS time..... we egg each other on, although there are serious parts after we all blow off a little of whatever built up during the week. Then at the end we whoop it up again with something totally lovely or totally wacky, fast, and easy to mess up and laugh over. That must be the dollop of whipped cream, occasionally flying off the spoon and landing on the chin (or in one's neighbor's eye). (Did I say it right, Mmario?) ~Susan |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 10 Jun 02 - 10:45 AM REPORT I'm having lunch Wednesday with a lady who has occasionally jammed with a handful of other folks, and knows where it is our folks are going, outside the county, to play. I can go visit those other jams and fetch them back home! *G* (Or maybe it's a tri-county folk society in the making.) Funniest thing-- when I called her, I forgot till the end of the conversation, to ask her to BRING HER AUTOHARP so WE could play together! DUH! We had a good laugh over THAT! I started work on a website for our band, to start promoting what we do and to store information about the workshops I want to lead when I go off on my own. Because when I do, there is one band member in particular who is likely to tag along, so it might as well be a band thing. I'll say more about it later, but basically our band has core members but no fixed lineup, and we want to make buttons for "audience" members to "be" band "members" too, since what we do is lead singalongs and the singers, thus, ARE in the band! I also started a website for this nebulous folk organization I seem to be starting, so that I could have an e-mail address for it from which to send out press releases. It's an address that's a lot easier to remember, too, than any I had been using personally-- LocalFolks@. It's a community/bulletin board type site so that people can interact in it right away in threads. Of course Mudcat will be the first link I put there. It will also contain information about Mudcat Gatherings we hold, as these become more and more focused on local folks participating. And then Mudcatters can travel to them or not as they choose. I will make myself a permathread on them at that website. I am also helping a friend move (and she is coming to stay with us for a bit), so that's all I have been able to do for now, except post an announcement on the local cable screen, as follows: ====================================================== Dust off that old guitar, banjo, or whatever-have-you!
PORCH-PICKIN' FRIDAY NIGHTS
Play, Listen, or Sing ====================================================== Thanks, all, for all the encouragement (and butt-whoppin'), and your continued good ideas. ~Susan |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 10 Jun 02 - 12:39 PM LOCAL FOLKS. A work in progress. BTW, if you think you might like to come to a Mudcat Gathering at our place, it would be smart to sign up for that community-- so that you get e-mail notices ahead of time as dates are set. ~Susan |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: Mudlark Date: 10 Jun 02 - 03:50 PM Ah, Susan...I can see that you are the kind of person that gets things DONE! Congrats on putting so much together so soon...with the kind of energy you are putting into it, I'm sure you'll have a full-fledged song circle before you know it. Hope your get together with the autoharp works out well. Keep us posted and I will now go check out your clicky... Nancy |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 10 Jun 02 - 05:50 PM Nancy, steal anything you see of use! You go, too, girl! ~S~ |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: Blues=Life Date: 11 Jun 02 - 09:54 AM Susan, I like the effort, and it's been very helpful. I'm trying to set up a Picking and Grinning group at my church, (1000 members, there have to be a few more closet pickers there than have stepped forward yet!). Some of the ideas here have been most enlightening. I do have one piece of constructive criticism for you, though. I checked out the web site (great idea), and I found it has a rather common flaw to it. All to often, I see web sites that forget that it is a WORLD WIDE web. It wasn't clear to me where you are! Back in my newspaper days, a lead paragraph had to have all the pertinent info in it...Who, what, where, when, why, and how. Most websites I see tend to forget this. Look at it as if you were a clueless browser,(me!) or someone new to your area. I don't know where the Endless Mountain area is, would a newbie in your area? You might want to get real specific on where the jam sessions are, when they are, who is sponsering them, HOW TO CONTACT SOMEONE FOR MORE INFO (i.e., a phone number)what you should bring, and what the level of skill needed is. A lot of folks who are closet pickers have some uncertainty about their abilities, and so might be hesitant about being proactive in finding out about your group. Make it real easy for them, and they will come. Good luck, and keep posting info here. It's helping me alot in my efforts. Blues |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 11 Jun 02 - 10:41 AM Thanks, Blues, and I wish you the best with your own efforts. I'd love to talk about the church angle with you, too. Actually, I left out some of the details you mention, on purpose, and yes, people here do know what all the details signify. It's personally important to me to involve others, here, in making those decisions-- and all my experience growing other kinds of communities bears out that it's important for success, too. So the jams, if they begin to attract more people, will also serve as informal community planning & consensus meetings. For the summer, and the dates posted at the website, it is strictly for people to whom I am publicizing it via local PR and e-mail to people who know the area, and I am reluctant to post anything more specific about my location to the wider web until we have it up and running a bit more-- the jams, and the community, I mean, not just the site. Because for the summer, it's at our house... but as soon as I involve others, they are going to have some ideas on where to hold things, themselves. They may want a different name, too-- or the local "cultural arts" group may want us to tag along under their umbrella-- although I think they like their "highbrow" position as far as music is concerned and may not want to expand theuir mission too much. But with all of these factors, I may end up transferring all of the information to another site.... someone with good web design skills may have a spot that will host it and this little site may become just the posting area for that prettier site.... see? (Or they may fall on the ground in shocked gratitude that anyone did anything, and jump on the bandwagon and leave me in charge of it! *G*) Once all that is going, then it will make sense to add another page "About Us" and so forth-- once there is an "us" wider than the handful of us I've been playing with. Till then, the details of where we are is clear enough to people who will actually come anytime soon. ~Susan |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: Blues=Life Date: 11 Jun 02 - 11:27 AM Susan, That makes good sense. Regarding the church, I used to play in a country band during church services, once every month. Loved it. Unfortunately, a new music director was hired, who immediately managed to piss off and alienate almost the entire band, and paid the price in attitude directed toward him. His solution was easy...If you can't control it, kill it. So the Casual Country Band died. Most of the musicians left the church. (I've never understood why a music director would be so anti-musician!) I'm still there, and am trying a new path. We're going to have an informal "Folk Fellowship" on Sunday afternoons, open to all accoustic musicians and singers, very relaxed and informal, open to all levels of muscianship. The funny thing is that I'm a harmonica player and only recently started re-gaining long lost meager guitar playing skills, and this group will be primarily focused on attracting guitar players. And they expect me to lead it! Should be a case of the blind leading the blind. I expect, though, that if I organize it, some more talented guitar players will show up and help out. By the way, does anyone have a link to where I can get the Rise Up Singing book- from Sing out! publishers mentioned above? Any other good books or resources? I can use all the help I can get. Thanks, Blues |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 11 Jun 02 - 11:41 AM Blues, for beginners I can highly recommend the Jerry Silverman songbooks, for campfire and well-known folk songs, from Mel Bay. One of the things I love about them is that they tend to include the chord names not only in the first verse, where the melody line is also laid out, but they put the chord names in each verse, too, so that as a new player you can really enjoy the song and not get lost on what the chords are.... it helps you grasp the pattern of changes. Past the beginner level, I would wait on RUS till you have people agreeing they like it, and the cost of a boxful is pretty steep. A lot of people do not like the format for showing the chords. But then a lot of groups do use it... you may make more mileage just getting permission to leave the copier up and running during your jams-- if people have brought stuff to share, let them run off a copy for every 3 people to share, and you can collect at least one copy post-jam and make a house songbook. I would also suggest, following the pattern I have seen work really well elsewhere, that you have more than one area you can use. People often tend to want to break off into subgroups by playing level, or by type of music, or by instrument, or by who they know-- so a couple of smaller areas that are OK to use, lights on and doors open, can help. I would say start everyone off together, let them know at the beginning that there is additional space if it's wanted, and then see if people wander into different areas at the break. But call them all back together for a last song or two if you can corral them, so you can make any announcements about "next time." Alternatively, move here, take one of our lovely guest rooms on a semi-permanent basis, and play with us, for free room and board, at OUR church! *G* Where are you? Oh, and harmonica, eh? Yes, I can relate-- an autoharper leading guitar players is kinda weird too. They just can't seem to GET it that I can't capo up with them! ~Susan |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: Blues=Life Date: 11 Jun 02 - 01:16 PM I'm in South Carolina, so the fact that I have no idea where the Endless Mountains are should prove that "I'm not from around there!" Where is there, anyways? Thanks for the suggestions, I will check them out. Keep the book titles coming folks. Also, what a good idea about multiple rooms. I wouldn't have thought of that, but it makes a lot of sense. The reason that I'm starting a guitar group is because I missed playing so much when the band died, that I picked up my old beater Eterna from Yamaha, and taught myself to play it well enough to accompany my harp on some Offeritories (I never could spell that!), and kept on learning as I went. I now own 7 guitars, (a bad case of GAS) only 3 of which my wife knows about (it's a big house, but she'll find them someday) and have been taking weekly lessons every since dropping by the Folk Alliance show in Jacksonville last Feb. (I was playing roadie for my friends, The Winstons, and walking through the halls of the hotel and listening to all these great musicians in their showcases awed and shamed me. I came back and signed up for lessons.) Anyways, somehow I have become the guitar "expert" here. Now that's FUNNY! Blues |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 11 Jun 02 - 01:33 PM That IS funny. Endless Mountains is one of several terms describing north central PA, along route 6 as it winds just south of the NY border. From the air it looks like egg cartons... uyou drive up one, around anohter, down, and then the next series.... they go on and on, looking like gumdrops, at least to women! *G* It's also called the Northern Tier (with a corresponding Southern Tier of NY to the north!), and then it's part of the Twin Tiers. It's also called (fondly) Pennsyltucky. Who is "local" depends on weather conditions and how far they feel like going on any given day. So choosing a permanent name for our little "society" will be tricky and will depend on who shows up to plan it! *G* We are halfway between Williamsport PA and Elmira/Corning NY. Come on up! I need a geetar player! Just think! BLUES GOSPEL, in CHURCH!!!!!!!!! A few weeks ago we did "God Don't Never Change." Come ON!!!!! ~Susan |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 12 Jun 02 - 11:57 AM Well, it was supposed to be today that my friend and I got together for lunch. She'd been having some health problems so we left it a bit loose... and when I checked with her this AM she said she was too tired to bring her autoharp. So we rescheduled, and instead of a planning meeting we had something much better-- a nice phone visit and a laugh over a few things. Such is rural life... we had each been so busy in the week since we set this up, helping out other folks around here who suddenly had things they REALLY needed a hand with... well, that's why when things DO happen, around here, they kind of just.... happen. Music, too. So we will try for next week, but I feel like a big step foraward was taken, anyhow. Cuz you cain't hardly leave the PEOPLE out of folk music! What would be the sense of that? ~Susan |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: McGrath of Harlow Date: 12 Jun 02 - 01:44 PM "The Endless Mountains" - that's a great name for a region. Bears, wolves, orcs...
Anybody living somewhere like that is duty bound to try to make sure it has music to live up to that name. |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 12 Jun 02 - 01:58 PM Yup. I wish I'd made it up, but I didn't! *G* ~Susan |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: GUEST,Slickerbill Date: 13 Jun 02 - 04:31 PM This has been a neat thread to follow. I'm interested to see how it'll work out. Good luck. It raises an interesting problem. In my neck of the woods there's a chemistry which is lacking in how people play together. Some of the folks who have the organizational skills and drive to make things happen seem to have no clue about how to run a session. I attended one recently, and it was horrible. A new guy tried playing with these individuals and quit, totally frustrated thinking it was him. I assured him it was the other guys who didn't have a clue, and advised him to avoid playing with these guys in the future. They simply have no sense of time or of what might be an appropriate contribution to a song; they're proverbial bulls in the china shop. I've often thought of starting up something like what you're doing around here, but the politics are just too much to deal with and so it goes. But if you've got the right kind of folks who know how to play along without trying to take over, great. Sometimes I think the answer to my dilemma is to seek such release outside my own area. Anyway, best of luck. SB |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 13 Jun 02 - 09:16 PM We were talking about that very point just last night here at home-- I think it is REALLY important. I'm kinda tied up on a project helping a friend move for the next few days, but I have a number of comments I'd like to make about that, and I hope others will, too. ~Susan |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 19 Jun 02 - 06:03 PM It's so hard to keep moving forward on this AND do other stuff I am committed to AND do our own music stuff. I posted an internship offer on a mail list we belong to and maybe that will help-- eventually, if not immediately. Below is what I posted. ~S~ ========================================================== ANNOUNCEMENT: INTERNSHIP OPPORTUNITY We have a summer (or longer) music and marketing internship opportunity offering free room and board, in exchange for about 15 hours' help each week, in north central Pennsylvania USA. Most wanted is a male, guitar-playing vocalist, but we would consider other skills. POSSIBLE TASKS: Organizing our materials Helping with weekly gospel services and other community gigs-- logistics and performance Recording the above Helping with the formation of a county-wide folk music organization (secular, eclectic) Publicizing a monthly jam for the above. We have room for one or, if space is shared, two people. The space available is large and semi-private. This is our first time offering this, so details would need to be worked out with applicants. Buying into our belief system is NOT REQUIRED. Contact me off-list if interested. Feel free to forward to interested parties. If anyone has had relevant experiences in this regard to share, I'd love to hear from you. If I receive a lot of comments I will edit them together and send them out to the list. ~Susan Hinton Mansfield, PA |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 20 Jun 02 - 02:07 PM I sent out feelers in the last few weeks to the two exiting music organizations in our county, to let them know I have some good people they might book, and to sort of let it be known that I'm here, too, doing somethng related to what they do but also a little different. If they want to take us into their effort, that might be a good thing, or it might not, but what I figure is that they might squeeze one or two of the bands I'd like to see come here, into their schedules, as "something completely different" from their usual mix. They could co-present it with us.... and then I'd keep the mailing lists that grow out of that....... and then through our jams, eventually get to where we have enough pickers, picking regularly, to start supporting our own events and ticket sales-- cuz I have a great venue at my disposal, if we could fill it enough to pay the bands! Both orgs have responded that they would love to see press kits and hear review CDs from the people I have recommended. It is possible that they will each want to take one of my ideas, when they hear that the other is also considering them! Gosh! This could all HAPPEN! Oooooooh! ~Susan |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: MMario Date: 20 Jun 02 - 03:03 PM Is there a music department at the local college? Might be a good place to post something like the above as well. |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 20 Jun 02 - 03:09 PM MM-- Unfortunately the local music department is not at all folk oriented, very insular, and cut off not only from the local community but also from the bluegrass pickers who I have been told lurk among the faculty. I did think I would go over there and post it when school re-opens, for next summer, but I do not anticipate any support from the department on it. But in other towns, it would poroably be a great idea, and I know others who'd like to build up their area are following this thread too. However I also sent a note of inquiry to the marketing faculty. Cuz it's marketing I want, too.... so we'll see. My approach is to try everything, throw a lot of feelers out, and then follow up on anything that seems to show promise. I did get a nibble on the internship idea from someone who used to live here, from the mail list, who was very encouraging and who said he would forward my note on to some people he knows who are "in my area." They, in turn, may know some younguns who'd love to live off campus or out of the home for a summer or longer. ~Susan |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 01 Jul 02 - 04:01 PM REPORT I've only got a few flyers out and things are starting to happen already. One guy visits this area each month, but lives hours away-- and will start to join our jams (someone was kind enough to see and copy down the flyer for him)! Another lady e-mailed me to ask if we had a website-- not sure if she saw a flyer or if she got the blurb I sent out to the folk jam list that covers the area to our southwest. Another lady e-mailed because she DID see that blurb. Work on the sign for the yard should begin later this week, and more flyers to distribute. And Mmario, it turns out, will be here visiting for the August jam date, so it looks like that one could start to really click. I also found out we have a little local competition (if they care to see it that way-- I don't). The people who put on the annual bluegrass festival and a winter bluegrass concert here are advertising that they want to branch out into folk and blues. Not sure yet what they have in mind. Apparently they are too busy with the festival coming up in two weeks to answer their e-mails, but I will be attending it, with flyers, and see if I can hook up with them there. Wow! ~Susan |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: Blues=Life Date: 01 Jul 02 - 11:53 PM Susan, Great news on the progress you've been making. Serendipity is a wonderful thing, as I've been making progress, too. In the bulletin at church Sunday was a note reading COMING SOON - FOLK FELLOWSHIP. The rest was just as I wrote it, and next Sunday afternoon we start for real. I've already had 3 or 4 people express interest, and my goal is to outgrow the small room we've been given within the first month. Wish us luck, and good luck to you as well. Blues |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: Mudlark Date: 02 Jul 02 - 01:10 AM Way to go, Susan...With the kind of energy you are putting into this, it can't help but soar. Keep us up-to-date... |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 02 Jul 02 - 09:00 AM B=L-- that is GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Mudlark, are you getting some ideas bubbling up for your area yet? Don't copy what we're doing-- take what's useful but INVENT your own uniquely accurate plan! *G*G* One of the very cool things about this is that I seemed to have leearned, finally, the art of taking care of myself despite holding and acting on a passion. I've been doing things as they were possible-- not putting them first, but near the top. So it does not feel like a lot of hard work-- it feels like going for a nice long ramble and meeting interesting experiences resulting in a very excellent adventure. I love having this little support group to do it with! ~S~ |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: GUEST,Pete Date: 02 Jul 02 - 04:59 PM I'm the guy that visits the area once a month. I live in Staten Island; my parents are up there. I'm looking forward to getting together. Best of luck |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: wysiwyg Date: 02 Jul 02 - 05:51 PM Hi Pete! Guess you found your e-mail message! ~Susan |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: GUEST,Claymore Date: 02 Jul 02 - 06:12 PM There are several good ideas already presented but let me reinforce a few. I have been attending a jam on Thursday nights for about ten years, which has been going on for over twenty years. Several years back it became politically necessary to start another and I created one at the local train station on Wednsday nights. The walk-away best source for attracting new musicians to the jam are posters in the local (up to an hours drive) music stores. The store owners want to promote local jams as a way to sell or trade up new instruments. The Thursday night jam draws musicians from over two hours away, and the Wednsday night jam, an hour away. And your area can't be that bereft of folk musicians. Just last week I was in Newport, PA which appears to be a couple of hours south of you, for the Mt. Laurel Autoharp Festival, and the place was crawling with folkies. (Incidently their resources list's first entry was the MudCat). Festivals like that often have geographical lists of attendees, just for contacting to play music (not for solicitation). Common Ground is going on right now in Westminster, MD, near the PA border, and Augusta, at Elkins, WV is full swing. Finally, you are right about the jam dying if all the attendees are beginners on their instruments. But scare up just one decent fiddler, and the game changes rapidly. As for music, the Fiddle Fake Book, any of the Matheson Waltz books, and the Ruff Water jigs and reels book (include the Portland if you like) provide a common basis to begin to exchange tunes, or learn new ones. Bluegrass people tend to be stuck in one mode, 4/4 straight ahead, so I'm suprised at the "branching out" bit, but Old Time and Celtic are more malleable, and will generally go along with anything that's not rock. Good Luck! |
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Subject: RE: Growing a Folk Community from Seed From: Blues=Life Date: 03 Jul 02 - 07:52 AM What a great resource this thread has become, (and a support/therapy group as well! "Hi, my name is Pete, and I'm addicted to accoustic music." "Hi, Pete!") Anyways, another issue has raised it's ugly head. The music director at the church has raised the issue of copywrite infringement. He is very concerned that lyric and chord sheets that are photocopied at the church will violate copywrite laws, and is therefore nervous about allowing us to hand out music sheets. Oops. My gut feel is just to go to the local office suppy store, buy a bunch of cheap folders, copy 20 sets of lyrics, and just not tell him. (Can you say plausible deniability?) How do the rest of you handle this issue? I don't have the resources (yet) to just buy a bunch of songbooks, and also I haven't found the appropriate book to do that with anyways. Thanks for the help, and have a good holiday. Blues |
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