Upcoming events
A DAY WITH JOE COLLINS
The North Georgia Foothills Dulcimer Association (NGFDA)
Presents
A Day with Joe Collins
Saturday, August 17, 2024
McDonough Presbyterian Church, 427 McGarity Road, McDonough, GA 30252
This live on-site festival will be geared towards mountain dulcimer players who are between the Advanced Novice and Intermediate Plus levels. This will be a great opportunity to spend more than 5 hours learning with Joe Collins and then hear Joe give a concert. In addition to learning some new techniques and songs, you will be able to renew some old acquaintances and make some new friends. Joe will be bringing some CDs and books to sell and there will be a sale/swap table for festival attendees. The cost will be $45 for the entire day. If you want Lunch included the cost will be $55.00. More details will be provided soon, but for now, please mark your calendars!
This live on-site festival is geared towards mountain dulcimer players who are between
Advanced Novice and Intermediate Plus. For some players, these workshops may be a
bit of a stretch (which might not be bad) and for others, they may provide reinforcement
for what you already know (which might also not be bad).
If you have played the dulcimer any length of
time, you will be familiar with Joe. After
competing in a number of competitions and
winning several regional competitions over a
ten-year period, he won the National Mountain
Dulcimer Championship in 2007 in Winfield,
KS. Over the past twenty-five years, he has
had the opportunity to teach and play in
festivals from California to the east coast, from
Florida to Vermont, and a lot of places in
between.
This festival will feature more than 5 hours of
instruction, an instructor concert and the
opportunity to interact with other dulcimer
players. Joe will have several of his books
and CDs for sale. If attendees have any
dulcimers or dulcimer related merchandise
they would like to sell, we will also have a
sale/swap table.
Participants must be pre-registered.
See the next several pages for the detailed schedule and registration information.
4th ANNUAL VIRTUAL NGFDA FALL FESTIVAL
Please join us for our upcoming 4th Virtual NGFDA Fall Festival.
Registration will begin on September 1st.
Preview of workshops will begin in Mid-August!
Artist Lineup:
Anne Lough
Aubrey Atwater
Bill Schilling
Bing Futch
Butch Ross
Carol Crocker
Carol Walker
Charles Whitmer
Cristian Huet
Dana Gruber
Dave Haas
Dusty Thorburn
Elaine Conger
Erin Mae
Geoff Black & Duncan Gibbs
Guy George
Heidi Muller
Jessica Cormeau
Jody Marshall
Joe Collins
Karen Mueller
Larry Conger
Lil Rev
Lorinda Jones
Nina Zanetti
Pam Bowman
Patty McCollom
Sam Edelston
Sharrie George
Steve Eulberg
Sue Carpenter
Susan Trump
Thomasina Levy
Tull Glazner
Wendy Songe
Erin Mae Music
Days are getting longer as the sunlight slowly returns -- we're in our first "false spring" here in Kansas. It's always a busy time around Erin Mae Music headquarters, as both the online and in-person event schedule ramps up. It's a great time to play more dulcimer!
February-March Events:
Online Classes:
Session 2 6-week courses - starting next week
Tea and a Tune online class - "St Anne's Reel" - March 10th
In-Person Kids Activities in Kansas:
Kansas Bluegrass Association Winterfest in Wichita, KS - Feb 16-17
Last day to get the Early Bird Rate for Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield KS - TODAY, Feb 15th
Other Online Music Opportunities:
Lent Evening Prayer Services with Steve Eulberg - Wednesdays through Easter
Dulcimoon Talk with Tish Westman - February 22nd
4-Equidistant Dulcimer Day - March 2nd
Read on for details....
Session 2 starts next week
Playing Smoothly & Lyrically- Mondays at 3:30pm Central
Crafting Compelling Arrangements - Mondays at 5pm Central (needs 3 more people!)
Melodic Movement (ear training)- Tuesdays at 4pm Central
Erin Mae's Chromatic Playlist (chromatic)- Tuesdays at 5:30pm Central
Scottish Session Tunes - Tuesdays at 7pm Central
Beyond Basic Rhythm - Wednesdays at 11am Central (needs 1 more person!)
Fretting Hand Tricks & Tips (essentials)- Wednesdays at 11am Central (needs 1 more person!)
Mastering Dulcimer Chords - Wednesdays at 2pm Central (needs 2 more people!)
Online Courses include personalized handouts, weekly live Zoom meetings with lots of interaction, and archival recordings of every session. Cost is $170 per course (scholarships available)
Tea and a Tune -
St Anne's Reel
Sunday, March 10th
3pm Eastern/2pm Central/1pm Mountain/12pm Pacific
Tea and a Tune classes are one-time, one-hour Zoom classes that focus on learning tunes by ear and rote -- using your ear, your eyes, and a gentle play-after-me-method; you will learn the tune without sheet music in front of you! Even people who struggle to play by ear will find that they are able to play and memorize these tunes!
Make yourself a cup of tea, relax, and join friends in learning a tune.
Tea and a Tune Classes include .pdf handouts, and archival recordings. Cost is $25 per course (Tea and a Tune-level Patreon supporters are automatically enrolled, and also have access to all past class recordings)
Kids Outreach in Kansas
Kansas Bluegrass Association Winterfest
February 16-17
Wichita, KS
Feisty Kids Camp at the Walnut Valley Festival
September 18-22
Winfield, KS
I direct kids music activities for the KBA Winterfest and the Walnut Valley Festival (WVF) every year. KBA festival is this weekend and the last day to get Early Bird-pricing for WVF is TODAY. WVF is also the home of the National Mountain Dulcimer, National Hammered Dulcimer, and International Autoharp Championships. It's a must-experience event for dulcimer players!
Other Online Music Events
Dulcimer-Friendly Lent Evening Prayer
Wednesdays through Lent
Steve Eulberg hosts a weekly prayer service on Zoom -- chord charts are included for all songs so musicians can play along. I am the "techno-liturgist" for these services. [FREE]
Dulcimoon Talks
February 22nd
DJ Hamouris and I host interviews with women in the dulcimer community, which are archived on the Dulcimoon website and our Youtube channel. The next live stream will be with Tish Westman on February 22nd. [FREE]
4-Equidistant Dulcimer Day
March 2nd
DulcimerCrossing is hosting an all-day online event focused on 4-Equidistant Mountain Dulcimer techniques, featuring some of the top players in the country. I'll be providing tech support and hosting the homeroom throughout the day. [payment plans and separate concert tickets available]
Dulcimer Players News
The one-stop site for dulcimer information
If you haven't been to the DPNews.com website or subscribed to the quarterly magazine yet, you are missing out. The website includes a listing of online and in-person festivals, dulcimer clubs, online jams, and archives of the magazines going back to 1975. The quarterly magazines contain in-depth articles highlighting all of the wonderful things happening in the dulcimer community.
I always love hearing from you, my beloved music friends! Anytime you've got questions or just want to share a cup of tea, you're invited to schedule a Zoom visit with me. May your February be fabulous and fun!
~Enjoy Life~
Erin Mae
Other Ways To Connect:
Private Lessons * Youth Dulcimer Club * Patreon