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AZ Folk News It’s Green, It’s Hand-Picked and Carefully Packed, It’s Quality-Controlled, and It’s Always Free at www.PhxTMD.org Jun-Aug 2013 pg 1
Monthly Dances with a Twist
Read on for updates on regular dances, monthly dances with some unusual visiting talent, sponsored events with a flair, and a few special dances you won’t want to miss! So mark your calendars.
No Phoenix Contra Dances in July
No July DancesPhoenix
Ok, we had a great year of dancing, and we are hot and tired. We are going on vacation to dance, call and play in Flagstaff, Prescott and Tucson. So come join us on the road, and welcome us back in August!
An Extra Summer Dance in Mesa
Friday, August 2 Mesa Adult Resource Center
We have found a hall in the east valley that may fit the requirements of a dance venue. We tried it out in April and found it spacious, well-cooled, and the ambience wonderful, but we would like to give it a spin again. This time we want to see how much spring the floor has and whether or not the wax is sticky at the sides. We need
to test the hall’s sound needs some more, too.
You are invited back to the Mesa Adult Center for an encore event. The address is 247 N. MacDonald St, Mesa 85201, near University Ave and Center Street, just north of the downtown arts district. We’ll get under way at 7:00 with a beginner’s workshop, then dance from 7:30 until 10:30. So far, the caller and band are To Be Announced, but you will enjoy top
News of Traditional Music and Dance in and Around Arizona
AZ FOLK NEWS
The Main Event!No Phoenix Contra Dances in JulyNo July Contra DancesPhoenixIt’s hot, so go north, go south, but go! See you back in Aug! phxtmd.org
English Country DancingSelect Thurs EveningsPhoenixECD on select Thursday evenings in Jun, Aug and Sep at the ICC. phxtmd.org Pg 2
Grand Canyon Celtic Arts AcademyJuly 16 – 19Flagstaff Great week-long series of Celtic music and dance classes. www.grandcanyoncelticarts.org Pg 6
Labor Day Dance Away August 30 – September 2Julian, CAAn hour’s drive from San Diego. Dance to Crowfoot and Wild Asparagus and Callers George Marshall and Erik Weberg. www.caldancecoop.org Pg 5
Picking in the PinesFriday – Sunday, Sep 13 – 15FlagstaffThe best traditional and contemporary bluegrass and acoustic music. pickininthepines.org Pg 6
Dance in the DesertFriday – Sunday, Nov 8 – 10Oracle, AZThe Stringrays with Max Newman, Rodney Miller, Sam Bartlett and Stuart Kenney, and calling by Mary Wesley and David Millstone. tftm.org Pg 2
Mesa Meltdown: Contra Dance to test drive a possible new location
AZ Folk News It’s Green, It’s Hand-Picked and Carefully Packed, It’s Quality-Controlled, and It’s Always Free at www.PhxTMD.org Jun-Aug 2013 pg 2
notch talent for this repeat Mesa experiment. The hall is super air conditioned; it will be the most comfortable August dance you have ever been to.
Please bring a snack to share. If everybody brings something, we will have plenty of treats to nibble on at the cabaret tables positioned around the dance floor.
Bring all your friends and your dancing shoes. We’ll see you the first Friday of August!
English Country Dancing
Select Thurs Evenings through SeptemberPhoenix
Phoenix’s fabulous English Country Dance series is in full swing this summer from May through September. All the dances this season will happen the last two Thursday evenings each month from 7:00 – 9:00 at the Irish Cultural Center, 1106 N. Central Ave, Phoenix, 85004. Dates for the summer are June 20 & 27, August 22 & 29, and September 19 & 26. The price for each dance is $7 at the door.
Beginning in October and continuing thru April of next year,
the series will move back to Saturday mornings at the ICC. More information is available at phxtmd.org/PTMD/ECD_2013.html.
All the dances are called by Peg Hesley. To learn more about English Country Dancing, go to www.peghesley.com and click on the ECD tab. Contact Peg at 602-567-6620, or e-mail her at [email protected].
Cottonwood Dances Over for the Season
The high season is over and the Cottonwood Dances have been canceled for the summer. Try going to Flagstaff on first Saturdays or Prescott on fourth Saturdays for cool dancing in forested settings. We’ll see you back on third Saturdays at the Cottonwood Civic Center, 805 Main St. in Old Town in October! Check the website at www.azwedance.org/index.php/cottonwood-contra-dance/ for details in the Fall.
Flagstaff Dances at New Location
First SaturdaysFlagstaff
Flagstaff monthly Contra Dances are now at a new location. Dances are now at the Flagstaff Federated Community Church in downtown Flagstaff, located at 400 W. Aspen Avenue. The church is
across the street from the main library at the intersection of Aspen and Sitgreaves in downtown Flagstaff. Go to ffotm.org for more information.
CEILIS
Second & Third FridaysWith Set Dancing on Third FridaysIRISH CULTURAL CENTER
The Irish Cultural Center will be presenting Ceilis on most second and third Fridays of the month. Enjoy Irish social dancing in a relaxed atmosphere with live music and dance lessons. We will be learning set dancing at our third Friday Ceilis. Admission is $6.00 with children under 12 Free (2 with each paid admission) Ceilis start at 7:00 PM.
Ceili dance workshops at the Center are on the third Saturday of most months from 1:00-3:00 PM. These are two hour dance intensive lessons for beginning and advanced dancers. If you are an experienced Ceili go-er or if you have never danced before, this is the class for you! Make new friends and learn how to dazzle the spectators at the next ICC Ceili. Admission is $16.00 for adults and kids under 12 are $2.00. RSVP required (602) 258-0109. www.azirish.org
Pre-Dance Dinners
2nd Saturdays, 4th FridaysPhoenix
Hungry for food and companionship before dances? Some of the contra dance community meet regularly for pre-dance dinners at 5:00 on dance nights. To find out where everyone is going and add your name to the list, contact Barbara Daniel at [email protected] or call her at (480) 893-3239. It is best to RSVP so she can let the restaurant know about how many people to expect. Join your friends before the dances!
Upcoming Contra Dance Camps!
Registration is open for these upcoming dance camps. We have included camps many Arizona dancers attend, and a few that we think you’ll want to consider. Camps are great fun, so check them out.
Dance In The Desert
Friday – Sunday Nov 8 – 10Oracle, AZ
Once again, you can dance away the weekend at Dance in the Desert in the rustic mountain setting of Triangle Y Camp. The folks at Tucson Friends of Traditional Music are going all out for you from the hand-made hard wood floor to the fabulous talent, and exciting
AZ Folk News It’s Green, It’s Hand-Picked and Carefully Packed, It’s Quality-Controlled, and It’s Always Free at www.PhxTMD.org Jun-Aug 2013 pg 3
programming that will keep you twirling from morning until after midnight!
The price of $200 includes all meals, lodging and 3 days of dancing to amazing talent. Check-in opens at 4:00 p.m. on Friday the 8th of November, 2013. Camp begins with supper, followed by a dance. Start Saturday with a hearty breakfast, then prepare for a full day of workshops for dancers, singers, and musicians. Saturday night’s gala dance will be followed by late night jamming & dancing. Sunday morning features more music and dance, and the weekend concludes with a dance after lunch. Camp closes at 4:00.
Three delicious meals a day are carefully prepared by camp staff and served in the dining hall with a wonderful view. There is an unlimited coffee and juice bar to refresh you anytime you can tear yourself away from dancing. Lodging accomodations are varied. You’ll find snug apartments with central heating and indoor plumbing. (Hurry to get one of these! They fill up fast even at an extra cost.) There are rustic cabins with bunk beds for
men, women, or co-ed housing. Bath houses are a few steps away. You can also bring your own self-contained camping vehicles, or, if you love to rough it, there are tent camping spaces. Let the organizers know your preference when you sign up.
Register now to reserve yourself a spot on the dance floor. Registration opened June 1, but space is still available. This year, for the first time, you can sign up and pay online. Go to tftm.org/ditd12/ditd12mainband.html and let the wonderful folks at TFTM know you are coming.
This year’s line-up features the Stringrays, a power house of talent with Rodney Miller on fiddle, Sam Bartlett on banjo, Max Newman on guitar, and Stuart Kenney on bass. These musicians are masters of their craft, and will have your feet moving every second you are on the
dance floor. Their amazing sounds will be running through your head long after the last note dies down.
The musical fervor will be matched by callers, Mary Wesley and David Millstone. These well-celebrated and renowned dance leaders will guide you through three days of dance nirvana.
Mary Wesley is a dance leader, caller, and organizer for contras, squares, morris, and family and community dances. A native of Vermont, she travels throughout New England and beyond to follow and share her love of dance. Whether at a scheduled dance, a school event, a wedding, a festival or a private party, Mary’s friendly enthusiasm is sure to please.
“Mary leads dances with a spark and a smile!” raved one Burlington dancer.
David Millstone started contra dancing in the early 1970s
and has been calling dances for some 35 years. With an American repertoire ranging from traditional New England chestnuts to high-energy recent compositions, he calls contras, squares, and interesting dances in odd formations. He is also an experienced caller of English country dances. He is known for his clear and supportive teaching style, the breadth of his repertoire, his sense of humor, and his ability to pick dances that offer the right level of challenge for all audiences.
If you would like to help get camp set up, donate to the fund-raising raffle, buy this year’s T-shirt or participate in the dance clothing exchange, you’ll find all those details and more at tftm.org.
CDSS Summer Camps
Jun – AugPinewoods, MA, Timber Ridge, WV, and Ogontz, NH
Can’t get enough dancing? Love to sing? Hankering to put that closeted fiddle or accordion to good use? Want to hang out with stellar musicians and pick up some of their tricks? What about learning to call contras or squares? All these things are still possible at CDSS summer camps.
There is still room to sign up for summer music and dance
Rodney Miller
Stuart Kenney
Max Newman
Sam Bartlett
Mary Wesley David Millstone
AZ Folk News It’s Green, It’s Hand-Picked and Carefully Packed, It’s Quality-Controlled, and It’s Always Free at www.PhxTMD.org Jun-Aug 2013 pg 4
experiences in the cool woods of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, or West Virginia. Each summer, the Country Dance and Song Society runs several residential weeks for adults and families where you’ll get to experience traditional English and Anglo-American dance and music in beautiful outdoor settings. Each weeklong program has a unique focus and each offers a different mix of dance, music, song and special workshops. There are daily classes, and a dance party each evening (sometimes with a concert), followed by late-night activities. You can also enjoy swimming, canoeing, and relaxing with old friends and new, not to mention the scrumptious meals, fresh air, and break from your daily hectic lives.
For complete information as well as scholarship opportunities to help with costs, please visit www.cdss.org/programs.html
Wasatch Wiggle
August 23 – 25Salt Lake City UT
Dance at this beautiful mountain lodge for Wasatch Wiggle 2013. Camp Cloud Rim, located between Park City and Brighton, UT is nestled on the shore of a pristine alpine lake.
This year’s infectious music will be provided by Notorious: the
Quartet, with sparkling, exhilarating tunes by Sam Bartlett, Eden Macadam-Somer, Larry Unger, and Mark Hellengberg (Pokey). If you haven't heard them yet, it won't take you four beats to realize that this isn't just any ordinary folk band. Sweet vocals and virtuosic fiddling coupled with driving rhythm and snappy guitar solos make for a thrilling musical experience in genres that span many continents. Declared “guitar genius” by Sing Out
Magazine, Larry joins with “rabid mandolinist” Sam, “demon fiddler” Eden, and wild percussionist, Pokey, to push the envelope towards swing, blues and Gypsy modes. Come hear how many ways they can “metamorphose 64 beats!”
Their wild rhythms will be complemented by the lively, local dance drivers known as Bandáge á Trois. Band members David Combs (accordion), Kristi Austin (flute), and Tom Goodwin (bass) play animated, energetic, trés-danceable tunes from the folk traditions of many lands. France, Scandinavia, New England, French Canada, and the Celtic regions of Western Europe have all contributed to their eclectic repertoire. Bandáge à Trois has performed for dances and concerts in Salt Lake City, California, Southeast Idaho, Boise, and at the Northwest Folklife Festival in Seattle.
Your callers will be Will Mentor, caller extraordinaire, and Erik Erhardt, everybody’s favorite Southwest caller. Will is a contra and square dance caller from Northern Vermont known for his clear teaching, upbeat wit, and relaxed stage presence. He loves to
choreograph evenings with a variety of dances and tempos that at times surprise and always delight, all the while keeping intact his guiding principle as a caller: "It's about the dancers!"
Erik has called Contra and English dances,
instructed couples dance, and organized dances in New Mexico since 1998. He will be teaching the waltz workshop. Erik believes that couples dancing is not about fancy moves (though you’ll learn some), but more importantly about connecting with your partner, the music, and the flowing community on the floor. He will also call a late-night techno-contra session. Don’t know about you, but I’m not planning to sleep much!
Dancing starts at 8 pm on Friday night, then you can dance and participate in workshops all day Saturday, dance Saturday night, and enjoy the concert and farewell dance until 2:00 pm on Sunday.
Accomodations include log cabins, tent cabins, a lodge slumber party, or your own self-contained RV or tent camping. Washhouses with warm showers and modern plumbing are nearby or in the lodge. Meals begin with an optional potluck dinner on Friday night, then enjoy Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner on Saturday and Brunch on Sunday.
CDSS American Week at Pinewoods (photo by Doug Plummer)
Camp Cloud Rim
Notorious, the Quartet
Bandáge á Trois
Will Mentor! Erik Erhardt
AZ Folk News It’s Green, It’s Hand-Picked and Carefully Packed, It’s Quality-Controlled, and It’s Always Free at www.PhxTMD.org Jun-Aug 2013 pg 5
Vegetarian alternatives will be available for all meals.
Regular Registration (postmarked after June 17) is $165. Youth/Student price for ages 16-25 is $95; and Children (ages 5-15) or Non-Dancers can come for $50. Registration is first come, first served (by date registration is received), with an eye toward gender balance.
For more information, please visit http://www.wasatchwiggle.org/home.html. For Registrations & General Questions, contact Lori Pimentel at 801-278-8765, or e-mail [email protected]. Regarding Food & Scholarships, call Brenda Goodwin at 801-232-2348, or e-mail [email protected].
Labor Day Dance Away
August 30 – September 2Julian, CA
Registration for Labor Day Dance Away (in beautiful Julian, CA - near San Diego) is now open and we are accepting applications in the order in which they are received.
This is a great contra dance weekend an hour’s drive from San Diego. Our talent for 2013 is Bands, Crowfoot and Wild Asparagus; Callers, George Marshall
and Erik Weberg. Registration opens June 1, 2013. The weekend starts on Friday, Aug. 30 and continues through Sept. 2, 2013.
If you'd like to secure a place at camp, but are having trouble making one lump payment, please know that a $50.00 deposit will hold your place, with final payment due by Friday evening at
camp. Contact Jocelyn Vilter for details.
There will be no waiting list, unless we fill up. At that point, we will start a wait list in the event that someone drops out. www.caldancecoop.org or [email protected].
FestivalsFLAGSTAFF FOLK FESTIVAL
June 29 – 30Coconino Center for the Arts
For the twelfth year, Flagstaff Friends of Traditional Music proudly showcases the best in folk and acoustic music in Arizona and beyond. Local and national talent will be featured on indoor stages or outdoors with shade covers. We feature well over 100 acts on four stages, workshops, jams, and more. If you play an instrument, bring it along to join in a jam or workshop. Sunday afternoon will feature the popular band scramble, so prepare to sign up and play along with folks you have never met!
We have a number of food vendors and plenty of places to stretch out on the grounds. Festival
admission includes access to both the Coconino Center for the Arts exhibits and The Arizona Historical Society Pioneer Museum.
The museum grounds are open both days from 10 am until 6:30 pm. The price is $5/person or $15/family per day. The Coconino Center for the Arts & Pioneer Museum is located at 2300 North Fort Valley Road in Flagstaff, AZ 86001.
The festival is produced by The Flagstaff Friends of Traditional Music in partnership with Flagstaff Cultural Partners and the Pioneer Museum. Visit the website for more information at flagfolkfest.org.
You may also contact Anne at Flagstaff Folk Festival (928)-606-2064, or e-mail Barry at [email protected].
Crowfoot
Wild Asparagus
AZ Folk News It’s Green, It’s Hand-Picked and Carefully Packed, It’s Quality-Controlled, and It’s Always Free at www.PhxTMD.org Jun-Aug 2013 pg 6
Grand Canyon Celtic Arts Academy
July 16 – 19Flagstaff, AZ
If you have ever yearned to learn Irish flute or bodrhan, or want to unravel the intricacies of the lyrics to that Gaelic song, come to beautiful Flagstaff, Arizona to study with some of the world's best Irish musicians and dancers this July!
The members of the celebrated Celtic band, Runa, along with Zac Léger will be teaching at the Fifth annual Grand Canyon Celtic Arts Academy. The Northern Arizona Celtic Heritage Society once again sponsors this week-long series of classes in all kinds of Celtic instruments, dance styles and languages. You can take courses in
fiddle, Irish language, Irish whistle, flute, guitar, bodhrán, Irish dancing, singing, Uilleann Pipes, and more.
Many courses are also available for beginners. You will learn in the shadow of the San Francisco Peaks on the beautiful Flagstaff Arts and Leadership Academy Campus located at 3401 N. Fort Valley Rd. in Flagstaff. Classes meet daily for two hours on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. In the evenings, there are concerts, sessions, and demonstrations to fill your heart and soul with music from the Emerald Isle. The week finishes off with a Friday evening concert by Runa (see CONCERTS on pg. 7 for more info)
Go the GCCAA website, www.grandcanyoncelticarts.org, for more information and to sign up for an exhilarating week of awesome instruction, or contact Kari Barton at [email protected]. Registration has been open since April, but there are some spaces still available. If you need it, the mailing address is: Grand Canyon Celtic Arts Academy, 1650 S. Plaza Way Ste. 105, Flagstaff, AZ 86001.
Of course, it’s not really over then. On Saturday and Sunday, July 21 – 21, there is the 16th Annual Arizona Celtic Highland Festival! Check out nachs.info for information on the festival, and be sure to check out Runa while you’re there. You can find out more about this exciting Celtic group at www.grandcanyoncelticarts.org/?page_id=16
16th Annual ARIZONA HIGHLAND CELTIC FESTIVAL
July 20 – 21Flagstaff, AZ
Come to the cool Arizona Highlands where the temperature in July is in the 80’s for the Highland Games. You can watch dance and athletic demonstrations, enjoy concerts from local, national, and internationally acclaimed Celtic bands, shop the many crafts booths, eat all your favorite fair foods from Shepherds pie to haggus, look up your family genealogy, or sit back with a cold Irish brew and take it all in. About 20,000 attend the festival with great weather, great people and lots to enjoy.
The festival rounds out the Celtic Week activities in northern Arizona. At this year’s Celtic Week and Highland Games, the featured band will be Runa, a fusion of music from Ireland, Scotland, Canada, and the United States. Of course, you will also be able to enjoy your favorite local Celtic groups such as the Knockabouts, the Wicked Tinkers, and Cinnamon Twist.
The games, music, food and all the fun are at Foxglenn Park, 4200 East Butler Avenue, Flagstaff,
AZ 86004. The festival is open from 9:00 am – 6:00 pm on Saturday and from 9:00 am – 4:00 pm on Sunday.
Adult price for the weekend is $22, or $15 for one day. Children under 12 are $6 for the weekend or $4 per day. Tickets are available until July 1 at Arizona Music Pro and Animas Trading Co in Flagstaff, at the gate on festival days, or at http://www.nachs.info/festival.shtml. For more information go to the website, or call (928) 556-3161.
8th Annual Pickin’ in the Pines Bluegrass & Acoustic Music Festival
September 13 – 15Fort Tuthill County Fairgrounds, Flagstaff, AZ
Pickin’ in the Pines is an award-winning bluegrass & acoustic music festival first held in 2006. The festival honors the interests of the diverse membership of Flagstaff Friends of Traditional Music (FFOTM), featuring the best traditional and contemporary
AZ Folk News It’s Green, It’s Hand-Picked and Carefully Packed, It’s Quality-Controlled, and It’s Always Free at www.PhxTMD.org Jun-Aug 2013 pg 7
bluegrass music, complemented by other styles of acoustic music and dance.
The festival also features educational workshops and a band contest, all in a family-friendly setting. Attendees come from Flagstaff, all around the Southwest, and beyond. Camping and jamming are also a big part of the Pickin’ in the Pines experience. For information about the bands and events, go to http://pickininthepines.org/lineup/.
Early bird tickets are on sale now! Quantities are limited, so buy your tickets today. Sorry, no refunds on early bird weekend passes. Single-day passes will go on sale soon. Members of Flagstaff Friends of Traditional Music receive a $5 discount on weekend passes! No need to buy a ticket for children 16 and under. Children are admitted free with their grownups!
Tickets for this year’s festival are available via Paypal on the Pickin’ in the Pines festival website (note: $5 service charge), or you can buy tickets at these Flagstaff locations:
Arizona Music Pro, 122 East Route 66, Flagstaff. Call (928) 556-9054. Rainbow’s End Flagstaff, 12 E Rt. 66 Suite 101, Flagstaff. Call (928) 774-5535. Mountainaire Store, 106 Mountainaire Rd., Flagstaff, Call (928) 525-2508. Contact [email protected], or call the message line at (928) 525-1695.
ConcertsWe search far and wide to
find those select shows that draw from the best of traditional music, but will amaze and surprise you with sound and talent. So get together with friends, hit the road, and get out there! Here are a few great concerts you don’t want to miss out on.
Runa: Contemporary Celtic Music
Friday, July 19 Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, Flagstaff Thursday, July 25The MIM, Phoenix
“There is truly a mystical quality to their playing. They create a lyrical sound that is at once unique as well as seamless.” – Lori Lander Murphy, Irish Philadelphia
RUNA draws on the diverse musical backgrounds of its band members and offers a contemporary and refreshing approach to traditional and more recently composed Celtic material. Through
their repertoire of both highly energetic and graceful, acoustic melodies, along with their fusion of music from Ireland, Scotland, Canada, and the United States, this vocal and instrumental ensemble gives its arrangements of traditional songs and tunes a fresh sound.
RUNA consists of vocalist and step-dancer, Shannon Lambert-Ryan of Philadelphia, Dublin-born guitarist, Fionán de Barra, Cheryl Prashker of Canada on percussion, Dave Curley on mandolin, vocals, bodhrán, and step-dancing, and Maggie Estes of Louisville on the fiddle. The band often performs with world-renowned, guest musicians, including Isaac Alderson on the uilleann pipes, flutes, and whistles.
The band won several awards at the 2010 Montgomery Buck Music Awards, including Best Entertaining Band, Best Folk Artist,
Best Female Vocalist, and Best Album – “Jealousy”. They were recently recognized on an international level in the Irish Music Awards with a nomination for Best Female Vocalist for 2012.
Jim Allford of PA Music Scene writes, “The band is going to be reckoned with and I really feel they are Grammy bound within time.”
“For contemporary Celtic music at its very best – do yourself a favor and check out RUNA.. brilliant!” – Gene Shay, co-founder of the Philadelphia Folk Festival; WXPN-FM
Runa will be teaching a variety of classes at the Grand Canyon Celtic Arts Academy, including fiddle, bodhrán, guitar, Irish dancing, singing, Irish language, tenor banjo/mandolin,
Runa
AZ Folk News It’s Green, It’s Hand-Picked and Carefully Packed, It’s Quality-Controlled, and It’s Always Free at www.PhxTMD.org Jun-Aug 2013 pg 8
auxiliary percussion, and sound production. For more information about the classes and the concerts, email [email protected].
The Friday July 19 show will begin at 8 p.m. at the Shepherd of the Hills Church,1601 N. San Francisco St, north of downtown Flagstaff, 86001. The Thurday July 25 show is at 8 p.m. at the MIM in Phoenix. Tickets for Runa may be purchased at: livingtraditionspresentations.com, or theMIM.org.
Zac Léger
Thursday, July 18Flagstaff
Zac Léger has been touring and playing music professionally for over a decade. He holds numerous medals on various instruments from both the U.S. and Ireland, including an All-Ireland piping medal, one of few Americans to hold this prestigious title. He has recorded on over a two dozen albums and has played, recorded and performed with the likes of The Border Collies, John Doyle (ex-Solas), Mike Dugger, Glen Road, and Liz Carroll, to name a few.
In 2005, he spent 8 months traveling under a program bringing traditional music to schools all across the country. In 2007 he was the principal uilleann piper in the Irish dance show “Emerald Beat”, based at Busch Gardens theme parks and in 2011 and 2012 he was the musical director for “Ireland: The Show” which premiered in Los
Angeles and New York. He was a member of the critically acclaimed Eileen Ivers and Immigrant Soul as well as the Irish-based show “Celtic Crossroads”. He is currently the touring accompanist for Scottish fiddler Jamie Laval and often joins young Canadian prodigies, Qristina and Quinn Bachand, on pipes and woodwinds.
As a performer, Zac brings a deep respect for the tradition, coupled with an intuitive grasp of melodic structure on the Irish pipes, wooden flute, whistles, tenor banjo and mandolin. As an accompanist on guitar and bouzouki, he provides innovative rhythmic, counter-point and harmonic lines which add energy and pulse to dance tunes, coupled with tasteful finger-style playing that breathes new life into his singing of traditional songs. He has toured all over the U.S, Canada and Ireland and currently resides in Los Angeles where he teaches music, records, and plays both freelance and in numerous bands including Indie Rock/Jazz/Trad fusion band The Brilliant Gypsies.
Zac Leger will perform in concert at the Riordan Mansion July 18 as part of the week-long program at Grand Canyon Celtic Arts Academy where he will teach flute and Irish Whistle. Visit http://
www.grandcanyoncelticarts.org/ to find out more about the Academy. You are welcome to attend the evening concert separately from the Academy program. The Riordan Mansion Visitor Center is at 409 W. Riordan Rd. in Flagstaff. The show begins at 7:30. Tickets are available from Kari Barton at Living Traditions Presentations, livingtraditionspresentations.com.
The Honey Dewdrops
Saturday, August 3Flagstaff Arboretum
The Honey Dewdrops are the Virginia-based roots duet of Laura Wortman and Kagey Parrish. With a blend of new Americana and traditional folk music, they create inspired songs that are rooted in the experience and lives of people. Their sound is transcendent; they write all their own songs and yet no one could ever peg them as just another singer-songwriter couple, not when they’ve embedded a sparse Appalachian clarity on every track that is accessible to listeners everywhere. The songs they write shine with energy and emotion through intimate performances with a handful of acoustic instruments and tightly layered harmonies.
On stage, the Honey Dewdrops focus on dynamically blending the sounds of instruments and voices by singing and playing into a single microphone. There is a high lonesome quality to the way their voices blend that is familiar, yet the mixture is unique. Their
music covers the ground between hand crafted folk songs, Appalachian fiddle tunes, and a cappella spirituals. In their own way, the duo fills up a room with sound and feeling that lingers long after the show is over.
Flagstaff Cultural Partners and the Arboretum at Flagstaff are combining their efforts to host this amazing southern duo. The show begins at 5:30 pm, so you can bring a picnic to enjoy in the beautiful outdoor setting. Chairs are provided and beer, wine, and water will be available for purchase. Tickets are $16, children 6 – 17 are charged $8. Contact the Arboretum at (928) 774-1442, ext. 101, or call the Center for the Arts at (928) 779-2300, or get tickets online at www.culturalpartners.org/arb.htm.
Zac Léger
The Honey Dewdrops
AZ Folk News It’s Green, It’s Hand-Picked and Carefully Packed, It’s Quality-Controlled, and It’s Always Free at www.PhxTMD.org Jun-Aug 2013 pg 9
Community Corner
Who Are the People in Your Neighborhood? a.k.a. Assets Mapping!
by Rima DaelCDSS Executive Director blogs about her visit to Phoenix in May
Hello CDSS Community,
While in Phoenix recently, I danced and chatted with members of Phoenix Traditional Music and Dance (PHXTMD). Many thanks to Ron and Linda Nieman for the generous hospitality! I also met with Deb Comly for coffee in Flagstaff and we talked about the success of May Madness in Clarkdale, AZ and the dances in Flagstaff and Cottonwood.
My takeaway from my conversations in Arizona that I want to share with you is connecting with resources in your communities. This came from answering questions of how best to continue to ensure the sustainability of a group, where to find good people to help with the group’s work, and where can CDSS help. In answering the first two questions, I shall continue by framing this as Asset Mapping. Yikes! That’s management jargon. Okay, in Sesame Street parlance this is also known as “Who Are the People In Your Neighborhood?”
So, who are the people and organizations in your neighborhood
that can help solve the challenges your group faces? The first part of our conversation was to frame the work that we do as part of the arts and nonprofit communities. When defining dance, music and song groups in this manner, it opens you up to see there are organizations or
people you know in the fields of the arts, arts management, academics, and nonprofit organizations that could help with challenges you face. In Phoenix specifically, we identified the Arizona State University’s nonprofit academic program/center, the Lodestar Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Innovation. PHXTMD members also identified people they knew at other arts organizations and that they’d like to reach out to, such as the Musical Instrument Museum and the local fiddle teacher.
In our discussion, it was clear that PHXTMD had accomplished a lot of great work in their 30 year history, and that should be celebrated and recognized. It is important to take stock of the good things and celebrate big or small wins on occasion, to help contextualize challenges a group may face or to frame future direction of where a
group wants to go. I find it useful to problem-solve from a strength-based perspective. Sure, some feel that this is simply just reframing a problem by minimizing weaknesses, but a positive approach and spin is a much better way to help achieve success. As the saying goes “No one has ever succeeded while being convinced they will fail.”
Don’t forget that CDSS can also help your group! We provide grants, scholarships and financial backing and we have our resource kits. We are working hard to be a better hub and resource for our members, groups and others. We can help by pointing you in the right direction to get help in your local communities and we can help you think through how to do your own asset mapping.
We are a phone call, 413-203-5467, or email click away. Count CDSS as a part of your neighborhood too!
From CDSS Blog: May 23, 2013 | Posted by Caroline Batson
Southwest Dance and Music Organizers Conference
Coming soon to a southwestern state near you!
The Country Dance and Song Society is very active around the country helping dance and
music groups with their endeavors. CDSS sponsors monthly dances, dance series, weekends, festivals, camps and other activities all over the country to let traditional music and dance enthusiasts come together to share their talents, and spread the love of traditional American music and dance forms. In the last few years CDSS has been helping organizers of traditional dance and music get together by geographic region to pool resources and share issues, concerns, visions and successes.
There has been a conference for organizers in every region of the country except the southwest so far. Now, we are going to have one in our desert corner. Plans are afoot to get the southwest communities to come together in 2014 for a conference specific to our region.
Who it’s for?
The conference is for callers, musicians, organizers and anyone else involved in the behind-the-scenes organization of traditional music and dance events.
What is it all about?
Strength lies in numbers, and there is a lot of horsepower out there among folks who put on music and dance programs. When all those people can congregate to talk about issues pertinent to their communities, they find there is common ground among them. It is good to be able to chat with others who organize or call dances or play in bands. Organizers need to collaborate with each other. Through these conversations, new ideas are born, or someone finds an answer
Rima and friends dancing in Phoenix
AZ Folk News It’s Green, It’s Hand-Picked and Carefully Packed, It’s Quality-Controlled, and It’s Always Free at www.PhxTMD.org Jun-Aug 2013 pg 10
to a question. What used to be insurmountable dilemmas are suddenly manageable and new friends are made. People take their new contacts and ideas back to their home communities and spread the energy and expertise. When all that moving and shaking gets together in one place, the energy is contagious and great things start to happen.
What’s to be learned from going?
Many of the dance organizations in this part of the world are concerned about similar issues. The agenda includes building audience, keeping audience, bringing in younger folks, finding and keeping good dance halls, finding and affording the best talent, learning the logistics of putting on successful events, finances, fund raising and fund management, keeping traditional music fun for everybody, … and the list goes on. The southwest conference will bring together people who have found workable solutions to issues and people with new ideas from our own neighborhood.
Where will it be?
There is an exploratory committee working now to select a site for the conference. Probably between 50 and 100 people will attend, so they are finding a place with easy transportation access and reasonable hotel rates, plus a healthy enough music and dance scene to support a conference of this size. If you have any ideas, please let Linda Henry [email protected].
If I go, then what?
If you go, you’ll likely come back home with tons of energy and the urge to get things moving. You will just have danced with amazing callers, gotten finance pointers from amazing musicians, learned how to set up sound from a stellar dance writer – yes, the cross over will make your head spin. But, the wealth of knowledge you’ll have about keeping music and dance alive at home will last a long time. You’ll be more confident about taking part in your dance community and your energy will, in turn, invigorate more folks down the line. Together we will make the southwest a stronghold of American traditional music and dance.
Monthly PhxTMD Potluck and Board Meeting
Most 1st MondaysCall to Confirm
Board meetings of Phoenix Traditional Music & Dance are usually on the 1st Monday of each month. Call to confirm the date, and for directions. A potluck dinner is at 7:00 PM and the meeting is at 8:00 PM. All members are welcome. Location: Ron and Linda Nieman's home. Call (480) 893-3328 (Ron & Linda) or (602) 268-7181 (Carl).
AZ Folk News is a publication of Phoenix Traditional Music and Dance, Inc., an Arizona nonprofit 501(c)(3) corporation dedicated to preserving traditional acoustic music and dance in Phoenix and Arizona. PhxTMD presents and promotes dances, concerts, and other special events throughout the year. Your membership supports PhxTMD’s work. A monetary donation to PhxTMD, beyond the membership fee, is tax deductible.
For more information or to submit an article, contact Linda Nieman at 480-893-3328 or email [email protected]
Phoenix Traditional Music & DancePO Box 50066♦Phoenix AZ 85076-0066
www.PHXtmd.org
All calendar information subject to change. Please contact each organization to confirm dates, times, locations, etc.
Join/Contribute!Membership / change of address form for Phoenix Traditional Music & Dance. Please mail to: Phoenix Traditional Music and Dance, PO Box 50066, Phoenix AZ 85076-0066
Name:_____________________________________________________________________ Address:__________________________________________________________________City: ________________________________ State: __________ Zip: _________________ Phone:____________________________ Email: _________________________________☐ New Member ☐ Renewal ☐ Single: $5 ☐ Family: $20
☐ Email notices and newsletter ☐ OPT-OUT of Email ☐ Address Change
I’ll Volunteer (check all that apply): ☐ Greeting/Door ☐ Refreshments ☐ Sound ☐ Open Band ☐ Special Events ☐ Newsletter ☐ ________________________________________
I’d like to contribute to PhxTMD (all contributions are tax-deductible).
$_________________________________
AZ Folk News It’s Green, It’s Hand-Picked and Carefully Packed, It’s Quality-Controlled, and It’s Always Free at www.PhxTMD.org Jun-Aug 2013 pg 11
Contra Dance Schedule *Note special dates/venues/guest callers and bands in Red!!
Monthly Dance Calendar for Arizona
Date Caller/Band Venue/Sponsor Location Time and Admission
1st SaturdaysFlagstaff
July 6 – Peg Hesley with ClusterfolkAug 3 – Judy Zeidel with Just DessertsSept 7 – Deb Comly with Privy Tippers
Flagstaff Federated Community Church
Flagstaff Friends of Trad
Music
Location Change - Flagstaff Federated Community Church 400 West Aspen Ave (Sitgreaves & Aspen downtown)
Newcomer Orientation/Lesson: 7:30PMDance: 8:00 – 11:00PM$8/ $6 FFOTM Members & Students
[email protected] [email protected]
2nd SaturdaysPhoenix
No dance in JulyAug 2 (Fri) Mesa – Neal Schlein with Out of KiltersAug 10 – Dave Black with Out of Kilters Sept 14 – Peg Hesley with Updraft
Try out a new hallMesa Adult Resource Center
Kenilworth School, PhoenixPhoenix Trad Music and
Dance
247 N MacDonald St, Mesa 85201
1210 N. 5th Ave. (at I-10) Phoenix 85003
Newcomer Orientation/Lesson: 7:00PMDance: 7:30 to 10:30PM $8.00, $5.00 for dancers age 25 and younger
call/text Carl at 602-268-7181
3rd SaturdaysCottonwood Dances cancelled until October Cottonwood Civic Center
AZ We Dance805 N. Main Street, Cottonwood
86326
Newcomer Orientation/Lesson: 6:30PM Dance: 7:00 to 10:00PM $8.00, $5.00 students, $3 age 16 and younger Deb: 928-774-5936 [email protected]
4th FridaysPhoenix
June 28 – J.P. Thom-‐Gronachan with Pima County Allstars
No dance in JulyAug 23 – Claire Zucker with Privy TippersSept 27 – TBA with Out of Kilters
Irish Cultural Center, Phoenix Phoenix Trad Music and
Dance
1106 N. Central Ave, Phoenix 85004
Newcomer Orientation/Lesson: 7:00PMDance: 7:30 to 10:30PM$8.00, $5.00 for dancers age 25 and younger,
call/text Carl at 602-268-7181
4th SaturdaysPrescott
June 22 – J.P. Thom-‐Gronachan with Scrub OakJuly 27 – Steve Elliot with Clusterfolk Aug 24 – TBA with Scrub OakSept 28 – TBA with Traditional Blend
First Congregational Church, Prescott Folk Happens
216 E. Gurley (& Alarcon), Prescott 86301
Newcomer Orientation/Lesson: 7:30PM Dance: 8:00 to 10:30PM. $8, $6 members, $2 discount teachers and students, $1 off if bring a “newbie”
Bruce: 928-925-5210
1st, 3rd, 4th and 5th SaturdaysTucson
June 29 – J.P. Thom-‐Gronachan with Out of Kilters (Zesty Dance)
July 6 – Neal Schlein and Stuart Moody with Part Deux
July 20 – TBA with Open BandJuly 27 – TBA with Grrrl BandAug 3 – TBA with TBAAug 17 – TBA with Open BandAug 24 – TBA with Privy TippersAug 31 – Zesty Dance – TBA with TBA
First United Methodist Church, Tucson
Tucson Friends of Trad Music
,
915 E. 4th St., Tucson, AZ 85719(U of A at University and Park Avenue)
Newcomer Orientation/Lesson: 6:30PM, Dance 7:00-10:00PM. $9. $8 members; $7 students.
Lynn Maners: [email protected]: 520-906-0352
AZ Folk News It’s Green, It’s Hand-Picked and Carefully Packed, It’s Quality-Controlled, and It’s Always Free at www.PhxTMD.org Jun-Aug 2013 pg 12
*Note special dates/venues/guest callers and bands in Red!!
Monthly Dance Calendar for Arizona
Various ThursdaysPhoenix
June 20, 27, Aug 22, 29, Sep 19, 26 – Peg Hesley with selected recordings
Irish Cultural Center, Phoenix
Phoenix Trad Music and Dance
1106 N. Central Ave, Phoenix 85004
7:00 – 9:00PM, $7 at the door Contact Peg Hesley, peghesley.com 602-564-6620 or email [email protected]
2nd and 3rd FridaysPhoenix Ceili Dance with various Irish bands!
Irish Cultural Center, Phoenix AZ Irish
1106 N. Central Ave, Phoenix 85004
7:00PM $6.00, children under 12 free (2 with each paid admission) Ceili workshop recommended.
3rd SaturdaysPhoenix
Ceili dance workshopsThird Saturdays of most months RSVP required (602) 258-‐0109.
Irish Cultural Center, Phoenix AZ Irish
1106 N. Central Ave, Phoenix 85004
1:00-3:00PM. $16.00 for adults and kids under 12 $2.00 These are two-hour dance intensives for beginning and advanced dancers.
Ceili Dance and Workshop Schedule
English Country Dance Schedule
