Apr
21
Fri
The Morpeth Northumbrian Gathering is celebrating its big 50th Anniversary this year and there is lots planned. On the Friday night there will be the Golden Gala Concert in the Methodist Church, in which I will be playing with Bottle Band Band, Tyneside Fiddle Alliance and leading the Morpeth Community Strings group in their debut performance. On the Saturday there will be the usual competitions, and I will be supporting family and friends in the fiddle classes, and might even be persuaded to enter the instrumental duos! The Tyneside Fiddle Alliance plan to defend their title in the Concert Band category and there will be many other great things going on. Do come along and support this wonderful celebration of Northumbrian traditional music, song and dance.
“An exciting three-day annual festival of street entertainment, indoor events, music, dance, craft, dialect, heritage and traditional fun – held the weekend after Easter in the medieval market town of Morpeth, 14 miles north of Newcastle upon Tyne.
The festival is a true gathering of people who come together to enjoy the traditional culture of Northumberland and the wider NE region. It features concerts, dance, crafts, battle re-enactments, dialect, stories, drama, workshops, sessions, singarounds, competitions, stalls, bellringing, orienteering, tours, walks, talks and street performances which include a young people’s pageant as part of the Saturday morning Border Cavalcade.”
Jul
11
Wed
Sacred Spaces, Secular Sounds
July 2018 sees Stewart and Frank heading out for a short tour of the UK, visiting some wonderful Sacred Spaces in which to perform their music. They will be performing tracks from their new album, The Gift, as well as some old favourites.
Tickets are available on the door, in advance online from Eventbrite (plus booking fee) or reserve or pay by credit card on 0113 2255 944.
Some Pay-what-you-can tickets are available for U18s and local residents (LS9, 14, 15). Reserve your ticket and pay on the door.
There is an opportunity for Stewart to offer a adult workshop on Fiddle Technique from 2.30 – 3.45 pm on that afternoon (Weds 12th July). This would be free for concert ticket holders, or £10 (or the Pay-as-you-can price if eligible). Please get in touch to show your interest – must be booked in advance.
There may also be a mixed instrument Youth workshop (4.15 – 5.30 pm) for intermediate/advanced players based on repertoire, led by Stewart & Frank. Please complete the interest form on Chapel FM’s website.
Recordings
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🎶 The Tune VaultWe are coming to the end of another cracking Block of workshops with North East Fiddle School. Many thanks to Grace Smith Music, Chris Meredith and Kevin Lees - Music for their fantastic tuition. Here’s one of the tunes I taught in a video tutorial series, heading for The Tune Vault - a favourite English jig, Flaxley Green Dance.
Flaxley Green Dance
A fabulous English jig - one of two sent by Robert J. Buckley to Cecil Sharp in the summer of 1911. Mr Buckley had collected tunes from a wheelwright in Abbots Bromley, William (or Henry!) Robinson, in the middle of the nineteenth century, including the celebrated Horn Dance.
Flaxley Green Dance | The Tune Vault
youtu.be
Flaxley Green Dance- The Tune Vault by Stewart HardyA fabulous English jig - one of two sent by Robert J. Buckley to Cecil Sharp in the summer of 1911. Mr B...
Less than a month to go to our Arrangement Techniques course for mixed instruments, which will be my 100th residential JSArts course!* 🥳There is just one place left if you would like to join us. Get in touch quickly, so we can book you in with the venue - the beautiful Shepherds Dene near Riding Mill in Northumberland.
We will be learning a lovely selection of tunes, and choosing which to work on - exploring options for introductions & endings, varying instrumentation, creating harmony lines and different ways of accompanying the tune to produce alternate soundscapes and narratives. With a limited number of participants, there will be plenty of time to explore ideas from everyone. All instruments are welcome, and if you require notation in different keys or clefs, that can be provided. Dots and audio files are provided in advance, and any recordings from the weekend are sent on afterwards.
*There will be cake! 🎂😊
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Finally, a new tune for The Tune Vault, and to pick up where we left off, here’s another sparkling tune by Tyneside fiddle supremo, James Hill in the key of "F for vescence" 🤣Tykeside (James Hill) | The Tune Vault
youtu.be
Tykeside (James Hill)- The Tune Vault by Stewart HardyThis enigmatically titled reel in F major is another gem by Tyneside fiddling legend James Hill. No tr...