Feb
22
Wed
George Welch & Stewart Hardy / Cramlington @ Cramlington Folk Club
Feb 22 @ 8:00 pm
George Welch & Stewart Hardy / Cramlington @ Cramlington Folk Club

What a joy to be playing once again with the irrepressible George Welch at the wonderful Cramlington Folk Club, which rightly boasts such a great audience and terrific residents. George and I have been playing there together off and on for over twenty years and it is always a pleasure to go back. It would be great if you could join us for a fun night of George’s surreal stories and gorgeous songs – we might even fit in a few tunes!

Doors 7.30 pm fpr 8.00 pm

 

Once you have heard George perform his songs, accompanied by his guitar playing with Stewart’s fiddle, there is no doubt that the success of this highly entertaining duo is built on solid musical foundations

Feb
24
Fri
JSArts Arrangement Techniques for Mixed Instruments @ Rydal Hall
Feb 24 – Feb 26 all-day
JSArts Arrangement Techniques for Mixed Instruments @ Rydal Hall | Grantham | United Kingdom

Arrangement Techniques for Mixed Instruments

24th – 26th February
Rydal Hall, Ambleside LA22 9LX

Join Stewart in the beautiful setting of Rydal Hall in the Lake District, for a weekend of exploring new tunes and creating arrangements. The workshop will be limited to 8 participants and will run from 3 pm on Friday until 3 pm on Sunday afternoon. It is open to players of any instrument (including transposing instruments) and is aimed at a broad range of abilities from intermediate to advanced. Workshops focus on techniques for arranging tunes for the combination of instruments to hand, using tools such as tempo, texture, dynamics and harmonic structure to create a musical narrative. To enjoy the full benefits of these courses, participants should be able to read notation or confidently and quickly pick up tunes and musical ideas by ear. We will aim to create well-mixed groups by monitoring the instrumentation as participants sign up for the course. All tuition, resources, accommodation, food and daytime refreshments are included. Sheet music and mp3 files of the tunes covered are sent out in advance, and any recordings from the course are sent on to you afterwards.

For further information or for a booking form, please email Ali (music@stewarthardy.co.uk)

 

Mar
24
Fri
JSArts Fiddle Technique @ Rydal Hall
Mar 24 – Mar 26 all-day
JSArts Fiddle Technique @ Rydal Hall | Grantham | United Kingdom

JSArts Fiddle Technique
– Fully Booked (enquire to go on the waiting list)

24th – 26th March 2023
Rydal Hall, Rydal, Ambleside LA22 9LX

Join Stewart for a weekend of intensive fiddle tuition at this beautiful location in the Lake District. The workshop will typically take a maxiumum of 14 participants and will run from 3 pm on Friday until 3 pm on Sunday afternoon.This course can accommodate a broad range of experience and ability, ranging from competent beginner to upper intermediate, but is not suitable for absolute or early beginners. All tuition, resources, accommodation, food and daytime refreshments are included. Sheet music and mp3 files of the tunes covered are sent out in advance, and recordings of exercises from the course are sent on to you afterwards.

These courses are centred around the technical issues that come with playing fiddle music, with as much emphasis on the how as there is on the what. Focusing on left-hand and bowing technique, with stylistic interpretation of the music a key feature, these workshops delve deep into the tunes, extracting exercises to improve technique and allow its application to a wider repertoire. Tunes are carefully selected for their technical or stylistic content whilst also baring in mind practical considerations such as their usefulness in folk music sessions or as dance repertoire. The tunes are taught ‘as if by ear’, meaning they are taught phrase by phrase at a tempo and with sufficient repetition to enable learning without recourse to reading notation, but with notation available at any point should that be desired or necessary. This encourages the development of aural pattern recognition and general musicality, enhancing musicianship and the enjoyment of playing music in social settings.

This course is fully booked. For information about future course or to go on the waiting list, please email Ali (jsarts@stewarthardy.co.uk)

Venue

Rydal Hall Ltd, Rydal Hall, Rydal, Ambleside LA22 9LX

 

**Covid-19 Update
This course will be run in accordance to our Covid-secure Music Workshop Guidelines, and is subject to any restrictions applicable at the time, and any coronavirus protocols from the venue. Please do not travel to the venue if you feel unwell or have cold-like symptoms.

~ ~ ~

Standard Level courses are aimed at fiddle players with a broad range of experience and ability, from competent beginner to upper intermediate, but please note they are not suitable for absolute or early beginners. We would expect players to have most of the following skills:
  • – playing simple dance tunes at steady to mid tempo (e.g. reels and jigs at 50-80 beats per minute)
  • – able to clap in time to a tune
  • – have basic control of the bow on the string
  • – able to slur notes together
  • – comfortable in the keys of G,D and A major and familiar with their note names
  • – familiarity with C major
  • – able to play basic scales without notation
  • – able to play at least 2 tunes without notation
In addition fiddlers who attend these courses often have some of the following experience:
  • – attend other fiddle workshops
  • – play with a community folk music group
  • – join in folk music sessions
  • – receive tuition on the fiddle/violin
May
5
Fri
JSArts Advanced Fiddle Technique @ Shepherds Dene
May 5 – May 7 all-day
JSArts Advanced Fiddle Technique @ Shepherds Dene | Grantham | United Kingdom

Advanced Fiddle Technique

5th – 7th May 2023

Shepherds Dene, Riding Mill, Northumberland NE44 6AF

Join Stewart at the beautiful retreat centre of Shepherds Dene, in the heart of Northumberland, for a weekend of intensive fiddle tuition. The workshop numbers will be kept small and it will run from 4 pm on Friday evening until 4 pm on Sunday afternoon.

This course is aimed at proficient players with good to high technical competence, who are comfortable with their instruments and their repertoire and who may have some of the following experience and skills:

  • – Playing folk tunes at dance tempo
  • – Comfortable in key signatures of up to 3 sharps and 1 flat
  • – Familiarity with key signatures of up to 4 sharps and 3 flats
  • – Attending folk music sessions and joining in with the tunes
  • – Leading sets of tunes in sessions
  • – Playing in ceilidh and/or concert bands
  • – Teaching violin and/or fiddle

All tuition, resources, accommodation, food and daytime refreshments are included. Sheet music and mp3 files of the tunes covered are sent out in advance, and recordings of exercises from the course are sent on to you afterwards.

These courses are centred around the technical issues that come with playing fiddle music, with as much emphasis on the how as there is on the what. Focusing on left-hand and bowing technique, with stylistic interpretation of the music a key feature, these workshops delve deep into the tunes, extracting exercises to improve technique and allow its application to a wider repertoire. Tunes are carefully selected for their technical or stylistic content whilst also baring in mind practical considerations such as their usefulness in folk music sessions or as dance repertoire. The tunes are taught ‘as if by ear’, meaning they are taught phrase by phrase at a tempo and with sufficient repetition to enable learning by ear, but with notation available at any point should that be desired or necessary. This encourages the development of aural pattern recognition and general musicality, enhancing musicianship and the enjoyment of playing music in social settings. There will also be two evening sessions, allowing participants to play common repertoire together and to exchange tunes, picking new ones up by ear.

Places on Advanced Fiddle Techniques courses are available on application. For further information or to express your interest in this course, please email Ali (jsarts@stewarthardy.co.uk)

Sep
1
Fri
JSArts Fiddle Foundations 2023 @ Rydal Hall
Sep 1 – Sep 3 all-day
JSArts Fiddle Foundations 2023 @ Rydal Hall | Grantham | United Kingdom

Fiddle Foundations

1st – 3rd September 2023
Rydal Hall, Ambleside LA22 9LX
3.00 pm start and finish time.

Join Stewart in the beautiful surroundings of Rydal Hall in the Lake District for a weekend of intensive fiddle tuition. The workshop will typically take between 10 and 15 people from Friday afternoon until Sunday afternoon. The residential weekend fee of £375 covers all food, tuition, daytime refreshments and two nights single occupancy accommodation, most of which is en suite.

The Fiddle Foundations workshop is a standard level technique course and is being run as an opportunity for fiddle players to look at, in some detail, the fundamental building blocks that Stewart uses to create stylistic interpretations of tunes. He will be teaching some of the basic bowing patterns that help to bring out the distinctive flavour of the most common tune forms. For the left hand, he’ll be concentrating on hand frames and melodic motifs (those note patterns that occur again and again in folk tunes), as well as an approach to ornamentation which is designed to help players access ornaments in a way that is both natural for them and appropriate for the tunes.

This course can accommodate a broad range of experience and ability, from competent beginner to upper intermediate, but is not suitable for absolute or early beginners. All tuition, resources, accommodation, food and daytime refreshments are included. Sheet music and mp3 files of the tunes covered are sent out in advance, and recordings of exercises from the course are sent on to you afterwards.

For further information or to express your interest in this course, please email Ali (music@stewarthardy.co.uk)

We would expect participants to have most of the following skills:
  • – playing simple dance tunes at steady to mid tempo (e.g. reels and jigs at 50-80 beats per minute)
  • – able to clap in time to a tune
  • – have basic control of the bow on the string
  • – able to slur notes together
  • – comfortable in the keys of G,D and A major and familiar with their note names
  • – familiarity with C major
  • – able to play basic scales without notation
  • – able to play at least 2 tunes without notation
In addition fiddlers who attend these courses often have some of the following experience:
  • – attend other fiddle workshops
  • – play with a community folk music group
  • – join in folk music sessions
  • – receive tuition on the fiddle/violin
Sep
15
Fri
JSArts Repertoire for Mixed Instruments 2023 @ Shepherds Dene
Sep 15 – Sep 17 all-day
JSArts Repertoire for Mixed Instruments 2023 @ Shepherds Dene | Grantham | United Kingdom

North East Tunes: Repertoire course for Mixed Instruments

15th – 17th September 2023
Shepherds Dene, Riding Mill, Northumberland  NE44 6AF
4.00 pm start and finish time.

For players of all instruments of intermediate level and above, focusing on great tunes from the North East of England.

Join Stewart in the beautiful retreat venue of Shepherds Dene, for a weekend of learning tunes from the North East of England. The workshop is aimed at intermediate players of any instrument (including transposing instruments), focusing on melody tuition, and will run from 4 pm on Friday until 4 pm on Sunday afternoon. The workshops will be taught “as if by ear”, with the phrases broken down into recognisable motifs, and with enough repetition for those learning by ear. Notation will be provided and can be used as a remider after the course, or at any point for reassurance.

All tuition, resources, accommodation, food and daytime refreshments are included in the course fee. Sheet music and mp3 files of the tunes covered are sent out in advance, full worksheets of the tunes taught are provided, and any recordings from the course are sent on to you afterwards.

For further information or to express your interest in this course, please email Ali (music@stewarthardy.co.uk)

 

**Covid-19 Update

This course will be run in accordance to our Covid-secure Music Workshop Guidelines, and is subject to any restrictions applicable at the time, and any coronavirus protocols from the venue.

Nov
3
Fri
JSArts Fiddle Technique @ Shepherds Dene
Nov 3 – Nov 5 all-day
JSArts Fiddle Technique @ Shepherds Dene | Grantham | United Kingdom

JSArts Fiddle Technique

Fully Booked (please enquire to go on the waiting list)

3rd – 5th November 2023
Shepherds Dene, Riding Mill, Northumberland NE44 6AF
4.00 pm start and finish time.

Join Stewart for a weekend of intensive fiddle tuition at this beautiful location in the Lake District. The workshop will typically take a maxiumum of 14 participants and will run from 3 pm on Friday until 3 pm on Sunday afternoon.This course can accommodate a broad range of experience and ability, ranging from competent beginner to upper intermediate, but is not suitable for absolute or early beginners. All tuition, resources, accommodation, food and daytime refreshments are included. Sheet music and mp3 files of the tunes covered are sent out in advance, and recordings of exercises from the course are sent on to you afterwards.

These courses are centred around the technical issues that come with playing fiddle music, with as much emphasis on the how as there is on the what. Focusing on left-hand and bowing technique, with stylistic interpretation of the music a key feature, these workshops delve deep into the tunes, extracting exercises to improve technique and allow its application to a wider repertoire. Tunes are carefully selected for their technical or stylistic content whilst also baring in mind practical considerations such as their usefulness in folk music sessions or as dance repertoire. The tunes are taught ‘as if by ear’, meaning they are taught phrase by phrase at a tempo and with sufficient repetition to enable learning without recourse to reading notation, but with notation available at any point should that be desired or necessary. This encourages the development of aural pattern recognition and general musicality, enhancing musicianship and the enjoyment of playing music in social settings.

This course is fully booked. For information about future courses or to go on the waiting list, please email Ali (music@stewarthardy.co.uk)

 

**Covid-19 Update
This course will be run in accordance to our Covid-secure Music Workshop Guidelines, and is subject to any restrictions applicable at the time, and any coronavirus protocols from the venue. Please do not travel to the venue if you feel unwell or have cold-like symptoms.

~ ~ ~

Standard Level courses are aimed at fiddle players with a broad range of experience and ability, from competent beginner to upper intermediate, but please note they are not suitable for absolute or early beginners. We would expect players to have most of the following skills:
  • – playing simple dance tunes at steady to mid tempo (e.g. reels and jigs at 50-80 beats per minute)
  • – able to clap in time to a tune
  • – have basic control of the bow on the string
  • – able to slur notes together
  • – comfortable in the keys of G,D and A major and familiar with their note names
  • – familiarity with C major
  • – able to play basic scales without notation
  • – able to play at least 2 tunes without notation
In addition fiddlers who attend these courses often have some of the following experience:
  • – attend other fiddle workshops
  • – play with a community folk music group
  • – join in folk music sessions
  • – receive tuition on the fiddle/violin
Nov
12
Sun
George Welch & Stewart Hardy / South Shields Folk Club @ South Shields Folk Club
Nov 12 @ 7:30 pm
George Welch & Stewart Hardy / South Shields Folk Club @ South Shields Folk Club

George and I will be heading to South Shields Folk Club for a relaxed Sunday evening on 12th November. Join us for some more of George’s moving songs and hilarious stories and, as always, I’ll be doing my best to keep up!

 

 

Once you have heard George perform his songs, accompanied by his guitar playing with Stewart’s fiddle, there is no doubt that the success of this highly entertaining duo is built on solid musical foundations

Feb
21
Wed
George Welch & Stewart Hardy / Cramlington @ Cramlington Folk Club - temporary home
Feb 21 @ 8:00 pm
George Welch & Stewart Hardy / Cramlington @ Cramlington Folk Club - temporary home

*Please note: CHANGE OF VENUE

Cramlington Community Centre, East Farm Terrace, Cramlington, NE23 1DT.
No bar available, so bring your own drinks!

 

What a joy to be playing once again with the irrepressible George Welch at the wonderful Cramlington Folk Club, which rightly boasts such a great audience and terrific residents. George and I have been playing there together off and on for over twenty years and it is always a pleasure to go back. It would be great if you could join us for a fun night of George’s surreal stories and gorgeous songs – we might even fit in a few tunes!

Doors 7.30 pm fpr 8.00 pm

 

Once you have heard George perform his songs, accompanied by his guitar playing with Stewart’s fiddle, there is no doubt that the success of this highly entertaining duo is built on solid musical foundations

Mar
22
Fri
JSArts Fiddle Technique @ Shepherds Dene
Mar 22 – Mar 24 all-day
JSArts Fiddle Technique @ Shepherds Dene | Grantham | United Kingdom

JSArts Fiddle Technique

22nd – 24th March 2024
Shepherds Dene, Riding Mill, Northumberland NE44 6AF
4.00 pm start and finish time.
£398 fully inclusive (except bar drinks)

Bookings for this course are open – please email Ali (music@stewarthardy.co.uk) for a form.

Join Stewart for a weekend of intensive fiddle tuition at this beautiful location in Northumberland. The workshop will take a maxiumum of around 14 participants and will run from 4 pm on Friday until 4 pm on Sunday afternoon.This course can accommodate a broad range of experience and ability, ranging from competent beginner to upper intermediate, but is not suitable for absolute or early beginners. All tuition, resources, accommodation, food and daytime refreshments are included. Accommodation is in single occupancy rooms, 8 of which are en suite and these are allocated as required, and then in order of booking. Sheet music and mp3 files of the tunes covered are sent out in advance, detailed worksheets are provided, and recordings of exercises from the course are sent on to you afterwards.

These courses are centred around the technical issues that come with playing fiddle music, with as much emphasis on the how, as there is on the what. Focusing on left-hand and bowing technique, with stylistic interpretation of the music a key feature, these workshops delve deep into the tunes, extracting exercises to improve technique and allow its application to a wider repertoire. Tunes are carefully selected for their technical or stylistic content whilst also baring in mind practical considerations such as their usefulness in folk music sessions or as dance repertoire. The tunes are taught ‘as if by ear’, meaning they are taught phrase by phrase at a tempo and with sufficient repetition to enable learning without recourse to reading notation, but with notation available at any point should that be desired or necessary. This encourages the development of aural pattern recognition and general musicality, enhancing musicianship and the enjoyment of playing music in social settings.

Shepherds Dene is a small retreat centre, situated not far south of the A69, about 20 mins drive from the A1 with free parking at the venue. Riding Mill railway station is the closest, and transport can be arranged for those needing a lift to or from the station.

For information this or future courses, please email Ali (music@stewarthardy.co.uk)

 

**Covid-19 Update
This course will be run in accordance to our Covid-secure Music Workshop Guidelines, and is subject to any restrictions applicable at the time, and any coronavirus protocols from the venue. Please do not travel to the venue if you feel unwell or have cold-like symptoms.

~ ~ ~

Standard Level courses are aimed at fiddle players with a broad range of experience and ability, from competent beginner to upper intermediate, but please note they are not suitable for absolute or early beginners. We would expect players to have most of the following skills:
  • – playing simple dance tunes at steady to mid tempo (e.g. reels and jigs at 50-80 beats per minute)
  • – able to clap in time to a tune
  • – have basic control of the bow on the string
  • – able to slur notes together
  • – comfortable in the keys of G,D and A major and familiar with their note names
  • – familiarity with C major
  • – able to play basic scales without notation
  • – able to play at least 2 tunes without notation
In addition fiddlers who attend these courses often have some of the following experience:
  • – attend other fiddle workshops
  • – play with a community folk music group
  • – join in folk music sessions
  • – receive tuition on the fiddle/violin