Aug
16
Mon
Historically Informed Summer School @ Bishop Burton College
Aug 16 – Aug 20 all-day
Historically Informed Summer School @ Bishop Burton College | Scarborough | United Kingdom

The Historically Informed Summer School is a unique international residential course exploring the common ground & connections between early music and folk & traditional music. The course covers all aspects of early music and folk & traditional music and is suitable for students of all ages and experience from elementary to advanced.

This year it will be going ahead in-person with full Covid-secure measures in place.

This will be our delayed 10th anniversary year of enjoyable and spontaneous music making!

Sep
5
Sun
Lee Maddison @ The Steelworks Club
Sep 5 @ 5:30 pm
Lee Maddison @ The Steelworks Club

First gig with Lee Maddison in a very long time! Nige Spaven will also be joining on bass. Looking forward to a relaxed set of Lee’s wonderful songs and covers.

 

Sep
10
Fri
Advanced Fiddle Technique @ Shepherds Dene
Sep 10 – Sep 12 all-day
Advanced Fiddle Technique @ Shepherds Dene | Grantham | United Kingdom

Advanced Fiddle Technique

10th – 12th September 2021

Shepherds Dene, near Riding Mill, Northumberland NE44 6AF

After a very successful first JSArts course back in-person in July 2021, we will be running our Advanced Fiddle course in September 2021 at Shepherds Dene. We will continue to ensure that we keep people as safe as possible whilst enjoying the ability to learn and play music together again. We will follow the Covid-19 risk assessment which we have created to ensure reasonable steps are taken to limit the risk of the transmission of coronavirus, with Workshop Guidelines provided to all participants. The teaching room will be carefully laid out and well ventilated, and we will work with Shepherds Dene to follow any additional guidance. Please contact Ali for a booking form if you are interested in applying.

~ ~ ~

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 limited to 10 and it will run from 4pm on Friday evening until 4.30 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 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. 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
24
Fri
September Workshops 2021: Play-along Session @ Online - on Zoom
Sep 24 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm

September Workshops 2021
Play-along Session in Harmony for Mixed Instruments

This will be a Zoom call open to intermediate players (and above) of any instrument. Notation will be provided in advance for all the tunes, together with suggestions for basic chords and a harmony line, but feel free to join in by ear! You can play the tune along with Stewart, play an accompaniment with a bass line, chords or a harmony (your own or follow the suggestions) or enjoy playing the tune whilst Stewart plays a harmony. If you wish to join in on an instrument with a different range from the fiddle, or with specfic key requirements, please get in touch before booking.

Zoom Workshop
Friday 24th September, 19:00 – 21:00

A single workshop is £20, attend two for £35 or all three for £50.
Bookings open now

If you haven’t attended a music workshop on Zoom before, here is a page of Zoom Workshop Tips to get the most out of your experience. A strong and reliable internet connection, plus headphones or an external speaker are recommended. A recording of the live call will be available for those who experience technical difficulties, or who find themselves unable to attend the live Zoom call.

Sep
25
Sat
September Workshops 2021: Fiddle Workshop 1 @ Online - on Zoom
Sep 25 @ 10:00 am – 12:00 pm

September Workshops 2021
Fiddle Workshop 1

Zoom Workshop
Saturday 25th Sept: 10:00 am – 12:00 noon
Competent Beginner to Upper Intermediate level

The Peacock’s Feather

In this morning workshop there is an opportunity to learn a classic Irish hornpipe, The Peacock’s Feather, which Stewart fell in love with the moment he first heard it on Frankie Gavin and Alec Finn’s classic eponymous 1977 LP.

A single workshop is £20, attend two for £35 or all three for £50.
Bookings open now

If you haven’t attended a music workshop on Zoom before, here is a page of Zoom Workshop Tips to get the most out of your experience. A strong and reliable internet connection, plus headphones or an external speaker are recommended.

September Workshops 2021: Fiddle Workshop 2 @ Online - on Zoom
Sep 25 @ 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm

September Workshops 2021
Fiddle Workshop 2

Zoom Workshop
Saturday 25th Sept: 14:00 – 16:00
Intermediate to Advanced level

Farewell to Chernobyl (Michael Ferrie)

In this afternoon workshop we’ll be looking at a wonderful dark and driving reel by Michael Ferrie, Farewell to Chernobyl. This has some great syncopation and is a popular storming session tune.

A single workshop is £20, attend two for £35 or all three for £50.
Bookings open now

If you haven’t attended a music workshop on Zoom before, here is a page of Zoom Workshop Tips to get the most out of your experience. A strong and reliable internet connection, plus headphones or an external speaker are recommended.

Oct
3
Sun
Lee Maddison @ Hartlepool Cricket Club
Oct 3 @ 6:30 pm
Lee Maddison @ Hartlepool Cricket Club

Another chance to join with Lee Maddison and Nige Spaven to play a relaxed set of Lee’s wonderful songs and a selection of covers.

 

Nov
5
Fri
Fiddle Technique @ Rydal Hall
Nov 5 – Nov 7 all-day
Fiddle Technique @ Rydal Hall | Grantham | United Kingdom

Fiddle Technique

5th – 7th November 2021
Rydal Hall, Ambleside LA22 9LX

This course is currently fully booked, but please get in touch if you would like to go onto the waiting list.

 

**Covid-19 Update

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

~ ~ ~

Join Stewart in the beautiful setting 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 evening until 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.

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

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
26
Fri
November Workshops 2021: Play-along Session @ Online - on Zoom
Nov 26 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm

November Workshops 2021
Play-along Session in Harmony for Mixed Instruments

This will be a Zoom call open to intermediate players (and above) of any instrument. Notation will be provided in advance for all the tunes, together with suggestions for basic chords and a harmony line, but feel free to join in by ear! You can play the tune along with Stewart, play an accompaniment with a bass line, chords or a harmony (your own or follow the suggestions) or enjoy playing the tune whilst Stewart plays a harmony. If you wish to join in on an instrument with a different range from the fiddle, or with specfic key requirements, please get in touch before booking.

Zoom Workshop
Friday 26th November, 19:00 – 21:00

A single Novemberworkshop is £20, attend two for £35 or all three for £50.
Bookings open now

If you haven’t attended a music workshop on Zoom before, here is a page of Zoom Workshop Tips to get the most out of your experience. A strong and reliable internet connection, plus headphones or an external speaker are recommended. A recording of the live call will be available for those who experience technical difficulties, or who find themselves unable to attend the live Zoom call.

Nov
27
Sat
November Workshops 2021: Fiddle Workshop 1 @ Online - on Zoom
Nov 27 @ 10:00 am – 12:00 pm

November Workshops 2021
Fiddle Workshop 1

Zoom Workshop
Saturday 27th Nov: 10:00 am – 12:00 noon
Competent Beginner to Upper Intermediate level

 

A single workshop is £20, attend two for £35 or all three for £50.
Bookings open now

If you haven’t attended a music workshop on Zoom before, here is a page of Zoom Workshop Tips to get the most out of your experience. A strong and reliable internet connection, plus headphones or an external speaker are recommended.