Country Dance and Song Society American Dance & Music Week at Pinewoods August 25 - September 1, 2007

As of June 13, this week has spaces available.

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Program Description Staff Class Descriptions & Schedule

American Dance & Music Week at Pinewoods August 25 - September 1, 2007 Program Director: Sue Rosen Staff: Stefan Amidon Peter Barnes Mary Cay Brass Andrea Cooper Ruthie Dornfeld Lisa Greenleaf * Cis Hinkle Colin Lindsay Glen Loper Owen Morrison Richard Powers Mark Roberts Bruce Rosen * Lissa Schneckenburger Mark Simos Pete Sutherland * Advisors, plus: Steve Howe Brad Foster

Program Description: [Back to Top]

Look up our Adult Programs for some general information; here is more detail about this particular program and staff.

Did you hear the buzz from last summer's American Week at Pinewoods? Here's what some happy campers wrote on their evaluations: "It was love at first American Week," "the best American Week ever," "it exhausted me but I wouldn't have it any other way -- I don't come to Pinewoods to sleep -- I can do that at home," "I wish there were more hours in the day" and "I had a blast."

Please join us this summer for more good times with great people. For sure there will be some difficult choices for you to make from the enticing menu of singing, dancing and music classes we've assembled for you. We've gathered many of America's finest dance musicians, from such favorite bands as Airdance, Clayfoot Strutters and the Latter Day Lizards, to mix and match into wildly creative ensembles for this varied program of squares and swing, Irish sets and waltz, and of course, loads of contra dancing. This multi-talented staff is so excited to be coming together -- some for their first time at American Week, amazingly enough -- to provide us with a unique dancing and musical experience.

Back by popular demand, Richard Powers will teach us how to be the coolest swing dancers and we can almost guarantee that he'll improve your waltzing in just one week. Cis Hinkle will treat us to the best square dances and will coordinate camp callers and choreographers for the Campers' Calling Hour. Lisa Greenleaf will have you soaring through challenging dances and will also lead her popular Contra Dance Callers Course (pre-registration required). Owen Morrison will surely get your heart pumping as you kick up your heels in his class of Irish sets. And Sue Rosen hopes to fine-tune your contra style while you dance off your breakfast. But wait, there's more! Late afternoons will feature the return of Dance Potpourri, a mix of genres, something different every day. And that's just the daytime dancing. Our evening dances, when the whole camp community comes together, will give you opportunities to show off those new moves you've learned as you dance with friends, old and new.

Can't dance all day? Not a problem. Bring your instruments and your voices because this week promises a full program of music classes. Come and try something new under the guidance of teachers who are experts in their fields, and who will have you playing and singing like you've never imagined. Choose from two singing classes, ensemble playing, and instrument classes and learn the secrets of how music theory applies to that heavenly sound we dance to. Carve out some time to sit on the porch, take a swim, jam or nap, but don't miss the daily Salon where we'll join for some singing, jokes and concerts.

I'm excited about the wealth of talent and offerings that will be shared at camp this year. I hope to see you there. -- Sue Rosen, Program Director

Staff: [Back to Top]

Stefan Amidon has been percussionist for the cutting edge contra dance band Popcorn Behavior/Assembly since he was ten. Now a jazz percussion student at Oberlin Conservatory, he is in demand as a dance percussionist at dance weekends and recording studios around the country. Stefan has sung his way through Europe with Northern Harmony and teaches singing at Oberlin College.

Renaissance man, Peter Barnes has been playing more instruments, in more genres, in more interesting locations, for longer than most of us can remember. Averaging over 250 gigs per year, he currently plays in The Latter Day Lizards, Bare Necessities, Big Bandemonium, Dark Carnival, Yankee Ingenuity and on the radio program Says You!. Peter also keeps himself busy with teaching, recording, publishing music books, perfecting his oboe playing and crafting wooden whistles.

Mary Cay Brass, renowned for her rich, varied and driving piano and accordion style, plays regularly with the Greenfield Dance Band. Mary Cay leads community choirs in southern Vermont and western Massachusetts, is a regular staff member of the Village Harmony camp and leads workshops across the country. Using traditional music to create community is her life-long passion and commitment.

Andrea Cooper, late of Vancouver, BC, recently settled in Seattle, has been playing clawhammer banjo for ten years. Her playing is featured on the CDs Pleasant Hill and Holler, well reviewed in The Old-Time Herald. She first came to Pinewoods when she was 13 years old and is delighted to be making her fourth visit.

Seattle fiddler Ruthie Dornfeld's rich tone, impeccable groove and fluency in a wide range of traditional fiddle styles -- from Celtic and old-time, to Eastern European -- have made her a popular performer and teacher at camps throughout the country and abroad. During her 15-year sojourn in New England, Ruthie was a mainstay in the Boston contra dance scene. Currently Ruthie performs with accordionist Jeremiah McLane, guitar master John Miller and the French cabaret group Rouge.

Lisa Greenleaf has been treating dancers across the country and overseas to her high spirited, witty calling for many years. Her rich repertoire, succinct teaching and commitment to community building make her a dance camp favorite.

Cis Hinkle delights dancers with her welcoming manner, clear instruction, enthusiastic calling and perfect selection of dances. She specializes in flowing contras, and fast moving, Western-style squares.

Colin Lindsay learned his lovely style of Irish fiddle playing in New York starting over a decade ago. More recently, while finishing his studies in geology at Amherst College, he has taken to playing for contra dances with several different bands and picked up the anglo concertina. An alumnus of the Pinewoods Kitchen Crew, he is very excited to be on our music staff.

Glen Loper is in the thick of the Maine contra dance scene, playing mandolin, tenor banjo and the occasional hand-drum, infusing drive and energy into the music he makes with the bands Frigate, Calliope and Rumblestrip. He has taught mandolin at Maine Fiddle Camp.

Owen Morrison, a Pinewoods regular since birth, grew up in the midst of the music and dance world and began playing for dances as a teenager. Having earned a degree in music from Guilford College in 2006, he now plays guitar and mandolin for several bands at dance events throughout the country and teaches Irish set dancing at camps and late night parties.

Richard Powers first taught at Pinewoods in 1984 and is one of the world's foremost experts in American social dance. From his roots in contra and folk dancing since 1975, he is currently a full-time instructor at Stanford University. Richard is busy teaching workshops across the country, in Europe and is popular in Japan where he has returned 18 times to teach workshops.

Mark Roberts' long and varied musical career has included extensive touring and recording, playing more instruments than you can imagine with The Clayfoot Strutters, The Sevens, The Red Clay Ramblers, Childsplay and Touchstone. He's played for Broadway shows and movie soundtracks and we think he's one of the finest dance musicians in the country. He and Andrea Cooper are overjoyed to be bringing their son Fenton to his first Pinewoods.

Bruce Rosen has been part of Boston's contra and English country dance community since the mid-1970s as a dancer and musician. He plays rock-solid piano in the bands Phantom Power, The Fish Family and with a long list of great New England-style fiddlers. In the early 90s, he took up the button accordion and more recently, the banjo-ukulele. Bruce is seen most years conducting the NEFFA Festival Orchestra.

Sue Rosen has been dancing all of her life and attended her first callers workshop at Pinewoods in 1989. Since then she's become one of New England's favorite callers and has written contras that have become part of the standard repertoire of dance callers across the country and overseas.

Lissa Schneckenburger grew up in the folk music and dance community in Maine, playing the fiddle from age 6. A graduate of the New England Conservatory of Music, her fiddling is artful, skillful, inventive and full of feeling. While embracing a diverse pallet of musical influences, she still stays true to her New England roots.

Mark Simos, songwriter and composer, fiddler, and guitar and piano accompanist, is keeping busy these days teaching at Berklee College of Music in Boston. A longtime member of the fiddlers' orchestra Childsplay, he has contributed many signature compositions and arrangements to the band. Mark has released several albums of original songs and instrumentals inspired by varied traditions, took 1st place in the Traditional Fiddle competition at Clifftop and has been contributing tunes to the old-time music repertoire for years.

Pete Sutherland, best known in the dance world as a member of the Clayfoot Strutters, plays fiddle, banjo and piano in musical styles that cover the map. He is also a great singer, teacher, composer, arranger and fun guy to have at camp. Dance and folk musicians flock to work with Pete at his home base in Vermont, where he has produced over 70 recordings.

American Dance & Music Week at Pinewoods Tentative Schedule:
7:45 - 8:15 Breakfast
9:00 - 10:00
Cruisin' Contras	Sue Rosen
Intermediate Fiddle	Ruthie Dornfeld
Whistle and Flute	Mark Roberts
10:15 - 11:15
Snappy Squares	Cis Hinkle
The Many Faces of Swing	Richard Powers
Harmony Singing	Mary Cay Brass
New England Dance Band	Pete Sutherland
11:15 - 12:00 Swimming, Bookstore staffed
12:00 Lunch
1:30 - 2:30
Irish Set Dancing	Owen Morrison
Waltz!	Richard Powers
Play'em Slow…and Play'em Often	Bruce Rosen
2:45 - 3:45
Challenging Dances of all Shapes	Lisa Greenleaf
Music Theory for Dance Musicians	Owen Morrison
4:00 - 5:00
Campers Calling Hour	Cis Hinkle
Dance Potpourri	Various Leaders
Shape Note Singing	Stefan Amidon
Old-Time Jam…Better than it Sounds!	Mark Simos
4:45 - 5:15 Tea with Jam, Swimming and Bookstore staffed
5:15 - 6:00 Salon
6:30 Dinner
7:45 Couple Dances
8:15 - 11:00 Evening Dance Party
11:00 After-dance activities

Class Descriptions: [Back to Top]

Cruisin' Contras -- Sue Rosen / Pete Sutherland, Bruce Rosen, Stefan Amidon
A great selection of dances to get your day rolling while we incorporate Sue's tips on some little things that can make a big difference in our dance experience.

Intermediate Fiddle -- Ruthie Dornfeld
Good dance fiddling requires a command of many skills! In this class we'll focus on three areas: general position and technique (for fast, rhythmically accurate playing), repertoire and style. Dance playing requires both speed and stamina. We'll learn some building blocks of technique with attention to position and basic exercises for staying relaxed and supple. We'll learn a varied repertoire of dance tunes -- reels, jigs, hoedowns, waltz, polka, schottische -- and learn how to make these tunes both musical and danceable. And lastly we'll cover some of the stylistic details as well, like special bowing, double stops and ornamentation. This workshop is not for absolute beginners, but anyone who has played for at least a couple of years should be able to benefit.

Whistle and Flute -- Mark Roberts
Open to all levels. We will concentrate on learning tunes in the traditional Irish style with ornamentation by ear. Participants should bring a recording device.

Snappy Squares -- Cis Hinkle / Mark Simos, Owen Morrison, Andrea Cooper
We'll start with dances from the 50s, when square dancing was all the rage, and move into more recent compositions that make use of the moves invented back then. Each day's skills will build on the previous class, so daily attendance is strongly preferred.

The Many Faces of Swing -- Richard Powers / Ruthie Dornfeld, Peter Barnes
Swing is a constantly evolving American vernacular dance, so each day of this class will feature a different kind of swing: 4-count Bugg, East Coast Swing, Lindy Hop, Swing Rueda, and even a look at the earliest versions of swing -- the 1910 Texas Tommy evolving into the Savoy Ballroom's Two-Step by 1926.

Harmony Singing -- Mary Cay Brass
Come explore the sounds of harmony from many world traditions: from the Balkans, to South Africa; from the Republic of Georgia to Appalachia. Sounds to wake up our ears and souls and create our own community from the experience of sharing in these new, diverse and exciting sounds!

New England Dance Band -- Pete Sutherland
Learn a few SIMPLE and highly danceable tunes (an often-overlooked sub-genre) as a vehicle for these group topics: groove, tempo, precision, listening to each other and tuning in to the pulse from the dance floor. Arranging, both planned and on-the-fly, reading the caller's often "semi-secret" code, and planning an evening's playlist with variety, fun and energy flow in mind will also be in the mix. All reasonably traditional instruments welcome, and depending on class size, one or more "bands" will form to rehearse for a spot on American Week Idol, AKA the evening dance stage.

Irish Set Dancing -- Owen Morrison / Colin Lindsay, Mark Roberts, Mark Simos
Dance the sets of Cork and Kerry counties in the southwest of Ireland. These fast and fun dances are danced in four couple sets to lively polkas and slides. Beginners are welcome and encouraged to come join the fun.

Waltz! -- Richard Powers / Lissa Schneckenburger, Mary Cay Brass
It's the most romantic partner dance of all. This class will include both rotary and cross-step waltz variations, with an emphasis on the variations which are the most useful -- the ones actually done on the dance floor, plus a few new twists.

Play'em Slow…and Play'em Often -- Bruce Rosen
Learn some new tunes by ear…walking tunes, barn dance tunes, waltzes and others…in a stress-free and supportive environment. Slow tempos, repetition and a relaxed pace, will provide a productive and enjoyable daily slow jam session. Musicians at all skill levels are encouraged to participate.

Challenging Dances of all Shapes -- Lisa Greenleaf / Lissa Schneckenburger, Mark Roberts, Bruce Rosen, Stefan Amidon
In this hour, experienced and confident dancers can enjoy the intricacies and quirks of more advanced choreography. Most of the dances will have great flow and will require very little thinking beyond the walk through (but you need to be very secure in your knowledge of figures), and a small but fun minority will be "head" dances that Lisa just can't resist.

Music Theory for Dance Musicians -- Owen Morrison
There are many ways to play the same tune, but the choices you make will affect the mood of the dancers. This course will present musical options and question where and when each variation is appropriate. We will cover some basic music theory and then explore topics such as chord substitution, improvisation and what it means to play modal tunes. We will play a lot so bring your instruments.

Campers Calling Hour -- Cis Hinkle / Lissa Schneckenburger, Glen Loper, Mary Cay Brass
Campers take over the calling during this session with our fabulous staff musicians. Whether you are an expert, a neophyte or somewhere in between, come share your talents, your new dance compositions and your favorite dances. Dancers, come groove to the great music and to the wealth of camper talent.

Dance Potpourri -- Various leaders / Ruthie Dornfeld, Peter Barnes
Variety is the spice of life! One day it's zweifachers or Dutch Crossing, the blues or English country dance. Something for everyone.

Shape Note Singing -- Stefan Amidon
Come experience the power and beauty of a shape note sing. For those who are newcomers we will be learning the shapes and singing through old favorites from the The Sacred Harp as well as more recent compositions written in the shape note tradition. Everyone is invited to call a song, stand up and lead and sing to your heart's content.

Old-Time Jam…Better than it Sounds! -- Mark Simos
Open to players of all levels. We'll learn some tricks for picking up tunes fast by ear, quickly finding those cool "right wrong" chords to suit the old-time aesthetic, how to lift our legs to end the tune after the 30th time through and maybe even make up some tunes together as we go.

Salon -- Owen Morrison
Salon (noun): a fashionable assemblage of notables (literary figures, artists or statesmen) held by custom at the home of a prominent person. Gather in the salon, aka Camphouse, with our MC, Owen, for entertainment and laughs, singing and staff concerts.

Program Description Staff Class Descriptions & Schedule Top

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Country Dance and Song Society 132 Main St/PO Box 338 Haydenville, MA 01039-0338 Office Hours M-F 9:30am - 5:00pm EST

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