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Bluegrass workshops: playing together is musical

Ninth annual 108 Cabin Fever Bluegrass Workshops sensational
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The Ninth Annual Cabin Fever Bluegrass Workshops' Seminar Leaders Concert on March 30 was performed before a jam-packed house. John Moore

 

The Hills was alive with the sound of Bluegrass     students jamming and the audience having a great time at the Seminar Leaders Concert on March 30.

Leading up to the concert, the Ninth Annual 108 Cabin Fever Bluegrass Workshops started on March 28 at The Hills Health Ranch and had more than 64 people registered for the four-day series, says organizer Rossetta Paxton.

"We had students from all over - Saskatchewan, Alberta, the Lower Mainland, up north, as well as from the 100 Mile House area.

"Wednesday evening was a reception for the students to meet the seminar leaders to learn their schedule and have a chance to ask questions about the workshops."

Evenings were finished off with jam sessions, says

Paxton, where everyone got to play and revisit old friends.

"It's like a big family reunion."

The workshop days started every morning around 9 a.m.,

with classes going all day.

Participants were welcome to attend special workshops in the afternoons, she says, adding the workshops included the care and maintenance of instruments, how to set sound and about the Nashville number

system that recording studios use.

"We had premier bluegrass bands from California and Toronto as seminar leaders."

Paxton adds John Reischman and the Jaybirds were

instrumental in helping us start the Bluegrass workshops.

"Every year we get the best of the best to come out and be a part of our workshops."

Besides the education involved, there were some fun times, she notes, describing the Thursday evening band scramble, during which everyone puts their name in a bucket corresponding with their instrument. The "band members" are put together and they have 15 minutes to pick two tunes, name their band, practise, and then perform.

"We had six bands this year. It's like an icebreaker ... just a great time.

"There is no competition. It's just a fun thing to do."

The concert on Friday evening was totally sold out, she says, adding that if they had more room, they could have sold more tickets.

Because of the seminar leaders holding the workshops on how different instruments work together in a band, the students had more practice time leading up to the performance.

"It's more comfortable for the musicians, especially the ones who have never performed on stage before.

"If they felt they were a little weak in one area, they had the instruction from the seminar leaders to help them prior to the concert."

A students' concert concluded the four-day workshop on Saturday, Paxton says, adding some family members were invited.

"This genre is family oriented music. Everybody can be involved and you can take acoustic instruments with you anywhere you go."