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Support our Business Members:
Incandescent Ironworks Incandescent Ironworks makes custom-designed,
hand-forged architectural ironwork, ornamental ironwork and furnishings for homes, gardens and businesses.
Inland Northwest Bluegrass Association bluegrass bands, jams, and the winter monthly bluegrass showcase
hand-forged architectural ironwork, ornamental ironwork and furnishings for homes, gardens and businesses.
Inland Northwest Bluegrass Association bluegrass bands, jams, and the winter monthly bluegrass showcase
North
Division Bicycle, Inc. featuring
bicycle sales and service.
10503 N. Division 467-2453 or 1-888-222-BIKE
Spokane Folklore Society
Answer Phone: 747-2640
P.O. Box 141
Spokane, WA 99210-0141
Questions about the folklore society? email spokanefolklore@gmail.com
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Baharat Dancers FFF 2011  |
Spokane Folklore SocietyCurrent News |
Letter from the President
We had a few more men than women, so women danced with other women only when they wanted to. And a few of the guys were willing to dance with other guys to even up the balance problem. If you have been thinking about learning to dance the other gender role, we have an opportunity coming up.
On June 2 from 6 to 9 PM we will co-sponsor a gender neutral contra dance at Westminster Congregational United Church of Christ (4th and Washington). This will be a part of Pride Week in Spokane. Music will be provided by Out of Nowhere and calling by Vickie Marron. There will be a donation jar to benefit the Odyssey youth program.
I want to thank all of you who let me know of things that are missing from the website. I don't usually check the website for information about upcoming events. If you'd like to make that your responsibility on a regular basis, please talk with me about becoming a board member.
Karen Wilson-Bell
The Crossover Corner by Terra Price
Our dance community is famously open to dancers of all levels and backgrounds. That is something I absolutely love about contra culture. But coming up in May and June the Spokane Folklore Society will be doing more than just welcoming new
dancers, we will be actively reaching out! On our Second Saturday dance, May 12th, we will be hosting a group of new dancers from Odyssey Youth Center. I hope that everyone will be the mindful and gracious hosts I first encountered when I, a young
whippersnapper at the time, wandered into my first contra. The idea is to give these young folks a good dose of contra joy in preparation of our special June dance.
Speaking of our special dance… June 2nd at the Westminster UCC Church at 411 South Washington Street you are all invited to come trip the light fantastic at our area’s first ever Gender Neutral Family Folk-dance, presented as a part of Spokane’s Pride celebrations by the Spokane Folklore Society and Spokane PFLAG! Join us at 6:30PM for lessons on how to lead, follow, or switch-hit on the dance floor.
Vickie Marron will be calling this unique event with Out of Nowhere playing from 7:00-9:00PM. This event will be provided free to the community with a $3.00 suggested donation to benefit Odyssey Youth Center. See you there!
If you are going to the Northwest Folklife Festival in Seattle - Memorial Day Weekend at the Seattle Center please support our local performers. The four-day Festival attracts an audience of about 250,000 visitors and has over 7,000 volunteer performers and 1,300 volunteers. Northwest Folklife employs a year-round staff of 10.
www.nwfolklife.org
Saturday, May 26
4 p.m. Contra Dance
Out of Nowhere Delta - combines members of Out of the
Wood (Kathy Bowman, Vickie Marron, Larry Simmons,
Pat Marron) and Bridgewater Boys (Stuart Bachman and
Ken Raymond)
They hope to see the hall full of “Easties” supporting
these two SFS band and also showing those “Westies”
how to really contradance.
Saturday, May 26
8:30 – 10 p.m. - International Dance Stage in Exhibition
Hall. Bella Courbe performs as part of the Tribal Belly
Dance Showcase
Do you have what it takes?
The Spokane Folklore Society is looking for a few dedicated people to step up to the challenge of serving as board members. As a board member you have the opportunity to work with others in the arts community, represent our exciting organization in the public eye, and help plan/present future SFS events. Applicants may return this form Board member application by hand to our Wednesday dance greeters by May 30th , or by mail (to P.O. Box 141 Spokane, WA 99210) no later than May
31st, in order to have their name included on the ballot in June
Concert at Rick Singer Photography
Monday May7th, the return of Growling Old Men, aka John Lowell and Ben Winship,
$15.00. If you're not familiar with either of these fine groups, please check them out on line or ask your friends! Get
back to me with your seat reservations so you don't miss any of this great music. Thanks, always, Rick rick@ricksingerphotography.com 415 1/2 West Main Ave. Spokane WA 99201 509-838-3333
Scholarships Available for Lady of the Lake Fall Camp
Your Board of Directors has decided to make two partial scholarships available to
Lady of the Lake Fall Camp, October 5, 6 and 7. The camp will feature the Canotes providing music and Cis Hinkle calling dances. It should be a great weekend.
Any SFS member may apply. Applications will be considered in three categories:
young dancer or musician (under 30), service to the SFS (committee or board member), or financial need. Please send your letter of application so that it reaches our P.O. Box no later than May 8. Please provide your contact information, the category you are applying under, and a paragraph or two telling us why you would like a scholarship to attend LOL Fall camp.
Spokane Folklore Society Fall Folk Festival 2012 –
November 10 and 11
Fall Folk Festival Applications are now available
The Spokane Folklore Society Fall Folk Festival 2012 will take place on Saturday and Sunday, November10 and 11th at Spokane Community College. Applications are due by July 1 and may be printed off our website at www.spokanefolkfestival.org. If you would like an application mailed to you please leave a message on our Voice Mail at 828-3683.
The Festival is Free to the public and features 8 stages of traditional and ethnic dance and music along with workshops, special entertainment and crafts for children and jamming. Also featured are sales of traditional crafts and meals. The
Saturday schedule features a live KPBX Radio show and an evening New England Contra Dance.
The festival is designed to support our regional folk musicians. Many local folk artists are hidden gems well worth discovering.
The festival will feature nearly 100 performing groups representing Celtic, bluegrass, blues, African, Asian, Middle Eastern traditions and more. We estimate about 600 people attend the festival.
Sponsors and Fundraising and Volunteering
The festival is supported through donations from business sponsors, individuals and button sales at the Festival. The festival needs to raise funds to produce the festival and pay for rent, sound equipment, craft supplies, publicity, printing, security
and required building staff. All performers and festival organizers donate their time. We also need many volunteers to organize the festival and work during the festival.
Please contact us if you are interested in becoming a sponsor or volunteer at the festival.
Festival Contacts: If you would like to contact us please visit our website at www.spokanefolkfestival.org or call the FFF Voicemail
at 828-3683 or email fallfolkfestival@moxxee.com
New Telephone Number for Fall Folk Festival
Last month (and prior) when you called the Folklore Society number you could leave a message for the Fall Folk Festival or for the Folklore Society. Someone would get back to you (usually within a week of your call). Now you can call the Folklore Society number to talk with someone directly or leave a message. There is a separate number for the Fall Folk Festival.
The new telephone number for Fall Folk Festival is (509) 216-7210.
The original telephone number for Spokane Folklore Society is (509) 747-2640, which is now connected to our new phone. The messages have been updated and you might reach a real person the next time you call.
May Contra coming up on the 12th
Please join us for the Saturday Dance at the East Spokane Grange
Saturday, May 12th 2012. Come and dance to the tunes of Too Young to Marry. Nora Scott will be calling. 7-10 pm with a lesson for beginners at 6:45.
There will be a potluck. Your favorite snack will be there if you bring it!
Admission is $8 for Folklore Society members and students, $10 for non-members.
Directions:
East Spokane Grange
1621 N. Park Road
Coming from Spokane
Exit I-90 at Broadway
Turn right (east) on Broadway at end of exit
Turn left (north) on Park Rd. cross over I 90.
First building on the left after crossing Mission
Coming from Coeur d'Alene or Spokane Valley
Exit I-90 at Argonne
Turn right (north) on Argonne at end of exit
Turn left (west) on Trent
Turn left onto Park Rd.
Last building on right before Mission
For more information: 747-2640
www.spokanefolkore.org
Contra Dance Classes on Youtube
If you want to show someone what contra
dance looks like, there are video lessons on
Youtube (produced by the Chattahoochee Country
Dancers with a grant from the Country
Dance and Song Society). Goggle “Youtube ccd
contra dance” and look for videos. I suggest you
show them lesson 6 or 7 just to show them what
it looks like. Some of the videos are just talking,
others break down couple moves, moves for just
two couples, and moves for the whole contra
line.
You may notice some style changes
from the way we dance in Spokane. The most
obvious one is the hands across star instead of
the wrist grip star. This is one of many regional
variations you will find in contra dancing.
An even better way to show someone
what contra dance looks like to is to invite them
to attend one of our weekly or monthly contra
dances. We generally offer a lesson for 15 minutes
before the start of the dance, just to cover
the basic moves from videos 2 and 3 (and a few
more).
Deadline for Scholarship Applications
Your Board of Directors has decided to
make two partial scholarships available to Lady
of the Lake Fall Camp, October 5, 6 and 7. The
camp will feature the Canotes providing music
and Cis Hinkle calling dances. It should be a
great weekend.
Any SFS member may apply. Applications
will be considered in three categories:
young dancer or musician (under 30), service to
the SFS (committee or board member), or financial
need. Please send your letter of application
so that it reaches our P.O. Box no later than May
8. Please provide your contact information, the
category you are applying under, and a paragraph
or two telling us why you would like a
scholarship to attend LOL Fall camp.
Lady of the Lake Fall weekend will
again offer two additional scholarships in the
amount of $45 each for dancers or musicians
under age 30 who are recommended by the
board. Get those applications in as soon as possible.
New Membership Category
Effective immediately, there will be a new membership category for bands. The cost will be the same as for family membership (currently $30 per year with a $5 discount if you do not receive a paper newsletter). If all band members provide their e-mail address on the membership application form, all can receive e-mail notification of special
events, copies of the e-newsletter, etc.
Big News for lovers of Irish & Celtic Music: KYRS (Your Community Radio Station) has a new program onWednesday evenings - "Irish Music On Tap", hosted by Don Thomsen and Rick Rubin. Don and Rick are members of
Spokane's most popular Irish music group "Floating Crowbar", and have exquisite taste in music (besides an absolutely
enormous personal collection that goes deep into the core of Irish music).
Irish Music On Tap, Wednesdays, 6 - 8PM
Listen live at 88.1 & 92.3FM
Listen on-line at KYRS.org
Send e-mail requests to IrishMusicOnTap@KYRS.org.
Call in live requests to the studio line at 509.747.3807
2012 Spring ContraDance Series
Dance Instruction 7:00PM Dance 7:30-9:30 PM
5/2 Susan Dankovich Out of the Wood Buzz Step Swing
5/9 Vickie Marron Arvid & Deep Roots Straight Lines
5/16 Nora Scott (H) Jam Band
5/23 Ray Polhemus Out of the Wood Anticipation
5/30 Larry Simmons River City Ramblers
6/6 Mitchell Frey Bridgewater Boys Stars
6/13 Nora Scott Out of the Wood
6/20 Susan Dankovich (H) Jam Band
6/27 All Callers Arvid & Deep Roots
The Teaching Syllabus was requested by some contra dancers as a way to improve the quality of dancing on Wednesday nights. The “teaching moment” will
be no longer than five minutes, and the theme for the night will be reflected in the dances chosen by the caller.
Come join us for ABC 2012, the tenth American
Banjo Camp.
The dates are Sept. 7-9, 2012 and the place is Fort Flagler
State Park, in Nordland, Washington. American Banjo Camp
offers a weekend of intense instruction with some of the best
old-time and bluegrass banjo players around, plus demonstrations,
concerts, and plenty of jamming opportunities.
In addition to the banjo program, we offer a full-time
Fiddle Program, a full-time Guitar Program, and an optional Extra
Day beginning mid-afternoon on Thursday Sept. 6. (for details,
see below).
Our website is http://www.americanbanjocamp.com
We're very proud to announce our well-traveled staff of all-stars.
Bluegrass Instructors:
- Janet Davis (Arkansas) - One of America's foremost banjo
teachers and a regular columnist for Banjo newsletter
- Bill Evans (California) - Versatile instructor; veteran of Dry
Branch Fire Squad and numerous other bands
- Alan O'Bryant (Tennessee) - Great band player, singer, and
founding member of the Nashville Bluegrass band
- Bill Keith (New York) - Creator of melodic style, former Bluegrass
Boy, and general three-finger banjo icon [tentative]
- Alan Munde (Texas) - Legendary picker, innovator, and educator;
banjo player for Jimmy Martin, Sam Bush, and Country Gazette
Old-time Instructors:
- Cathy Barton Para (Missouri) - Foremost exponent of Midwestern
tunes on banjo; warm, energetic teacher
- Paul Brown (Washington DC & North Carolina) - Great player
and highly respected collector of fiddle tunes and lore
- Adam Hurt (North Carolina) - innovative banjo stylist; perhaps
the foremost claw-hammerist of his generation
- Ken Perlman (Massachusetts) - Pioneer of melodic clawhammer;
author of several widely acclaimed claw-hammer instruction
manuals
- Tom Sauber (California) - Great old-time
player on both fiddle and banjo; formerly of the well-known trio
"Tom, Brad & Alice."
Novice Program: Mike Stahlman from Portland heads
up the bluegrass-novice program; Laura Smith of Bellingham
heads up the old-time novice program.
The ABC Fiddle Program. We offer a full time fiddle
program at ABC. Our principle fiddle instructor is Greg Canote;
fiddle classes will also be offered by Paul Brown, Paul Elliott,
and Tom Sauber.
The ABC Guitar Program. We also offer a full time program
in guitar. The teaching duties will be split among Jere
Canote, Peter Langston, and this year's special guest guitar
teacher David Keenan.
Accompanists: As has been the case since our inception,
Greg & Jere Canote are our old-time accompanists and Peter
Langston is our bluegrass guitar accompanist. Paul Elliott joins
us for his fifth year as our bluegrass fiddle accompanist. All our
accompanists are from the Seattle area.
The ABC Extra Day: Our Extra Day gives students and
staff a chance to get to know each other, and ease their way into
the regular Camp with a bunch of low-pressure activities in a
relaxed atmosphere. In past years, we have held a student openmic
and band scramble on Thursday evening, followed by a late
evening square dance. On Friday morning, we have featured a
set of round-robin demonstrations. There is an extra tuition
charge for students who wish to take part in the Extra Day,
which also covers the cost of lodging and meals (dinner on
Thursday through lunch on Friday).
You can access artists' bios, logistical information, and
registration form on our website,
http://www.americanbanjocamp.com. If you have any questions
or concerns, don't hesitate to email us at
info@americanbanjocamp.com.
Elks Open Mic & Jam. Hi, would you like to perform at the Valley Elks Lodge in the near future? Pick a Thursday and come perform/practice on us. Let me, Frank, know 928-2273
Directions: Take Pines exit off freeway north to top of hill and turn left on Marietta ave. Go two blocks, turn left on Robie
and follow Robie to the Elks Parking Lot. 7pm to 10 pm. Free admission. Kid friendly, circle jam to follow the performance.
- Frank Wagner 928-2273. Please use guitarmanfrank@comcast.net for any emails and or replies.
We are pleased to announce the staff for the 2012 Lady of the Lake's June Music and Dance Week and August Family Week
(www.ladyofthelake.org).
Both camps are held on the shores of beautiful Lake Coeur D'Alene at Camp N-Sid-Sen and are filled with music, dance, and fun on the lake.
Staff for June Week (June 24-30) includes:
Elixir with Nils Fredland, Anna Patton, Ethan Hazard-Watkins, Jesse Hazard-Watkins and Owen Morrison.
This high energy band has a unique sound with the addition of brass instruments to the traditional contra dance mix. Band members will also lead band and individual
instrument workshops.
Dr. Groove with Nat Hewitt, TJ Johnson and Seth Houston. This band has a highly improvisational soundand will get your feet hopping. Band members will also
lead band and individual instrument workshops.
The Canote Brothers - They are back by popular demand and will play for swing and squares and repeat their acclaimed swing and uke workshops.
The entertaining and talented Seth Tepfer will share the calling duties with Elixer's Nils Fredland. Ken Glastre is our venerable sound man.
Join us for contra, square, swing and English dancing, instrument and band workshops, singing, great meals, and lots of hiking, napping and swimming time.
Cost for June week is $570 for adults and $500 for teens 12 and over and includes meals from Sunday dinner to Saturday breakfast.
Please visit our web site for more information and registration forms: www.ladyofthelake.org. Registration is limited to the first 125 people so register early and don't miss out on a fantastic week.
You can also email danceweek@ladyofthelake.org or call Oshi at (406) 581-8178 for any questions.
Staff for August Family Week (August 19-25) includes: The Canote Brothers: They return to lead family gatherings and generally provide the spirit of the camp
with music and fun.
Valerie and Daryl Bergman are back to lead salsa, hip hop, and Hawaiian dance.
Please welcome Charmaine Slaven and Charlie Beck, two fantastic old time musicians from Seattle, who are coming to Lady of the Lake for the first time.
Sue Hulsether and Susan Michaels will share the calling for children and adults.
Molly Aldophae and Pat Hagney will do art with children and adults and Mel Luedders will lead singing and work with the very young children. Pat and Vickie Marron will provide sound.
Join us for contra, square, salsa and hip hop dancing, instrument and band workshops including swing and ukes, lots of art time and singing, swimming, and fun for
all ages.
Please visit our web site: www.ladyofthelake.org for more information and registration forms. Costs for the different age groups are on the registration form. Register
early as this great camp usually fills up quickly.
Please contact Penn Fix and Debra Schultz with
any question or email familyweek@ladyofthelake.org or
call (509) 838-2160.
International Folk Dancing
A group of us have been gathering at the home of Karen Wilson-Bell and Justin
Bell for International Folk Dancing. The music and the dances come from many countries
around the world. The program includes partner and non-partner dances with
teaching of dances whenever needed. We have been trying out different days of
the week as our hosts' calendar permits. If you would like to join us for any of
these evenings, e-mail Karen <karenwilsonbell@netzero.com>.
Are You on the Spokane Folklore Society E-List?
The SFS E-List is used to send e-mail reminder announcements about SFS events and other folk and international events in the community. There were lots of great events in January - Did you attend the Kosher Red Hots free concert, or the free Brick and Mortar singer/songwriters concert? Did you hear about the Irish Ceili Dance workshop or the Inland Northwest Bluegrass Association Showcase concert? To sign up please send your request to: dancer@moxxee.com
Has Your Membership Expired?
At the end of August all memberships in the Spokane Folklore Society expired.
You will continue to receive the newsletter until November, including information
about upcoming events and copies of the membership form. When you renew, you will not
only get discounts at dances, but you will be helping to support the mission of the Spokane
Folklore Society.