New Mexico Folk Music & Dance Society

FolkMADS Calendar and Notes

November - December 2003 Volume 6, Issue 6

P.O. Box 40421, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87196-0421

The FolkMADS Calendar and Notes are published bimonthly by the New Mexico Folk Music and Dance Society, a nonprofit organization.

May 28 - 31

 This camp will be fabulous!

Pied-a-Terre plays folk-roots dance music, specializing in music of Ireland, British Isles, Quebec, and Brittany. Featuring Dan Compton on fiddle, guitar, mandolin, and button accordion; Fran Slefer on button accordion, piano, and fiddle; and Rob Barrick on Scottish smallpipes, fretless bass, and African percussion.

We'll also have: Kerry Elkin (Master Fiddle Player) & Mark Roberts (Red Clay Ramblers) on flute and five-string banjo

Caller: Woody Lane (from Portland)

Singers: Peter and Mary Alice Amidon
Traditional song, harmony singing, dance, storytelling. They are well known for their children's programs and their community spirit. Peter will double as a caller, as well.

The camp committee is hard a work and is looking for additional people who are interested in helping. Contact Lisa lisabertelli@NOSPAMaol.com (remove NOSPAM when emailing) if you are interested.

Flyers with complete information will be out early next year.

Have you moved?
Changed phone numbers? Changed your e-mail address?
Keep FolkMADS up to date so you'll continue to receive the newsletter and we can contact you. Call John Arthur, 831-8096.

FolkMADS Elections
Saturday, November 15, 2003

During the Albuquerque dance, the Annual General Membership Meeting and Election of the Board of Directors will be held. This is your chance to have a say about how FolkMADS is run, so plan to be there, volunteer to serve, and cast your vote!

Serving on our board provides an opportunity to meet and work with fellow dancers, musicians, and singers. New skills can be learned and old skills can be rejuvenated. Our goal is to recognize all of the talents that members bring to the organization. We currently are looking for expertise in the areas of membership, publicity, and coordination of dances.

Frequently asked election questions:

Why does FolkMADS do this every November and muck up a good dance?

FolkMADS is a non-profit corporation registered with the state of NM and the IRS. This means that we do not pay sales tax for purchases and that contributions to FolkMADS (other than membership dues) are tax deductible. It also means that we have formal bylaws, hold an annual meeting of the membership, and elect a Board of Directors from whom corporate officers are chosen. As part of our bylaws we have chosen to have the meeting and election at the 1st or 3rd Saturday dance in November in Albuquerque.

So what happens at this meeting and election?

Near the check-in table will be an easel with information on the Board, the officer positions, and jobs the Board does. There will also be a sign up sheet on the easel. Anyone who wishes to "stand for the Board" can put their name on the sign up sheet. There are 11 slots on the Board but as many people as want to can sign up. Around 9:15, sign-ups for the Board will be closed and the General Meeting will be called. The current FolkMADS president will briefly review "the status of FolkMADS" and answer any questions from the floor. Then we will look at the total number of sign ups for Board membership. If fewer than 11 have signed up, they are automatically elected to the Board of Directors. If the number is more than 11, there will be a runoff election. Members will be asked to vote for the top 11 candidates they would like to have on the Board. The voting will close at 10:30 and the results will be announced by the end of the night.

What if I want to be on the Board and can't attend the dance?

If you want to stand for the Board but will be unable to attend the dance you must submit your name to the FolkMADS Secretary before November 14th. The current Secretary is Kelly Kelstedt and his number is 505-471-7077 (Santa Fe), or email him at secretary@NOSPAMfolkmads.org. There can be no absentee nominations at the dance itself.

This sounds like a lot of trouble, why should I care about any of this?

The Board controls everything that FolkMADS spends money on during the year. This includes deciding which bands and callers are on the list to play and call at dances, how much these bands and callers get paid, booking special out of town callers and musicians to play at our dances, booking special concerts for musicians, running the annual FolkMADness Dance Camp, and a host of other things.

Please consider serving on our board or at least give us your support by voting at the annual meeting.

MegaBand Tune of the Month: Bonaparte's Retreat

Bruce Thomson

bthomson@NOSPAMunm.edu (remove NOSPAM when emailing)

FolkMADS thanks The Blue Dragon Coffeehouse, 1517 Girard NE, Albuquerque, for generously hosting the Albuquerque Megaband practices.

For more information about Megaband, contact Bruce Thomson, 277-4729, or Jane Phillips (jphill@NOSPAMunm.edu). Email Jane to be added to the Megaband listserv (automatic e-mail reminders).
The Albuquerque Megaband donates its services each month at the 3rd Saturday dances in ABQ, helping to keep FolkMADS going.

Special Events

	Jamie Gans and Tamara Loewenthal are coming to New Mexico again!    Jamie Gans, a gifted fiddler, and Tamara Loewenthal an exceptional dancer & and caller, are coming back to New Mexico in early December to play 3 dances and to conduct two workshops. No stranger to New Mexico, Jamie has been visiting and performing here for over 10 years. He is known for his superb musicianship which is combined with smooth and creative interpretations, and he plays an enormously diverse repertoire including Celtic, Canadian, New England, and Old Timey styles. In 1993, he received the Master Apprenticeship award from the Minnesota Folk Arts Program and in 2002 collected music in Ireland and Scotland on a fellowship from the Indianapolis Arts Council. Along with his 1995 CD "City Of Rocks" he has a new soon-to-be-released CD in collaboration with Irish musicians, Paddy O'Brien and Daithi Sproule. Jamie regularly performs with Tamara Loewenthal (step dancer and caller) as the group Fiddle'n Feet from Bloomington, Indiana.
Dances Tamara and Jamie will be playing dances in Las Cruces (Friday December 5 at the La Mesilla Community Center), Albuquerque (Saturday, December 6 at the Heights Community Center), and Santa Fe (Saturday, December 13 at the Odd Fellows Hall). (see calendar)
Fiddle Workshops Jamie will be offering two workshops on Saturday afternoon, December 6.    Workshop No. 1, Irish Fiddle (2:00-3:30): This workshop will focus on tunes and techniques associated with the regional styles from counties Sligo, Clare, Kerry and Donegal. A tune from each of these counties will be taught to the group. The emphasis will be on bowing and embellishment.    Workshop No. 2, French Canadian Fiddle (4:00-5:00): This workshop will emphasize tunes from Quebec and French Acadia (the Maritime Provinces). The older fiddle music is related to Irish and of course French with a large proportion of "crooked" tunes. Here the emphasis will be on bowing especially.    Each workshop is $15 or one can sign up for both for $25. The workshops will be held in the recital room of Apple Mountain Music (www.applemtnmusic.com), an outstanding music shop well known for its strong support of acoustic musicians. The shop is centrally located at 10301 Commanche NE. Reservations for the workshops can be made through Apple Mountain Music (237-2048) or through Bruce Thomson (268-6003).    Tamara will be hosting two dance workshops on December 13 at the Odd Fellows Hall. Contact Richard at 757-2190 for details.

A Benefit for the Silver Nights Concert  Series

12th NIGHT DANCE   -  BREAKING UP CHRISTMAS

With BAYOU SECO and THE FIDDLING FRIENDS

celebrating OLD TIME DANCES of the SOUTHWEST

AT THE HISTORIC OPERA HOUSE IN PINOS ALTOS, NEW MEXIO

SATURDAY, JAN. 3 - 7:30-10:30 PM    $6.00 @ the door - Children (5-12) $3.00

Quick dance instruction.    FUN for the whole family.

The BAYOU SECO band will once again host a wonderful evening of dance for the whole family in a large array of styles to benefit the Silver Nights Concert Series. The dance will be held at the Historic OPERA HOUSE, Main Street, Pinos Altos, N.M.on Sat. Jan. 3 at 7:30 PM.

All dances will be swiftly taught and all ages are welcome. There will be Spanish Colonial Dances like the Broom Dance, la Valse de los Paños, La Varsovianne, the Chotis and la Cuna (cradle dance); Cajun 2 steps, polkas, rancheras, lots of waltzes, and Here Comes Zodiac (a southeastern play party dance) .

Many of these dances have been danced in New Mexico and the Southwest for over a hundred years. They are easy to learn and fun to do.

BAYOU SECO is led by Ken Keppeler on 1 and 3 row diatonic accordians, fretless banjo and fiddle, and Jeanie McLerie on 5 string fiddles and vocals. They will be joined by long time Bayou Seco members Scott Mathis on mandolin and bass octave mandolin, Linda Askew on guitar, both from Denver, and Matthew Sommerville from Gila on drums, the Fiddling Friends (Jeanie's students), as well as other surprise guests.        

For information, phone  505-534-0298/Bayouseco@NOSPAMaol.com

LOCAL BAND TO TEACH UNM MUSIC CLASS (for credit!)

Spring 2004 -- Music 231 & 560

Section 001

Appalachian Folk Ensemble

Class will feature an Ensemble-in-Residence: The Virginia Creepers.

Course Description: The Virginia Creepers are a well-known Albuquerque Folk ensemble that specializes in Appalachian folk music. Students will learn repertoire and technique of this genre of American folk music, which includes fiddle, guitar, mandolin, bass, banjo and voice. Students should have some familiarity with one of the instruments listed above.

Ensemble-in-Residence-Virginia Creepers: has been playing Appalachian old-time stringband music since 1991.  The original members, Steve Huestis (banjo), Rick Olcott (guitar) and Peter White (fiddle) met at a jam sponsored by the New Mexico Folk Music and Dance Society (NM FolkMADS) and were later joined by Laurie Phillips (mandolin) and Bruce Thomson (fiddle) The "Creeps" as they are affectionately known, come from a wide variety of musical backgrounds, but all have found a niche playing the original country music of Appalachia, spanning roughly the period from just before the Civil War to the 1920's.  Bluegrass music is a direct outgrowth of this "Old-Time" tradition. As previous winners of the Old Time Band contest at the Santa Fe Bluegrass and Traditional Music Festival, the Virginia Creepers are arguably among the best practitioners of Old Time music in New Mexico.

Instructor-Dr. Peter White: Dr. Peter White studied folklore with Sam Bayard at Penn State and tried to pick up a few tunes from the Buffalo Chip Kickers. After moving to New Mexico in the 1970s, he began a career in violin making, teaching and folklore studies, he studied fiddle with Ken Keppeler and Jeanie McLerie of Bayou Seco. He is the founder of the New Mexico Folk Music and Dance Society, played in the short-lived Roadrunner String Band, and started the Virginia Creepers in 1992 along with 2 other members of the Creepers. He studied violin making in Poland in 1980 and has made musical instruments for several old-timely musicians. His musical philosophy is captured in the motto: "Old Time Music: It ain't Pretty; it's Old!"

Schedule: Tuesdays 7:00pm - 9:00pm

AAI/ATC (Bldg 160)

1923 Las Lomas NE

Music 231-001 call number - 17226 Music 560-001 call number &endash; 17227

*Any Questions please contact AAI/ATC at 277-2286*

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