AUGUSTA HERITAGE CENTER – IRISH WEEK
by Stewart Hendrickson
Last summer my wife and I traveled to Augusta Heritage
Center’s 22nd annual Irish Week at Davis & Elkins College in Elkins,
West Virginia. Several things attracted us. It was organized by Mick Moloney,
a leading folklorist and Irish musician whom I had met earlier on his Irish
Folklore Tour, and it offered a class in Irish fiddle for myself, and hammered
dulcimer for my wife. As it turned out, we were recognized as having traveled
the farthest distance to get there.
Elkins & Davis College is located in a beautiful
part of the Appalachians. Although it was hot and humid when we flew into
Washington, DC, the weather was quite tolerable in the West Virginia mountains.
The campus, situated on a hill, was quite pleasant with nice facilities.
The most important part of any music camp is the food, and this year the
food was superb with a new food service, greatly improved over previous years.
Classes for the week (July 20 – 25) included banjo and
mandolin, button accordion, fiddle, flute, songs and ballads, guitar and
bouzouki, harp, songwriting and accompaniment, uillean pipes, whistle, and
dance. Other classes not specific to Irish Week, included Cape Breton fiddle,
hammered and mountain dulcimer, old-time banjo and fiddle, Cape Breton dance,
Celtic design and lettering, Celtic stonecarving, blacksmithing, fiddle and
bow repair, and marquetry. Classes met for 2 hr sessions in the morning and
afternoon, and each participant signed up for one particular class. Additional
mini-classes were available, including bodhran, Ceili Dance, Ceili band,
Cape Breton stepdance, concertina, Irish history and culture, Irish songs
and ballads, and bouzouki.
After breakfast a typical day began with an early slow
session, morning classes, an after-lunch Irish Week group session, afternoon
classes, mini-classes after dinner followed by a concert or dance, and then
informal sessions and jams into the wee hours of the next morning. More than
enough to fill the day!
My intermediate-level Irish fiddle class was taught by
Patrick Orceau, a talented young Irish fiddler who immigrated from his native
France to New York City in the 1980s. There were 11 students in his class
– a nice size. Patrick is well steeped in the traditional Clare/East Galway
style and was a student of the Irish fiddler Paddy Canny. A patient teacher,
he taught us two reels and a jig, with considerable emphasis on ornamentation
and style.
One of the students in Patrick’s class was the 6-year
old daughter of another music instructor. She had a 1/8th-size violin and
played better than most of us. During an afternoon break she played a Bach
duet with another classical player in a very mature style. Quite amazing
for her young age!
My wife took a hammered dulcimer class (Irish and Beyond)
with Tina Gugeler and two other students – quite a nice student/teacher ratio.
Tina, who lives in Denver, CO, won first place in the year 2000 National
Hammered Dulcimer Championship. My wife considered this a worthwhile class
for intermediate players as Tina was a good teacher.
An enjoyable feature of the weekly schedule was the after-lunch
Irish group session. Mick Moloney talked about a different aspect of Irish
music each day, illustrated with short performances by musicians. Topics
included the influence of Irish music on old-time Appalachian music, Irish
dance music, newly-composed Irish music, and Irish singing.
Show-case concerts by the music instructors were presented
in the beautiful music hall on two evenings, and dances were held the other
evenings. Then there were informal sessions and jams in the late evenings,
with at least one “slow jam.” On Friday evening, as I was making the rounds
of jams, I heard Jerry Holland (Cape Breton fiddler featured in this year’s
NW Folklife Benefit Concert) jamming with a couple other musicians on one
of the porches. As I sat and listened to his beautiful playing, I remembered
that I had paid good money to hear him perform at NW Folklife!
On Friday afternoon most of the classes performed in a
student showcase concert. Held in the outdoor dance pavilion, this was an
enjoyable, informal event. It was not so much about performance, but just
having a good time and enjoying everyone’s music in a non-competitive atmosphere.
That exemplified the whole week’s experience. It was a well-run and very
friendly camp. You can find out more about the Augusta Heritage Center and
their other music, folklore, dance, and crafts programs on their web site,
http://www/augustaheritage.com. I highly recommend it.
Stewart Hendrickson is Chemistry Professor Emeritus – St. Olaf College,
Research Professor Emeritus – University of Washington, and in his new career,
an unemployed folk musician (voice, fiddle, guitar; http://www.stolaf.edu/people/hend/music.html
). Contact him at hend@stolaf.edu for questions, ideas or comments.
Disclaimer