How I'll spend my summer

Happy May Day to you all!

So how long has it been since we last spoke? Months maybe? As usual, and through no fault of my own, I find myself in the enviable position of once again having new people to welcome to this list. Those of you who have been here a while may take it upon yourself to let the newbie know, It’s usually like this… months of silence followed by a rant of sorts and then a plea to go to my show(s), usually later that day. I’m not a self-promotion guru guy you know.

Speaking of self-promotion: the wedding plans are coming right along. Looks like it’s going to be Labor Day weekend. Not four hours wedding reception for us, we’re gonna suck up the whole weekend at Jimmy and Maggie’s. Of course many of you are invited, some are expected, and I suspect some of you may just show up. Just as well; the more. The merrier. Anyway, the point is if you haven’t got your yet, it’s because the invitation designer (that would be me) has been busy with other things like grad school.

More self-promotion; the future Mrs. Ross (this is the first time I’ve seen that not used in reference to my mother, Christie is totally keeping her maiden name) and I will be doing a good bit of dulcimer festivals this summer (details below) and it is my plan to do a good ol-fashioned tour of the NE in late summer, between frantic wedding plans. I figure the summer is the best time cause that’s when the gas will be cheapest.

Christie and I played the first of our summer shows last weekend, at a summer festival in Russellville, Kentucky. Pretty, pretty town, famous for being the home of first bank Jessie James ever robbed. People seemed to dig it, and I even got a request for Ruben’s Train (fiddle tunes requests are rare, except for the Orange Blossom Special for some reason, which I don’t know, don’t ask). Some drummer from a heavy metal band playing later that afternoon said he dug, it was “real relaxing”, I tried to return the compliment but what am I gonna say? “Yeah dude, when I wanna chill out, I like to take a nice long walk in the wood, perhaps by a stream, listening to ‘Sabbath Bloody Sabbath’”. Ah well, he meant well, and for a heavy metal drummer, he didn’t suck.

One of the coolest things I’ve ever been involved in was when Christie and I performed in a Jewish synagogue with Basya Schechter, at the Mid-East Mountain Fusion Music Festival in Louisville. We did two TV appearances and played the show with her. Basya plays Oud in a Mediterranean rock band called “Pharaoh’s Daughter”, (I just totally freaked my spell-checker out) and Christie and I were hired to mix Appalachian tunes with her music, which is in these Middle Eastern modes and bizarre time signatures like 6/7 or 11/2. Needless to say, I was really pushing the limits of what I could do with the dulcimer. Something I love to do anyway. And Basya has quickly become one of our absolute favorite people. Christie’s gonna be playing with her in North Jersey in a couple of weeks. Check out Basya here: http://www.pharaohsdaughter.com

Upcoming Shows

We have been crazy stupid busy, busier than ever before. But we’re doing what we love so that’s okay. But the semester is ending and we are about to hit the road. Here is a bit about how we’ll be spending our summer.

Next week, we’re going up to Columbus Ohio for the Central Ohio Folk Festival. This is a good time, a pretty low key but fun festival in the Batelle-Darby Park, which is just southwest of the city (and outside the beltway). They’re a nice mix of a dulcimer festival and a folk festival, held outside with jams and music and workshops. Last year’s headliner was Tom Rush this year it’s David Massengill. Christie and I will be teaching and performing with Randy Clepper, a great Bouzouki player and part time member of Hammer On! Well be doing a mix of his stuff and ours, Irish, Old-time and Swedish, and who knows what else.

Then is on to Owensboro, one of two towns that claim to be the birthplace of Bluegrass, for the Yellow banks dulcimer festival. Where not only will I be teaching dulcimer but Irish guitar and old-time guitar workshops as well. Christie will be teaching claw-hammer banjo in addition to her hammer dulcimer classes as well.

Nancy Barker, of Kentucky Music week, has us playing a number of gigs this summer at state parks all over Kentucky, as well as the very cool Kentucky Music Weekend at Iroquois State Park (they air condition the lawn seating there!). Check the gig schedule for that. But the two big gigs I’d like to talk about are the Kentucky Music Week and the Chattanooga Dulcimer Festival.

The Music Week as many of you know is a weeklong, training-intensive festival in Bardstown, KY. It involves some of the finest dulcimer players on the planet and has lessons in everything from dulcimer to songwriting to steel drum, this year includes workshops on Native American Flutes and Painted Gourds! http://www.kentuckymusicweek.com/KMWeek/ be sure to check out the schedule to see how many great players are gonna be there this year!

Right before that is a new festival put on by our dear friends Dan and Angie Landrum, the Chattanooga Dulcimer Festival. It’s not actually held in Chattanooga; it takes place up on Signal Mountain (which is significantly cooler). This festival is great because it focuses exclusively on technique. Karen Mueller and myself will be there, and the elusive David Schnaufer will also be teaching master classes! Where Kentucky Music is going to be a great place to learn a bunch of songs, Chattanooga is where you’ll get the chops together to learn those songs well. I can’t recommend these two festivals enough.

Okay lots more coming up as well; I’m planning a northeast tour in August, writing a couple of songbooks this summer, and finally developing a members area on the web site. But all that can wait until later (when it’s been done). I just really wanted to drop you all a note to tell you how I would be spending my summer, instead of how I did!

C-you out there.