Event

Acoustic Blues Fest Workshops

Session 1 - 1 to 2:15 PM
78 RPM Blues Records with Mark Tolstrup
Early Delta and country blues was first captured and recorded on 78rpm records in the 1920's and 1930's. In this workshop students will be looking at and listening to, on an old crank Victrola, original 1930's 78rpm records by artists including Blind Lemon Jefferson, Tampa Red, Blind Willie Johnson, Blind Blake, Peetie Wheatstraw and Gus Cannon. We will discuss some of the major labels that first recorded the blues, such as Paramount, Vocalion and Columbia. We will also talk about some tips for starting a record collection of your own.

Session 2
2:30 to 4 PM
"On One Foot": Explore Logically Linked Partial Chords with Marjorie Thompson
This will be a hands-on workshop. Participants will learn "on one foot," Marjorie's method for exploring the guitar neck using logically linked partial chords, and related essential licks that give color to country blues and folk- style guitar picking. Each position will be examined as to how it is used in generating typical riffs, lead lines,intros and outros, all useful for understanding country blues traditionals, developing interesting
arrangements of covers, or songwriting.
Whether you'd like to decipher what you hear, arrange covers, or compose originals, this information and its application are the foundations that will spur your playing.

Session 3
4:15 to to 5:30 PM
Blues in the Key of E with Bill Sims, Jr. and Mark LaVoie
Blues in E brings Bill Sims examines Bill Sims' understanding of the basic difference between Acoustic Country Blues and Electric City Blues. Country players, because of the ease of playing in open keys such as E, concentrate more on the lyric, the story, highlighting the blues as an oral tradition. The City Electric Players concentrate more on the instrumental performance, and because of the volume they play at, the story can be lost. Through examples and discussion, you will leave this workshop with a deeper understanding of the value and strength of Acoustic County Blues.