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Summer School 2009 |
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The British BMG Federation Summer School 10th – 12th July 2009 at Urchfont Manor, Urchfont, Nr Devizes, Wiltshire SN10 4RG Urchfont Manor is a beautiful listed building standing in extensive grounds with lots of character and friendly, helpful staff. There is a bar and we can use the library and sitting room areas for informal playing after evening classes.
Directions Urchfont is easily accessible from M4 to the north or
A303 from south. The manor is situated just outside the village on the B3098.
Nearest railway stations are Westbury and Pewsey. Hourly buses run to Urchfont
from The Weekend Students will register on Friday from 5pm, dinner is at 7pm after which will be a short introductory session followed by class tuition. Saturday daytime will be busy with class tuition and after dinner we expect to offer a choice of playing in a large ensemble, in smaller groups or using the time for personal practice; there will be opportunity to put forward ideas for this session. On Sunday after morning tuition there will be a short informal concert followed by lunch at 1pm. The course will end after lunch. Accommodation is in single or twin rooms, most of which are ensuite. Each bedroom is unique; most are in the main house, others are in 3 smaller buildings. Cost of the weekend will vary between £139 and £192 according to the type of room selected. Non-residential cost is £125. Booking and Further Information To book a place, telephone Urchfont Manor 01380 840495 quoting course name & code shown below and pay your £35 deposit. The balance will be due 4 weeks prior to the weekend; no reminder will be sent. For further information, contact BMG Federation course co-ordinator Henry Girvan at henry.girvan@btinternet.com or telephone 01592 630374 |
Tutors & Courses for
Banjo, Mandolin & Mixed Instruments Elias Sibley: 5-string Finger-style Ragtime Banjo - Code R090702
Nigel Gatherer: Celtic Music with Mixed Instruments Code R090704
Dave Griffiths: Jazz'N Blues Mandolin Code R090703  Using set pieces from Blues and Jazz repertoire
this course will provide an insight into playing and phrasing tunes
using swing rhythms. Students will discover basics of chord/scale
harmony and its use in improvisation based on scales, arpeggios and
chord progressions. The course, aimed at intermediate players around
grade 3 & 4, will be fun and practical with opportunity to play
lead, rhythm and begin to improvise. Those who attended last years
blues course will enjoy developing their skills and those new to
blues and jazz will enjoy discovering the fun of improvisation in a
relaxed and supportive atmosphere. Music, chord and scale charts are
provided; some will be available for study before the course.Tutor Biographies Elias Sibley BMus is a recent graduate
of the Royal College of Music where he studied the classical guitar
with Gary Ryan and Charles Ramirez, having previously been a
Department of Education scholarship student at the Purcell School of
Music from 1998 to 2004 where he studied guitar with Nigel Gatherer has been involved in Scottish music for several years, performing, collecting and teaching and is much in demand around Scotland as a teacher of mandolin classes and mixed instrument groups. Nigel has played with various bands in his time, and is now part of a mandolin and guitar duo, and a four-piece folk group. He also plays guitar, ukulele, penny whistle and Anglo concertina. Nigel won acclaim in the late 1980s for his first book, a collection of folksongs from the Dundee area, and since then he has published several books, including a mandolin chord book and several books of session tunes. His website www.nigelgatherer.com is visited by vast amounts of people each day, discovering the wealth of tunes, tutorials, information and related topics there. Nigel's own compositions have begun to excite interest, with artists from Canada, Scotland, the US and Germany recording his works. Last year one of Britain's foremost mandolin players Alison Stephens published Nigel's tune "East Parkside" in her arrangement for three mandolins, while outstanding German mandolinist Jochen Ross is featuring the same tune as the focus for his latest release. A further venture for Nigel has been the formation of a new ensemble, the Edinburgh Mandolin and Guitar Orchestra, which aims to establish a fretted group in the East of Scotland. Dave Griffiths Since buying his first mandolin in an antique shop in 1967 David has played and recorded blues and ragtime mandolin and toured both Europe and the USA. He was a member of the renowned ' 70's acoustic blues band 'Tight Like That'and can be heard on their now collected album 'Hokum'. In 1999 David performed the Beethoven Mandolin Sonatas at Ashton Court Festival with pianist John Stein. As a jazz bassist he has appeared in concert, recorded live sessions for BBC Radio 3 and performed at jazz festivals both as a sideman and leading his own septet Mingus Fingers, a tribute band to the late and great Charles Mingus. For seven years David was a tutor and course leader on the Bristol Jazz Workshops. In 2003 he formed his first mandolin quartet 'Mandolin Express' and with them recorded a CD 'Tasty Morsels'. He is currently promoting his Brazilian Choro band called 'Brejeiro', plays mandolin and bass with the duo Smile and plays bass with jazz group 'Hot Strings'. David teaches both Mandolin and Bass and runs a Mandolin Ensemble for beginners to advanced players. He is the bass tutor at the 'Sore Fingers' festival week and mandolin Tutor on the BMG Summer School. |
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This course, which focuses on Ragtime music, is
suitable for beginners with previous knowledge of the instrument and
music reading skills, as well as more advanced students. All main
aspects of finger-style banjo playing will be covered, particularly
solo & ensemble playing, interpretation, technical development,
sight reading and practice methods through relaxed, friendly
workshops involving tutor and group feedback. Course music will be
provided however students should provide copies of any solo
repertoire they would like to present in class
Learn to play and
arrange Celtic tunes for sessions, performance and dancing in a fun,
supportive and illuminating way with other musicians. Any fretted
instrument welcome with limited places for fiddle, double bass,
penny whistle etc. You should have been playing your instrument for
a minimum of 18 months. Music reading skills not required. Nigel’s
teaching style is popular for being laid-back but effective.