Past Events

The Handmade Music School presents a Vocal Duets Workshop with Frank and Allie Lee on Saturday, May 4, 2019 from 12:30-3:00pm. Cost is $40. Sing melody without sheet music and harmony without hardship by following along with Frank & Allie Lee. Frank and Allie (of The Freight Hoppers) are a husband and wife duo who perform old time songs with banjos, guitars, and voice across the country. Whether you have sung your whole life or are still getting comfortable with your voice, Frank and Allie can relate, help you find your voice, and show you how to find harmony with someone else’s voice to create a vocal duet.

The Handmade Music School presents Limberjack Decorating & Dancing with Linda Ewing on Saturday, May 11, 2019 from 1:00pm - 3:00pm. Do you have family in town for Mothers Day weekend? Bring them to the Handmade Music School for this special, all ages, event! Young children are welcome with an adult. Please age 10 and over without an accompanying adult. The cost is $45 and includes limberjack. Space is limited to 14 so sign up early!

This workshop for all levels will address the fundamental techniques and musical considerations necessary to produce solid and supportive bass playing. Topics to be discussed include common keys, timing, and the use of functional bass lines. We will also cover technical issues on the double bass as well as the role of the bass within an ensemble. Bring your own questions about bass playing and we will dive in. If you have friends, or a significant other, who plays old time music and you are tired of endlessly listening and not being part of the fun, this workshop is for you!

Join us on Saturday, June 1, 2019 from 10:00-3:00 for an intensive autoharp workshop with John Hollandsworth. This workshop is geared toward intermediate and advanced players. The cost is $65.00 for early bird registration (through May 22) or $75.00 after. Lunch is provided by The Floyd Country Store and is included in the cost.

Join us on Saturday, June 22, 2019 from 4:00-5:00pm for a Flatpicking Guitar Workshop with Wyatt Rice. In this workshop, rhythm guitar master Wyatt Rice will help participants to improve and expand their arsenal of rhythmic backup techniques. Topics to be explored include tone production, cross-picking rhythm, unique bass runs, passing chords, chord substitutions, and chord inversions. Cost is $20.

The Handmade Music School presents a flatfoot dance workshop on Saturday, June 29, 2019 from 5:00-6:00pm with Martha Spencer from the family-based Whitetop Mountain Band and Larry Sigmon & Martha Spencer. Martha has just come out with a Flatfoot Dancing for Beginners DVD and will be sharing her easy to learn method, with each step broken down, slow and fast. The workshop will also feature a brief history of the dance traditions from Southwest Virginia. Cost is $25.

The Handmade Music School presents an introductory Clawhammer Banjo Workshop with Andy Buckman on Saturday, July 20, 2019 from 3:00-5:00pm. This workshop is appropriate for beginning and intermediate banjo players who wish to explore the distinctive “mountain” clawhammer banjo style of SW Virginia and NW North Carolina. Andy will emphasize rhythm, backbeat, and drone skills while teaching local dance tunes. Workshop participants can expect to gain a clear understanding of the basic mechanics of an exciting, highly danceable banjo sound that is fun to play! Cost is $30.

The Handmade Music School presents an introduction to Old Time Fiddle with Kalia Yeagle and Andrew Small on Sunday, July 21, 2019 from 11:00am - 1:00pm. This workshop will be beneficial to beginning and intermediate fiddlers as well as anyone who wishes to gain a foundational understanding of the functional, stylistic, and technical considerations inherent to old time fiddling. Cost is $30.

The Handmade Music School presents an intermediate bluegrass mandolin workshop with Jesse Smathers on Sunday, August 11, 2019 from 2:00-3:30 pm. This Beginner/Intermediate workshop will break down components of driving Bluegrass mandolin. Focusing on developing listening skills, we will cover the basics of the rhythm chop, chord structures and substitutions, and lead playing including embellishment on breaks based around the melody. The skills covered in this workshop will prove relevant in any traditional or modern Bluegrass context.