This information is now current for Dulci-More
Festival 20 in 2014
Dulci-More
Festival 20
Concert, Mini-Concert, Workshop
Presenters & Vendors
Note: Clicking on most of the photos on this page will open them in a new window in a higher resolution more appropriate for use in press releases. However, we do not have higher resolution photos of all of the artists, but there should be something appropriate for most press releases here.
Link to Online
Registration Page
(Online registration page will be taken
offline around
Updated
(Some Presenters Will Only Be at the Festival One Day As
Indicated in the Schedule)
Concert,
Mini-Concert, & Workshop Presenters
Bing Futch and his wife Jae live in
With roots in both
African and Seminole Indian tribes, Bing Futch's
window on America is a unique landscape of music, words and imagery. He began
playing Appalachian mountain dulcimer at Knott's Berry Farm theme park in 1986, working at a Ghost Town
shop for Bud & Donna Ford.
That same year, Futch founded techno-punk band Crazed Bunnyz
with synth-bassist Marc "Gadget" Plainguet and vocalist Sean "Shaka"
Harrison. The trio grew popular in the international underground CCM college
radio scene and have remained a fan favorite long after disbanding in 1988.
Since then, Futch has enjoyed a diverse and prolific
career spanning music, theater and video.
After working
closely with producers of the hit NBC series "Quantum Leap" while
shooting a documentary in 1992, Futch left his
California hometown of Los Angeles in 1993 to pursue production opportunities
in central Florida where he set up a multimedia company called J.O.B.
Entertainment Inc. Some of his early video projects include the eight-part
travelogue "Disney Overload", the 1994 reality series "Toastin'", serving as musical director and composing
an original score for the Stage Left Theater production of "The Jungle
Book: A Musical Adaptation" and writing/performing portions of the
soundtrack for The Castle of Miracles at Give Kids The World Village in Kissimmee, Florida.
In 1999, Mohave was born. The
award-winning Americana band has performed in a variety of venues including
multiple shows at The House Of Blues at Walt Disney World, Hard Rock Live
Orlando, The Bamboo Room, Freebird Live, The Orlando
Fringe Festival, The Central Florida Fair and they've also opened for national
acts Molly Hatchet, Subject To Change, St.
Somewhere and The Crests.
The exploration of
an American experience through Mohave led Futch
towards the national folk music scene in 2006 where he has become a popular
touring solo performer, headlining at venues and festivals across the country. Futch's shows are always engaging affairs as he connects right
away with an audience and then takes them on a musical theme park ride through
a variety of sounds, styles and showpieces. Sometimes purely acoustic and other
times surrounded with an astonishing array of technology, he's a one-man juke
box filled with traditional and modern music, including his distinctive
originals and inventive arrangements of both classic and progressive hits.
Voice, Appalachian mountain dulcimer and Native American flute form the
foundation for these oft-times marathon concerts with supporting percussion
brought in for special performances. It's a wild, funny, moving journey in
music that comes from the heart.
In just the past
several years that Futch has appeared on the folk
scene here in the states, he's opened for Grammy-award nominated artists Sam
& Ruby, bluesman Scott Ainslie, singer/songwriter Larry Mangum, shared the
stage with Zydeco king Chubby Carrier, Tom Constanten (The Grateful Dead), national fingerstyle guitar champion Michael Chapdelaine
and Grammy-award nominated act The Dixie-Beeliners
among others. He's also produced numerous recordings and has published several
songbooks.
Alongside his
performing career, Futch has become a popular
instructor of the mountain dulcimer and Native American flute. His video podcast, Dulcimerica, has been viewed
by over a million people worldwide and is currently in its seventh season.
Dan is from Signal
Mountain, TN. He was with us for Dulci-More Festival
14.
Dan Landrum's virtuosic
hammer dulcimer playing has taken him from street performing in Chattanooga,
Tennessee, to Olympic Ceremonies, U. S. Presidential Inaugurations, music
festivals around the country and international stages. He’s been on the road
since 2003 as a soloist with greek performer Yanni and is currently featured in the PBS Special Yanni Live: The Concert Event which was released in August
2006.
His energetic
playing style, and unique approach to this ancient
instrument are also evident in his six self-produced CDs which are available on
iTunes and through www.danlandrum.com.
Dan and his wife,
Angie, took over as editors and publishers of Dulcimer Players News (from Dulci-More Festival favorite, Madeline MacNeil)
about two years ago. They have continued the tradition of the magazine while
adding many new features like the CD that accompanies each month’s issue. If
you are a dulcimer player (mountain or hammered) who does not already get this
quarterly magazine, go to www.dpnews.com to get
all the information.
Returning from their
homes in the Ann Arbor, MI area, David Tamulevich and
Michael Houg (Musitard’s
Retreat) have been with us before for Dulci-More
Festivals 8, 10, and 15.
Mustard’s Retreat (
David Tamulevich and Michael Hough), met in Ann
Arbor, MI in 1974, as short order cooks, both on hiatus from their studies at
the University of Michigan. Discovering a mutual interest in music/writing and
performing, they put together 3 songs one day after work, and took them to the
legendary Ark coffeehouse’s open mike night. They were a big hit, and, on the
spot, were invited back to do a 45 minute set 2 weeks later. Within a year and
a half they had both quit the restaurant and were doing music full time. 40
years later, they have 12 highly acclaimed recordings of their own, plus 3 more
CDs with their songwriting collective, The Yellow Room Gang. Mustard’s Retreat
has performed more than 4,000 shows over those years, traveled more than 1
million miles and in doing so, have earned a dedicated and loyal following,
many of whom have been coming to hear them since the 1970s. Michael and David
joke on stage about attracting people “with long attention spans”, but it is
what Mustard’s Retreat gives them that turns audiences into such loyal fans.
Spike Barkin, who produces the prestigious Roots of American
Music Festival at New York City’s Lincoln Center, wrote to thank them for their
“folk from the heart,” going on to say it seemed like David and Michael “take
your living room on the road with you and invite people in as friends.” David Siglin, of Ann Arbor’s premier folk clue, The Ark, where
Mustard’s Retreat did that first open mike, and have head-lined many, many
times since said, “In order to last, there has to be more than just talent –
you have to enjoy playing, enjoy audiences and enjoy being in front of them.
Audiences go to your shows because they know they will be entertained.” Margie Rosenkranz, manager of the Eighth Step at Proctor’s Theatre
in Schenectady, NY, who has presented Mustard’s Retreat many times, said a
Mustard’s Retreat show “reminds us why we’re doing this, pulls people
together,” adding that the duo transcends the vagaries of passing trends
because they remain so “in tune with the audience.”
“I work with them
several times a year and always wish it was more.” said Canadian songwriter
Garnet Rogers, who also produced their landmark recording The Wind and the
Crickets. “The thing that always impresses me is the incredible openness they
have with the audience. They stand up there and just radiate friendliness; the
audience is included in the whole process, encouraged to sing along and talk
back. I’ve learned a lot from them in that sense.”
“They are so warm
and friendly and giving on stage, completely in touch with their audience,”
said Tom Paxton, a folk music star for more than 40 years. “There are no
barriers at all, and you just love to watch that and be part of it. But the
thing that strikes me about them from Jump Street – and that makes it all work
so well – is that their time is so tight. Michael is such a wonderful, simple
bass player; his time is just flawless. And that’s why two guys can move you
musically the way they do – they have a gorgeous sense of time and tempo, a
real musicality to what they do. They’re nice guys on stage and entertaining as
hell, but there’s also music in them.”
While both Tamulevich and Hough are grounded in the early traditional
60s folk music boom, they also were influenced by the songwriters of that time,
and their shows represent an eclectic blend of music, old and new, with a big
dash of storytelling. “We have never performed the same show twice,” says Tamulevich, “Each night is its own unique moment, unique
audience. For us, that is the exciting thing, the magic: to craft a shared
experience and leave people entertained and moved…and with moments and songs
they will take away with them and remember, ponder, rediscover; hopefully for
years to come.” Many of those moments are the result of their well-respected
and broad body of original material, written both individually and together.
“We take our writing very seriously.” says Tamulevich,
“No matter if it is a serious or humorous song. A song is a tool to communicate
a feeling or a story, and we want it to be as sharp and finely focused as we
can make it. It is a challenge that we happily embrace. Each song is a unique
puzzle, and it is fun to see where it can and does take you as you write it.
Michael and I are both very different people and writers; having different
strengths, and that diversity, when we can get it right, can make a song a
whole lot richer and more effective. It is a very rewarding process.”
Those memorable
songs have been a hallmark of Mustard’s Retreat from the first. The spooky, Mallon’s Bridge, that tells the story of a haunted bridge
in Ireland and the midnight encounter that takes place there, has been a staple
of Folk radio on Halloween since it first came out in the early 1980s. There’s
A Dance Tonight celebrates love and community , the poignant Part of Me
Remembers, the humorous Michigan Mosquitoes, the anthemic
( Ours is a) Simple Faith and Gather the Family…to the insightful and powerful
Pay the Toll….all and more have received extensive airplay and many have been
covered by other singers.
“And it is still
new, fresh, exciting….and fun” concludes Tamulevich.
“We still really enjoy all of this: the writing and the performing. Audiences
let us know that they enjoy it as well. They have taken our music and made it a
part of their lives: that is the ultimate compliment, and as long as they want
to see us, we plan to keep performing.”
Stephen Seifert was
with us for Dulci-More Festival 17 and had appeared
earlier in the Dulci-More Concert Series. He will be
joining us from his home in
Stephen Seifert's
teaching and playing has made him a favorite with dulcimer players all over the
country since 1991. In that time, he's been a featured performer at hundreds of
dulcimer festivals and other music events including Kentucky Music Week in
Bardstown, KY, Dulcimerville in Black Mountain, NC,
the Augusta Heritage Center in Elkins, WV, the John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, NC, the Ozark Folk Center in Mountain View, AR, Stringalong near Milwaukee, WI, the Walnut Valley Festival
in Winfield, KS and The tono American Music Festival,
in Tono, Japan.
Stephen has been a
dulcimer soloist with the Nashville Chamber Orchestra, now know as Orchestra
Nashville, since 1996 and is featured on their Warner Classical recording of
Connie Ellisor and David Schnaufer's
Blackberry Winter, a concerto for mountain dulcimer and string orchestra. The
piece continues to be in regular rotation on many classical stations around the
U.S. (The recording album is titled "Conversations in Silence" and
can be sampled and purchased on iTunes.) Stephen most
recently performed this piece with the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra, the Tucson
Symphony Orchestra, and the Montpelier Chamber Orchestra.
Stephen was Adjunct
Instructor of Mountain Dulcimer with David Schnaufer
at Vanderbilt's Blair School of Music from 1997 to 2001. He also taught,
performed, and recorded with Mr. Schnaufer as a duo
throughout the country. Stephen has authored ten books, four CDs, and 16
instructional videos.
Most recently, he
has been teaching hundreds of students around the world via
http://dulcimerschool.com.
Mark Wade was with
us previously for Dulci-More Festivals 2, 3, 4, 5, 6,
7, 10, and 15.
Mark Alan Wade is an
avid hammered dulcimer performer, composer and teacher. A National Hammered
Dulcimer Champion, he can be heard on more than a dozen recordings and is a
columnist for the Dulcimer Players News journal. An active private teacher,
Mark’s students include the 2004, 2007 and 2012 USA National Hammered Dulcimer
Champions. Mark has also published four instructional books with Mel Bay, Inc.
When Mark was a
student, his trumpet playing was his gateway into music schools, since the
American dulcimer was not a standard conservatory instrument. His exceptional
trumpeting allowed him to expand his musical limits throughout academia, which
culminated in his Doctorate of Musical Arts in Trumpet Performance from The
Ohio State University. All the while, the formal training of his trumpet
studies was being absorbed into his dulcimer playing. This is the very essence
of Mark’s unique style- a blend of traditional dulcimer playing with his formal
classical training. Currently Dr. Wade is an Assistant Professor of Music at
Denison University where he teaches trumpet, music theory, and directs the wind
ensemble. Mark is proud to serve the dulcimer community as the only professor
in the United States offering dulcimer lessons for academic credit. Mark was an
invited lecturer and performer at the 2013 Cimbalom World Congress in Taipei,
Taiwan. In addition, he has toured Austria, Slovakia and Hungary as principal
trumpet of the Classical Music Festival Orchestra and Brass Quintet of Eisenstadt, Austria. On various occasions, he has performed
for audiences of notables including: Presidents George Bush Sr. and President
Bill Clinton, Ross Perot, and the former U.S. Secretary of Defense, William S.
Cohen. Wade has also performed with the Beach Boys and the Lancaster Festival
Orchestra (Asst. Principal), Columbus Symphony Orchestra, West Virginia
Symphony Orchestra, the Central Ohio Symphony Orchestra, Benedict College
Community Orchestra (Principal), the Springfield Symphony Orchestra
(Principal), and is a section member of the Newark-Granville Symphony
Orchestra.
Mark and his wife,
Cristina, live in New Albany, OH with their two sons. He has published six
instructional books for hammered dulcimer, 7 CDs, as well as various
arrangements of classical pieces in sheet music. More information can be found
at: markalanwade.com or “friend” him on Facebook.com.
Bob Zentz returns for Dulci-More
Festival 20 from Norfolk, VA. He was previously with us for Dulci-More
Festivals 9 & 10 and for our Dulci-More Concert
Series.
Bob Zentz began performing professionally in his native
Norfolk, Virginia, in 1962, in "The Troubadours," with James Lee
Stanley. In his college years, Bob was a founding member of The College of
William & Mary's "Minutemen" singers from 1962-64, and president
of the Old Dominion College Folk Music Society from 1965-66.
In 1966, Bob began a
two-year stint as a sonar man in the U.S. Coast Guard, aboard the
high-endurance cutter
After the 1971
Ramblin' Conrad’s Guitar Shop &
Folklore Center became the hub for all things folk in Hampton Roads for 23
magical years, from several locations around town before closing in 1995, a
victim of changing times and lives. In its time, Ramblin'
Conrad's offered many things to many people: acoustic instruments of any kind,
from any time; traditional music in record and print; a concert venue that
brought many of the world's finest folk musicians to Hampton Roads; and a
special moment in time, when anyone with a song in their heart found a warm
welcome, and a place to call their own.
The
Ramblin' Conrad's experience also existed virtually
for more than 27 years over the public radio airwaves, beginning in 1977 with
the program "In The Folk Tradition," and also in the community
through the Songmakers of Virginia -- now known as
the Tidewater Friends of Folk Music
-- which Bob founded in 1971, modeled after Songmakers
of California, which he came to know and admire during his time in L.A.
Over the years, Bob
participated in many folk ventures, near and far. He began teaching folk music
classes in Old Dominion University’s Rainbow Program in 1971; he created and
ran the "Old Dominion Folk Festival" from 1972-81; and became a
fixture at the Virginia
State Fair beginning in 1980, appearing for his 28th year
consecutive year as resident performer in the Heritage Village in October 2009.
He appeared on PBS's long-running program "A Prairie
Home Companion" in 1982, and crewed and performed aboard Pete Seeger's
Bob has also
represented America and its folk traditions far and wide. He represented the
U.S. in Shanty Tour, Finland, in 1997, and was an instructor at the inaugural
Common Ground, Scotland, in 2002. He performed at the Scottish National Folk
Festival in 2002, was featured U.S. artist at the Australian National Folk
Festival in Canberra in 2004, and performed that same year in Auckland and
Wellington for the New Zealand Maritime Museums. A featured performer at the
2004 Smithsonian Folklife Festival, Bob is also a regular member
of the faculty each summer at Common Ground on the Hill, held at
Local accolades in
the Hampton Roads area include the 1992 John Sears Award for Community Service
from Festevents
and the City of
As a performer, Bob
is a prolific musician, playing several dozen instruments
in a repertoire of more than 2,000 songs. His albums span the genres of folk,
traditional, Celtic and maritime music and beyond, and his recordings also
appear on other artist compilations. As a songwriter, he is
celebrated by fans and peers alike; dozens of performers have covered
his original compositions, three of which have been published in "Rise Up
Singing," Sing Out
Magazine's award-winning community songbook.
Two of the most
storied songwriters of the 20th century praised Bob's work, each in his own
way. Upon hearing Bob's first release, Mirrors and Changes, country legend Johnny Cash was moved to send the young artist an encouraging letter,
saying, "Mirrors and Changes ... is one of the finest works I've heard by
any artist." And in 2007, at a symposium at the Library of Congress' American Folklife Center honoring members of the Seeger family for their contributions to American music,
music legend and humanitarian Pete Seeger asked Bob, "Are you
still writing those good songs? Your songs get around!"
Today, Bob has no
intention of slowing down. He continues to perform nearly
every week the year, much of it on the road, and has followed up the 2007
release of his sixth album, "Closehauled on the Wind of a Dream,"
with the new CD "Horizons" in January 2010. He carries his
"informances," rich with "edu-tainment," to elementary school students with his
"Homemade
Music" program; to K-12 teachers as an instructor for the North Carolina Center for the
Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT); and to elders as a program developer
and leader for Elderhostel along the
From schools to
concert halls, festivals to fairs, museums to libraries, and everywhere in
between, Bob is dedicated to a life of presenting, performing and introducing
traditional music and its derivatives to those who are already fans ... and
those unaware of its existence.
Bill Schilling is a high-energy folk-style singer and
multi-instrumentalist who believes that this type of music should be inclusive.
He is the founder and leader of Dulci-More and the Dulci-More Festival and a member of many other groups,
which share or support the music. At Dulci-More
Festivals, he has performed solo and as Bill Schilling with Carol Ellis; Bill
Schilling, Linda Sigismondi, and Marge Diamond; Bill
Schilling & Folks; Threes Co.; Whistler's Lane; and presented his
Schilling's Slides, Songs, & Stories program. Bill has put together the
music that Dulci-More uses and has it available in
several volumes and formats: Dulci-More
Public Domain Songbooks -- Volumes 1, 2, 3, Christmas Volume (all with
numbers for lap dulcimer melody strings as well as music, chords, and lyrics),
Autoharp Volume (with melody chord numbers in place of the dulcimer
numbers), General Volume (with DAA
Numbers) which is the full size version of the four smaller
volumes plus much more material, Lyrics
with Chords for those who prefer not to have the written music, but want to
play along, and Lyrics Only for those
who just want to sing along. The full size version is over 300 pages with over
300 songs. Bill has released a CD, Songs from Canal Days, with Linda Sigismondi
and continues to threaten to release more recordings upon the world. Since 2005
with Dulci-More members Marcy and Dale Tudor, he has
been the Music Coordinator and a regular instructor for Folk
Music at Weatherbury Farm, the Tudor’s
award winning farm vacation bed and breakfast in
Dulci-More: Folk & Traditional Musicians is a club that
started in January 1993, at the First United Methodist Church of Salem. The
purposes of the club are to have fun with folk-style music and to share that
music with others. The club meets at 7:00 pm on the first Tuesday and Third
Tuesday (note: it was the third Wednesday until January, 2000) of each month
just off the sanctuary in the Unity Classroom of the First United Methodist
Church of Salem, 244 South Broadway, Salem, OH 44460. All levels of acoustic
instrumentalists and singers are always welcome at the meetings to jam, to
learn, to listen, or to perform. Call ahead if you are coming from far away
since performances or special meetings may be scheduled a few times a year on
regular meeting nights.
I, Marge Diamond began playing dulcimer twenty-seven
years ago. Without any musical background, but with tons of enthusiasm, I
passed through the beginner stage. Progress was slow and quite painful at
times, but persistence began to pay off. By attending dulcimer workshops when
ever possible and hanging out with other musicians I began to pick up some
technique, learned to keep a fairly good beat, and began making a few fiddle
tunes my own.
Learning to play was an amazing thing for me, but then there are the
fantastic people I have met along with the tunes. I just would never have
believed that adults could come together to share music and have so much fun.
There is nothing to compare. For twenty-seven years I have been doing this, and
it still feels new and fresh. I am still learning. There is love shared with
the learning of the music.
Currently Marge plays with The Oberlin Dulcimer Group and Dulci-More. Marge has performed and taught Dulcimer
workshops since 1987. She has been on hand teaching and performing at all of
the Dulci-More festivals, at most of the Fort New
Salem Festivals, at several of the Kent State Folk Festivals, and has been on
hand for some of the COFF festivals. Since retirement in 2003 Marge has been
pursuing her love of making art. With her business, Winsome Expressions, she makes airbrushed music themed shirts,
"Ultimate Totes", and other items for sale. Marge has one recording, Beyond Cabbage. which has
occasionally been available on CD.
Janet Harriman is a Dulci-More member who moved from Alliance, OH to North
Chili, NY a few years ago. On her own as a Dulci-More
member and as a member of Humours ’n Hammers, she has
been presenting hammered dulcimer workshops at Dulci-More
Festivals for several years. Beyond the hammered dulcimer, she has also
regularly played flute with Dulci-More and with Humours ’n Hammers.
Janet has always
loved music, and began her journey into its beauty and intricacies as a young
child, as there was always music around her in the home. Sixth grade found her
beginning flute in school, and from that she taught herself to play piano. High
school and college furthered her skills. Since that time she has played piano
for church singing, choirs, solos, and small groups. She has participated in
community bands and orchestras, as well as small folk music groups. She has
taught music in schools, and learned to play many instruments. It was in 2002
that she first heard the Hammered Dulcimer, and it was "Love at First
Hammer!"
She currently writes
and arranges music, as well as performs it, and teaches music, piano, music
theory classes, and workshops at festivals. She has written a book of hymn
arrangements for Hammered Dulcimer, as well as a book of original tunes. Her
latest endeavor has been a book on Music Theory for Hammered Dulcimer players.
She currently plays in "Striking Strings" out of the Eastman Community
Music School in Rochester, NY, (currently her home town) with Mitzie Collins as director.
The Hired Hands are a very local group
for our festival (living about a mile from the festival site) and have attended
some workshops at the festival in the past as well as a couple of Dulci-More meetings over the years. Their preference is for
Scottish music (with some Irish and other Celtic music mixed in). Dulci-More Festival 15 was the first time that some of the
group members gave workshops at a festival, and they were back for Dulci-More Festival 16, 17, 18 (featured in an evening
concert that year), and 19. They also played for the Dulci-More
Concert series in December of 2012. They are returning for Dulci-More
Festival 20. These sisters from the Miller family include:
Allison Miller began her musical
career at age three with Suzuki piano lessons under the tutelageof
Carol Wunderle and although she continued to play
piano for the next thirteen years, she picked up the harp at age fourteen and
began to explore the traditional music scene. She attended workshops at the
Ohio Scottish Arts School and, after completing an undergraduate degree in
biology, had the opportunity to pursue post-graduate studies in Clarsarch (Scottish small harp) and Scot's Song at the
Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in Glasgow, Scotland. Allison taught
with the Comhaltas coinin
Erin group in Scotland, has taught both privately and publicly in America, and
has appeared in concert in Scotland, Canada, and at multiple venues in the
States. She and Sairey play as a duo, "The Hired
Hands,' and they released their first CD, Something, in the spring of 2009. She
has her Doctorate in Physical Therapy and hopes to bring both good tunes and
ergonomic playing techniques to the field. She has competed extensively and has
been awarded the title of National Scottish Harp Champion of America after
winning the 2012 National Scottish Harp Competition.
Sairey
Miller has studied the Suzuki piano method under Mary Louise Foster for ten
years, and discovered her love of traditional music when she began to play harp
at age eight. She has taken workshops at the Ohio Scottish Arts School, at the
2007 Edinburgh International Harp Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland, and has had
the privilege of studying under such diverse musicians as Sue Richards, Ann Heymann, and Sharon Knowles of the US, Wendy Steward, Catriona McKay, and William Jackson of Scotland, and Robin Huw Bowen of Wales. She has completed two Bachelor’s
Degrees in Biology and Philosophy and is currently pursuing Graduate School as
a Physician Assistant. Sairey was awarded the title
of National Scottish Harp Champion of America after winning the 2008 National
Scottish Harp Competition.
Laura Miller has studied the Suzuki
piano method under Mary Louis Foster since age six, and picked up the violin at
age 10. She attended the Ohio Scottish Arts School and was duly converted to
the realm of traditional music -- she now plays only Scottish, Irish,
Quebecois, and Welsh fiddle tunes. Since 2005, she has studied under fiddle
masters Andre Brunet of Quebec, Anna Wendy Stevenson and Mike Vass of Scotland,
and Ed Pearlman of Maine, and she has competed at the Ohio Scottish Games, the
Ligonier Highland Games in Pennsylvania, and also at the 2010 National Fiddle
Competition in Virginia. She is currently playing with small folk groups and
enjoying the college music scene where she is studying Liberal Arts at Wyoming
Catholic College in Lander, Wyoming.
Micah Miller has studied the Suzuki
piano method under Mary Louis Foster for the past nine years and picked up the
Anglo concertina in 2005. With the concertina she is mainly self-taught,
learning tunes by listening to CDs and playing with her sisters. In addition,
however, she has had the chance to take workshops with brilliant concertina
players such as Grainne Hambly,
Caroline Keene, and Frank Edgley. The lighthearted
tone of her concertina may be heard on several tracks on the family CD and she
often joins her sisters onstage. She plays many local gigs and sessions, most
recently being involved in a musical recording project for Christendom College
in Front Royal, VA, where she is currently studying.
Maggie Miller began playing the piano
at age 6 and found her niche in the traditional music scene when she picked up
the tin whistle two years ago. She enjoys performing with the family band and
has attended tin whistle workshops at the Celtic Roots Festival in Goderich, Ontario. Depending upon the tune, Maggie will
pull out a multitude of smaller penny whistles, the Irish low whistle, piano,
or percussion...so listen out for some amazing diversity of tones during the
program!
Jeanne McDougall from
Bob and Jeanne are
old friends and life partners who share a love of music and history -- which
they love sharing with others!
Jeanne is
from eastern
Projects include:
It Happened at the White House (2007) -- A selection of
traditional American tunes prepared for storyteller Lynn Ruehlmann's
dramatic presentation of true stories of the lives of the eight
The
Musical Virginiana,
Vol. 1: Stories from the Rappahannock and Potomac (2008) -- Music from the previous two projects, in
the first of a series of music from our home state of
Homemade Music (2009) -- Based on the program Bob has taught for
many years to help students of all ages to learn some of the fundamentals of
music, combined with songs from Jeanne's repertoire – a gift for your family
from ours.
The Day Kikotan Became
Hampton (2010)
-- Part of the 400th anniversary of the founding of
Shipmates (2010-2012)
-- A nautical trip through a collection of traditional and original maritime
songs, with two more adaptations of nautical poetry by C. Fox Smith, including
the title track.
“The Prints They All Tell Us:” National Song
Selections from 1810 to 1821 (2011) -- A collection of newspaper songs that
appeared in American publications during the long war of 1812, prepared for the
Created Equal (2012-2013) – a musical
setting and video adapted from the Gettysburg Address, with a study guide, for
the 150th anniversary of the address, November 2013.
“Fit to be sung in Streets:” Political song in
British Colonial
Gary & Toni Sager are from
Waverly, Ohio. They performed and did workshops for us at Dulci-More
Festivals 12-19, as well as vending with Prussia Valley Dulcimers Acoustic
Music Shop and are back again to do all of those things for Dulci-More
Festival 19.
Toni has been playing the autoharp for
about nine years, after getting an Oscar Schmidt as a Christmas present. She
had seen a lady playing one at the Fraley Mountain Music Festival at Carter
Caves State Resort in Ky. and fell in love with the instrument. Toni mostly
plays chord style as she plays along with husband Gary, who plays the mountain
dulcimer. She has taught beginner workshops at several regional festivals. She
really enjoys getting folks started on the autoharp. Toni and Gary have done
occasional performances at several dulcimer festivals. Their recently released
recording of instrumentals, Rats in the Fence Corner, features them with appearances
by Doug Felt and Stephen Seifert.
Linda Sigismondi is a mountain
dulcimer player and folksinger from Gallipolis and director of the Fort New
Salem Dulcimer Festival. Her music includes traditional Appalachian tunes,
traditional and contemporary folk music, and some original compositions that
feature environmental themes. She has five mountain dulcimer books: Appalachian
Ballads & Songs, Songs from Canal Days, Christmas
Songs, Celtic Tunes, and Old Time and Fiddle Tunes.
Linda has released a recording, Songs
from Canal Days, with Bill Schilling and has companion
recordings for her other books. She also plays guitar, Native American flute, Kratz zither, and MacArthur harp.
Linda has taught workshops and performed at many folk music festivals in West
Virginia, Ohio, and New York. Linda has played at Fort New Salem, West
Virginia, for the Harvest and Christmas Festivals for many years. She is a Dulci-More member, attending a few activities a year even
though she lives in Gallipolis. She has won many competitions at Roscoe Village
Dulcimer Days and other competitions. Linda has been part of all of our Dulci-More Festivals.
The Smokin Fez Monkeys is a modern jug band that puts the fun
back into music again. They play a wacky mixture of songs and tunes from
several decades ago, mixed in with a number of snappy original ones written by
a few of the band members. There are more than a few surprises along the way.
It’s a sort of a ragtime-cartoon-Vaudeville-circus-hobo-gypsy-jazz thing.
Tim Wallace is a
well-known northeast Ohio singer and songwriter mostly known for his
intelligently funny songs. Tim is a veteran of the Kent State Folk Festival and
a winner of two songwriting contest at the Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield
KS in 2006. Tim sings with a rich, deep voice and plays a variety of
instruments including jug, banjo/guitar, slide whistle and various noisemakers.
Monkeyname:Bullfrog Willie Plunkett
Holly Overton is one
of the real musicians in the group. She plays fiddle extraordinarily well. A
classically trained violinist, she has a great sense of music and always finds
just the right thing to make a song really pop. She will surprise you with
exquisite vocal work. Monkeyname: Princess Petunia
Lee Petalbottom
Bill Drake is the
percussionist of the group, but he’s also a multi-instrumentalist (great guitar
player), and singer. Bill plays a whole collection of drums, bells, blocks,
washboard, and pretty much anything you can put on a stick. That's right. A
stick. A jinglestick, to be precise. Bill has a great
solid feel for the rhythm of the tunes. Think Spike Jones! Monkeyname:
Gnarly Snag
Jim Stone is the
other half of the rhythm section on upright bass. Jim also wears many hats: Fedora,
cowboy, derby, etc. Occasionally the band will let him play guitar, too. Monkeyname: Uh, Clem
Mark Sherepita is the other songwriter in the group. He’s no
longer officially in the group, but often joins us at shows. His style fits
perfectly with the jug band genre. His songs are also very interesting and
funny in a twisted sort of way. Mark also sings and plays a resonator guitar,
harmonica, trombone, and scary percussion instruments. Monkeyname:
Rattletrap Jack Hokum
The members of the Smokin Fez Monkeys come from around northeastern Ohio. They
played for Dulci-More Festival 14.
Square Thirteen is
named for a block of real estate in historic downtown Lancaster, Ohio. It is
the place where General William Tecumseh Sherman and Senator Thomas Ewing grew
up, and it communicates our desire to connect with history both instrumentally
and with our songwriting.
The band came
together from different perspectives, each having been forged in varying
musical fires: Craig Heath has a background in gospel music. Laura Elder comes
from the Celtic music world. Jeff Branham comes from a well-known bluegrass
tradition. Barbie, our newest member has a diverse background in vocal
harmonies. Their album, Simple Song fuses acoustic guitars, a mountain
dulcimer, and an electric bass with unique vocals for a beautiful and
interesting mountain sound. Snow Globe is their new Cd
featuring both original and traditional Christmas music.
The members of
Square Thirteen are from the Lancaster area. Laura performed and di workshops for Dulci-More
Festival 18 as part of Evening Rose. Laura and Jeff did an extended open stage
segment for Dulci-More Festival 19.
Stringed Fantasy
Stringed Fantasy returns from the
Canton-Massillon and beyond area. Current members include Rosalind Wilson, Alma
Houston, Greg Zuder, Linda Hill, and Sue Wheeler with
hammered dulcimer, guitar, folk harp, violin, recorder, accordion, percussion,
etc. They enjoy playing Celtic, folk, civil war era, and a variety of music.
Several are Dulci-More members and some are members
of the Canton Folk Song Society. Sue and Roz started
giving workshops at Dulci-More Festival 2, and
Stringed Fantasy has been with us for Dulci-More
Festivals 3-11, 14, 15, 18 & 19.
Adam Sutch
and Sutch Sounds will return this year from Daisytown
Sutch
Sounds performed at Dulci-More Festivals 12, 14, 15,
17, 18, & 19.
Alice Whitehill is a Dulci-More member from Hookstown,
PA. She has been a part of all Dulci-More Festivals.
Alice sings and plays dulcimers, autoharps, guitars, and more. She is often
joined in performance by Earl Whitehill (her
husband), Rachel Huff (her daughter), Deb or Kristi Boyd, or others. She also
leads the Dulcimer Players of the Upper Ohio Valley. She and Earl have won a variety
of competitions at Roscoe Village Dulcimer Days. Alice sells musical
instruments and supplies as Stitches & Strings and is a vendor at this Dulci-More Festival.
Additional Workshops by Tom Ball, Mary-Jo Ward, Dulci-More Members (Jim Miller, Kathy
& Richard Small), Festival Vendors
Performers & Performance Order
Subject to Change as Needed
Festival Vendors
Alice Whitehill (Stitches
& Strings)
Alice Ann Whitehill will be back
again for Dulci-More Festival 18 with stock from Stitches
and Strings. Alice expects to have a variety of instructional, song, and
tune books for different instruments. She will also have accessories including
strings, stands, electronic tuners and tuning clips, picks, and more. Alice
also has several instruments in the shop including lap dulcimers and Oscar
Schmidt guitars and autoharps. Alice is a Dulci-More
member and has been a part of all of our Dulci-More
Festivals. Alice has regularly contributed prizes for our Name That Old Time
(or Other) Tune Contest and will do so again this year.
Lynn McLeish
Lynn will have a selection of home made and other musical
accessories available for festival attendees. This is her sixth time vending at
a festival, but she was in charge of our Dulci-More
Festival kitchen for Festivals 13 & 14 and is once again a key part of the
planning and working group for this year’s festival.
Prussia
Valley Dulcimers Acoustic Music Shop
Gary and Toni Sager were with us for the first time at Dulci-More Festival 12 and this will be their ninth year
with us. They have been vending at festivals around the country for several
years with the Prussia Valley Dulcimers that Gary makes and many other
products. After years of doing that, they also opened their Prussia Valley Dulcimers Acoustic Music
Shop in Waverly, Ohio a couple of years ago with a full stock of folk
instruments, books, recordings, and accessories. The shop is located at 122
North Market Street, Waverly, OH 45690; 740-941-1271.
Paul Conrad is from Holmes County, Ohio. He started
building mountain dulcimers for a while in the mid 70s, and he returned to
building them in 2005. He mixes woods in visually stimulating patterns on some
of his dulcimers to give them a unique look. He has taken his dulcimers to
several festivals. This is Paul’s seventh time at a Dulci-More
Festival.
Marge Diamond will be back with Winsome Expressions including airbrushed music themed shirts and
other items for sale. Look for her latest "Ultimate Totes" with music
themes. Marge is based in
Contact Bill Schilling by e-mail.
Return to
Bill Schilling's Home Page.
Links to Other Home Pages Developed by Bill
Schilling
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Contact Information
Bill Schilling, Dulci-More Festival
Director
234-564-3852
234-564-DULC