Together: A Maine String Band Weekend
"Where the Ocean Meets the Strings"
Calling all string-players, music lovers, and contradancers!
Tune up your instruments and put on your dancing shoes for a weekend celebration of Maine folk music with some of the best players in New England!
Strung Together is a unique three-day experience that includes community jam sessions, contradances, story-telling, and workshops. This year’s Strung Together is focused on various forms of Maine folk music—music brought to Maine by seafarers, lumberjacks, travelers, and homesteaders that we continue to play and love here in Maine. Come prepared to jam and fall in love with the music of Maine!
Experienced Maine folk music players—including players of Old-Time, Irish, Bluegrass, Quebecois, and Cape Breton music—and contradancers will join this year’s Strung Together, providing opportunities for new and advanced players to learn about and participate in Maine’s rich musical heritage. Players of all instruments and levels are welcome!
Strung Together is held at one of the most beautiful places on the planet—the award-winning Searsport Shores Campground in Searsport, Maine! There is no better place to celebrate and play Maine folk music than where the woods meet the sea at Searsport Shores Campground.
Proceeds will be used for musician scholarships and to help fund the instrument lending project at the Searsport Carver Memorial Library.
For more details, see the Strung Together schedule.
A Good Folkin' Time!
Music Workshops
Learn new skills from some of New England's top players and performers. This year's workshops include:
- Bluegrass Banjo, led by a member of the Peter Rowan Bluegrass Band, Max Wareham
- D-A-D-G-A-D Tuning for TRAD Guitar & GDAD tunings for Tenor, Mando, and Octave, led by one of North America's premiere Irish session players Owen Marshall
- Slow Bluegrass Fiddle, led by bluegrass singer-songwriter Reesa Randolph
- Introduction to Old-Time Ukulele, led by local legend, teacher-musician, and organizer of the Belfast Summer Nights and Annual Ukele Festival Ando Anderson
- Fun Songs, led by long-time musical luminaries Annadeene Fowler and Tom Fowler
- Bluegrass Guitar, led by Max Wareham
- Two finger banjo style with Jon Kerr
- Old Time American Cross- Tuned Fiddle Tunes with Skip Gorman
- Learn a Swedish Fiddle Tune with Benjamin Foss
- Coffee house practice, led by teacher-musicians and fixtures in the local contradance scene John Pranio and Toki Oshima
- OT Circle with the Montville Project
- Old Time Slow Jam with Emily Jeffries
Jam Sessions
Players of various instruments have long been coming together to learn, share, and play tunes through community "jams." The jam circle is a welcoming, participatory environment that allows players to create music, build friendships, and simply have fun together. Bring your instrument and suggestions for tunes to share!
We will be jamming throughout the three days, starting in the morning and continuing well into the evening. Strung Together offers the opportunity to jam with some of New England's top traditional music players.
Experienced instructors will also be on hand to lead slow jams and support new jammers and players. The schedule includes separate jam sessions dedicated to old-time music, Irish music, bluegrass music, as well as "anything goes" open jams.
So, tune up your instrument, toughen up your fingers, and get ready to JAM!
Performances
Alden Robinson
Alden has played the fiddle most of his life. He plays mostly Irish tunes and traditional New England dance music. Alden playsfor concerts, dances (contra and square dances), weddings and other events.
In 2017 he went to Lithuania with my band Riptide on a State Department cultural exchange.
He played with The Press Gang, an Irish trio/quartet (now inactive) that toured in the U.S. and Canada in the 2010s.
Currently Alden enjoys putting together groups for various performances around New England. "I am always grateful for my many musical friends and adventures."
Dancing
Music provides the context for dancing, and so we will dance! No dance experience needed. No dance partner? No problem! Bring your two left feet!
Supported by the locally renowned Belfast Flying Shoes, the contra dance is a highly social, participatory form of community dancing that blends together the styles of English, Irish, Scottish, and French country line dances. Dancers learn a set of simple steps before the music starts and receive support from a "caller" during the dance, allowing all those involved to concentrate on just having fun. When the band sets a groove, the feet get tapping, and the dancers start to whirl, the smiles become contagious. It's no wonder why the contradance tradition has maintained its popularity in communities throughout Maine and New England.
Join the band or join the dancers. Both options are guaranteed fun!
Luthiers
Linden Frederick will be set up all weekend, showcasing some of his new violins/ fiddles which are available for you to play and try out. He also does violin repair and bow re-hairing. Linden's violins are some of the most admired in New England.
Tom Gocze has been trying to play the banjo for 59 years. and has a large collection of different types of five string banjos. His company, Stockton Strings, will be at Strung Along offering instruments for sale on Saturday Sept. 14 from 12-4. Tom offers a range of prices, some parts and bluegrass and Old Time open back styles. He will be showing in public, for the first time, open back top tension Corian tone ring banjos which are completely different from anything made before. Tom also has one which will do double duty as a Charcuterie Board for you Cheese lovers.
You! All Strung Together players are warmly invited to share their musical talents during an evening coffee house performance. Take over the stage and get the camp rockin'! Need a boost of confidence or some tips from pro performers? Join a special workshop to prepare for the coffee house. You won't find a friendly and more supportive audience than at Strung Together!
Thank you to our wonderful sponsors:
