CMW Fiddle Lab plays for a dance

Here is a one minute glance at Providence Youth Arts Collaborative's (PYAC) Youth Arts Day, called Roots and Rituals, on May 22, 2010. In this clip you see the moment after Fiddle Lab students from Community MusicWorks taught and demonstrated the Seven Step dance, then joined the group on stage to play while the audience members danced along. Check out the key change halfway through!

June Fiddling Celebration & Community Dance: photos (& what's not in them)

Top 3 things I'd like to show in pictures, but I've only got in memory:

1. students passing a block of rosin down the front row where they were sitting right before the performances began, making sure everyone had some on his/her bow

2. high school students leading younger students through our bow games, then, without being asked, leading those students in improvisation

3. students coaxing their parents, siblings, and friends into dancing "just one more dance"

dances of all shapes and sizes

May was happily a busy dance month for me, starting out with a surprise gig at the Brown Spring Fling:

the next week I took part in the 2nd annual South County open band dance -- now just imagine this number of people also on stage in the band!

Then there was a visit to Little Rhody Vasa Park in Foster with the Cicadas. There we saw a couple who are contra dancing their way through all 50 states!

A trip to Rehoboth (or the Ox Dance, revisited)

Last night, we traveled to Rehoboth, MA, to dance and play with the Rehoboth Jammers. The jammers meet each week to play, and once a month the jam turns into a potluck & dance. We had the chance to dance in many formations and experience a different caller for almost every dance. After an hour of all this moving around, we took out the fiddles and played along with the jammers to Keith Murphy's Evergreen waltz. Thanks to everyone who helped us keep that steady beat! Here we are dancing to the Ox Dance.



Favorite parts of the night, from students and parents:
"the ox dance, because it was funny and goofy"
"the dance where we kept changing partners"
"at first I was getting my rights and lefts confused, but it got easier after a while"
"playing our violins with them"
"they were good people"
"they helped us sound a lot better"

Elixir

On Friday, 4/16, Fiddle & Dance Project families and I hopped on a bus to visit with Community MusicWorks and experience a CMW workshop led by Elixir (these guys in the photo, plus Peter Barnes!). Nils (with the trombone) called and led us through some introductory dances with HUGE circles of students, parents, siblings, and teachers. We had a chance to hear Elixir's unique contradance sound and play along with them on the tune, "Reverend Brothers".
Here is what students had to say on the bus ride home:
"I liked the music because it made me happy"
"I liked the style of dancing -- it makes you comfortable with anybody."
"The piano was awesome."
And many more students "liked the dancing"! Looking forward to some more dancing next month.
I forgot to charge my camera battery for this one, but hopefully I'll get some other photos linked up here soon.

Tunes on Main St

The whole vibe was wonderfully positive throughout the evening of our Fiddle & Dance Project benefit night at the Village Restaurant. And musically, it was magical with the Gnomes (minus one),



French Roast (with a Cajun twist),



and the Bourbon Boys. Cathy and Michelle even stepped in for a 3-fiddle version of Red Haired Boy!



Over 40 people came over the course of the evening to support the work, listen (and dance) to the tunes, and enjoy delicious plantains! Thank you to everyone who participated and helped make the night a success.

In April's Rhode Island Monthly

Check it out...in this month's RI Monthly magazine