Folk School Day 3 - Music and Dancing

Waiting for the Breakfast Bell

Tuesday shined bright and hot, with a humidity that belied the thunderstorms to come that evening.  However, after a morning fog burned off the day itself was sparkling and blue - a perfect day for learning new songs on the music studio's wraparound porch.

Today we progressed from the two tunes we had already learned in G-major tuning to a fun little song in G-modal, or sawmill to the great unwashed.  While my thumb is beginning to behave properly, the f-chord in both tunings is giving me trouble.  As with any chord form, it will simply take time for my fingers to learn where to go without my having to think about it - a day I look forward to as there is a distinct f-chord in one of the songs we are to perform on Friday.

Kelischek Playing the
Bossanova Recorder

After class I joined a group touring the nearby shop of Michael Kelischek, a German immigrant who has more musical knowledge in his little pinky than I ever hope to attain in my whole life.  Herr Kelischek makes woodwind and string instruments in his home and shop only a mile or so from the school.  His shop is a wonder to see in itself, boasting hundreds of different instruments - all of which Herr Kelischek can play effortlessly.  He is a wonder to listen to and quite hilarious at times, especially when he plays the massive six-foot tall bass recorder he hides in one corner (shown here).  He has invented a new instrument to replace that one, with a sinuous channel inside which reduces the overall length of the instrument to a little more than 16 inches.  He had several novel instruments, including a three-hole recorder that could play all the notes of a traditional recorder but with only three finger holes, leaving his other hand free to beat the rhythm.  He also played for us his viola de gamba, an interesting cello-like instrument that is held by the knees and which has movable frets made of catgut.  The idea of movable frets was a novel one to me and the tinkerer in me envisioned a fretless banjo set up the same way - allowing for chromatic tuning like a mountain dulcimer.  We hated to leave and were so curious to learn more that some of us returned on another day just to hear him speak more about the instruments that he loves.

The Two Linked Cabins

After dinner I took some time to walk around the school, taking pictures of various buildings and studios.  Shown here are two cabins, joined by a common roof, which Olive Campbell had moved to the school shortly after its founding.  One still contains the furniture and sparse decorations of a turn-of-the-century cabin.  Sadly, maintenance of these cabins is costly and they are not open to the public.  It's my hope that someone will find a grant to bring them back to proper condition and maybe even hold a few classes within.  The rest of the campus is a wonder to see, especially if your chosen class is limited to one area such as ours was.  Had I not explored I would have missed much.  It's worth the time and the sweat to do so if ever you're there.

Circle Dancing

After another sumptuous dinner it was time for dancing.  Every Tuesday night at the Folk School they hold a directed dance event that is popular enough to attract some local folk as well as the students.  The night held time for many dances - square dances, contra dancing, even some line dances that trace their history back to Great Britain before the founding of the United States.  I had the pleasure to sit next to a couple originally from Wales at lunch and seeing that I was wearing my kilt that day, they told me it would be a true crime if I did not dance a little and send the kilt pleats swishing.  I grudgingly obliged and ended up having a great time of it - eliciting many curious stares from some of the local children.  I'm sure my wife will attest to the rarity of my dancing so it was a noteworthy event regardless.

After dancing I retired to my cell (in the charming monastic sense, not as in a penitentiary) and collapsed in exhaustion.  It wasn't hard to sleep after all the dancing, and the rumbling of thunderstorms lulled me even deeper down into dreams of dancing and drop-thumb.

"A great instrument does not sound great because of the wood, it is in spite of the wood."  - Herr Kelischek speaking as to why he makes most of his recorders of materials other than wood.