Workshop Hosts
Our workshop Hosts were invited to bring us participative workshops, to offer involvement and learning for musicians at all levels. We encourage guests and performing artists to bring their acoustic instruments and join in.

Workshops
 We are proud to offer a variety of participative workshops again this year at no additional cost to our festival guests. The Hillside and River Workshop Stages are located just inside the park gates. We have alternate workshop venues in Frankford if weather requires.

Workshop times and details will be announced below when confirmed.

Friday June 6th, 2014

Noon - Opening Jam
in the style of the Fellowships monthly Acoustic Song Circle. We hold hosted Jams each day, and encourage guests to bring their acoustic instruments of choice and participate.

1 pm - Blues Soloing with Dave Dexter
  By far the most popular soloing scale for blues and rock is the Pentatonic Minor. This simple 5 note scale is used by virtually every guitar player. It is also the base for major scale soloing as well as the "blues" scale. The scale is easy to learn using 5 diagrams that enable soloing on any part of the neck. Come by and learn the diagrams.

2 pm - Songwriting Seminar with Chris Gauthier from Yorkville Sound
featuring Gibson Acoustic Guitars, sponsored by Harmony Music Plus.
 Chris has years of experience writing, recording and performing music. His workshop will explore some of the methods that are used to create original songs including lyric writing, chord structure and melodic sensibilities. An important part of making music is "tone”. Chris will discuss "tone woods" and what configuration works best for you and your music. Don’t miss this rare opportunity to learn some new tricks and techniques from an industry insider.

3 pm - The Guitar, Ron Nicholas will present an educational history of the development of the guitar from earliest known examples to modern day electric guitar, amplification and their effects. He will speak on construction methods/materials and purpose, as well as display and play examples of instruments and the music used through different time periods. Ron welcomes all audience participation in playing and knowledge throughout the guitar's history.

4 pm - The Song Factory, Tim Campbell from Keynote Studios dons his producers hat, directing musicians who have never played together before, taking rough blues lyrics and in only 45 minutes craft it into a finished work of art.

4 pm - Playing as a Duo Riley & Riley will share some of their secrets about playing as blues duo, deciding which songs to perform, how to rehearse, choice of gear, how to play with feeling, how to get gigs, how to advertize, how make it fun.

5 pm - Harmonica workshop - Al Lerman
Learn the ins and outs of blues harmonica playing from 2X Juno Award Winner Al Lerman. Discover how to play in several keys on one harmonica; how to get a great tone; tongue blocking; tips on improvising. Al will also demonstrate various styles of past masters such as Sonny Boy Williamson, Jimmy Reed, Little Walter, James Cotton and more.

6 pm - Song Writers Forum - With Roger Dorey.
We will be holding a Songwriters forum each afternoon to provide an opportunity for songwriters and performing artists to describe their songwriting process and share their music. Songwriters of all levels of experience are invited to participate in a round-robin narrative forum.

Midnight Campfire Jam - After the final act on the main stage Friday evening we will be hosting an acoustic campfire jam for our volunteers and campers.

Saturday June 7th

 9 am - Chi Kung Demonstration with Sherri Bergman
  At the main stage pavilion.

10 am - Amazing Jam with James Reid.  All kinds of acoustic music in a ‘song circle’ format. Bring your instruments, your voices and your music: folk, blues/roots, country, rock and punk. Play a song or pass to your neighbor. It’s all unplugged and it’s all good.
  James hosts the Amazing Jam at the Black Dog Family Restaurant in Stirling one Sunday each month. Contact him at [email protected] or 613 395 3257.

11 am - Songwriters Forum with Roger Dorey
  Roger hosts the Fellowships monthly Electric Coffee House Blues. He is a prolific poet and songwriter and welcomes other writers to share and discuss their methods, motivations, inspirations and influences. Whether you are an experienced songwriter, or still working on your first, this workshop is for you.

11 am - Improvisational Comedy with Kingston's LMA'OK troupe.
 Bring your "ham" to the tent, play some "who's line is it" games and let him loose. The emphasis is on laughter "at us or with us". Get your laugh on with LMA'OK.

1 pm - Putting Tube Tone Theory into Practice.
 Stephen Cohrs and Chris Moir from Trinity Amps discuss basic vacuum tube theory, what distinguishes tone and what can be done to modify your amp to get that tone. With the help of Shawn Dore playing a Trinity Amp Tramp, they will demonstrate how changes to cathode bypass; boost; negative feedback; bright cap and voltage changes manifest themselves in tonal changes. They will show you where to look in your amp for the parts you need to modify to get your tone, followed by a demonstration of the Trinity Amp lineup.

2 pm - Understanding the Harmonica Tips and Techniques
 Tony Vani will introduce beginners to the harmonica, and offer more advanced techniques to those who already play,  including scales, bending, tongue-blocking techniques, amplified playing, trills, harmonica positions, and overblows.  A harmonica in the key of C will be primarily used in this workshop. Guests will be able to purchase a C harmonica at the festival.

3 pm - Boogie Woogie Piano - Ross MacLachlan (aka The Ragtime Kidd) will showcase a history of boogie-woogie piano beginning late 1920s. He will demonstrate the works of artists such as Meade Lux Lewis, Pine Top Smith, Albert Ammons, Pete Johnson and others. Ross will also provide examples how boogie-woogie influenced other forms of music for many years to come.

3 pm - The National Guitar Story with Sonny Slide Maddams.
 This workshop will explore the musical impact these intriguing instruments have made from their inception in the 1920s to present day. Music will be demonstrated on a collection of National guitars.

4 pm - Advancing the Blues with Dan Deslauriers.
 Dan has many years of experience playing a wide range of musical styles, although his passion is the blues. In this workshop, he will demonstrate how to take traditional blues concepts in a new direction by applying other genres and styles to them. Participants will also explore advanced songwriting concepts and melody construction. This workshop will encourage blues artists to develop their own unique sounds and styles.

4 pm The Secrets of a Blues Duo - Riley & Riley
This accomplished blues duo will play some of their tunes while sharing some of their secrets about how they formed as a blues duo, how they decide which songs to perform, how to rehearse, choice of gear, how to play with feeling, how to get gigs, how to advertize, how to have fun.
Audience participation is encouraged.

5 pm -Bass Guitar - Dawson McManus
 A multi instrumentalist, singer/song writer, that specializes in bass guitar, Dawson studied jazz performance at Mohawk College and has toured Western North America from California USA to Manitoba Canada. Join him for a discussion on building walking bass lines, must know grooves, and how to personalize your sound.

5 pm - Bottleneck Slide Blues Guitar with Matt Smith - Roots, Blues, World and Beyond bottleneck slide guitar. Showcasing delta blues open tunings, Hybrid fingerstyle guitar and "behind the slide" techniques.

6 pm - The Music Biz - Help from Erin McCallum
 Are you a musician looking to take it to the next level? Singer/Songwriter, bandleader and multi instrumentalist Erin McCallum talks about what aspiring musicians can do to align themselves for success in the music business. Designed as an interactive workshop, musicians are welcome to bring their questions about taking music as a business to the next level, no matter what level they are at!

Midnight Campfire Jam - After the final act on the main stage Saturday evening we will be hosting an acoustic campfire jam for our volunteers and campers.

Sunday June 8th

9:30 am Gospel Sing Along, the Lenses.(Main Stage)
Bring your voices and start Sunday with some spirit.

10 am Wake up Jam, with Julie Young and friends.
 Maybe you are still awake from last night? Body doesn’t quite fit right? Then come and slowly, but surely, get into the groove for another great blues day.

Noon - Dylan, Blues and God - with Brett Mann
 Guests are invited to play and discuss the spiritual/Gospel/blues music of Bob Dylan through the years emphasizing his "Christian period," but also on his whole life and work.

1 pm - Delta Blues with Shawn Dore
 Learn some history behind some of the great blues legends that started it all down in the Mississippi Delta. Shawn will explore some of the delta blues music and guitar techniques that were made famous almost a century ago, and have stood the test of time.

2 pm - Songwriters Forum with Roger Dorey
 Roger hosts the Fellowships monthly Electric Coffee House Blues. He is a prolific poet and songwriter and welcomes other writers to share and discuss their methods, motivations, inspirations and influences. Whether you are an experienced songwriter, or still working on your first, this workshop is for you.

2 pm - Foundations Youth Centre with Colleen MacAllister
 Foundations demonstrates that there is an alternative to the destructive street lifestyle. Staff and youth will be there to entertain you and discuss how Foundations Youth Centres provide safe places for youth to gather in an atmosphere of mutual kindness and respect.
“Hot soup and cool music” is a common thread through all of the SDF work. Literally thousands of youth and adults have experienced both in the last 18 years.

3 pm - Blues Guitar Pedal Clinic with Bruce Cudmore from Riverside Music
  Bruce has been playing guitar and writing songs for almost four decades. He will demonstrate how to use pedals for looping and adding specific sounds on different parts of a song on the fly while playing.