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News-Blog
News-Blog entries are updated every month or two. Be sure to check back for the latest information!
Be sure to visit the Photo Album page of this site! There are many photos that go along with these blog entries.
July 2007
The state of Indiana has many great music festivals, and I have been attending quite a few of them recently! In June I went to Indy Jazzfest and I enjoyed listening to Regina Carter and her quintet. Regina is a well known jazz violinist who I had met at the Jazz Cooker (a restaurant in Broad Ripple, Indiana) earlier on the day of her performance. She spoke with myself and some other violinists/fiddlers about the intricacies of playing jazz on the violin. I'll post a photo soon on my album page of Regina and I.
After enjoying the smooth sounds of Regina's jazz, I drove up to the Indiana Fiddler's Gathering, in Battleground, Indiana. It was delightful to hear the various groups who performed. I especially liked a group from Vermont called "Nightengale." The fiddler of the group, Becky Tracy, plays a variety of types of music, including, among other things, Quebecois, and Irish tunes. Her CD, Evergreen, is very good, and it even includes a Swedish polska!
Most recently I have been attending concerts that are a part of the Indianapolis Early Music Festival. Of the several concerts offered, I have been to three. The first was performed by "Hesperus," the second by "The Boston Camerata," and the third was by "Voice of the Turtle." I enjoyed hearing "fiddles" like the rebec and vielle. Music of the medieval and renaissance periods has interested me since my tour to Quebec last autumn. The Quebecois group that I had played with, "Cordaphone," played French music from those periods. Since then I have gotten in contact with some early music experts to find out as much as I can. From what I have heard and observed, there are many similarities in the playing of that music and contemporary Norwegian fiddling.
Besides continuing with teaching students at Frank's Violins in Broad Ripple, Indiana, I began in June to teach at a second location. I now have several additional students at Violins 4 U in Greenwood, Indiana. So, I actually have students from both the north side of Indianapolis as well as the south side! Here is a link for Frank's Violins: http://www.franksviolins.com/ and a link to the Violins 4 U website: http://www.violins4u.com/
Next week I will be performing and attending music events in Wisconsin. From July 19 until July 21 I will be at the Hardanger Fiddle Association workshops at Folklore Village, near Dodgeville, Wisconsin. On July 22 I will be playing at the Fennimore United Methodist Church in memory of my grandmother, Una Beetham. Although she died in 1991 people in Southern Wisconsin still remember her due to her professional work as a musician and artist. In her youth she played violin, saxophone, and she sang as well as playing piano and organ. At one point in her life she chose to focus on piano and organ. Her oil paintings depicted historical events from Southern Wisconsin. Many of her paintings were based on her childhood memories. However, she was most famous for her portraits, especially those of children. It will be very special for me to perform during a service at the church that for so many years had been a part of her musical and spiritual life.
Once I drive from Fennimore I will go to Oshkosh, Wisconsin for the "Airventure." This air show is the largest in the world, and it draws thousands of people every year. I will be performing a concert there along with concerts performed by internationally famous bands like "The Beach Boys." There is also the possibility that I will play a second concert in Oshkosh. There has been a request that I have another concert in honor of my grandmother, her music, and her art. I'll keep you posted!
May 2007
The weather is so beautiful and sunny in Indiana that it is difficult to work on the computer! The outdoors is calling! However, I also want to fill you in on what I've been doing. I had a lot of fun when I went to Pennsylvania recently to play at Ole Bull State Park. In order to understand why I played there, it is important to know a little history about Ole Bull and the park.
Ole Bull lived in the mid to late 1800s. He was the first internationally famous musician from Norway. He made tours in America, where people flocked to see him play the violin. He was the Elvis of his day. He was given the nickname "The Norwegian Paganini." Bull loved America, and he came up with a plan to bring other Norwegians to a community that he would start there. He bought land in Pennsylvania, sight unseen, from an American.
There were many mountains and pine forests in this area of Pennsylvania, which made the place seem similar to Norway. Bull was so charasmatic and famous, that many Norwegians followed him there. Bull began to build the foundation for his personal cabin on top of a large hill that overlooked the new Norwegian communities below. However, not long after the Norwegians arrived and began clearing the land, they found that it was very difficult to farm there. They only lasted a year before most of the Norwegians migrated westward, to Wisconsin. This clearly must have been a great disspointment to Bull, who certainly had great dreams for the Norwegians in Pennsylvania.
Ole Bull State Park is named after the great violinist. It is still possible to see the foundation of his cabin that was never built. A small monument has been sent from Norway to commemorate Bull. The area where Ole Bull enticed Norwegians to settle has long been a legend in Norway. A funny song has been written about his misfortune with his short-lived community, and many musicians in Norway know the song even today.
I performed at the outside stage for a great crowd of people at the park. Most of the folks in the audience were from the local area. When I asked them if they knew who Ole Bull was, I was surprised to hear that they assumed it was an old American Indian who had lived there named "Old Bull." Many of these people had lived in the area for years. They were glad to learn about Ole Bull and the actual history of the area that involved him. The audience was very warm and receptive, and the park staff were really a delight to talk with. Mary Hirst, who is in charge of the park, was quite impressive with her knowledge of the wildlife and history of the local area. We spoke quite a long time after the concert, and she told me some amusing stories about Bigfoot hunters who had visited the park.
Besides my fun in the mountains of Pennsylvania, I also played at the Indiana State Museum for a number of performances recently. The first peformance was done in the museum auditorium, which has excellent acoustics. Many of my fiddle and violin students attended the concert, and it was wonderful to see them there! I also got to meet new friends who came to see me play for the first time, including a man who was visiting Indiana from Norway. It was very nice to speak with him in Norwegian!
The last several performances at the Indiana State Museum were held as a part of the Indiana Performing Arts Festival. I enjoyed meeting other musicians who played there. I especially liked listening to the Lathans, who play Irish music. We played for large numbers of school kids during the weekdays. On Mother's Day we had a nice performance with all of the musicians in the museum auditorium. The museum is a wonderful place to find out about Indiana history. It is located next to a canal, and it is very pleasant to walk outside of the museum along the canal. To find out more about the museum, you can visit their website at: http://www.state.in.us/ism/
Now I'm looking forward to the next annual H.F.A.A. workshops that will take place in July at Folklore Village, in Wisconsin. There will be a lot of good music, and lots of fun socializing with others who have a great love for Norwegian music!
February 2007
Well, things have been pretty hectic the past couple of months! I played for holiday concerts during that time. One such occasion is particularly memorable. I performed in Bloomington, Indiana where many listeners crowded around me after my performance in order to ask lots of questions about the Hardanger fiddle! It was a well educated crowd, and they had many, interesting questions.
During January I started teaching lessons at Frank's Violins in Broad Ripple. Broad Ripple is in the northeastern part of Indianapolis. The lessons I give are in Norwegian and Norwegian-American fiddling, as well as violin. I have a great number of students, and they range from as young as four years old on up to older adulthood. Giving lessons in a music store makes it very convenient for students when they need to buy a new book or equipment. New students can rent an instrument at Frank's. The location of the store is really great too. Broad Ripple is a trendy district, and there are good restaurants and a health food store literally next door to our shop.
Besides teaching lessons, I'm also learning tunes. For the past year I have been driving to Bloomington, Indiana to meet with Brad Leftwich, an American old-time fiddle master. After I've lived in Norway for so long, and after focusing so much on Norwegian-American fiddling, it is so nice to learn about the American old-time tradition. Brad has been teaching about fiddlers, particular tunes, and bowings. He has done such a great job of analyzing bowing patterns that I have started looking at both Norwegian and Norwegian-American bowing patterns more analytically. By learning about the American old-time tradition it helps me to know what elements Norwegians adopted from the American repertoire after immigrating. Also, it is fun to learn the music simply because it is a great tradition in it's own right!
November 2006
I am excited to tell you about the recent CD release concert and party for my new Looking Back CD. It was held on November 4th on the property of the Vesterheim Norwegian American Museum in Decorah, Iowa. Decorah is in the northeastern corner of Iowa, and it is an area where many Norwegians settled. If you get anywhere near that area of Iowa you really must visit the Vesterheim! It is a wonderful museum, with excellent collections of Norwegian furniture, folk art (including weaving, wood carving, folk painted items, etc.), musical instruments, silver, and there is even an outdoor portion of the museum where it is possible to see the buildings and tools that Norwegians built after emigrating.
It was in one of these outside buildings, actually a church, that the concert was held. Bethania Church was moved from a Norwegian settlement area in Northwood, North Dakota. The interior is painted a pale blue, and the basic nature of the church is quite simple, except for the intricate altar and pulpit. This is typical for many Norwegian churches. Best of all for us, the acoustics are wonderful in Bethania Church!
The audience started filing in nearly an hour before the concert was scheduled to begin. By the time the concert started, the whole church was filled, and there were even people sitting on the floor in the back of the church!
I was accompanied by the same musicians who played on the Looking Back CD with me. Three musicians are local to the Decorah, Iowa area. Beth Hoven Rotto played pump organ and harmony fiddle, Jon Rotto played guitar and jaw harp, and Bill Musser played bass. Also joining us from Minnesota was LeRoy Larson, on tenor banjo. LeRoy normally leads the Minnesota Scandinavian Ensemble.
We couldn't have had a more enthusiastic audience. They applauded so much after each tune that it seemed that they wanted an encore after each number! As I gave details about the history behind the tunes that we played, folks took great interest. As I joked chuckles came like waves from the crowd! We had a great time!
Although all of the tunes were well liked, one particular tune stood out. It was a composition of LeRoy's called Waltz for Craig. LeRoy composed it in memory of his late friend, the fiddler, Craig Ruble. It is quite a flashy tune, with chromatic runs on the fiddle. LeRoy dressed it up with wonderful chords on the banjo, and Bill gave a steady bass line. The crowd went wild over that one! When we got thunderous applause Leroy wanted to give me all of the credit for my fiddling, and I wanted to give him all of the credit for his fantastic composition!
At the end of the concert the crowd indicated that they wanted an encore, but I told them that they had to come to the party in order to hear more music! So, we headed over to the main museum building where drinks and snacks awaited us. I was so pleased to meet the audience members there. Many of them had driven from other states, and so many had driven several hours to hear the concert. Several audience members had chosen to come to this concert instead of seeing an internationally known Cajun band that was playing the same night in Rochester, Minnesota. That was a great compliment for me!
Some of the musicians started playing in the lobby of the museum as folks visited with each other. Some of my Lund relatives from Chatfield, Minnesota showed up. After the crowd dwindled down, I invited them to come with the musicians back to the church for some serious jamming. My Aunt Marion sat down at the pump organ and her eyes twinkled as she played along to both familiar and not-so-familiar Norwegian-American tunes. It was a joy to have my family there with us!
Overall, the night was a great success. The Vesterheim did a wonderful job of advertising the event, and there were so many people who came that have a genuine interest in Norwegian-American music. That was an inspiration for me.
The Vesterheim Museum Gift Shop is continuing to sell Looking Back CDs, and the museum will host a special workshop about Norwegian-American music and dancing next spring. I, along with Beth Hoven Rotto, Jon Rotto, Bill Musser, and their fellow band member, Jim Skurdall, will be teaching at the workshop. So, there is more to look forward to in Decorah, Iowa for 2007!
October 2006
Wow, this is a busy month for me! I just got back from Quebec where I was recording for a CD that will be put out by Sylvain Lacroix. (Please read below to find out more about that!) In a few days I will be going to Decorah, Iowa for a CD release concert and party for my own CD, Looking Back. Here is a copy of the postcard invitation about this event.
The Looking Back CDs will be available for sale starting November 4th, the same date as the concert and party. I'm sure that I will have a lot to write about concerning those November events!
Now, I have to write a few words about my October trip to Quebec! It was such a wonderful time! Sylvain Lacroix and his friends were so fun to play music with, and they were all so nice to me! I have a great opinion about Quebec as a result of their kindness and generousity! Tusen tusen takk!!! (A thousand, thousand thanks!) Merci!
I stayed at the home of Gaetan Racine in a little village called Riviere Bleu. Gaetan is a great vocalist, lyricist, guitarist, and bass player. He also is the sound engineer for Sylvain's project. His home studio has the very best recording equipment available.
We were joined by Claude Nadeau, on guitar and recorder. He has a wonderful feel for traditional music on both instruments, and he has such a sweet sound when he plays that recorder! A.J. Bashore, a fellow U.S. citizen, drove from Pennsylvania to add his special dulcimer playing. Besides myself playing fiddle, Michel Dufour also recorded on fiddle, creating very interesting harmony parts. The star of the recording, Sylvain, plays various types of dulcimers, including the epinette des Vosges, an older style of zither from France. He is still in the process of putting the project together, but already it is sounding fantastic! I'm very excited about it!
I was so happy to be asked by Sylvain to extend my stay in Quebec and perform with he and his group, Cordaphone (including Sylvain, Gaetan, Claude, and Norman, a singer, foot stomping fiddler, and mandolin player) at a concert in Montreal. The people really were uplifted by our music as they danced in the aisles! Besides the concert we had a great time jamming together in our free time, and Sylvain, Michel, and I ended up even playing at a bar later in the evening of the concert! I think that we really fit together great as a musical team, and the audience recognized that too.
I enjoy playing the traditional Quebec music on fiddle, and I am determined to go back many times to play with my friends, and to learn gobs of tunes from fiddlers there. (And besides, I miss all of you guys!) It was such a good time that I am eagerly waiting to hear when we will go on tour to share this special music with people in various places. Who knows where we might go? The U.S., other areas in Canada, and maybe even... Norway? Keep reading this blog to find out what happens!
August 2006
This year marks the 150th state fair for Indiana! The fair is a great forum for the public to see traditional arts of many kinds. The group Traditional Arts Indiana arranges the State Fair Fiddle Contest in an effort to display the many types of fiddling found in Indiana. This year the contest was held on August 12th, and, upon the encouragement of a friend, I entered.
There were a total of 38 competitors, and there were three age divisions. The youngest group was comprised of 11 and under. The second group was made up of 12 - 17 years old contestants, and the adult category included ages 18 and older. There were 14 contestants in the adult division.
I had come to the contest not expecting to win anything because Norwegian-American music isn't typically heard in Indiana. I wasn't sure if it would go over well. However, Brad Leftwich, (a well known old-time fiddler from Bloomington) who was one of the judges, had assured me that I should enter because every type of fiddling was welcome. The other judges were past contest winners Olivia Smiley, of Greensburg, and Vi Wickam, of Evansville.
Contestants were asked to play a waltz, a hoe-down, and a tune of their choice. I decided to play a polka in place of a hoe-down since we don't play too many hoe-downs in the Norwegian-American repertoire. Although I played the conventional violin for the waltz and the polka, I played a reinlender on my Hardanger fiddle for the tune of my choice.
After the judges deliberated, I was asked to perform one more tune in a play off with Deb Shebish, a contestant who I had come to know through e-mail prior to our involvement at the state fair. For the play-off, Deb played a rag, and I played a Norwegian pols. I was surprised when the announcer told the crowd that I had won first place!
Besides a very nice trophy plaque I received $200.00 in award money. The Indianapolis Star (newspaper) had photos from the fiddle contest both in the regular paper and on the Indystar.com website, including a picture of my Hardanger fiddle and a photo of my receiving the first place award.
After the contest Deb and I stayed at the fairgounds and ate corn on the cob. We talked about the possibility of playing music together sometime in the near future, and about her recent studies in Scotland. She is a great fiddler, who can play different styles, so I am looking forward to playing music with her in the future!
June 2006
I just got back from Blue Mountain Lake, New York, where the Northeast Dulcimer Symposium took place. It was a wonderful experience to be surrounded by enthusiastic and talented musicians! I taught fiddle students about Norwegian-American and Norwegian fiddling, while Bill Hicks taught about American old-time fiddling. Since we didn't have a big group of students Bill and I decided to teach classes together, which was very interesting and fun! We both learned about each others traditions as we compared and discussed intricacies about both. I think that our "team teaching" approach was a great benefit to the students, who got to hear about the context of the music in ways they probably otherwise wouldn't have.
There was great enthusiasm by all who heard the Norwegian-American music, and quite a lot of interest in my upcoming CD. Not only were the students and audience members (from our concerts) interested in the music, but the teachers were also! I had a great time playing with all of them. Here is a little about each of them!
It was so interesting to listen to Bill Hicks play at our jam sessions, and to see and hear the ways in which he improvises! He has a great amount of skill with that! Rick Thum, on hammered dulcimer, inspired us with his flashy playing at the concert, and provided enthusiasm for anybody who might lack it! Gary Gallier, talented both at composing as well as making instruments, brought his beautiful mountain dulcimers, and shared one of his compositions with me. It was a delight to play "Moon's Tune" with him! Ken Lovelett entertained us with his percussion sculpture, which besides being a work of art is also capable of wonderful music. Libby Hicks was my "dream accompanist." Libby, I can't wait for you to come to Indiana to play more! Just say when! I'd love to go on tour with you and Bill!
Sylvain LaCroix came from Quebec and played mesmerizing tunes from France. My violin fit so wonderfully with his dulcimer. I'll never forget how special it was, and I'm eagerly awaiting the next time we can play the tune about the Marquis. Alf Bashore, from Pennsylvania, shared his composition "Kelli's Waltz" which everyone enjoyed. I simply have to mention the outstanding organizational and management skills of David Moore. David not only put the whole symposium together, but took part in the jam sessions, and continuously showed support for all of the musicians present! Thank you, David, for inviting me to be a part of the symposium, and for all of your efforts! It was a special event, mostly due to you! Thanks also to Elizabeth Moore, David's wife, for a great interest in Scandinavian fiddling, and for taking me out for lunch!
May 2006
Beginning on April 28 and continuing until June 4, I am performing fiddle on stage (in Indianapolis) at the American Cabaret Theatre production of "Always... Patsy Cline." Melissa Schott stars as Patsy Cline, while Vonda Fuhrmann plays the part of a fan who met and befriended Patsy while the country diva was performing in Texas. The show is based on a true story, which makes it not only entertaining but thought provoking as well.
Patsy's band is "The Bodacious Bob-cats," and I, as the fiddler of the band, am known as "Joline-Bob." The music as it was arranged by the shows original director, Ted Swindley, is different from the Decca record versions that Patsy did. Swindley arranged the music to work better for the stage, and he made the fiddle part quite violinistic in some respects. At the same time, it is necessary to play swing rhythms from the "straight" notes written on the page. The fiddle part is really a mixture of genres. I can read the high position parts in the sheet music and I also play by ear, so it was natural for me to take the part.
While it would be impossible for anyone to sound exactly like Patsy Cline, Melissa Schott has a wonderful voice, and she captures the nuances of Patsy's singing. Just as Patsy had male back-up singers in her performances, we also have three cowboys who sing back-up. Adam Chandler, Shawn Whistler, and Aaron Mettey have great voices, and their presentation of the number "How Great Thou Art" (after Patsy's death is eluded to in the show) is very moving.
Audiences have reacted enthusiastically to Patsy Cline's music, and they respond well to our band solos. Many in the audience have come to me after the show telling me how delighted they were with our music! If you are in Indiana while the show is running, then be sure to come see it! For a list of times and dates, see the American Cabaret Theatre Website at www.ACTIndy.org
Thanks to the Indiana radio station Hank FM as well as to our audiences for their support of our show!
April 2006
A lot can happen in a few months! In April I traveled to the Hawaiin Islands, where I performed a few times on deck of the Norwegian Cruise liner known as "Pride of America."
While traveling, I visited an exhibit about traditional Hawaiian music in Hana, Maui. Hana is quite secluded in the tropical rainforest, and the drive to get there, along the coast, is treacherous yet beautiful! Due to the seclusion of Hana, the Hawaiian traditional music has lived on there more than any other place in the islands. I was intrigued by this, since it reminded me of Rauland, the secluded little area in Telemark, Norway, where I studied Norwegian traditional music.
Also, on Maui there are many people of Norwegian heritage. In the 1800s a boat came from Norway to provide workers for the sugar cane fields. It was difficult work, and the Norwegian workers endured terrible conditions. Many of them left to live on the American mainland after their contracts in Hawaii were completed, but a group of them stayed on, and they are the ancestors of Norwegian-Americans who live there today. A marker on the island designates the first Norwegians in Hawaii. To find out more about it, read the May, 2006 issue of The Viking, a Sons of Norway newsletter/magazine.
The Hawaiian people were so friendly that I came quickly to understand the concept of Aloha. I have been in touch with the Maui Arts and Cultural Center, located in Kahului, about the possibility of my performing there in the future. I enjoyed traveling in Hawaii so much that I would greatly look forward to performing in Maui, as well as meeting some traditional musicians from the islands - particularly those from Hana.
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