Folk Boot Camp

2009 Folk Boot Camp

Folk Boot Camp is 6 intensive workshops featuring songwriting, guitar, vocal, and banjo, taught by stellar Festival musicians. The three-day sessions allow the instructor and 15 participants to develop their skills and receive constructive feedback from the instructor and peers.

Folk Boot Camp is geared towards musicians that have a basic grasp of their craft and want to supplement their own studies with guidance from some of the world’s finest musicians.

To register, phone 403-233-0904 or book online

2009 Boot Camp Schedule

Special Lecture Series

July 22
Cantos Music Foundation 134 11 Ave SE
$20 or free with workshop registration

6 pm - Jamaica is a Word with Mutabaruka
8 pm - My Life in the Punk Rock Trenches with Jon Langford and Sally Timms of the Mekons

Blues from the Motherland with Corey Harris

Add some West African flavor to your guitar playing with African blues and original roots reggae artist Corey Harris. Deemed  “one of America’s more vital roots artists, so deep inside himself that he remains uncategorizable,” Harris will cover traditional blues guitar incorporating fingerstyle and slide guitar, as well as traditional Manding (Mali, Guinea) guitar styles. www.myspace.com/coreyharrismusic

Vocal with The Sojourners: Finding Your Voice Through Gospel Music

ALL SPACES FULL - Join Marcus Mosely, Will Sanders and Ron Small of The Sojourners as they examine the history and influence of gospel music from slavery and the church to its present incarnation as modern contemporary gospel and pop. Prepare to learn by doing with a hands on approach to the music of Thomas A. Dorsey, Stevie Wonder and James Bignon. Connect with your inner voice and inform your own musical approach through various styles of harmony. www.thesojourners.ca

Words and Music: The Importance of the Written Word In Songwriting with Justin Rutledge

ALL SPACES FULL  -Justin Rutledge creates songs wherein the word is of the utmost importance.  Even though Rutledge has played with musicians such as Dolly Parton, he has also worked closely with authors such as Michael Ondaatje.  This workshop will focus on the poetry behind the music, and how/why it works.  Discussions will surround songs by some of your favourite wordsmith songwriters, and there will be time allotted for your own penmanship, so be sure to bring your pens. Perhaps you too can create your own "Famous Blue Raincoat" or "Idiot Wind". www.justinrutledge.com

Slide and Fingerstyle Guitar with Steve Dawson

 
ALL SPACES FULL - Award winning producer and multi-instrumentalist Steve Dawson is back with another workshop focusing on a wide range of slide and fingerstyle techniques. You’ll work on slide styles ranging from delta and country blues to ragtime, Hawaiian, and more modern styles. Improvising and group playing will also be discussed.

Fingerstyle techniques in the context of playing slide guitar will be a focus as well. Alternating bass, alternate tunings, and combining the slide with chords and fretted notes will all be demonstrated.
 
 This workshop is best suited to mid-level guitarists, but no background in slide guitar is needed. Be sure to bring your own slide! Acoustic guitar is required. www.stevedawson.ca

Elemental Banjo with Danny Barnes

The banjo has a particular set of parameters.  What are they and how can we begin to function productively within them?  How does the neck lay out?  What is that short string all about?  How can we get a good tone?  What is the role of a banjo orchestrally? These are a few of the things Banjo pioneer and composer Danny Barnes will be addressing.  

This workshops is appropriate for beginner and intermediate players or for anyone that wants to go over the basics in a new way. www.dannybarnes.com

What's the Point: Songwriting with Nancy White and Suzy Wilde

ALL SPACES FULL - Nancy White brings years of practical experience, daughter Suzy Wilde brings skills honed studying voice and writing at Humber College to the task of songwriting. They'll cover things like lyric writing, structure, rewriting, melodies, writing on different instruments, and writers' block. Why do some songs work while others tank? What is it about a GREAT song? How can you make your good song even better?  Participants are invited to bring samples of their work, the instruments they write on (a piano is provided), and their favourite rhyming dictionaries. www.myspace.com/nancywhitemusic www.myspace.com/suzywildemusic

Special Sessions

Jamaica is a Word: Understanding Jamaica Through Cultural Expression with Mutabaruka

When people hear the word Jamaica all kind of things come to mind; reggae, Bob Marley, Rastafari, Marcus Garvey, dancehall, white sand beaches, political violence and crime. Revolutionary dub poet Mutabaruka will discuss what gave rise to these different ideas and how the cultural expressions shape or define what it means to be Jamaican. www.mutabaruka.com

My Life In The Punk Rock Trenches with Jon Langford & Sally Timms

Jon Langford deconstructs a long and sorry career at the sharp end of the music biz wars in word and song with his trusty Mekon band-mate Sally Timms watching his back.
www.mekons.de/mekonhom.htm

The best part of it was simply to be surrounded by people who love to create music – both the participants and the presenters, and to be given the chance to interact. The atmosphere over the three days was amazing.  It really motivated me to reach to a higher level with my own songwriting. The volunteers organizing the boot camp were excellent as well, both from the folk fest and Cantos.

Jordan Slator FBCC 08 Songwriting Workshop Participant

I loved it.  It was a joy to have such a clear window on otherwriters' creative process,  and the guidance we received from Tony Dekker was extraordinary. It has given me a whole new sense of my ability as a songwriter and was worth far more than I paid!! 

Trisha McGowen FBCC 08 Songwriting Workshop Participant

I think Boot Camp is an active and important part of what sets the Calgary Folk Festival above and apart from the others.”

David Ward, FBCC 08 Songwriting Workshop Participant

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All photos by Dave Kenney and Peter Sydenham