Big John McNeil

We're home from Maine Fiddle Camp, tired and happy! What a great experience, to be immersed and surrounded by great musicians in a peaceful setting. The weather was mostly great (Wednesday was a bit wet)... Second Breakfast prepared and served wonderful, healthy foods... Camp organizers did a fabulous job of scheduling classes and other activities, even in spite of some pretty heavy odds.

First, the lake was gone when we got there, and the Camp director only found out about it a short time before we did! That's right, True's Pond was a mud flat which meant no swimming for anyone. Not to worry, arrangements were made to have a school bus arrive to shuttle youth and adults alike to a nearby lake each afternoon.

Some of the staff weren't able to arrive in time to start on Monday, so again, arrangements were made on the fly to have various other competent instructors fill in wherever needed, and no one went without instruction appropriate for their level. The entire week was filled with stories like this where people just saw a situation, and stepped in to do whatever they could with grace and a smile :)

There are six levels of fiddle lessons, and various age groups. The class I started in was a level 5, which would have been quite a lot of work for me but totally do-able. But, on Tuesday, I found out that a (high ability) level 4 group was going to learn Big John McNeil... this is a tune I've struggled with for years now, always wanting to play it but not quite getting how to bow or finger the strings to play it right... this was my big chance.

So, I joined in and learned the tune! In addition, I learned Vladimir's Steamboat, another tune I've always wanted to be able to play. We also learned the Brunswick Waltz, and worked on Red Haired Boy which is a standard for me but again, I've never known how to bow it "just right". Having heard, or played, or even tried to play these tunes gave me a little edge on learning that proved to be a nice change of pace. Most other years I've been in classes that teach a new tune, one that no one knows... which is fun but rather than learn lots of new tunes, I've more recently been wanting to learn technique... that's what happened this year. I learned bowing patterns, fingering patterns, and some rhythm things that will make a big difference in how things sound and play.

I want to mention that each class group has a bird name... my new group was named Buffleheads. Each nest has a home teacher, one person who comes for the first morning class as well as the afternoon review session. Late morning, there is a different visiting teacher. Our home nest teacher was Steve Muise, and he was great... patient and instructional, and never wavering in what he somehow knew we were capable of. He masterminded a pretty involved arrangement for the final camper concert that involved the three tunes, doing some rhythm chucking, choreographed stage moves, and a blues style ending to our act... ambitious but we pulled it off with style :)

Another fun thing is that I went to a workshop on button accordions... and learned to play one! How much fun! I was able to play Midnight on the Water, Fere Jacques, and Haste to the Wedding before the hour was over... guess what's on my wish list now!?!

Big John McNeil can be found in the New England Fiddler's Repertoire, and now it is also in my own personal repertoire.