LEARN FROM THE KEEPERS OF THE TRADITION
the music, the technique, the lore, the joy
Our teachers are extraordinary musicians who either grew up within their musical traditions or have devoted a major portion of their lives to learning and understanding its subtleties. They are highly gifted teachers - personable, approachable, attentive - who are eager to pass on their technical skills and lore to students.
FACULTY TEAM - 2024
Baron Collins-Hill - Mandolin
A Portland, Oregon based musician and educator, Baron plays and teaches mandolin, tenor guitar, six string guitar, tenor banjo, bouzouki, and other mandolin family instruments. Baron grew up playing the mandolin in Maine and graduated from Hampshire College in Amherst, Massachusetts with a degree in music performance and ethnomusicology. While traditional fiddle music takes up most of his time, he also loves to play bluegrass, jazz, and open improvisation. He plays tenor guitar and mandolin in Velocipede, teaches and performs throughout the West Coast and New England, and busies himself with a host of other projects.
to learn more about baron: mandobaron.com
to learn more about baron: mandobaron.com
Alex Cumming - Accordion, Singing
Alex Cumming is a traditional singer, accordionist, pianist and dance caller hailing from Somerset, England, now living in the Greater Boston area. He performs songs and tunes from around the United Kingdom and America with a great depth of knowledge of the tradition. Alex has made his mark on the folk scene with his rhythmic dance-able accordion style, strong voice and his fun and engaging stage presence.
Along with solo performances and calling work, Alex is a member of award winning a Capella quartet The Teacups, Fiddle and Accordion duo Alex Cumming & Nicola Beazley, transatlantic trio Bellwether and various dance bands including Reelation, The Four Idiots, Trip The Light Fantastic and The Alex Cumming Dance Band.
Alex is also an experienced teacher and workshop leader. He has run group workshops in Dance, song and music for many schools and some of the top folk festivals and organizations including CDSS (Country Dance and Song Society of America), Sidmouth Folk Week, EFDSS (English Folk Dance and Song Society), Towersey Festival, Folk Arts Center of New England and Folk South West.
Along with solo performances and calling work, Alex is a member of award winning a Capella quartet The Teacups, Fiddle and Accordion duo Alex Cumming & Nicola Beazley, transatlantic trio Bellwether and various dance bands including Reelation, The Four Idiots, Trip The Light Fantastic and The Alex Cumming Dance Band.
Alex is also an experienced teacher and workshop leader. He has run group workshops in Dance, song and music for many schools and some of the top folk festivals and organizations including CDSS (Country Dance and Song Society of America), Sidmouth Folk Week, EFDSS (English Folk Dance and Song Society), Towersey Festival, Folk Arts Center of New England and Folk South West.
Mary Fraser - Fiddle
Trained in classical violin, Mary Lauren Fraser studied violin as an instrument intensively. Since moving from the classical music world into traditional music, she has traveled to many places with rich fiddle traditions, immersing in the tunes and styles of Ireland, Scotland, Appalachia, Quebec and New England. With the Suzuki Violin Teacher certificate, and many years of experience teaching at music camps and festivals, Mary is a skilled teacher for all ages and abilities. Mostly performing solo, she has collaborated with other musicians and artists in New England in a wide range of creative and performance projects. A recent project includes researching and learning old traditional ballads of New England, from the Helen Hartness Flanders collection. Mary plays for dances, weddings, house concerts, funerals, parties, re-enactment events and more.
Joanne Garton - Fiddle
Fiddler and dancer Joanne Garton mixes her pervasive passion for Scottish culture with the drive and rhythms of the New England dance floor. A resident of Montpelier, Vermont for the last 15 years, Joanne teaches music, music theory, and step dancing to kids and adults, plays regularly for contra, English, and Scottish dances around the US and Canada, and performs on stage with her duo The Turning Stile with Aaron Marcus. Find her also pursing all the best (and oldest) Scottish tunes with Vermont mega-band Stravaigin, playing fiddle in the session, teaching a ceilidh dance, and of course, stepping out on the dance floor herself to enjoy the evening. Read and watch more at joannegarton.com or listen to her debut solo album The Bee’s Knees on Bandcamp.
lydia ievins - Swedish Fiddle & Nyckelharpa
Based in Montague MA, lydia plays 5-string fiddle and nyckelharpa for Scandinavian and English country dancing. Inspired by her year of study at the Eric Sahlström Institute with some of Sweden’s best fiddle and nyckelharpa teachers, lydia has since focused her teaching on finding fun and effective ways to share those insights. Together with fiddler Andrea Larson she developed Träd Weekend, a popular intensive workshop for Scandi-interested dance musicians: work on Swedish tune repertoire, learn about engaging your core rhythm, explore how dance and movement inform your role as a musician, and practice the skills of playing for dancers. This same mission animates all her teaching. She has taught and/or played on staff at a variety of camps including Nordic Fiddles and Feet, Scandia Camp Mendocino, Northern Week at Ashokan, Fiddle Hell, CDSS English Week at Pinewoods, CDSS Family Weeks at Pinewoods and Ogontz, Folklore Village, and Berea Christmas Country Dance School. lydia has earned a bronze Zorn medal for her fiddling in the Uppland tradition. Her most recent CD, Koivu (2018), debuts a collaboration with Helsinki-based pianist and composer Juha Kujanpää.
to learn more about lydia: lydiamusic.org
to learn more about lydia: lydiamusic.org
Owen Marshall - Guitar
Over the past two decades, multi-instrumentalist Owen has emerged as one of the foremost accompanists of traditional music. Known for his fluid and spontaneous bouzouki work and driving and melodic guitar accompaniment, Owen has toured and recorded with the likes of the Seamus Egan Project; Copley Street; Liz Carroll; Riptide; Jenna Moynihan; The Press Gang; Wooden Nickels; Haas, Marshall and Walsh; and a Christmas Celtic Sojourn.
In the spring of 2022, Owen recorded his debut album “Throughline”. The recording reflects Owen’s deep knowledge and love of traditional music of Ireland, Old Time American music, and the sounds of his New England roots.
In addition to being a respected performer and studio musician, Owen is in demand at music camps throughout the U.S.
In the spring of 2022, Owen recorded his debut album “Throughline”. The recording reflects Owen’s deep knowledge and love of traditional music of Ireland, Old Time American music, and the sounds of his New England roots.
In addition to being a respected performer and studio musician, Owen is in demand at music camps throughout the U.S.
Katie McNally - Scottish and Cape Breton Fiddle
Katie McNally grew up playing Scottish and Cape Breton music near Boston, Massachusetts and currently tours with her own projects, Fàrsan, Pine Tree Flyers, and the Katie McNally Trio. A member of the cross-genre fiddle supergroup, Childsplay, Katie has also toured with Karan Casey, John Whelan, and Galician bagpiper Carlos Núñez. She has appeared at Celtic Colours, Celtic Connections, Newport Folk Festival, and The Festival of American Fiddle Tunes, as well as countless folk venues throughout North America and Europe. In addition to her busy touring schedule, she is the artistic director of the Boston States Fiddle Camp and is a devoted educator who teaches regularly at fiddle camps across the country and gives private lessons at her home in Portland, Maine.
to learn more about katie: katiemcnally.com
to learn more about katie: katiemcnally.com
Jeremiah McLane - Accordion, Piano
Accordionist Jeremiah McLane plays a wide variety of ethnic musical styles from Northern and Eastern Europe as well as American idioms such as jazz, swing, blues, and Zydeco. At this year’s Accordions Now Festival he is delighted to offer selections from the classical repertoire including works by composers Astor Piazzolla, Bela Bartok, Antonin Dvorak, Francis Poulenc and Alan Hovhaness as well as several of his own compositions. Mr. McLane has taught and performed throughout the United States and Europe, including such venues as the Royal Festival Hall in London, and the Picolo Spoleto Festival in Charleston, South Carolina. He holds a Master’s in Contemporary Improvisation from the New England Conservatory of Music and teaches at St. Michael’s College in Burlington, Vermont. He has been on staff at numerous music programs throughout the country including The Augusta Heritage Arts Center, The Swanannoa Gathering, Ashokan Fiddle & Dance, The John C. Campbell Folk School, and Centrum’s American Festival of Fiddle Tunes. He has composed numerous pieces for film and theatre and has received National Public Radio's “favorite picks” award for his second solo recording, Smile When You’re Ready, and French music magazine Trad Mag’s “BRAVO” award for his fifth release, Hummingbird.
to learn more about jeremiah: jeremiahmclane.com
to learn more about jeremiah: jeremiahmclane.com
Max Newman - Guitar, Mandolin
Max has spent a good portion of his life playing dances great and small across the continent. His guitar playing is refreshing, fun, and creative, and has allowed him to collaborate with a great variety of traditional musicians. In the Stringrays, he often alternates between hammering down rhythms and trading licks with bandmate Rodney Miller. His attention to detail with pairing music and dance is almost as well known as his love for a fresh cup of coffee. His playing has been profiled in Flatpicking Guitar Magazine. When not with the band, he can often be found at his local dance in Concord, Massachusetts.
to learn more about max: maxnewman.com
Laura Risk - Quebecois Fiddle
Laura Risk’s fiddling has been described by filmmaker Ken Burns as “a revelation and achingly beautiful” and Living Tradition hails her “powerful, percussive style… bursting with energy and passion.”
Originally from California, now living in Montreal, Laura performs and teaches Québécois and Scottish fiddling internationally and has over a dozen albums to her credit. Her distinctive sound and compelling interpretations of traditional tunes are intensely personal yet grounded in meticulous archival and ethnographic research. Laura has toured with Cordelia’s Dad, Triptych, Ensemble Galilei, and dancer Sandy Silva; served as musical director for ensembles Childsplay and Revels North; and produced seven albums, including three for fiddler Hanneke Cassel. Her research credits include articles in Ethnomusicology and MUSICultures, co-authorship of The Glengarry Collection: The Highland Fiddle Music of Aonghas Grant (Mel Bay), and the CD-booklet Douglastown: Music and Song from the Gaspé Coast, awarded the 2014 Prix Mnémo. Laura holds a PhD in Musicology from McGill University, for which she received the 2017 Governor General’s Gold Medal.
to learn more about laura: laurarisk.com
Originally from California, now living in Montreal, Laura performs and teaches Québécois and Scottish fiddling internationally and has over a dozen albums to her credit. Her distinctive sound and compelling interpretations of traditional tunes are intensely personal yet grounded in meticulous archival and ethnographic research. Laura has toured with Cordelia’s Dad, Triptych, Ensemble Galilei, and dancer Sandy Silva; served as musical director for ensembles Childsplay and Revels North; and produced seven albums, including three for fiddler Hanneke Cassel. Her research credits include articles in Ethnomusicology and MUSICultures, co-authorship of The Glengarry Collection: The Highland Fiddle Music of Aonghas Grant (Mel Bay), and the CD-booklet Douglastown: Music and Song from the Gaspé Coast, awarded the 2014 Prix Mnémo. Laura holds a PhD in Musicology from McGill University, for which she received the 2017 Governor General’s Gold Medal.
to learn more about laura: laurarisk.com
Oliver Scanlon - Novice Fiddle, Sound
Oliver Scanlon began his early training with a stint with the Vermont Youth Orchestra and years in the Young Tradition Vermont’s Fiddleheads. Fiddler, mandolinist and tunesmith Scanlon was introduced to his mentor Pete Sutherland and the parallel universe of fiddle music at the age of nine. In 2008, Oliver and a few talented middle school friends formed the group which became The Irregulars and in 2013 he co-founded Pete’s Posse and became the youngest member of Sutherland’s long running dance band The Clayfoot Strutters. Oliver now teaches private fiddle and mandolin lessons, performs at concerts and contradances, provides live sound reinforcement in and around Vermont, and works at local violin shop Vermont Violins.
to learn more about oliver: petesposse.com
to learn more about oliver: petesposse.com
Becky Tracy - Irish and Contradance Fiddle
There is nothing Becky Tracy likes better than to take a room full of fiddle players and fashion them into harmonious bowing beauties. Becky has certainly played around, being the longest surviving fiddle player with Wild Asparagus (20 years!) and the only fiddle player in the soulful but now defunct band Nightingale. She has a driving yet sweet sound to her playing and her awareness of what makes that happen has led her to be a popular teacher at music camps. Her playing has been shaped by the influence of teachers Brendan Mulvihill and Eugene O'Donnell and Lisa Ornstein as well as her many years of playing for dancing. Her solo CD, Evergreen, is an album of haunting beauty, intimacy and exuberance.
to learn more about becky: blackislemusic.com
to learn more about becky: blackislemusic.com