All of the workshops will take place in classrooms in Wolvercote Primary School. The tutors will rotate to different teaching rooms, so that each group: Improvers, Intermediate and Accomplished; have one workshop module taught by each of the tutors. A workshop module is approximately 3 hours including a break. You will need your DG melodeon with you for the workshops.
Notation & recordings of the tunes will be provided to the delegates at registration, however if the tutors feel that it will be beneficial for delegates to have this information before the event we will send it out by email as soon as available. This is entirely at the tutors discretion.
The Beginners and Absolute Beginners workshops will run independently of this rotation for the whole weekend. If you need to borrow a DG melodeon for the duration of the workshop please indicate on the booking form. These melodeons will be on loan from Acorn Instruments, who are sponsoring the event.
Want to play melodeon but not sure how to start, or perhaps you've got your first melodeon but aren't getting anywhere with it? These accessible workshops follow a proven step-by-step tutor system to get you off to a flying start. We'll be using an intuitive tab system to find our way around the melodeon and no music reading ability is necessary. We'll also focus on developing foundations of good technique, equipping you with essential tools to support your continued progress.
Hazel: We'll learn a couple of tunes in different time signatures and look at how to get more confident at left hand accompaniment. We'll look at general technique and make sure we're playing in a way that will allow our playing to continue to develop.
Nick: Looking at two well known English dance tunes, we’ll explore ways of emphasising phrasing looking at both melody and bass accompaniment techniques. We will also look at crossing the rows to allow for smoother playing and opening up to more pleasing bass chord progressions.
Hazel: We'll learn a couple of tunes and focus in on technique and stylistics that will help us to bring out the character of tunes. We'll look at our left hand accompaniment and experiemnt with different rhythmic patterns to get away from relying soley on oom pah style.
Nick: Two tunes both in 4/4, a French schottische and an English hornpipe. We will dive into bass and melodic techniques used to really help emphasise phrasing and overall feel to show the difference between the two styles. I will show the chord progressions I use but also look into variations to help spice up the tunes.
Hazel: We'll learn a couple of tunes and then really hone in on technique, all those little details that may seem small but can really take your playing up to the next level.
Nick: Learning a waltz and then a slip jig. In the waltz we will try rhythmic variations to create movement, groove and interest without losing the core danceability of the tune. The slip jig, we will learn in two different keys seeing how this affects the harmonic options and possible ways to overcome the obstacles. We will also try various melodic flourishes and ornamentation to really show of both tunes.
To ensure that you select the appropriate workshop for your playing ability please could you match your playing ability to the word models below, and indicate this on the booking form.