Hot Times at Old Town

Appearing below are selections from the hard copy Hot Times. The objective is to highlight activities at the School and in the larger community, especially those featuring or of special interest to teachers and staff. Your suggestions are welcome. Enter a comment (under any item); it will come to me rather than automatically appearing.

Jam with us or create one!

Everyone knows that the best way to keep improving is to keep playing — one great way to do that is to join one of the School’s jams: the Wednesday Mid-Day Jam, 12-2 pm or Thursdays, 7-10 pm.

For the past year, we’ve missed only one Wednesday of jamming; we even continue during periods between class sessions. Each Wednesday we meet in the lobby, then set up chairs on the main stage of the School (at Lincoln) and put up our Open Jam sign. We start about noon and end about 2 pm. The group is wonderfully varied in instrumentation: pretty much always guitar, banjo, harmonica, fiddle, and mandolin; sometimes bass and a wonderful tapdancer! People suggest songs in turn, often but not always from the songbook; we also do some fiddle tunes (calling out the chords when needed). If you’re free during the day, come on by! (No need to be an Old Town School student; everyone is welcome). A similar jam is held on Thursday evenings: same place, on the main stage of the school. « Read more »

Filed under: Interesting at Old Town by Skip | August 30, 2009 | Comments (0)

Add jug band to your resume!

Or if not to your resume, at least to your life. Registration is open for the next term of school’s jug band! It’s both a band AND a class, with the next class starting in late October. So when someone asks you what you’ve been doing — here’s what you can say.

“You didn’t know? I’m now a member of the Hump Night Thumpers Jug Band. That’s the band that won the 25th Annual Battle of the Jug Bands in 2007.” « Read more »

Filed under: Interesting at Old Town by Skip | April 27, 2009 | Comments (0)

You missed Fender day?

Ouch! But it should be a reminder: keep checking the School’s website!

One Saturday earlier this year, the Different Strummer (the School’s store) had staff from Fender come in to do free bench checks on electric guitars. No Fender? That was ok too, they didn’t discriminate.

By the end of the afternoon, 90 folks had received FREE restrings and and set ups. And those who bought Feder or Squier products got 10% back in cash, on top of the already discounted prices. But this wasn’t a standard sales offer. « Read more »

Filed under: Interesting at Old Town by Skip | April 27, 2009 | Comments (0)

Ready for an ensemble?

If you’re a private student, ask your teacher if you may be ready for ensemble playing. If the answer is yes, consider the Beatles for Beginners Ensemble: it’s a great place for intermediate/ advanced students in guitar/bass/drums/ piano/vocal to learn how to play together, play in time with a band, sing group harmony, and learn how to build arrangements. In this ensemble you’ll get to work on the Beatles songs (and solo records) — some great stuff! The great part: you can work on the songs in private lessons, then bring what you learn to the class, where everything comes together.

This class is great preparation to get ready to play in all the other ensembles as well. Want to visit? Leave a note for Charles Kim or email him at ckim@oldtownschool.org). Beatles for Beginners meets at 2:30 on Saturdays at Lincoln Square.

Filed under: Interesting at Old Town by Skip | April 10, 2009 | Comments (0)

Chicago music in danger

Yes, it’s hard to believe but free music in Chicago is threatened.

The cause: an ordinance pending with the Chicago City Council that would require musicians to be licensed and to carry liability insurance — it’s another bizarre law, poorly conceived, yet could shut down the kind of music we hear in coffee shops, restaurants, bars, and other establishments.

The documentary ‘The Chicago Promoter’s Ordinance Kills Independent Music’ can be seen at therecordindustry.com. Defenders of the ordinance note that it was developed to target Raves and similar large scale activities and that it would not be enforced against small venues. But once on the books, when and where it would be enforced would depend upon the discretion of the authorities.

Filed under: Interesting at Old Town by Skip | February 28, 2009 | Comments (0)

Stop by for the Wednesday Noon Jam

If you’re of an old-timey, barndance frame of mind — or if you just like to sit around and sing — stop by the school Wednesdays around noon. We open up the stage and have a banjo/fiddle/ guitar/whatever jam.

There’s usually eight or ten people and a wonderful mix of instruments: guitar, banjo, fiddle, mandolin, harmonica, melodica, and (when our prayers are answered) bass!

The jam goes until about 2 pm.

Filed under: Interesting at Old Town by Skip | February 14, 2009 | Comments (0)

Jams! The School goes jam-crazy!

Jamming is perhaps the best way to strengthen your skills — and to have fun. You bring your instrument (whatever it is) and have the pleasure of informal, no-one-is-listening-carefully-because-they’re-having-too-much-fun music.

Opportunities for jamming occur daily at the school, with special jams on First Fridays. Not taking a class? That’s ok — this is a free community event.

The daily jams are “Second Half,” a long-time, Old Town School tradition. These mildly structured gatherings, led by teachers,
are scheduled before or after classes. Every day of the week you can join with other students to play songs, some from the School’s songbook and others brought in by a different teacher each week. A new feature, on Thursdays, is having two evening teacher-coordinated jams. The Second Half and jam schedule is below:

Mondays: 11:30 am, 9:30 pm (Lincoln and Armitage SH)
Tuesdays: 9:30 pm (Lincoln and Armitage SH)
Wednesdays: 12-2 pm jam (Lincoln), 7:30 pm (Lincoln and Armitage SH)
Thursdays: NEW! 7 pm and 8:30 jams
Fridays: 11:30 am (Lincoln SH)
Saturdays: 11:30 am (Lincoln SH), 12:30 am (Armitage SH)
Sundays:1:30 pm (Lincoln and Armitage SH) « Read more »

Filed under: Interesting at Old Town by Skip | January 24, 2009 | Comments (0)

Dvorak, Holstein, and Craig — Oh my!

The Concert Hall had a full house on January 11th when these three folk troubadors came together for a wonderful show celebrating Ed Holstein’s first-ever CD.

Ed Holstein, brother of the late Fred Holstein, is himself a Chicago legend. As the major domo, promoter, and presiding presence at Holstein’s on Lincoln Avenue, he was a central figure in the Chicago folk scene. Now as a member of the faculty at the Old Town School, Ed’s music, stories, and humor have made him a popular, engaging guitar teacher. He was at his best on Sunday, both with his political quips AND his music.
Bonnie Koloc joined him for one number.

Joining Ed were Mark Dvorak, one of the Midwest’s most loved and respected folk singers, and Jim Craig — the folk performer with the unforgettable, deep bass voice (and proprietor of Hogeye Music in Evanston). Adding to these long-time performers were Peggy and Maura (the Pickin Bubs) and other guests.

This was another show many of us will remember for a long time — and should be a reminder for you: if you haven’t seen Eddie, keep watching for the next time he performs. He doesn’t play out that often but when he does, it’s always great.

Filed under: Interesting at Old Town by Skip | December 24, 2008 | Comments (0)

New, old, wonderful Mark Dvorak Album

Neat idea!

What a Wonderful World: A Family Folk Sampler brings together some of Mark’s best tracks, plus four new ones. In one place you’ll find eleven songs from Mark’s 1995 award-winning CD Old Songs & New People, three from the 1996 Just Something My Grandma Used to Sing, three more from 2000’s Weavermania! LIVE and one track from Use It Up, Wear It Out released in 1992 — plus four new tracks recorded with The Sons of the Never Wrong. Other musicians on the tracks include Michael Smith, Tom Dundee and Barbara Barrow, Rick Sherry from Devil in a Woodpile, old-time fiddle master Steve Rosen and John Williams on whistle and accordion.

In July, Mark was recognized for his broad, long-term contribution to the local and national folk community with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Woodstock Folk Festival. « Read more »

Filed under: Interesting at Old Town by Skip | August 27, 2008 | Comments (0)

Mandragora Tango

This great concert began the Pena series for the fall. The Mandragora Tango quartet was featured in the 2008 International Chicago Tango Fest in a program that will include include the fest’s top tango couples.

The Pena Wednesday gatherings are our unique free-but-ticketed events: exciting Latin music to get your heart pumping and your spirit soaring. Why have tickets? The shows are so popular that we often fill up the 450 seat concert hall — having a ticket ensures that you won’t come and be turned away at the door. (Full schedule elsewhere on this oldtownschool.org site).

Filed under: Interesting at Old Town by Skip | August 14, 2008 | Comments (0)


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