INSTRUCTORS!

2008 REDWOOD DULCIMER DAY WORKSHOP LEADERS
Past guest workshop leaders have included: Connie Allen, Janita Baker, Bonnie Carol, Robert Force, Paul Furnas, Lois Hornbostel, Joellen Lapidus, and Michael Rugg.

NEW THIS YEAR! Dulcimer Day welcomes Bing Futch of Orlando, Florida. Bing has been playing mountain dulcimer since 1985. His latest solo release is Dulcimer Rock, a collection of tunes ranging from Indian ragas, Native American rhythms and world-beat arrangements to catchy roots and pop-rock dance tracks with layered harmonies. Named “2006 Songwriter of the Year” by the Songwriters Showcases of America, Bing sings his genre-hopping songs with clear, expressive tenor vocals and is an engaging, high energy performer. He’s taught dulcimer at many festivals and also produces audio and video podcasts for Dulcimer Players’ News. www.BingFutch.com

NEW THIS YEAR! Dulcimer Day welcomes Lance Frodsham! Lance is a nationally known mountain dulcimer player who has made several recordings. He has authored The English Dulcimer, a collection of 47 English country, Morris and sword dance tunes, and English Songs and Ballads for Appalachian Dulcimer, an acclaimed collection of traditional songs and Child ballads, both for Mel Bay Publications. Also known for his warm, friendly singing voice, Lance has taught dulcimer workshops to great reviews in North Carolina, Wisconsin, New York, California, Oregon and Washington. www.e-z.net/~frodsham/

Neal Hellman, founder of Gourd music, is a nationally acclaimed dulcimer performer, workshop leader, recording artist and author of numerous books for the dulcimer. His CDs include Emma's Waltz, Oktober Country, Dream of the Manatee and Autumn in the Valley. His books include It's a Dulcimer Life, The Dulcimer Chord Book, The Hal Leonard Dulcimer Method, Beatles Dulcimer Book, The Music of the Shakers for Mountain Dulcimer, and Celtic Songs and Slow Airs for Mountain Dulcimer.

Peter Tommerup (RDD co-founder) has been playing and teaching dulcimer since 1973. He has arranged hundreds of tunes for the dulcimer and has taught them to hundreds of students in the greater San Francisco Bay Area. He has performed at several major festivals and is author of the Kicking Mule tutorial, Teach Yourself to Play the Dulcimer Currently he teaches dulcimer at Gryphon Stringed Instruments in Palo Alto.

Janet Herman (RDD co-founder) is a multi-instrumentalist instructor with Community Music School of Santa Cruz and has been playing dulcimer since her teens. She is also an accomplished singer and is featured on Neal Hellman's Celtic Songs and Slow Airs for Mountain Dulcimer and other recordings. With a doctorate in folklore/ethnomusicology, Janet is an authority on shape-note singing and an avid arranger of all kinds of songs for dulcimer.

Ron Beardslee is the founder and organizer of the quarterly Redwood Dulcimer Gatherings. He plays dulcimer in the group Aleatory, with Wayne Jiang and Kathryn LaMar, and also plays recorder with the Mid-Peninsula Recorder Orchestra. Known for his skill and patience with beginning students, Ron will be teaching dulcimer "bootcamp" workshops for novice players at this year's Redwood Dulcimer Day.