Alison Brown has announced a new banjo workshop week this fall, with her own unique twist.
Banjo Basecamp will run October 6-10 at the Porches Inn and Studio 9 in North Adams, MA. The faculty includes some of the most highly awarded banjoists of our time, one Grammy winner and two recipients of the Steve Martin Banjo Prize.
Produced in cooperation with FreshGrass, the workshop will be led by Alison, along with Kristin Scott Benson of The Grascals and BB Bowness of Mile Twelve. The location is just by the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, also known as MASS MoCA, situated in the Berkshire Mountains just as the leaves are at their peak color.
Brown says that she purposefully chose two other lady banjo pickers to teach alongside her at the Banjo Basecamp.
“It was intentional to have an all-female faculty. For most of us, our first teachers are women, and I think that having an all-female faculty will create a special, nurturing environment. I often think about how hard it is to fail in public, especially as we get older, and I really want to create a supportive space with this camp where people aren’t afraid of reaching and expanding their skill set.”
The schedule will include both group instruction and electives on specific banjo topics, and no more than 50 students will be accepted to keep the class sizes manageable. Attendees will have the opportunity to improve their playing with an instructional focus on technique, repertoire, and getting comfortable playing in jams.
Time will be set aside for jamming each night, and the proceedings will conclude with a student concert.
Registration fees run from $1,500 for a commuter student, providing their own accommodations, to $3,000 for a deluxe two-room suite.
Full details and a look at the daily schedule can be found online.
