Suwannee Banjo Camp

Camp Photos: Click on the photo below to view a collection of photos taken during SBC 2006. L-R (Standing): Mac Benford, Alan Jabbour, Chuck Levy, Mark Johnson, Ken Perlman. Bob Carlin. L-R (Seated) Bill Paine, Fay Baird.

Directors

Ken Perlman has served as music director or co-director for several banjo teaching festivals, including the American Banjo Camp, Banjo Camp North, the Bath Banjo Festival, the Maryland Banjo Academy, the Midwest Banjo Camp. the Northeast Heritage Music Camp and the Suwannee Banjo Camp. He is also on the teaching staff for the SBC. You can find a more detailed biography for him among the instructor and accompanist bios.

Chuck Levy,Chuck Levy is a well known Florida fiddler and banjoist. He has served as the president of the Florida State Fiddlers Association, Director of the Banjo Contest at the Florida Folk Fest and is an olditime banjo consultant to GoldTone. He is also on the teaching staff for the SBC. You can find a more detailed biography for him among the instructor and accompanist bios.

Laura Boosinger is an award-winning performer and recording artist whose primary focus is the interpretation of traditional music from the Southern Appalachian region. She is known as “The Songbird of The Smokies,” a moniker bestowed upon her by North Carolina Folk Heritage Award winner, Luke Smathers. For 13 years Laura was a member of Luke’s band, which played their style of string band music called “Mountain Swing.” Her latest CD Let Me Linger is a tribute to the band’s legacy and features Laura’s singing as well as her clawhammer and swing style banjo. Laura has taught old-time banjo at American Banjo Camp, Blue Ridge Old-Time Music Week as well as at Augusta Folk Heritage, Swannanoa and Kaufman Kamp. For more info on Laura, go to her website, www.lauraboosinger.com

Bob Carlin has taken the distinctive southern banjo style to appreciative audiences all over the US, Canada and Europe and he is a three-time winner of the late Frets Magazine Favorite Banjoist readers poll. He has several solo recordings with Rounder Records, including Banging and Sawing, Where Did You Get That Hat?, and Fiddle Tunes For Clawhammer Banjo, in addition to which he as recorded duo CDs with Bruce Molsky and John Hartford. He also played as a regular in Hartford's band for several years prior to the latter's untimely demise. A noted teacher, Bob recorded a two volume instructional series on clawhammer for Homespun Tapes, and he has served as instructor at the American Festival of Fiddle Tunes, Ashoken Fiddle and Dance Camp, Banjo Camp North, Maryland Banjo Academy and Midwest Banjo Camp. He started his career as a sought after producer of acoustic recordings by organizing the seminal recording, Melodic Clawhammer Banjo back in the 1970s. He is also a highly regarded folklorist.

Janet Davis was born and raised in Houston, Texas. Music was always an integral part of her family life. Although Janet's formal musical training was primarily in the classical field, she showed a keen, early interest in stringed instruments, particularly those involved in folk and bluegrass music. In college, she played the guitar and sang as a folk and blues musician in many of the Austin, Texas clubs, learning from such greats as Lightnin' Hopkins, Janis Joplin and others who played the same venues. Janet is equally adept on both Dobro® and 5-string banjo. Her books are popular worldwide. She has written numerous best selling books for the 5-string banjo as well as dobro. Mel Bay has several of her books listed as "Best Sellers." Janet also teaches and plays ALL bluegrass instruments and several others. She has been a columnist with Banjo Newsletter for 30 years. Janet Davis Music Company is celebrating its 28th Anniversary this year.

Dan Gellert is well-known among old-time music aficionados both as a geat banjo player and and as a superb fiddler. On banjo he plays quite a number of styles, including several variants of 2- and 3-finger picking, not to mention clawhammer. As he describes it, "I've been listening to scratchy old records and playing scratchy old music for over 40 years, and I just keep getting older and scratchier all the time." Among his old and scratchy fiddle and banjo influences are Uncle Dave Macon, Wade Ward, Fred Cockerham, W.M. Stepp, Luther Strong, Nathan Frazier, Uncle Bunt Stephens, Hobart Smith, Ed Haley, Tommy Jarrell and Emmett Lundy. He has been on staff at the Tennesee Banjo Institute, the Festival of American Fiddle Tunes, Midwest Banjo Camp, the Rocky Mountain Fiddle Camp, and the Swannanoa Gathering. His latest CD is Waitin' On the Break of Day.

Mark Johnson: has revolutionized the art of clawhammer banjo by adapting its techniques and rhythms to the demands of playing in a bluegrass ensemble. He calls his banjo style Clawgrass. He has performed and recorded with many bluegrass and acoustic luminaries and is also a gifted teacher and songwriter. His most recent recording -- Acoustic Rising with Emory Lester, released on the Crossroads/Mt. Home Record Label -- was nominated by the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) in 2007 as Instrumental Album of the Year. Mark has conducted countless clawhammer workshops at bluegrass and acoustic music festivals across the country, and he continues to host an annual clawhammer banjo workshop as part of the IBMA Fanfest in Nashville, Tennessee.

Bill Keith A renowned explorer of the frontiers of banjo picking and of the instrument's harmonic potentialities, Bill Keith largely invented the three-finger picking style known as "melodic" banjo. He first came to international attention in the early 60s when he played and recorded with Bill Monroe and the Bluegrass Boys. He co-authored the original Earl Scruggs banjo instruction book and record, and has also written several other banjo instruction books, including the first ones ever published in French and Italian. He has recorded several albums for Rounder, Green Linnet, and Hexagon, and has toured widely throughout North America, Western Europe, Japan, and Australia. He devised and, through the Beacon Banjo Company, still markets the famous tuning pegs that bear his name.

Brad Leftwich Brad Leftwich is the author of the Mel Bay book Round Peak Style Clawhammer Banjo. Best known as a fiddler, Brad has in fact been playing banjo longer. He first took it up more than thirty years ago, inspired by his grandfather, a banjo picker from Carroll County, Va., and by his father, a singer and guitar player in the old-time style. Brad has learned much of his music from traditional musicians in the region formed by Surry County, N.C., and Grayson and Carroll Counties, Va., and in particular from Tommy Jarrell and other banjo players from the Round Peak community of Surry County. He was a member of the Plank Road String Band in the mid-seventies, he has been performing with his wife Linda Higginbotham as Leftwich & Higginbotham since the early 1980s, and with Tom Sauber and Alice Gerrard as Tom, Brad & Alice since the late 1990s. For more info on Brad, go to his website, www.bradleftwich.net

Chuck Levy has earned the title of Florida's Banjo Champ, as well as being a prize-winning Florida fiddler. Originally from Ohio, has been playing oldtime music in north central Florida of the last 7 years. He is equally at home on 5 and 6 string banjos (five strings plus a short string), whether fretted or fretless, playing clawhammer and minstel styles. He draws inspiration from the music of the Midwest, southern Appalachians, and most recently the flatlands of Florida. His repertoire includes its share of uncommon tunes as well as a few intriguing originals. He leads the string bands "Physical Medicine" and "Fear No Weevil", and has been on staff at the Suwannee Banjo Camp, and the Suwannee Old Time Camp. Chuck teaches fiddle and banjo in Gainesville, Florida.

Ken Perlman. Perhaps the best-known exponent of the "melodic" clawhammer style, Ken is known wherever banjos are played as a master of clawhammer technique and an expert teacher of clawhammer mechanics. He has been a Banjo Newsletter columnist for over 25 years; he has written several books on clawhammer instruction including the well known works Melodic Clawhammer Banjo and Clawhammer Style Banjo , and he has recorded several series of audio and video banjo instruction. He has taught at well over a score of banjo and general music camps including the American Banjo Camp, Banjo Camp North, Festival of American Fiddle Tunes, Common Ground on the Hill, Maryland Banjo Academy, Midwest Banjo Camp, Puget Sound Guitar Workshop, Rocky Mountain Fiddle Camp, Smokey Mountain Banjo Academy, and the Tennessee Banjo Institute. His most recent recording -- a duo project with fiddler Alan Jabbour -- is called Southern Summits. His most recent solo recording is Northern Banjo, and his most recent book is Everything You Wanted to Know About Clawhammer Banjo . For more on Ken, go to his website, www.kenperlman.com

Sana Ndiaye was born in the southern region of Senegal in the village of Djembering. He first played akonting as a small boy, following the tradition of the Jola people. In his mid-twenties, Sana moved to Dakar and met up with the members of a local hip-hop group called the Gokh-bi System (Neighborhood System), who were looking to expand by adding players of traditional instruments. American music producers soon became interested in this band, which has since become one of the best-known African hip-hop groups in the U.S. Sana has traveled many times to the U.S. to tour with Gokh-bi System; he also works as a soloist.

Paul Sedgwick plays bluegrass and clawhammer banjo. He traveled to Gambia and Senegal, West Africa twice (in 2004 and 2006) with Ulf Jagfors and Daniel Jatta to study the akonting and banjo origins. He was the co-author with Greg Adams of recent articles concerning the akonting in Banjo Newsletter and Old-time Herald.. He performs a solo theatre piece in which the history of the banjo is told through the eyes of various banjo notables.

Location: The camp will be held at O'Leno State Park, High Springs, Florida.

Travel: The nearest airport is in Gainesville, Florida; Jacksonville is also within a reasonable drive (It's roughly a two hour drive from O'Leno to the Jacksonville Airport).

Tuition and board: A single fee of $310 covers tuition and our meal plan.

Please note that we have had to increase our fees slightly relative to last year due to increased catering costs.

Meal Plan: Our meal plan covers all meals from dinner on Friday, March 21 through lunch on Sunday, March 23 (there will be omnivore and vegetarian options; vegans should check with us individually about their specific dietary needs). The cost of the meal plan is included in our general fee. Students may opt out of the meal plan only by special request.

Vegetarians and Vegans. Our caterer has guaranteed to offer one bona fide Vegetarian entree at each meal (our vegetarian entrees will neither contain meat, nor will they be prepared with meat products). The caterer will also prepare Vegan meals, but only to individual order. There is no extra charge for vegan service, but please contact us well ahead of time to arrange for it. For those unsure of the distinction, entrees classed as "vegetarian" often contain dairy products such as milk or cheese. Vegan meals contain no animal products whatsoever.

Non-playing spouses and companions: Students may bring non-playing spouses and companions to SBC. They will each be charged a one-time fee of $85, for which they will be enrolled in the meal plan, and may also attend as many camp programs as they choose. Please fill out a separate registration form for each spouse/companion, and write the words "non-playing enrollee" in the special needs slot.

Accomodations On- or Off-Site: Students have several lodging options. You can arrange to stay right on site in cabins or (if you prefer your trailer or RV) in the O'Leno campgrounds. Alternatively, you can elect to stay nearby in a hotel or motel. Note that this year we have reserved a block of rooms at an area motel, which will be made available to our students on a first come first served basis (see below).

Arranging for Accomodations: Arrange with us for a bed in the cabins, make reservations with O'Leno for a space in the campgrounds, and of course, make arrangements with individual motels or hotels for reservations there.

Description and cost of on-site cabins. Reserve a bed in an on-site cabin directly with us for $15 per night. Fill in the appropriate blank on the reservation form. The cabins are a bit rustic, but they are clean, airy, dry, and have relatively comfortable mattreses. Cabins have electricity. Showers and bathroom facilities are located in two out-buildings.

Camping Reservations. If you wish to stay in the campgrounds in a tent or vehicle, you must reserve that site directly with O'Leno State Park. Campsites at O'Leno and nearby parks tend to fill up fast so be sure to reserve early!

Off site accomodations. Some hotels, motels etc. in the immediate vicinity are:

• Alamo Motel, High Springs 386 454-1248
• Cadillac Motel, High Springs 386 454-1701
• Comfort Inn, Alachua 386 462-2414
• High Springs Country Inn 386 454 1465

Note: You can also explore accomodations in the nearby towns of Lake City and Gainesville, Florida both of which are roughly half an hour or less by car from High Springs. Because there are sometimes large regional events this time of year that draw crowds, be sure to make your reservations early.

Special Off-Site Lodging Arrangements: As a courtesy to our students, we have reserved 10 rooms for Friday and Saturday nights March 21-2, at the Best Western Inn in Lake City (W Highway 90 & I-75; phone number 386 752 3801). Ask for rooms held for the Suwannee Banjo Camp (contact us for the confirmation numbers, if needed). The price is $67.50 per room, with a small extra charge if the room is shared by two non-related people.

Logistical Advice: For advice on finding the site, climate-appropriate dress, bedding, what to bring, etc. click here! Please be sure to read this advice prior to coming to camp!

Registration: You must register to attend Suwannee Banjo Camp. To register, just print out the registration form , fill it in, and send it with payment to the address indicated. You can also register by fax or on line. Note that we also ask you to fill in a questionnaire about your interests and playing background that will help us design the Camp.

Special instructions for registering beginning Monday, March 10. You may register right up to the start of Camp. Be aware, however, that co-Director Ken Perlman (who receives all SBC mail) will be departing for Florida on Tuesday morning, March 18. Given that it is now Sat. March 15, it is probably already too late to send registrations by postal mail to his Indiana address. From this point on, the best course is to send registrations and payments by email. Registrations by fax (812 334 7992) may be sent through Monday March 17, but please do not send faxes before 8AM or after 10:30 PM Eastern Daylight Time. Beginning on Tuesday, March 18, please alert us to expect your registration form by calling Ken Perlman's cell phone (781 316 5564). Arrangements may also be made via phone or email to make tuition payments at camp check-in.

Please Register Early! We realize that it is an old Florida custom to sign up at the last minute for events of this kind, but we strongly encourage you to break with tradition and sign up for SBC well ahead of time.

Payment: Although payment of full tuition may be made at any time, until Jan. 21, 2008 you may reserve a space at camp by submitting a deposit of $100. After Jan. 21, 2008 all new registrations must be accompanied by payment of full tuition. You may register right up until the start of camp, depending on space.

Tuition Balances: All those who have reserved a space with a deposit, must send in the remainder of their tuition by Jan. 21, 2008. Again, all new registrations made after that date must be accompanied by payment of full tuition.

Refunds: There is no penalty for cancellation until Feb. 21, 2008. Students who cancel after that date will have $75 deducted from their tuition or deposit refunds. Students who cancel on or after March 20, 2008 (or who simply do not appear at camp) are liable to have $150 deducted from their tuition or deposit refunds, except in the event of serious illness or family emergency.

On-line Payment: See registration form .