A Circle of Music The Ferry Beach Circle of Music is a special time and place to make music and to share and learn musical skills. We fill the beach with music all week from morning to late evening in our workshops, ensembles, spontaneous get-togethers, song-swap sessions, a coffee house, and the traditional Talent/Variety show. Depending on the interests of the conferees, workshops may include voice, guitar, harmonica, keyboard, banjo, autoharp, recorder, concertina, tin whistle, hammered dulcimer, mandolin, music theory, songwriting, and others created by participants with something to share. While folk music has been the core of the Circle of Music, the circle has broadened to include other musical genres like choral, blues, and jazz.
New this year: JAMMIN' WITH JOHN - THE JAZZ BLUES CONNECTION! If you own an instrument and can produce a sound on it, you're welcome - vocalists too - to join this jamming workshop. Participants will learn how to listen and play together as they set the whole beach rockin'. Workshop facilitator John Pearson studied trumpet with Victor Salvo and the great Jimmy Maxwell of the NYC Tonight Show Band. He has studied at the Berklee College of Music in Boston and holds an M.S. in Music Education from the University of Bridgeport. He recently retired after teaching music for 35 years in the Bridgeport Public Schools. John has performed with jazz greats Clark Terry, Jimmy Heath, Billy Taylor, and vocalist Giacomo Gates. He is a member and frequent performer with several Connecticut-based musical groups, leads the quartet "Jazz Plus" and is a member of "The New Haven Jazz Orchestra" website, which features many current and former members of the big bands of Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Maynard Ferguson, and Tommy Dorsey. SOUND A JOYFUL NOTE! Elaine Bomford returns as our vocal workshop leader with single sessions devoted to Choral Conducting, Singing by the Numbers, Chant, and A Cappella Singing. Elaine is a conductor of On Wings of Song recording group, has participated in and led many vocal ensembles, been a singer in folk bands and a soloist diva in varied venues. She studied music at The Hebrew Arts School in New York and has taught voice as a side vocation, complementing her day job as a Unitarian Universalist Minister. Singers of all backgrounds are welcomed into the experience of making joyful and heart-opening music together in a low-pressure atmosphere. The Circle of Music is truly unique at Ferry Beach. Our conference takes much of its shape after the conferees arrive. We are a diverse group of folks who love to make music and have a great time. The spirit of the Circle arises directly from that joy and from the talents of each individual present. Come, share a wonderful week with us, and remember to bring your instruments, special songs, and tunes to share! If you have music-related items to sell or swap, bring them along to our annual "Sharps and Flats" music flea market and swap meet held during the week. Families with children and youth are encouraged to attend, whether the kids participate in the music or join our excellent children's programming. Coordinators: Frets Halligan and Keith Penniman
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Conference Details about Children Professional and Church
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