Staunton VA Camp March 6-8,2020
Meet the Instructors
Janie Rothfield-Advanced Old Time Fiddle
Janie Rothfield is an award winning clawhammer banjo player and fiddler who has been playing old-time music “forever.” She has toured professionally for over 35 years, during which she has also been a composer, recording artist, band leader, teacher, and event organizer, with fans around the world. Her clawhammer banjo style borrows heavily from both the traditional and inventive aspects of her fiddle style, and is characterized by great power, drive and in-the-pocket rhythm. Her teaching method combines an easy to learn technique that combines strategies for learning to play by ear quickly with a focus on musicality and rhythm! Janie performs with numerous old time and dance bands, and currently tours with the duo, Hen's Teeth. Her latest solo CD, “Out of Thin Air,” features 15 of her own compositions.Two of her tunes have won the Best Non-Traditional Tune at Clifftop Appalachian Stringband Festival! Her newest solo CD, OUT OF THIN AIR, features all of her own compositions and songs, and in 2016 she release both wonderful CD of Fiddle/Harmonica duets with harmonica master, Brendan Power called PUFNSAW, and OFF THE CUFF AND ON THE FLY with her duo Hen's Teeth (With Nathan Bontrager)! Jane performs with numerous bands, including Coracree, Hen's Teeth, The Janie Rothfield Old Time Trio and with daughter Shona Carr as Little Missy.
Janie has taught clawhammer banjo and fiddle for over 35 years, privately and at camps and festivals such as Banjo Camp North, Midwest Banjo Camp, Kauii Old Time Festival, Porltand Old Time Music Gathering, Bellingham Folk Festival, Old Songs Summer Camps, Janie's Jumpstart, Heart of the Alleghanies Festival, Philadelphia Folk Festival, Folk College and the Festival of American Fiddle Tunes, FOATMAD Weekend (Wales), in England, Scotland, Germany and the Netherlands, and Australia.
"Janie came highly recommended so I had high expectations. They were met and exceeded. I've been playing fiddle for years, trying to learn from books and the internet. After Janie showed me the proper way to hold the fiddle and bow, and proper bowing technique, all those tunes I know became so much easier to play. Then she showed me the most important thing about playing any instrument; the difference between playing notes and making music. And the whole time I never feel like I'm taking lessons. I feel like I'm just hanging out playing music and learning new things. Most importantly, I'm excited about learning because it has become fun again." Jamie McCracken- Janie's Fiddle student
“Janie has shown me how to pull the melody out of old time tunes on my banjo… to make them less busy and more musical. I had developed some poor habits throwing every banjo cliché I ever learned into each tune I played. Janie showed me how to strip out all of the unnecessary stuff… to concentrate on the melody and rhythm which ultimately “pops” the tunes and makes them more beautiful.” Tim Wade-clawhammer banjo (Doylestown, PA)
Video from an episode of Get Up In The Cool: Playing Bentons Dream. https://youtu.be/OIHvClIV16I
Video of Janie Fiddling Hell Broke Loose in Georgia https://youtu.be/BllDgHZ-BRM
Riley Baugus-Advance Clawhammer Banjo
Riley represents the very best of old time clawhammer banjo and song. His powerful singing voice and his expert musicianship place him squarely in the next generation of the quality American roots tradition. He has taught at major camps throughout the US and is a wonderful teacher who inspires his students to play from the heart and with great technique.
Riley is a native of the southern Appalachians. His family roots lie in the Blue Ridge mountains of North Carolina, and he grew up learning the music of the region from older musicians in the area. In his performances, Riley focuses on old time songs, ballads and tunes from the Blue Ridge, and the stories that accompany them.
Riley has been called on to play and sing on many projects through the years, including for the Academy Award winning film, Cold Mountain, the multi-Grammy winning recording by Robert Plant and Alison Krauss, Raising Sand, and with Willie Nelson on his recording, Country Music.
Riley's
He makes his home near Walkertown, NC, where, when not performing or teaching, he builds finely, handcrafted old time banjos.
Roustabout played by Riley https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSCpRyYHbik
