EAC Summer School

10th Annual Summer School - July 21st-25th 2008

The EAC continues its holistic approach to traditional music making at Ruskin Mill, Nailsworth, Gloucestershire. 17 places are available for a week designed to engage fiddle players from all backgrounds and levels in the development of their own style. This year we will also open the course to non-fiddlers who are keen to develop their personal style.

'The one thing all the great singers and musicians have in common is that they are all completely individual' Martin Carthy MBE.

This simple sentence carries so much of what is central to all folk music, no matter which corner of the world it comes from. The Summer School breaks down into bite size chunks some of the elements which encourage the development of our own individual repertoire and style.

Creative interpretation ... As well as learning by ear we will look at the creative interpretation of traditional manuscript. By looking at the elements of phrasing, bowing, tempo, harmony and variation we each begin to work out a version of the tune which fits us.

A sense of place ... Traditional music has always sprung from community and landscape. We will find ways in which our music reflects our contemporary landscape, our daily lives and our wider cultural inheritance. As our choice of repertoire becomes more considered so our story begins to come through in our music, our performances become more focused and our confidence as players and teachers grows.

Technique ... Technique is what enables us to breathe new life into our repertoire and develop confident and compelling performances. We’ll be looking at tone, bowing, pulse, swing, intonation and ornamentation with the option of singing with our instruments, approaches to harmony and practice techniques.

Music ... We learn repertoire from books, technique from a teacher but music must come from within. All students are given the opportunity to write their own tunes and Ruskin Mill is a highly inspirational site for this. In past years many strong pieces have emerged from the summer school. Last year The English Acoustic Collective recorded John Dipper's beautiful 'Ruskin Mill Waltz' on their 'Ghosts' album. As the week progresses, small ensembles from duets upwards begin to form organically allowing individuals a chance to try out ideas and new tunes. The course culminates with an informal public concert on the Friday evening giving us the chance to share our music with others.

References:

England
"Chris Wood demonstrated to a group of a dozen or more, how to embrace the style, technique and, most importantly, the emotion of a tradition - and then realise that they are a vital part of it. The participants were given a huge insight into how to speak through the music, showing respect for it, but at the same time giving themselves the freedom to apply it in a personal and relevant way. This was about far more than learning to play the fiddle."
Roger Watson, Artistic Director, Traditional Arts Projects.

Ireland
"Chris Wood is one of the most stimulating and inspirational teachers to have visited the Irish World Music Centre. He is also one of the few tutors to have taught across several of our MA programmes, from Music Therapy, to Ritual Song & Traditional Music Performance. His ability to communicate with his students at the deepest level is one of his particular gifts. His innate musicianship, expressed through his passionate interest in the traditional music of England puts him at the forefront of contemporary performers of this genre."
Dr Míchaél Ó Súilleabháin, Professor of Music, Director of the Irish World
Music Centre, University of Limerick.

Wales
“One of Chris's greatest gifts is his ability to emphasise and encourage the individuality of traditional musicians, both budding practitioners and experienced performers. Yet he never loses the crucial perspective that each individual musician is an integral part of the greater tradition. His work provides innumerable departure points for further discoveries, an examination of the past that provides a way of building the future. His importance for those of us who are wrestling with the problems of broken and battered traditions, is incalculable."
Stephen Rees and Philip Freeman, trac - folk development for Wales

Scotland
Our interest is in new music created by musicians with strong roots in the folk tradition – new music with an ancient heart. As a composer and songwriter Chris Wood has found a personal means of expression which links with a deep tradition. His music celebrates important and fundamental connections – between music and language, music and landscape, music and the things and people that make each part of these islands distinct. As a teacher he encourages others to find their own means of expression. As a performer he compels attention. An important artist.
David Francis and Simon Thoumire, Distil