Music Memories:

Familiar Music for those in Nursing Care, Memory Units and Retirement Villages

Jan and Tom include music related stops in their travels, including several areas that claim they are the home to Old Joe Clark of the old time tune. However, Kentucky may have the most authentic claim; they have his statue and  plaque to prove it!

Some of our northern-most club members are the “Heartstrings”

Club members Vicky Germroth, Arna Zulauf, Irene Mertens, Ann Grisdale and Sally Walters gather to play as “Heartstrings”.  This year they played at the Greenfield Nursing Home in Strasburg in February, April and May. They took our Limberjack  (Jig Doll) and the residents loved it!  They also attended the Poconos Dulcimer Festival in Stroudsburg, PA in April.  In October, Tom and Jan Scanlan joined the group as they played at Brookdale Senior Living in Harrisonburg. Last December Heartstrings played Christmas music at the “Merriment in Middletown” event  and at Bellegrove Plantation in Middletown and are scheduled to perform at both places again this December.

The Pride of the Blue Ridge – Blue Lions!

Batesville Market, December 1, 2019

The Pride performed at the Batesville Market (read more here) the afternoon of December 1. It was a fun venue and lovely market!

The Pride also will play at the Augusta County Library in Fishersville on December 11.

Homecoming Sunday at Holy Cross Episcopal Church

On September 15, 2019 in Batesville, several dulcimer players joined Renée Willis in providing the prelude for the special Homecoming service. Every pew was filled, and the tables overflowed with food at the fellowship meal! What a lovely historic place to gather for worship!

Christmas Carols at BRC, December 3, 2019

Harrisonburg Baptist Church 150th Year Anniversary Celebration

On September 29, the Joyful Noise, the Tuesday Morning Maple Terrace dulcimer players, joined Wally Holthaus in celebrating the Harrisonburg Baptist Church’s 150th Anniversary. What a great service, fun day, and wonderful food! We played some multi-part hymns in the gazebo during the noon meal.

Vespers at BRC’s Lantz Chapel

August 18 turned out to be one of our most exciting programs ever, in a totally unexpected way! As the Joyful Noise (the Tuesday Morning Maple Terrace dulcimer players) were preparing to begin the Sunday Evening Vesper program, the storm that had been rumbling outside erupted in a loud clap of thunder and …. the power went out! Thanks to the help of some of the audience who provided light for the players with their cellphones, we were able to complete the program in almost complete darkness.

When we left, the rain had stopped, and a rainbow appeared over the chapel. We took that as a sign that all was well.

The “Sweet Strings Sisters”, Debbie Campbell, Patricia Cash, Carole Ralston and Shannon Tate, were often heard playing this summer by the Humpback Rocks Visitor Center on the Blue Ridge Parkway on 2nd and 4th Sundays of summer months.

This year, Sisters of the Strings, Shannon Tate and Patricia Cash, have shared sweet music at the Homecoming Sunday at Love Church and also at Glovier Memorial Methodist Church for Waynesboro Weekly Religious Education program. They were invited to play also at the Tinkling Presbyterian for their “Angels Among Us” luncheon, where Patricia played autoharp and sang and Shannon did voice and dulcimer backup with dulcimer.

For the past several years, we have gathered for a fall jam at Grand Caverns Park in Grottoes. We have shared good food as well as good music! After an unseasonably warm week, the day of our picnic dawned chilly and remained that way! We were thankful for Mike’s crockpot of macaroni (and his red velvet cake, too!), for Joan’s spectacular salad, the ham, snack mix, and myriad of other goodies that were shared! A dozen folks were there, and the sun shone while we jammed before lunch. Thanks to Dinah for leading the slow jam!

Sunday strumming on the Blue Ridge Parkway

Jan and Tom Scanlan, Patricia Cash, Shannon Tate, Debbie Campbell and Carole Ralston, along with other club members, played at Humpback Rocks, Milepost 6 on the Blue Ridge Parkway, every 2nd and 4th Sunday afternoon of the summer months, June through September, weather permitting. Lots of visitors at the Visitor Center stop by to learn about the Appalachian Mountain Dulcimer and to listen to some old-time tunes. We met visitors from many states and several other countries. Perhaps the most memorable visitors, however, were the black bears. The music must have been to one of the bear’s liking – he came back another Sunday to hear some more!

Tull Glazener’s Workshop, September 21, 2019

What a wonderful day – three multi-part workshops with Tull, ending with the class playing “Go in Peace” as the prelude to Tull’s evening concert. As always with our instructor concerts, it was a real treat! Thanks, Tull!

“Sum of the Parts” – there’s something magic that happens when a like-minded group of musicians gets together to play.   The “whole” truly is greater than the sum of its parts!  We spent the day working on the skills and techniques needed to “play well with others” as we worked through a number of multi-part ensemble arrangements.   We were thrilled to “open” Tull’s concert Saturday evening with his multipart arrangement of “Go Now In Peace”.

Read more about Tull and his music at his website: http://www.tullglazener.com/

Note: In the event of inclement weather, PLEASE CHECK THIS WEBSITE or our Facebook page for a notification of cancellation.

Our next First Saturday jam will be January 4, 2020 from 2 – 4 pm in the Maple Terrace in the Bridgewater Retirement Community.    Parking is now available in the front as renovations continue.

For our December, we played on the balcony in Maple Terrace!

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NO THIRD SATURDAY JAM in December

Since our normal Third Saturday jam would fall on Dec. 21, a busy day just prior to Christmas, we will not hold this jam this year. EVERYONE is invited to the Dec. 7 jam, in Bridgewater.

Our next Third Saturday gathering will be from 2 – 4 pm on January 18, 2020. The location will be the Augusta County Library in Fishersville, downstairs. Bring a list of songs you would like the group to play, your Dave Haas Jam Book and our Joe Collins hymn collection!

Note: In the event of inclement weather, PLEASE CHECK THIS WEBSITE for a notification of cancellation.

Summer First Saturday Jams MAY be relocated to the Oasis, just for fun, for sharing and for being in an outdoor venue.  This always depends on the availability of the Oasis Shelter in the Bridgewater Retirement Village, as well as weather!  If the location is changed from the Shenandoah Room, members will be notified via email.