Workshops

The festival is more than just a series of concerts; it’s a living, breathing village of music. In addition to our main stage acts, there are 40 workshops and side stage performance, as well as organized and spontaneous jam sessions all weekend. Here are a few highlights:

• Sing Your Socks Off: Feeling left out because you don’t play an instrument? Everybody has an instrument. It’s your voice! Join the Harmony Workshop on Sunday with The Barrel Boys. Learn about the tradition “stack” of lead, tenor, baritone and bass, and more. For non-bluegrass singing style, join members of the Amorphous Folk Collective on Saturday for Transatlantic Vocals, an exploration of Appalachian ballads and ways they connect with older Irish/UK singing traditions. The Vancouver group is at the forefront of the Pacific Northwest’s fast-growing traditional singing scene.
• Bluegrass Karaoke: Feeling brave? Get up and perform on the Chapel Stage with The Clover Point Drifters as your back-up band (Saturday).
• Chop some wood: The  “chop” is an essential yet often overlooked part of bluegrass music. This percussive technique is most often the role of the mandolin, but it is also done on fiddle and banjo. Tad Ruszel will demonstrate the technique in his Mandolin Chop workshop on Sunday.
• Women’s Jams: New this year are women’s jams every day of the festival. An alternative to the traditional, sometimes male-dominated jams, these daily sessions are a space for collaboration, jamming, and community building. Build confidence and skills in a welcoming environment.
•  Dance: Join our signature square dance under the stars led by The Black Rabbit Rounders. No experience needed. Caller Paul Silveria will have you spinning in squares of four in no time. No partner? No problem. You’ll find one. Or they’ll find you.
• Instrument Workshops: Sharpen your skills with free music workshops by our artists in guitar, mandolin, fiddle (old-time and bluegrass), and banjo (clawhammer and three-finger), or watch some of the amazing performances on the intimate Chapel Stage.
• Bend and Stretch: Morning yoga sessions daily.