Allan Ricketts, a 15 year-old instrumentalist from Torbay writes about his SJFAC Workshop experiences:

The Workshop Series has been a great opportunity for me to learn more about the different instruments that I play. I have attended workshops on the accordion, tin whistle and mandolin, as well as the Young Folk at the Hall workshops.

The first workshop I attended was on the accordion, instructed by well-known accordionist Stan Pickett. Stan showed us the different techniques in tune playing, such as adding ornaments. Next came the tin whistle workshop. Gerry Strong, being a great whistle player, was able to pass along some great tips for playing the whistle. He showed us that you could improve a tune just by the movement of one finger.

In February of this year, I attended two workshops as part of Young Folk at the Hall. This was the second time that I had taken part, and it gave me the opportunity to perform with other youth that have the same musical interest that I have. Facilitators, such as Rob Brown, Michelle Brophy and Dave Penny were great at offering their expertise in helping the young musicians set up as groups, select songs, etc. I also learned some new tunes and was able to perform these as part of our group, THE OUT-OF-TOWNERS, at the concert at the LSPU Hall.

The last workshop that I attended was an excellent one. It was the Mandolin and Strings workshop held in March and was instructed by Dave Panting. The first time I tried the mandolin was in August 2002 at the Vinland Music Camp in Gros Morne when Hugh Scott first introduced it to me. But I didn't pick it up after that until about a week before the workshop. Since then I have been playing the mandolin on a regular basis. Dave's great talent really inspired me to continue playing and to learn more about the instrument.

There were other workshops that I wish I could have taken part in such as guitar, fiddle and songwriting but I guess I will have to wait until next time. If anyone is thinking about attending any of these workshops I would definitely recommend signing up. It's a great experience.


A Workshop Endorsement from Jim Wade

I think workshops are so great. You go for one reason, and that reason is the love of music. I have learned so much from the workshops I attended, and it is so good to see so many young people there. Music builds friendship, and from there relationships grow. Keep up the good work and don't forget your SENIORS rate!!


Please visit the SJFAC Workshops page for details on the workshops including comments by participants, photos and more.