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Accordions have been a part of Maine Fiddle Camp since the very beginning, but as Camp has expanded, so have the opportunities to learn accordion. As in the past, this year we still have top teachers on piano accordion for both August weeks. Sylvia Miskoe, from NH, will again be on staff for the first August week, and Jeremiah McLane, from VT, will be on staff once again for the second August week. Now for the new stuff.. In June we have added a new weekend with a multi-level and multi-faceted accordion track. Staff members Sabin Jacques from Quebec, Jim Joseph and Junior Stevens from Maine will handle button accordion in several styles including Cajun, Irish, Quebecois and New England. There will be opportunities to learn Anglo AND English concertina as well!! This weekend is the second June weekend (June 21-23). Take a look at this video of Junior Stevens playing the Galway Rambler on the Irish concertina, or this video of him playing the Collier’s Reel on button accordion. For more info on these programs and teachers… read on……

June Week

• Sunniva Brynnel

  

  Sunniva Brynnel is a Swedish piano accordionist, singer and composer. In 2017, she was awarded Albin Hagström Minnesfonds scholarship for accordionists through the Royal Academy in Stockholm.

  Sunniva comes from a lineage of seven generations of female musicians, and her mother – Swedish folk singer and vocal coach Rosa Brynnel – is one of her major influences. Aged 19, Sunniva moved to Ireland to study Irish Gaelic singing and music at DIT Conservatory of Music and Drama in Dublin. (more…)

June Weekend II

• Nancy 3. Hoffman

  

  Nancy 3. Hoffman is a classically trained pianist and works nationally as a music theater director. Nancy 3. Is a founding member of The Casco Bay Tummlers Klezmer Band, (http://www.cascobaytummlers.com/) playing Eastern European Jewish folk music for over 30 years. She brings her love of this music to spice up the mix at Fiddle Camp.

  She leads The Maine Squeeze accordion ensemble, playing international folk music. Her solo work includes international cabaret and her one-woman rendition of Gilbert and Sullivan’s operetta The Mikado. She is also director and curator of the world’s only Umbrella Cover Museum. Nancy 3. lives on Peaks Island and migrates to Key West, Florida for the winter. Her middle name is really 3.

• Sabin Jacques

  

  Sabin Jacques began playing the accordion at age 14, deeply influenced by such musicians as Simard, Bruneau, Labbé Messervier and Montmarquette, he sought his originality in his unusual technique which gives him, as a left-handed player, a recognizable signature. Originally from the beautiful Gaspé peninsula, Sabin lived in Montreal between 1992-2009. This cosmopolite musical community allowed him to make significant acquaintances with musicians in the popular and commercial music domain. 

  Sabin remains profoundly attached to his traditional roots and regularly takes part in pedagogical projects, teaching at camps such as the Leahy – Natalie MacMaster camp (ONT) and Ashokan (NY), to name a few. Since distance is not an obstacle for learning, Sabin teaches accordion at home through internet or weekly at the Maréemusique School of Traditional Music. His teaching is said to be uplifting and always inspiring. (more…)

August Week I

• Sylvia Miskoe

  

  A new Hampshire native, Sylvia has been playing her accordion since college where she began playing for square and contra dancing. Today she plays for contra dancing but also Scottish and English Country Dance. Sylvia was one of the founders of the Strathspey & Reel Society of New Hampshire, a group devoted to learning about and playing Scottish music, open to all ages and abilities and was their music director for 7 years. She says the one thing better than sitting on stage and playing for dancing is helping others learn how to play for dancing.

• Julie Vallimont

  

  Julie Vallimont performs nationwide on piano and accordion with the bands Buddy System and Nor’easter and other collaborations.  She plays for contra, English, and French dancing.   A former classical pianist and organist, she fell in love with traditional music and dance, and since then has gone on to perform at numerous festivals and music camps.  Drawing on teaching skills developed over fifteen years as a natural science educator, Julie enjoys teaching and leading workshops. 

August Week II

• Jeremiah McLane

  

  The music of composer, accordionist, and pianist Jeremiah McLane is a unique blend of Franco-American, Celtic, jazz, and roots influenced music. In 1980 Jeremiah started studying Celtic music and began playing the accordion, influenced largely by the Bothy Band and Dedanann. He studied with Chicago accordionist Jimmy Keane and Cape Breton pianist Doug McPhee. In the early 1990s he helped start two bands with strong traditional New England roots: The Clayfoot Strutters and Nightingale, both of which are active today. In 2003 he formed Le Bon Vent, a sextet specializing in Breton and French music. He has recorded nine CDs with these and other musicians.
  www.jeremiahmclane.com

• Julie Vallimont

  

  Julie Vallimont performs nationwide on piano and accordion with the bands Buddy System and Nor’easter and other collaborations.  She plays for contra, English, and French dancing.   A former classical pianist and organist, she fell in love with traditional music and dance, and since then has gone on to perform at numerous festivals and music camps.  Drawing on teaching skills developed over fifteen years as a natural science educator, Julie enjoys teaching and leading workshops. 

Sign up now!

Here’s the link to the Maine Fiddle Camp page which has more general information and, most importantly, information on how to sign up!