August Week I

Endlessly inspired by bonds of kinship forged through music, Cellist, composer, and teacher
Sammy Wetstein found his love for music traveling between multigenerational folk music camps
and festivals in search of a musical community to call home. His journey led him to pursue a
degree in folk and jazz string performance at Berklee College of Music and become versed in a
variety of styles, performing, recording, and teaching throughout the worlds of classical, jazz,
and traditional Celtic, New England, Bluegrass and Old time fiddle music.
As a multi instrumentalist fluent in playing accordion, guitar, mandolin, bass, violin, and viola, he
has appeared at venues such as the Newport Folk Festival, Grey Fox Bluegrass festival, the
Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Berklee College Of Music Convocation, The Library of
Congress, and the annual International Bluegrass Music Association festival. He has served as
faculty at Maine Fiddle Camp, The Swannanoa Gathering, The Ashokan Center, Fiddle Hell,
Pinewoods dance Camps, and the IBMA Kids on Bluegrass Program.
Sammy has appeared alongside artists such as the Grammy winning 8 Bit Big Band, jazz icons
Joe Levano and Kenny Barron, renown string players including Eugene Friesen, Darol Anger,
Mike Marshall and Jason Anick, and toured with trailblazing folk artists Jake Blount and Nic
Gareiss. Advocating for furthering the role of the cello in traditional music, he has been featured
on Bluegrass Today and Sirius XM Bluegrass Junction. In 2024 his new acoustic quartet Catfish
in the Sky was a winner of the Freshgrass band competition, and his Celtic trio was voted one of
the top 5 Celtic bands of 2022 by Irish and Celtic music podcast.
Sammy’s love of music stems from his dream to find belonging and bring others together, and in
his teaching he hopes to encourage string players of all ages and backgrounds to find freedom
in their music, explore global music styles, and play music as a means to exist in community
while better understanding oneself.

Clara grew up playing music in the woods of southern Maine in a family of classical musicians. She fell in love with fiddle music when she came to Maine Fiddle Camp for the first time in 2013. Clara minored in music and started playing the lever harp while earning her master’s degree in occupational therapy from the University of Southern Maine. She started playing for contra dances in 2016 with Jamie Oshima in their duo project Joy Compass. Clara currently tours with the Red Case Band (fiddle and harp) and the Gaslight Tinkers (fiddle) as well as other projects and solo. She teaches at camps and festivals and offers private lessons.

w: https://www.claraconstancemusic.com/
e: [email protected]

Words from Mitch Reed:
“I am a multi-instrumentalist, traditional music instructor, and storyteller. I was born in Bayou Vista, Louisiana, raised in Lafayette by musicians and storytellers from Mamou. At 15 I began playing the fiddle and studying traditional Cajun and Creole music. By 17 I toured as a cultural ambassador in Smithsonian Institution Office of Folklife Programs, and have continued to work with them since 1989.

During my career, I have played alongside Louisiana greats such as Canray Fontenot, Bois Sec Ardoin, Charles Neville, and George Porter. I have performed on four Grammy Nominated albums, and in 2009 I was awarded a Grammy with BeauSoleil for the album “Live at the 2008 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival”. Over the years I have built an extensive repertoire and learned an old style of playing which is evident in my sound today.

After I retired from 11 years on the road as the bass player and second fiddler with BeauSoleil avec Michael Doucet, I moved from Louisiana to Maine with my wife and our family. These changes helped me continue passing on the unwritten tradition of Cajun and Creole fiddling and storytelling while exploring the connections between the musical traditions of Acadia and Acadiana.”

Mitch will be teaching either bass or fiddle during the week-long sessions in 2024

Maine musician Owen Kennedy is delighted to be on staff at Maine Fiddle Camp this year, after attending many years as a camper!  An award-winning fiddler rooted in the Maine Maritime musical tradition and immersed in his growing passion for Scottish music, Owen splits time between Maine and Cape Breton where he’s studying Gaelic language, culture, and music at Beinn Mhàbu. Owen’s love of traditional music and enthusiasm for performing has taken him all around New England, into Canada, and over to Scotland and Shetland, where he has played with Ellen Gawler and the Pineland Fiddlers, Young Tradition Vermont’s Touring Group and Youth Commission (now Sap Line), and in duos with Benjamin Foss, Ethan Tischler, and Seán Heely. Owen is the 2022 New England Regional Open Scottish Fiddle Champion, and the 2021 Junior US National Scottish Fiddle Champion.  His powerful playing can capture the melancholy of a Scottish air, mimic the sound of pipes in a march, or drive a good ol’ New England contradance tune.

Owen’s debut album “Oh When: Now,” recorded with Owen Marshall, features tunes from the Maine Maritime tradition as well as favorites from Scotland, Cape Breton, and Shetland.  Owen is also wrapping up a solo project, 50 Fiddlers from 50 States, available on YouTube.  In addition to performing, Owen has been giving private fiddle lessons in-person and online since 2019 and also offers group lessons at Beinn Mhàbu. Owen’s enthusiasm for teaching is fueled by his excitement to share what he has learned from the many mentors who have generously taught him over the years, including so many of the amazing Maine Fiddle Camp staff.  Whether in Maine, Vermont, or Cape Breton, Owen is not one to miss the chance to be outside exploring.  If he’s not playing for a dance, at a session, or on stage, he’s likely to be enjoying time on the water, cooking up fresh-caught fish by bonfire, or taking a walk in the mountains along quiet gravel roads.

Find him on YouTube and social media @fiddlerokennedy or at www.fiddlerokennedy.com.

Jody Johnstone has been a fixture in the Irish music community in the
Belfast area for over a decade. She co-leads the Irish session at the Homeport
Tavern in Searsport on Thursday nights. Jody’s first intensive whistle study
was with Thomas Johnston in Ennis, Ireland. On returning from Ireland she
sought out Nicole Rabata for private lessons.  She attends the Catskills
Irish Arts Week regularly and studies whistle with with Mary Bergin, Joanie
Madden and Kathleen Conneely here or in Ireland every chance she gets.  A
recent vacation on Joanie Madden’s Musical Bus Tour of Ireland in which she
got to play with Joanie any number of times was a highlight of her lifetime.
Jody plays locally with Jim Hyland and Chris Brinn as The Strayaways and has
appeared on stage many times at the Maine Celtic Celebration and will do so
again this year.

A longtime Maine Fiddle Camper, Jody has previously assisted teaching
beginner whistle and is delighted to be on staff this year.

email: [email protected]

Adelaide Morgan is a fiddler and multi-instrumentalist currently residing in East Tennessee. A long time Maine Fiddle camper, Adelaide started playing fiddle at the age of five and was lucky to grow up deeply inspired by the vibrant group of musicians in Maine. Since first being introduced to bluegrass at eight years old, Adelaide and her twin sister Amelia have performed extensively together, their music evolving over the years into a dynamic blend of styles that reflects the roots of their musical upbringing.

Adelaide’s love for music led her to East Tennessee State University, where she is now studying  Bluegrass, Old Time and Roots music. In Tennessee, she continues to perform alongside her sister and other musicians, playing contra dances, bluegrass gigs, and teaching fiddle.

Adelaide offers private lessons, both virtually and in person.

email: [email protected]

phone: (207) 951-7294

Amelia Morgan is a multi-instrumentalist hailing from Rapid City, South Dakota. While she is primarily a fiddler, she also keeps a guitar, mandolin, and tenor banjo close at hand. Amelia’s tasteful repertoire ranges from singer/songwriter-y folk to traditional bluegrass. 

She spent much of her childhood living in Maine, consequently developing a fondness for New England contra dance tunes, something that she continues to play and love. She also plays lots of bluegrass and celtic music and is passionate about carrying on those fiddling traditions.

As much as she is a technical fiddler, she is also a folk song devotee, and can be expected to sing a sad, slow song frequently. She is inspired by artists like Gillian Welch and Crooked Still, and her musicianship reflects those inspirations.  She is currently studying Bluegrass music at East Tennessee State University, working to learn as much as she can from the talented instructors and students there. She is excited to continue to play traditional music and grow in her musicianship.

My mother brought a ukulele on a family trip to Atlanta. The 7 hour drive was pretty stressful as three unruly bored brothers turned the backseat into a war zone. In addition to our battles this trip we each learned to play 5’2″ on the uke. My first experience with a stringed instrument. Of course we performed for Grandma, Aunts, Uncles, and cousins. That was over 50 years ago.

Since then I’ve played guitar, upright bass, and uke in assorted bands and groups mostly in Mississippi and Maine. (more…)

Elizabeth Anderson Howe is the 2020 US National Scottish Fiddle Champion and the 2016 Perth All-Scotland Fiddle Champion.  Her stylish and vibrant fiddle playing has delighted audiences and dancers across the East Coast. As a duo with her brother Ben on cello, Elizabeth has played to full houses at iconic Boston venues The Burren and Club Passim, and has given popular performances and workshops as far away as France and Scotland.  A graduate of Berklee College of Music, she teaches string instruments as a middle school and private instructor.

Mia Bertelli grew up in the mountains of New Mexico, singing at every chance she could get. Her love of song led her to Vermont at the age of fifteen, where she dove into the polyphonic singing camps of Village Harmony like a penguin into the sea. Since then she has been filling kitchens, streets, concert halls, vegetable gardens, and public restrooms with song, both in the northeast and overseas. Her irrepressible inclination to harmonize and great love of playful nuance have mostly gotten her into all the right sorts of trouble, so she counts them among her blessings.   (more…)

Sandy has been playing for contra dances for over 50 years. In the 70’s, he was a founding member of the Roaring Jelly dance band and the Common Ground quintet. Back then, he played occasionally with Dudley Laufman and the Canterbury Country Dance Orchestra. He spent over 20 years as the hired music director of two long-standing community dance bands (the Berlin Country Dance Orchestra and Oh, CONTRAire!), and has recorded with a number of traditional musicians, including Tony Saletan, Jay Unger, Jerry Robichaud, and Trapezoid. He has played for many well-known dance callers, including Dudley Laufman, Ted Sanella, Larry Jenkins, Tony Parkes, and Lisa Greenleaf

He was a co-founder of The Music School at the Emporium, then in Cambridge, MA, and was the Director of the school for the first four years. As the lead old-time banjo instructor, he taught over 400 musicians how to frail a banjo. He has been on staff several times at Pinewoods, and has led instructional workshops at many festivals including: Fox Hollow, the National Folk Festival at Wolftrap, NEFFA, the Five College Folk Festival, and the DEFFA Festival.

In the past at Fiddle Camp, Sandy has taught pennywhistle and five-string banjo. This summer he will be leading the Great Horned Ukestra in its daily late-afternoon rehearsals, and also leading them at the Country Dances each evening. (Remember to bring a ukulele and/or a horn!)

15 Pipers Way, New Harbor, ME 04554 • Landline: (207) 677-6647

Éric Favreau comes from a family of traditional musicians and has spent a great deal of time playing with other fiddlers, learning their repertoire and studying their varied styles. Éric has explored and exploited various sources including archives and personally made field recordings and has accumulated a rich and fascinating repertoire. Over the years, he has garnered a profound understanding and vast knowledge of Québécois traditional music. (more…)

Maine coast musician, and member of the North American Fiddler’s Hall of Fame, Frank Ferrel is considered one of the seminal traditional New England and Maritime fiddlers. In fact, Boston Globe music critic, Scott Alarik called him, “One of the finest living masters of the genre.” his CD recording, Yankee Dreams, was selected by the Library of Congress to be included in their, “Select list of 25 examples of American folk music on record.” His original compositions have enjoyed great popularity in the Canadian Maritimes, and have been recorded by such notable Canadian fiddlers as Buddy MacMaster, Ashley MacIsaac, Brenda Stubbert, Tracy Dares, Maybelle Chisholm, Andrea Beaton, Joe Cormier, Shane Cook, Tara Lynn Touesnard and Douglas Cameron and J.J. Chaisson. He is a regular fixture at local traditional dances and concerts, and has preformed and toured throughout North America, Ireland and the British Isles, including numerous appearances with the legendary Celtic group, The Boys of the Lough. He has also been a regular featured guest on the National Public Radio series, A Prairie Home Companion, and is included on their CD recording, PHC Tourists. Frank has recorded his music for national labels including Rounder records, Flying Fish, Voyager and Great Meadow Music. He has written numerous books of traditional music, and has contributed numerous articles to folk and music magazines and journals.

Frank Ferrel 114 Old Brunswick Road, Bath, Maine 04530, USA, (207) 449-1614 (home), (207) 841-9918 (cell) www.frankferrel.com [email protected]

Elsie Gawler is a multi-instrumentalist and songster rooted in Maine’s traditional folk music and culture. With her family, the Gawler Family Band, she has played throughout the state and beyond, sharing traditional fiddle tunes, songs, and original works since she was 6 years old. From this foundation she has branched out and launched her debut solo album, Sweet As Honey. The album is a collection of 9 original songs inspired by sacred connection to earth and community. While continuing to play regularly with The Gawler Family Band, her other projects include duo Elsie & Ethan, trio Springtide, and trio The Gawler Sisters. She has also been a long-time member of the group Childsplay. Elsie grew up at Maine Fiddle Camp and transitioned to a teaching role in 2010.
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Sara Grey has been playing banjo for over 58 years.
Her dad, from northern NH, played fiddle and he took Sara down south when she was young back in the early 50’s to watch some of the “old boys” play and sing. She took that knowledge back up to NH where she grew up,and played for square dances when she was still in school. She has been playing ever since….dividing her time between the states and Scotland. She has taught wherever she has lived and at many traditional music camps and schools. This year (2022 August Week I) at camp I will be doing a “cross the pond” migration of ballads and songs each day for one hour.  We will cover each region of the States and parts of Canada. (more…)

McKinley James is a cellist studying at McGill University’s Schulich School of Music. She has also played with the Portsmouth Symphony Orchestra, Middlebury College Orchestra, McGill Symphony Orchestra, and the New England Conservatory Symphony, and soloed with the Champlain Philharmonic Orchestra.
She is a founding member of the band Night Tree. The group, all students at NEC, were named the Conservatory’s WildCard Honors Ensemble for 2016-2017. Awards for this title included a sponsorship from NEC, a headlining performance at the historic Jordan Hall, and a year of working with Winifred Horan, fiddler and co-founder of Irish super-band, SOLAS. As acoustic sextet Night Tree, Brian O’Donovan, Senior DJ at Boston’s own radio station, WGBH, calls them “One of the most exciting roots-based music groups to emerge from the New England Conservatory in many years. Their individual chops and adventurous approach make Night Tree a band to watch for.” Together they have toured throughout the US, opened for Solas in Portsmouth Music Hall, and played in Jordan Hall, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Public Library, and Rockwood Music Hall. They released their debut album in 2017 and toured in Europe in 2018. She has also toured in China with her piano trio. She studied with Yeesun Kim at the New England Conservatory for her Bachelor’s Degree

Jim Joseph, from Phippsburg,ME, was actually on staff a couple years ago for the inaugural June week. That was before we had an actual accordion track, and now he is back as an accordion teacher. Jim plays button accordion in the Quebecois, New England, and Cajun styles and also plays 5 string banjo, mandolin, fiddle, percussion (foot and otherwise) and is a member of several Maine bands including, T-Acadie, Scrod Pudding, and JimmyJo and the Jumbol’ayuhs, with Fiddle Camp staffers Pam Weeks and Bill Olson. Jim plays single row Cajun accordions (built by Marc Savoy and Junior Martin) and a 2 row Saltarelle D/G box. Here are some videos of Jim in action: A Cajun song with the Jumbol’Ayuhs, and a set of Quebecois reels with T-Acadie.

One of the most in demand upright bass, and five-string banjo players on the US contradance circuit, Stuart Kenney’s regional musical interests sweep from Southwest Louisiana to Acadia. He has a long career in many traditional music genres. His interest in Quebecois music formed through the fiddling of Lisa Ornstein, and performances by La Bottine Souriante. The inclusion of French Canadian music into the living tradition of New England contradance music caught his attention early on. (more…)

Jeff grew up on Islesboro, ME and starting attending MFC as a teen in 2006. Specializing on mandolin, he also plays and teaches guitar, banjo, and bass. Currently living in Brooklyn, NY, he is most active with two bands — Sun Parade and Ruby Lou.

Glen gives private lessons for mandolin and tenor banjo from his home in Portland, ME, and plays for contradances throughout the Northeast, and at festivals across the country with bands such as Frigate, Steampacket, Riptide, and Stomp Rocket.   Visit Glen at www.glenloper.com.

49 Brackett St, Portland ME, 04102
Phone: 207-837-8249

Elaine Malkin has played the violin since the age of 5. She was part of the resurgence of contra dances in Maine in the early 70’s, having learned from Otto Soper and Dudley Laufman. She played New England contra dances until 2009, when she began an intensive study of Québécois fiddle with mainly Éric Favreau, but also with Lisa Ornstein, André Brunet, Yvon Mimeault, and Liette Remon. This music has completely captured her heart and she uses a traditional Québécois repertoire for contra dances, concerts, and other venues. Learning, teaching, and sharing this special music is her greatest joy.

Steve Muise has been fiddling his family’s Downeast Style for many years. (His parents are 1st and 2nd generation Nova Scotians) He founded the Franklin County Fiddlers, a group of high school musicians that tours around Maine and way beyond displaying, promoting and learning about fiddle styles. Steve is a graduate of Berklee College of Music, and is a stringed instrument teacher in the MBRSD schools (Farmington area). Steve was honored with the “Maine Music Educator of the Year” award in 2007 from MMEA. Steve enjoys playing all styles, ranging from Downeast (maritime), Québécois, Celtic, and jazz, and can be seen playing music with his dad Paul, Boréal Tordu, Frigate, Muisette and the Franklin County (more…)

Kaity teaches fiddle in Damariscotta and has played for dances for many years with The Maine Country Dance Orchestra, and with the band The Lady Bugs. A native of Great Britain, Kaity has brought many a fine tune from the British Isles to our local dances. Kaity also plays viola in the local community orchestra and has four children, all of whom play music and come to camp every year.
7 Creek Lane Damariscotta ME 044543 207-563-8440

Multi-instrumentalist, producer, step dancer and host of the TradCafe podcast, Neil Pearlman is a vital and distinctive voice in contemporary folk music. Described as “a tremendous pianist” on BBC Radio Scotland and “a force to be reckoned with” by WGBH’s Brian O’Donovan, Neil is best known for his groundbreaking approach to the piano in Celtic music. Motivated by a deep musical curiosity and a love of collaboration, his playing is continually evolving and spontaneous without losing its roots in the traditional piano styles of Atlantic Canada, New England and Scotland. He has appeared internationally at major festivals such as the Newport Folk Festival, Celtic Connections in Glasgow, Celtic Colours in Cape Breton and the Orkney Folk Festival and has recorded or performed with luminaries of traditional folk music including Natalie MacMaster, Darol Anger, Seamus Egan and Alasdair Fraser.

Neil’s deep love of the Gaelic music traditions has seen him welcomed into spaces that few other Americans have been. He was selected for the 2025 Shannon Residency at Beinn Mhabu in Cape Breton and has performed and guest lectured at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance at University of Limerick, Ireland and the National Centre of Excellence in Traditional Music in Plockton, Scotland. His first solo piano album Refractions features frequently on BBC Radio nan Gàidheal and BBC Radio Scotland and his 2020 release with Shetland fiddler Kevin Henderson received 5 stars from Scotland’s national newspaper The Scotsman.

In addition to touring regularly with Kevin Henderson, the Pine Tree Flyers, and as a solo pianist, Neil teaches at festivals throughout North America and Europe and has guest lectured at Berklee College of Music, Northeastern University and the aforementioned University of Limerick. He co-directs an annual St. Patrick’s Day concert with Katie McNally at Groton Hill Music Center and releases podcasts and video collaborations with musicians from around the world through his production company TradCafe.

John started his early musical life as a drummer, but by some miracle got hooked on traditional music in his teens.

John’s been teaching fiddle and harmonica at MF Camp since its start in the mid 90’s.  He’s been known to get a few silly skits going for the evening variety show. He teaches fiddle, guitar and harmonica privately and can be contacted at [email protected] 338-0296 (cell 213-3294).

Doug likes to play the “old-time piano” for dances, melodramas, honky tonk saloons, and silent movies. He learned his style from Otto Soper, Geneva Walton, and Danny Patt among many others. He plays with Old Grey Goose and produced all three of their recordings, including the group’s first recording in 1978 for Folkways, “Old Time Country Dance Tunes and Songs from Maine”, now available again on CD. Doug also plays piano, accordion, and fiddle. He is the Camp Director again this year. 
116 Pleasant Cove Dr. Woolwich ME 04579 207-522-3800

Sharon has been a student of tin whistle and wooden flute since 1977 when she attended the Willy Clancy Summer School while working in Ireland for the year. On her return to Boston to care for her grandmother, she studied with master flute players in the Hanafin /Cooley Comhalthus branch. She move to Maine to raise her children and became a member of the Portland Ceili Band and Ladies of the Lake. She runs a music studio in Bath, Maine where she teaches flute and whistle and Music Together. For a few months every year since 2000, she happily lives and breathes Maine Fiddle alongside director Doug Protsik.  Sharon can be contacted at [email protected] or 207-522-3900.

Kenny first picked up a ukulele at age 8, when a family friend bought him one.  Now 50 plus years later, he’s not half bad! He’s got a menagerie of them, from soprano to baritone, and plays a variety of styles, swing music being his favorite.  Kenny has been an actor and physical comedian for 35 years, and has performed internationally, as well as on Broadway.  He also starred as the lead clown in Cirque du Soleil’s Nouvelle Experience.  He and Francis Berks make the acoustic duo The Doppelgangers.

Maggie Robinson has been teaching fiddle since 2003.  She began taking fiddle lessons the age of 10 and became concert mistress of her school orchestra during her senior year.   Many years later she discovered Contradancing and fell in love with the music  She took the violin out of the closet and began learning fiddle tunes. She completed a course in 2003 at the Hartt College of Music, Theater, & Dance on “Teaching Fiddling”.

Currently she is teaching at several locations in greater Portland, and also regularly calls for contra dances around the state.

A new England fiddler and folk singer, Lissa grew up in Maine as an active member of the folk music and dance community, where she cut her teeth as a musician at a very young age. She has continued to explore music throughout her life, leading to her graduation from The New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, Massachusetts (2001). Her list of mentors includes Greg Boardman, Alasdair Fraser, David Kaynor, and Hankus Netsky. While embracing a diverse pallet of musical influences, she still stays true to her New England roots.
For more info on Lissa, check out her website at www.lissafiddle.com

Bethany Waickman is a guitarist based out of Portland, Maine. She grew up in a musical family in the Adirondack Mountains of northern New York state. After college she spent some time traveling, hiking, and playing music in Ireland. Upon returning, she moved to Boston to focus on music. She co-founded the contra dance trio, Anadama, and is the guitarist for VT-based fiddler/singer Lissa Schneckenburger. (more…)

Pam sings and plays several instruments in the folk trio, T-Acadie, is fiddler and singer for the Maine-based Cajun dance band, Jimmyjo & the Jumbol’Ayuhs, plays fiddle and mountain dulcimer in the contradance band, Scrod Pudding, and performs solo or with guitar player and caller Bill Olson. She is an accomplished tunesmith and has composed scores of tunes, from lively jigs and reels, to entrancing airs and beautiful waltzes.

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Fred ‘s (guitar, percussion, vocals) musical debut occurred on the floor of his parents’ kitchen, surrounded by pots and pans, long before he ever heard of Ginger Baker or Gene Krupa. For the most recent 55 years he has been performing and recording oldtime, string band, hillbilly, rockabilly, blues, bluegrass, jazz, swing, minstrels, ragtime and Americana music. His trio, Waxlips, made award winning waves in North Carolina in the mid-80’s and (more…)