This is a participatory session, so bring your fiddle, banjo, mandolin, guitar, or any other instrument — or just come listen. The group will play a batch of oldtime fiddle music, mostly traditional tunes from the American southeast, such as might be found in the Milliner-Koken Collection of American Fiddle Tunes or the Stacy Phillips Traditional American Fiddle Tunes volume (as distinct from bluegrass, contradance, Irish, etc.). To avoid retuning, the repertoire will be limited to one or two keys, starting in G.
All levels of instrumental ability and knowledge of oldtime repertoire are welcome, but note that it’s a jam session, playing tune after tune, not a class or workshop or instructed experience. If you’re a newbie, this is your chance to give it a try. Listening and chasing is how this music is learned.
If you’re interested in this type of music, join the OldTimeSF mail group to receive occasional announcements about concerts, jams, festivals, dances, and other relevant events. https://groups.io/g/oldtimeSF/
Tony Phillips has possessed a variety of stringed instruments for many years, and played mandolin in bluegrass and klezmer bands. After he started going to oldtime jams, he became infected by the oldtime fiddle virus, and has yet to recover. Consider yourself warned! He leads the monthly oldtime jams at the Freight & Salvage, abd currently plays with several groups, some with his friends David Brown and Kerry Parker.