Upper Potomac Music Weekends
About the 2023 Fall Dulcimer Weekend Teachers​
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Special Guest
Pieter Blondelle has been an active member in the Flemish folk scene for many decades, building and playing bagpipes and other instruments and being an organizer for the Gooik Festival and other events. Since first building his frist hammered dulcimer in 2008, he has been instrumental in reviving the hammered dulcimer in Flanders where it has early roots and has been building instruments and teaching repertoire on the instrument. With the pandemic, and online dulcimer events, players around the world have been introduced to his music. At our fall weekend, he will be teaching a Flemish Tunes class for all instruments on Friday and sharing our "Weekend Tune" which we hope that all will learn, enjoy, share and perform for our video presentation on the web.
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Hammered Dulcimer Classes
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Tina Bergmann Hailed by Pete Seeger as “the best hammered dulcimer player I’ve heard in my life,” Tina Bergmann has been performing concerts, and teaching workshops and private lessons from an early age. A fourth-generation musician, Bergmann began playing music at age eight, learning the mountain dulcimer from her mother in the aural tradition and learning the hammered dulcimer at the knee of West Virginia-native builder and performer Loy Swiger. Demonstrating gifts for both performance and teaching, she has been a featured performer across the United States, performing solo; as a duo with her husband, bassist Bryan Thomas; with her stringband Hu$hmoney; and as a featured soloist with Apollo’s Fire and Canadian early music group, La Nef.
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Instructing her first workshop at Cleveland State University at the age of 12, Tina went on to be in demand at festivals, music clubs and camps throughout the US. By the time she earned a BA in music education in 1994 she had a well-established and thriving private studio, had been planning and facilitating master classes and workshops, and was a featured instructor at weeklong camps in Kentucky, New York, Massachusetts, Missouri, and North Carolina. Tina has been a Music Specialist at Hershey Montessori in Concord Township Ohio since 2001.
Tina is featured on 10 recordings and has authored two books, Bells in the High Tower, holiday music for the advanced beginner through advanced player, and Grooving & Growing-20 unusual jam tunes to light your fire. Information on private lessons & workshops, concert listings and merchandise can be found at her website
Jody Marshall, a native of the Washington, D.C. area, grew up in a musical family. Enchanted by the sound and visual appeal of the hammered dulcimer, she developed a passion for the instrument and was soon playing everything from traditional jigs
and reels to Mozart, the Beatles, and beyond.
Her performance credits include the White House, the Kennedy Center, and Wolf Trap’s Filene Center for the Performing Arts. Jody was a founding member of the popular folk trios, Ironweed and MoonFire, and also performed extensively with the award-winning ensemble, Connemara.
She is also a popular dulcimer teacher, and has been on the faculty of many festivals and arts workshops across the nation and overseas. The Washington Post describes Jody’s music as “lovely, lively, and shimmering.” She has several recordings to her credit, and is also the author of a book of Christmas music for the hammered dulcimer, as well as books featuring dulcimer duets.
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Mark Alan Wade performs throughout Europe, Asia and North America as a soloist on dulcimer and trumpet. A classical trumpeter by trade, Mark earned his masters and doctorate degrees in music from The Ohio State University and has played hammered and mountain dulcimers for nearly 30 years. His style uniquely marries his classical precision and technique with his wild traditional dulcimer playing. As a result, he brings Celtic and world music to life and authenticity to familiar classical pieces. Mark recently released a new book entitled, Classical Masterpieces for Hammered Dulcimer. A National Champion himself, 6 of his students have also won the National Contest. Mark loves teaching beginners and has eight dulcimer books to help them get started right.
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Hammered Dulcimer and Mixed Instrument Classes
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Paul Oorts a native of Belgium, is adept at musette accordion and many things with strings. His instrumental versatility and knowledge of many different styles of music have made Paul the accompanist of choice for many hammered dulcimer players and a valued member of several dance ensembles. He plays English and contra dance music with Goldcrest and Cabaret Sauvignon, and traditional French music with Ensemble Tympanon. As a member of the Rigatoni Brothers he researches and performs Italian-American mandolin in trio music. Join him this weekend for a special "Romp Around Europe" with classes featuring tunes from England, Belgium, Southern Europe and more. Always a good time!
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