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For Fiddles at Four info, please scroll down.
Next Fiddles at Four session coming up in May 2025, starting May 5th. Tunes from the Hammons family of West Virginia. 
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Learn guitar from a master! For more info, email Eric
FIDDLES AT FOUR - twice weekly half-hour fiddle classes with Suzy Thompson
MAY 2025 - tunes from the Hammons family
Fiddles at Four classes meet twice weekly (on Mondays and Weds.) on Zoom for half-hour lessons, from 4:00 to 4:30 pm Pacific Time (7:00 pm East Coast time). On Mondays, I teach a new tune, with some attention to the bowing in addition to the melody; on Weds. we go deeper into the tune, focusing on bowing, groove, ornaments, variations, etc.
If the 4:00 Pacific time doesn’t work for you, you are welcome to sign up and watch the session after the fact, since I’ll post a video and audio recording of each Zoom session in the Drop Box.
The theme for May 2025 is tunes from the Hammons family, and there will be 7 class meetings, on the following dates:
May 5 and 7, May 12 (no meeting on May 14), May 19 and 21, and May 26 (Memorial Day) and 28. Our last meeting on Wed. May 28 will be a review session. Tuition for the 7 class meetings is $145 if paying by PayPal, $140 if you pay via check.
Each session (usually 4 weeks) I choose a new theme - sometimes tunes from a particular fiddler or group (we've done Arthur Smith, Bob Wills, Dennis McGee, John Dykes, the Skillet Lickers), sometimes a particular state (we've done Texas, Mississippi, Virginia - sometimes we'll do 2 months because there's enough music from all of the southern states to keep you going for a good long time!). One time we did unfamiliar tunes with familiar names -- oddball (but great) versions of Fisher's Hornpipe, Billy in the Lowground, etc. Another time I taught tunes with "Texas" in the title but the tunes didn't come from Texas. Another session we did all tunes that had water in the name - river, creek, rain, etc.
Class size is limited to 25 people (that is the maximum that will fit on my laptop screen at one time). All material will be taught by ear, no written music. Geared towards intermediate-advanced players, this class offers a chance not only to learn some wonderful new repertoire (or to dig deeper into tunes that you may already know) but also to build up your ear-training skills.
Source material will be provided in advance; we’ll stick closely to the source, including learning bowings and some of the variations used on the original recordings. All learning will be done by ear, no written music. After each Monday lesson, I’ll make a short video going through the tune once at a slow tempo, and then once at a more lively tempo. Source material, short videos and a video of the full class (useful if you have to miss a class) will be in a Drop Box folder, available for download to participants.
To sign up, or if you have questions, send an email: [email protected]
Here is what participants have to say about Suzy's online half-hour "Fiddles at Four" classes:
"Playing regularly and with instruction has certainly improved my playing and I’ve been able to get a number of tunes under my fingers at a decent speed.”
"Thanks again for doing this, it has been such a positive constant during this shelter in place time. It has really helped to have something challenging to focus on. And its a nice little community of fiddlers, albeit virtual.”
“Your class has been manna from heaven. It restored my spirit and soul when I was just about paralyzed with anguish and frustration at the (partially avoidable!) tragedy our world began to experience this past spring. Fiddling along with you has been a deep pleasure, education, and respite from the world's turmoil.”
"This is fun and keeps me picking up my fiddle."
“These classes have both helped me learn tunes, improved my ability to follow by ear, improved my bowing. The social aspect has also been very helpful.”
"I’m so glad you are inspired to continue teaching next year. It has been an important part of coping for me during this crazy year. It also has helped me improve on the fiddle!!!”
"Thanks so much for doing this. This year has been so challenging for me and my family, and your class has become a bright spot in my week. I also realize that this class has been an opportunity for learning that otherwise would not have happened, so there’s a silver lining to this pandemic.”
" I’ve learned a lot in your class and want to continue the learning."
"I am filled with appreciation for the structure and inspiration that your fiddle classes have offered during these times of isolation."
MAY 2025 - tunes from the Hammons family
Fiddles at Four classes meet twice weekly (on Mondays and Weds.) on Zoom for half-hour lessons, from 4:00 to 4:30 pm Pacific Time (7:00 pm East Coast time). On Mondays, I teach a new tune, with some attention to the bowing in addition to the melody; on Weds. we go deeper into the tune, focusing on bowing, groove, ornaments, variations, etc.
If the 4:00 Pacific time doesn’t work for you, you are welcome to sign up and watch the session after the fact, since I’ll post a video and audio recording of each Zoom session in the Drop Box.
The theme for May 2025 is tunes from the Hammons family, and there will be 7 class meetings, on the following dates:
May 5 and 7, May 12 (no meeting on May 14), May 19 and 21, and May 26 (Memorial Day) and 28. Our last meeting on Wed. May 28 will be a review session. Tuition for the 7 class meetings is $145 if paying by PayPal, $140 if you pay via check.
Each session (usually 4 weeks) I choose a new theme - sometimes tunes from a particular fiddler or group (we've done Arthur Smith, Bob Wills, Dennis McGee, John Dykes, the Skillet Lickers), sometimes a particular state (we've done Texas, Mississippi, Virginia - sometimes we'll do 2 months because there's enough music from all of the southern states to keep you going for a good long time!). One time we did unfamiliar tunes with familiar names -- oddball (but great) versions of Fisher's Hornpipe, Billy in the Lowground, etc. Another time I taught tunes with "Texas" in the title but the tunes didn't come from Texas. Another session we did all tunes that had water in the name - river, creek, rain, etc.
Class size is limited to 25 people (that is the maximum that will fit on my laptop screen at one time). All material will be taught by ear, no written music. Geared towards intermediate-advanced players, this class offers a chance not only to learn some wonderful new repertoire (or to dig deeper into tunes that you may already know) but also to build up your ear-training skills.
Source material will be provided in advance; we’ll stick closely to the source, including learning bowings and some of the variations used on the original recordings. All learning will be done by ear, no written music. After each Monday lesson, I’ll make a short video going through the tune once at a slow tempo, and then once at a more lively tempo. Source material, short videos and a video of the full class (useful if you have to miss a class) will be in a Drop Box folder, available for download to participants.
To sign up, or if you have questions, send an email: [email protected]
Here is what participants have to say about Suzy's online half-hour "Fiddles at Four" classes:
"Playing regularly and with instruction has certainly improved my playing and I’ve been able to get a number of tunes under my fingers at a decent speed.”
"Thanks again for doing this, it has been such a positive constant during this shelter in place time. It has really helped to have something challenging to focus on. And its a nice little community of fiddlers, albeit virtual.”
“Your class has been manna from heaven. It restored my spirit and soul when I was just about paralyzed with anguish and frustration at the (partially avoidable!) tragedy our world began to experience this past spring. Fiddling along with you has been a deep pleasure, education, and respite from the world's turmoil.”
"This is fun and keeps me picking up my fiddle."
“These classes have both helped me learn tunes, improved my ability to follow by ear, improved my bowing. The social aspect has also been very helpful.”
"I’m so glad you are inspired to continue teaching next year. It has been an important part of coping for me during this crazy year. It also has helped me improve on the fiddle!!!”
"Thanks so much for doing this. This year has been so challenging for me and my family, and your class has become a bright spot in my week. I also realize that this class has been an opportunity for learning that otherwise would not have happened, so there’s a silver lining to this pandemic.”
" I’ve learned a lot in your class and want to continue the learning."
"I am filled with appreciation for the structure and inspiration that your fiddle classes have offered during these times of isolation."
Zoom private guitar lessons from Eric! Mandolin too. He's a very patient and experienced instructor. Email him for more info.
About Suzy's String Band Blues Workshop - please note that this workshop is on hiatus during the pandemic. Not sure when it will start up again.
We’ll learn and arrange vocal songs and a few instrumentals, with the repertoire drawn from the jug band, black country blues and hillbilly blues artists of the 1920’s and 1930s, like the Memphis Jug Band, the Mississippi Sheiks, Bessie Smith, East Texas Serenaders, and lesser known (but equally wonderful) artists. We work directly from the source material, (provided in advance, along with lyric sheets.) Suzy chooses the material based on the instruments in the class, and will consider all requests, either for specific songs or artists. This music is a lot of fun to play as a group, and there’s almost no limit to the number of musicians that can play it together!
Any instrument is welcome - guitar, fiddle, ukulele, mandolin, bass, harmonica, etc. at an intermediate-ish level. You should have some facility on your instrument - be able to change chords easily (if you play a chord instrument) and be open to learning by ear. Advanced beginners who are game to try something new, or want to explore the world of blues and rags on the fiddle or mandolin, are also welcome. Suzy will adapt the material according to the levels of the players. We do a lot of singing so if you don’t play an instrument but want to join the class, bring your kazoo!
Summer 2022 - CAMPS
July 29- Aug. 5 -- Suzy teaches easy blues guitar accompaniment and jug band class at Puget Sound Guitar Workshop. Registration has not yet opened.
Aug. 28 - Sept. 4 -- John C. Campbell Folk School, Brasstown, North Carolina. Eric and Suzy will both be teaching at this legendary folk school in the mountains of North Carolina. The Folkschool offers all kinds of classes, not just music but all kinds of crafts, cooking, and much more.