Slow jam dials down tempo for players

SANDPOINT — They call them fiddle tunes, but, in actuality, the songs can be played on just about any instrument. Many of them have Celtic roots, while others hail from the deep hills of the American South or the dance halls of New England. Still another genre claims French Canadian origins.

What they all have in common is an infectious, ear-catching melody that is as much fun to listen to as it is to play.

Across the United States, a movement is afoot that lets a larger number of music lovers in on the fun. Called a “slow jam,” the concept has become a staple at bluegrass festivals and music camps.

Traditionally, the impromptu jam sessions that spring up at these events have been the topography of blazing fast pickers who take the tunes at breakneck speed. Beginning players — even a lot of intermediate ones — just can’t peel the notes off at those tempos.

As these same players began to find each other and share notes, it became apparent that a more moderate approach was in order. Therein lies the birth of the slow jam movement.

“I am just a hack recorder player who loves getting together with other people and playing these tunes,” said Emily Faulkner, who has been hosting such a jam at her home this past summer. “You’ve got to start somewhere. We want to make it accessible — for us and for anyone else who wants to join us.”

The sessions have outgrown her living room, she added, so the get-together is moving to space at the Music Conservatory of Sandpoint. Starting tomorrow, Sept. 15, the slow jam will take place on Mondays from 7-9 p.m. on the second floor of Sandpoint’s former City Hall on the corner of Second and Main.

“We’re looking for those folks who are playing at home and saying, ‘Come out and join in this tradition,’” said Karen Pogorzelski, an instructor at the conservatory. “Because that’s how it used to be — this is how people entertained themselves.”

Both Faulkner and Pogorzelski view the slow jam as a potential entry point for new recruits to the local music and dance scenes. For her part, Pogorzelski wants to help musical hobbyists go beyond simply playing the notes to achieve the “certain sound” that defines the tunes.

“Anybody can get a book of fiddle tunes and learn from that,” she said. “But there’s so much missing from the feel of it when you learn from a book. The music has to get into the body.”

Which is where Faulkner’s interest enters the picture. As a caller for the Sandpoint Contra Dance group, which held its most recent dance last Friday at Sandpoint Community Hall, she understands that the connection with the music can go both ways.

“It really transfers from dance,” Faulkner said. “That’s what got me into this.”

Having danced to a large swath of the fiddle tune repertoire — without necessarily knowing the names of the songs themselves — it often takes her only a few measures of playing on her tenor recorder before Faulkner realizes she’s in familiar territory and latches more easily onto the melody.

Conversely, the caller would like to turn some of the jammers into contra dance participants.

“I hope to entice some musicians onto the dance floor – for their musicianship and for the fun of it,” she said.

According to Jerry LeClaire, a mandolin player and contra dancer who also has his shoulder to the slow jam wheel, there is yet another benefit that could come out of these sessions.

“There’s some distant hope that this might involve people who would want to play in a dance band,” he said.

At least one existing band welcomes players who want to sit in. The group Out of the Woods, comprised of Vickie Marron on piano, Pat Marron on mandolin and fiddle, Larry Simmons on bass and Kathy Bowman on fiddle, have an open-door policy for musicians who want to test drive their skills at faster tempos on longer songs.

On the way to that goal, players can build their repertoire and their stamina a little at a time alongside relative newcomers such as LeClaire.

“In a slow jam, I can nail a few notes in one tune and maybe nail a couple of chords in another tune and feel pretty good about myself,” he said.  

Pogorzelski has scheduled a 12-week Fiddle Tune Workshop to take place immediately prior to the jam, for players who want to practice the tunes and techniques before playing them with a larger group.

“This is for people who have been playing and want to go deeper,” Faulkner said.

“In the workshop, we’ll focus on a limited number of tunes and then take them to the jam — that way, we can dive into the music and how it’s supposed to feel,” Pogorzelski explained. “There’s something in this kind of long-term repetition and application that lets you really get a handle on the music.”

The first slow jam meets tomorrow evening at 7 p.m. at the Music Conservatory of Sandpoint, located at 110 Main St. The jam is open to players of all instruments and the tunes will fall within the easy to intermediate level range. The slow jam is free, but donations are encouraged to help defray the cost of using the space.

The Fiddle Tunes Workshop will begin on Oct. 6. Cost for the 12-week course is $175 and participants should have a basic proficiency on their instrument. The ability to read music is helpful, but not required.

• For information, contact Pogorzelski at (208) 265-4444 or email: dark.eyed.fiddler@gmail.com