Student Roster 2022

We are absolutely blessed with such wonderful students!  Their patience and persistence coupled with their flexibility to roll with requirements here at the studio, make it so much more pleasurable to work with them than one could imagine!

2022 Student Roster

Coming back for another year is Keith Higginson.  Keith joined the original mandolin group class in 2014.  At the time, he was living in Leominster, MA, so the drive was about 45 minutes each way.  Now, 8 years later, he relishes the fact that lessons are online and there's no driving involved!  Principal mandolinist with the Granby contingent of Mandolin New England, Keith is working his way through the JS Bach (violin) Partitas and Sonatas.

Another long-timer, Will Melton, is no longer taking mandola lessons, but retains his top spot in Mandolin New England as our historian and mandola-ist (sp?).  Will still lives in South Hadley, but since his retirement from UMass, has had a lot of exciting adventures all over the world.

Linda N. has been taking violin lessons since 2010.  First in South Hadley, Linda followed the studio as it moved to West State St, Center Church, Open Square and finally Granby.  Linda prefers to take in person lessons, so she hasn't been able to attend anything since the pandemic in 2020, with one brief appearance in the summer of 2021.  Here's hoping to restart IN person lessons in 2022!  Linda is now studying classical violin, specifically Bach.

Nancy K. is on her 7th year at the studio.  Also a member of Mandolin New England, she has studied tenor mandola, alto mandola and mandolin.  Nancy is currently working her way through JS Bach's (violin) partitas and sonatas.

Wesley Autio, mandolin, has been taking lessons in person at the studio since 2010.  Wes is a founding member of the Celtic Group Class (Celtic Calamity), but since March of 2020, he has decided to go on a break until the Covid19 situation has come to some resolution.  Wes's son Zac also took lessons on mandolin and fiddle  for a year while the studio was in South Hadley.  

April Nicotera takes fiddle lessons in person out of the studio in Granby when she can, but is super flexible and willing to take remote lessons if necessary.  April has worked her way through the first 2 Waltz Books by Bill Mathieson, many tunes from the Fiddler's Fake Book by David Brody, and the original 6 sets of tunes from the Celtic Group Class.  Enthusiastic and vivacious, April also plays bass drum in a local fife and drum corps. 

David Ross is currently in his third year of the mandolin.  He was given a beautiful A-style mandolin for Christmas one year and has been with the studio since.  Starting out in-person, David was amenable to going remote during the brunt of the pandemic, returning to in-person lessons over the summer of 2021.  Because of the onslaught of the Delta and Omnicron variants, David feels happy to return to remote learning until further notice.  David has worked on Celtic and Bluegrass mandolin for the first two years, and is now working his way through JS Bach (violin) partitas and sonatas.

Dallas Ducar has been working with us for a couple years.  Starting originally with her partner and kids on guitars and mandolins, schedules and other conflicts reduced them to one lesson a week instead.  Dallas is originally from Arizona.  She's an RN with Mass General Hospital, clearheaded and a joy to work with!

Sharon E. is one of the more recent members of the studio.  She joined us in 2021, and is taking bi-monthly fiddle lessons remotely from her home near Marblehead, MA (north of Boston).  Sharon is working through the Fiddler's Fake Book by David Brody and is interested in Celtic music.

Walter Poxton is our newest member of  the studio. He started mandocello lessons in January 2022.  He's a long-time classical cello player, studying the greats and playing in orchestras and chamber ensembles for years before taking a break with career and family.  It was logical for him to pick up the mandocello because fingering it is very similar to the violincello.  Walter wants to learn some blues and folk styles.

Over the December break, the studio was hired for 3 fiddle lessons for a gentleman colloquially named "Buddy" in Northfield, MA.  There's no expiration date on those lessons.  We're looking forward to working with him when he's ready to start.

Missing due to the Pandemic:

• Karen Adamski, mandolin
• Karen P., fiddle
• Mike R., mandolin
• Amy G., fiddle
• Louisa N., fiddle

Student Roster 2022

We are absolutely blessed with such wonderful students!  Their patience and persistence coupled with their flexibility to roll with requirements here at the studio, make it so much more pleasurable to work with them than one could imagine!

2022 Student Roster

Coming back for another year is Keith Higginson.  Keith joined the original mandolin group class in 2014.  At the time, he was living in Leominster, MA, so the drive was about 45 minutes each way.  Now, 8 years later, he relishes the fact that lessons are online and there's no driving involved!  Principal mandolinist with the Granby contingent of Mandolin New England, Keith is working his way through the JS Bach (violin) Partitas and Sonatas.

Another long-timer, Will Melton, is no longer taking mandola lessons, but retains his top spot in Mandolin New England as our historian and mandola-ist (sp?).  Will still lives in South Hadley, but since his retirement from UMass, has had a lot of exciting adventures all over the world.

Linda N. has been taking violin lessons since 2010.  First in South Hadley, Linda followed the studio as it moved to West State St, Center Church, Open Square and finally Granby.  Linda prefers to take in person lessons, so she hasn't been able to attend anything since the pandemic in 2020, with one brief appearance in the summer of 2021.  Here's hoping to restart IN person lessons in 2022!  Linda is now studying classical violin, specifically Bach.

Nancy K. is on her 7th year at the studio.  Also a member of Mandolin New England, she has studied tenor mandola, alto mandola and mandolin.  Nancy is currently working her way through JS Bach's (violin) partitas and sonatas.

Wesley Autio, mandolin, has been taking lessons in person at the studio since 2010.  Wes is a founding member of the Celtic Group Class (Celtic Calamity), but since March of 2020, he has decided to go on a break until the Covid19 situation has come to some resolution.  Wes's son Zac also took lessons on mandolin and fiddle  for a year while the studio was in South Hadley.  

April Nicotera takes fiddle lessons in person out of the studio in Granby when she can, but is super flexible and willing to take remote lessons if necessary.  April has worked her way through the first 2 Waltz Books by Bill Mathieson, many tunes from the Fiddler's Fake Book by David Brody, and the original 6 sets of tunes from the Celtic Group Class.  Enthusiastic and vivacious, April also plays bass drum in a local fife and drum corps. 

David Ross is currently in his third year of the mandolin.  He was given a beautiful A-style mandolin for Christmas one year and has been with the studio since.  Starting out in-person, David was amenable to going remote during the brunt of the pandemic, returning to in-person lessons over the summer of 2021.  Because of the onslaught of the Delta and Omnicron variants, David feels happy to return to remote learning until further notice.  David has worked on Celtic and Bluegrass mandolin for the first two years, and is now working his way through JS Bach (violin) partitas and sonatas.

Dallas Ducar has been working with us for a couple years.  Starting originally with her partner and kids on guitars and mandolins, schedules and other conflicts reduced them to one lesson a week instead.  Dallas is originally from Arizona.  She's an RN with Mass General Hospital, clearheaded and a joy to work with!

Sharon E. is one of the more recent members of the studio.  She joined us in 2021, and is taking bi-monthly fiddle lessons remotely from her home near Marblehead, MA (north of Boston).  Sharon is working through the Fiddler's Fake Book by David Brody and is interested in Celtic music.

Walter Poxton is our newest member of  the studio. He started mandocello lessons in January 2022.  He's a long-time classical cello player, studying the greats and playing in orchestras and chamber ensembles for years before taking a break with career and family.  It was logical for him to pick up the mandocello because fingering it is very similar to the violincello.  Walter wants to learn some blues and folk styles.

Over the December break, the studio was hired for 3 fiddle lessons for a gentleman colloquially named "Buddy" in Northfield, MA.  There's no expiration date on those lessons.  We're looking forward to working with him when he's ready to start.

Missing due to the Pandemic:

• Karen Adamski, mandolin
• Karen P., fiddle
• Mike R., mandolin
• Amy G., fiddle
• Louisa N., fiddle

9 Challenges The Music Industry Faces In 2014

Live music at parties and events is usually non-existent.  It's harder and harder for a musical artist to make a decent living and the internet has spawned a whole generation of consumers who believe content should be free.

The biggest need the music industry has is more ways to expose students (young and old) to the joy of playing music.  Whether it's a garage band, an orchestra, a mandolin group, or a Klezmer band, the joy of playing together is what motivates people to play.

Our success is dependent on how fully we embrace the digital lifestyle that commands so much of today's consumer spending.  This new generation (millenials) manage to find the funds to buy what they think they really need.  Right now, it's the latest iPhone or iPad, and next year it might be Google Glass or other body computing products.

The music markets are stagnant at best and many continue to shrink because music making now competes with the digital lifestyle.  It's easier to check Facebook, read a Tweet or watch a YouTube video than it is to pick up an instrument and create.

When I was a kid, cellphone and PC sales were non-existent.  Now cellphones, tablets, and laptops are allowing people to make music, videos, create new software, generate new sounds, and record.  A lot of young people are using these tools to create music.

Traditional instruments are far from dead, however we've got to recognize this technology shift and embrace it or risk missing the opportunities.  I would argue that there's as much creative energy today as there's ever been.  A lot of the music and video you hear and see today is bad.  But what's new?  Growing up, all my friends owned an instrument, and 98% of them couldn't play.  But we all wanted to have the experience.  It's the same now.

Musical industry members who can become passionate experts in particular musical genres, and the instruments that produce that music, can define themselves and become very meaningful to that particular market.

Historically musicians were focused on becoming "star" performers.  Today, we seem to be serving the "organic musician," the individual interested in the intrinsic joy of learning and playing music.

Current popular music in many genres is gravitating toward acoustic stringed instruments.  There are many young female acoustic guitarists who are nurturing an uptick in female interest.  

Do I really need to read music?

I get asked this question all the time. "Why do I need to read music?"

Well, imagine if you couldn't read English. First, you wouldn't be reading this post. Imagine if someone had to read everything to you everyday, from street signs to magazines, to text messages and Facebook status updates. How would that be for you? In a word, debilitating.

Certainly there are lots of good people in the world - brilliant, even - that can't read or write. But those people, almost without exception, would encourage you not to follow their path. Reading and writing are the gateway to learning and communication on a much higher and more efficient level.

The same is true for music. Of course, there is much to be learned from listening and imitating. And there are many great musicians who never learned to read or write music. But the written version of what you're hearing can allow you to be more expressive and accurate than you could ever be without seeing it. Written music also fills in more of the "why" of the music, sort of like how books can tell you a character's thoughts, but the movie rarely can.

For my money, reading music is as critical to the musician as reading and writing your spoken language is to the average human being. Not doing it won't end your career, but gaining the skill can only make you better.

Happy reading!