North Country Acoustic Music Camp
Want to go deeper with music? Want to take your technique, songwriting or stagecraft to the next level? Enjoy camping, hanging out and jamming with like-minded folks? If so, you're invited to the first-ever North Country Acoustic Music Camp, July 29-August 1 on the North Country Fair land in Driftpile, Alberta. Rustic riverside camping from Wednesday July 28 through Monday August 2 is included in the price. We’ll have daily classes on the instrument of your choice with our illustrious instructors, afternoon master classes on a variety of topics (rhythm, stage performance, music theory fundamentals, and more), instructor performances and student concerts in the evenings, and a sweet all-day hootenanny to close it out on Sunday. BYO camping with potable water and porta-potties provided, ice and other necessities available from the store. Casual, covid-safe and affordable at $300 including camping for you and one guest, coffee, tea and snacks. Young song campers (15 and under) are $200 but must be accompanied by a parent or guardian, and seniors on fixed income are also $200. Limited scholarships are available as well for students in financial need.
This camp will adhere to all provincial public health guidelines currently in place to prevent the spread of coronavirus. If public health restrictions force cancellation, a full refund will be issued.
Our instructors are Bill Bourne (advanced/intermediate guitar), Joe Nolan (intermediate/beginner guitar), Dana Wylie (harmony singing), Dan Barton (ukele), Shari Rae (bass), Bramwell Park (banjo) and Scott Cook (songwriting). Students will be able to draw on their vast experience in the classes, and bring them on board as a backup band in the Friday and Saturday evening open mics. Other classes may be added according to demand. Please email scottcooksongs@gmail.com with questions, class suggestions, or any other enquiries.
Please bring your own essentials including sunscreen, bug repellent, rain gear and rubber boots (there are covered outdoor areas for instruction, but it may be required for getting around), a coffee mug, a camping chair or suitable seat for picking, and your willingness to grow!
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Our Instructors
Bill Bourne
Advanced/Intermediate Guitar
Canadian Juno Award winner Bill Bourne has received international acclaim for his recordings and live performances. Life on the road is reflected in Bill's music - powerful rhythms and soulful songs, steeped in blues, world beat, cajun, celtic, folk, latin, funk, poetry and more. Bill was raised in a musical family in rural Alberta. When he was 2 years old, he was known to sleep behind the piano at country dances. His parents played dance music in community halls in beautiful farming country. The love of nature and of music and of people gathering for celebration has been with him his whole life. Bill began his musical career in 1975, playing solo and in various collaborations including Scotland's Tannahill Weavers, Bourne & MacLeod, Shannon Johnson, Hans Stamer & Andreas Schuld, Tri-Continental, Bop Ensemble and The Free Radio Band. As Jon Colcord of Crossroads Magazine writes, "Bourne flows with this almost indescribable soul infused with a lonesome strain of blues...This man was put on this earth to play music."
About the class: We'll focus on improvisation as a liberating quality of music and songwriting, and to that end, will demonstrate how the interpretation of major/minor scales as related to chord progressions, and the freedom therein for various guitar techniques as well as the voice, can enable and transform the musician and their music into a joyful, ever evolving celebration of creativity.
Joe Nolan
Intermediate/Beginner Guitar
Heralded by the Globe & Mail and No Depression as a roots rock wunderkind and rising Canadian star, Joe Nolan's latest album Drifters––a stripped-down collaboration with the incomparable Kevin Breit (Norah Jones, Harry Manx), reminiscent of the early folk sounds of the '60s and '70s––reaffirms that praise. In 2019 Nolan played over 175 shows across North America and six European countries, most while traveling in his faithful 2003 Dodge Caravan. Along the way he caught the ears of Mongrel Music Agency (Chuck Prophet, Lake Street Dive), as well as European label Rootsy Records (John Prine, Patti Griffin). His work earned nominations for Songwriter Of The Year at the Edmonton Music Awards, and Roots Solo Artist Of The Year at Breakout West 2019. Nolan is also a two time winner of the Cobalt Prize Of Songwriting from The Maple Blues Awards 2018 and 2020, and was nominated for Contemporary Artist Of The Year at the 2021 Canadian Folk Music Awards.
About the class: We'll look at finger picking styles, blues licks, song/chord shaping and structuring and how to sit in on a hot jam like a pro. Let’s make your 6 string dreams come true!
