Tag Archives: Roots music

MusiCamp at the Dundas West Festival 2016!

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MUSICAL PROGRAMMING FOR KIDS AND BY KIDS
ALL IN THE HEART OF THE KIDS ZONE

FREE AFRICAN DRUM & BODY PERCUSSION WORKSHOPS
CRAFTS by KOSA KOLEKTIV
MEET MUSICAMP INSTRUCTORS
LIVE MUSIC BY YOUNG LOCAL PERFORMERS

We are so so so excited to be part of the vibrant Dundas West community that puts on such an amazing festival. MusiCamp is curating the Kids Stage again, providing more workshops, hosting crafts by Kosa Kolektiv and this year we’ll be smack in the middle of the kids stage, located at 1525 Dundas St West, just west of Dufferin.

BODY PERCUSSION WORKSHOP 11:45 am – 12:30 pm

clap handsLed by MusiCamp Director Andrea Kuzmich and aided by young MusiCampers themselves, the event will demonstrate some pieces that use body percussion and then proceed to teach the audience short cells of body percussion that can be built upon each other and layered ontop of each to create some cool grooves.

WEST AFRICAN DRUMMING WORKSHOP 2:30 pm to 3:30 pm

This goes way beyond a drum circle! MusiCamp’s West African Drum instructor Anna Melnikoff will teach workshop participants patterns and licks on djembe (as seen briefly in the video to your left) and the interlocking patterns on the dunun – side-playing drums.
More info can be found on this post.
 

LIVE MUSIC BY LOCAL YOUNG PERFORMERS 11 am – 4:30 pm

BrighidFry At DuWestFest

From 11 am to 4:30 pm the stage, when not presenting percussion workshops, will be filled with live music. This year we welcome back sweet songsters Brighid Fry, The Moir and Tollar Girls, and Rebekah Wise. MusiCampers will also be performing – a host of blue grass tunes and some African American work songs.

And we also have some new performers as well. We are very excited to welcome Young Voices Toronto (formerly the High Park Choir) to the stage YVTwith their Chamber Choir, many of whom live in or so close the Dundas West Community. Be prepared to be inspired by this choir of 8-11 youth, whose sweet voices and sensitive tuning perform music from around the world. We also have songsters Marlowe Dondertman, Lia Ashkenas, and the Rock Band Kingdom of the Birds joining the stage.
 
 
 
 

CRAFTS BY KOSA KOLEKTIV

Kosa craftsMid day, the spirited Kosa Kolektiv will be hosting some folk crafts in the MusiCamp tent, located just next to the stage. They will be also promoting Folk Camp, an all-ages Folk camp in Grafton (on Lake Ontario) where a wide array of workshops will be available – from print, mask, and instrument making, to Georgian, Ukrainian and other forms of singing, to canning and medicinal herb foraging.
 
 

A REMINDER

Don’t forget to bring sun screen, sun hats and water bottles! Also, the Kids Stage is located at 1525 Dundas St W, just West of Dufferin.  WE LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOU THERE!

 

The Early Bird Can’t Hang Around Forever

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OUR EARLY BIRD EXTENSION WILL END SOON!!

You can still get a 15% – $40-$50 – discount…
But not for much longer!!
REGISTER NOW & use “early bird” as the promo code.

Sign up for multiple weeks and GET $105-$125 OFF!

Additional siblings & referrals gets you even more discounts.

And don’t forget that the fee listed is the price you pay.
There are no other additional fees or taxes charged!

 

IN CASE YOU DON’T KNOW, MusiCamp is an excellent all-day (9am-4pm)summer day camp experience for kids (8-14 years) that explores music making in a positive environment, filled with activities that build your child’s musical skills and challenges their creativity in intuitive and fun ways.
The activities are designed to supplement traditional formal musical training but also be accessible to the less experienced… read more

 

THIS YEAR’S WEEKLY THEMES
The Blues

All the greats – from the Rolling Stones and Daft Punk to Beyonce and Katy Perry –  know the blues. So should you!

Composition & Song

Appeals to aspiring song writers and singers, with practical and fun hands on experience at composing and arranging!

Roots Music

Call on fiddlers, guitarists, ukulele and banjo players and others who just love to sing and harmonize. Special guest this week is acclaimed roots musician Hannah Naiman. (Rental of instruments can be arranged.)

West African Drumming

It’s all about polyrhythms and the GROOVE. No need for a drum, guest master drummer, Anna Melnikoff is bringing her chorus of dununs and djembes.

More about our camps themes and registration can be accessed here.

 

 

visit our Flickr Gallery – click on the images below

MusiCamp at a glance

A Little Lax on the Early Bird…

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OUR ORIGINAL MAY 1st EARLY BIRD EXTENSION
HAS COME & GONE BUT WE’RE A LITTLE LAX…

which means you can still get a 15% – $40-$50 – discount!
But this won’t last for long!!
REGISTER NOW & use “early bird” as the promo code.

Sign up for multiple weeks and GET $105-$125 OFF!

Additional siblings & referrals gets you even more discounts.

And don’t forget that the fee listed is the price you pay.
There are no other additional fees or taxes charged!

 

IN CASE YOU DON’T KNOW, MusiCamp is an excellent summer day camp experience for kids (8-14 years) that explores music making in a positive environment, filled with activities that build your child’s musical skills and challenges their creativity in intuitive and fun ways.
The activities are designed to supplement traditional formal musical training but also be accessible to the less experienced… read more

 

THIS YEAR’S WEEKLY THEMES
The Blues

All the greats – from the Rolling Stones and Daft Punk to Beyonce and Katy Perry –  know the blues. So should you!

Composition & Song

Appeals to aspiring song writers and singers, with practical and fun hands on experience at composing and arranging!

Roots Music

Call on fiddlers, guitarists, ukulele and banjo players and others who just love to sing and harmonize. Special guest this week is acclaimed roots musician Hannah Naiman. (Rental of instruments can be arranged.)

West African Drumming

It’s all about polyrhythms and the GROOVE. No need for a drum, guest mast drummer, Anna Melnikoff is bringing her chorus of dunks and djembes.

More about our camps themes and registration can be accessed here.

 

 

visit our Flickr Gallery – click on the images below

MusiCamp at a glance

Early Bird Discount at MusiCamp

Posted on by

OUR ORIGINAL MAY 1st EARLY BIRD EXTENSION
HAS COME & GONE BUT WE’RE A LITTLE LAX…

which means you can still get a 15% – $40-$50 – discount!
Use “early bird” as the promo code when registering

Sign up for multiple weeks and GET $105-$125 OFF!

Additional siblings & referrals gets you even more discounts.

And don’t forget that the fee listed is the price you pay.
There are no other additional fees or taxes charged!

 

IN CASE YOU DON’T KNOW, MusiCamp is an excellent summer day camp experience for kids (8-14 years) that explores music making in a positive environment, filled with activities that build your child’s musical skills and challenges their creativity in intuitive and fun ways.
The activities are designed to supplement traditional formal musical training but also be accessible to the less experienced… read more

 

THIS YEAR’S WEEKLY THEMES
The Blues

All the greats – from the Rolling Stones and Daft Punk to Beyonce and Katy Perry –  know the blues. So should you!

Composition & Song

Appeals to aspiring song writers and singers, with practical and fun hands on experience at composing and arranging!

Roots Music

Call on fiddlers, guitarists, ukulele and banjo players and others who just love to sing and harmonize. Special guest this week is acclaimed roots musician Hannah Naiman. (Rental of instruments can be arranged.)

West African Drumming

It’s all about polyrhythms and the GROOVE. No need for a drum, guest mast drummer, Anna Melnikoff is bringing her chorus of dunks and djembes.

More about our camps themes and registration can be accessed here.

 

 

visit our Flickr Gallery – click on the images below

MusiCamp at a glance

Early Bird Discount at MusiCamp

Posted on by

Before April 15 2016 GET $40-$50 OFF!

Sign up for multiple weeks and GET $105-$125 OFF!

Additional siblings & referrals get you even more discounts.

And don’t forget that the fee listed is the price you pay.
There are no other additional fees or taxes charged!

 

IN CASE YOU DON’T KNOW, MusiCamp is an excellent summer day camp experience for kids (8-14 years) that explores music making in a positive environment, filled with activities that build your child’s musical skills and challenges their creativity in intuitive and fun ways.
The activities are designed to supplement traditional formal musical training but also be accessible to the less experienced… read more


THIS YEAR’S WEEKLY THEMES
  • WEST AFRICAN DRUMMING with guest instructor AnnA Melnikof
  • ROOTS MUSIC with guest instructor Hannah Naiman
  • THE BLUES – From Shouts to 12 Bars
  • COMPOSITION & SONG
More about our camps themes and registration can be accessed here.

 

 
 
 

visit our Flickr Gallery – click on the images below

MusiCamp at a glance

2016 MusiCamp Themes & Fees

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15% EARLY BIRD registration discount before April 15!
$25 discount for additional weeks, siblings and referrals!
No additional fees or taxes charged!

 

July 4-8 ~ THE BLUES: FROM SHOUTS TO 12 BARS ~ $275 … more info →
July 11-15 ~ COMPOSITION & SONG ~ $275 … more info →
Aug 8-12 ~ ROOTS MUSIC (guest artist!) ~ $325 ….  more info →
Aug 22-26 ~ WEST AFRICAN DRUMMING (guest artist!) ~ $325 … more info →

 

  • Class sizes are small.
  • All-day (9am-4pm) programming with extended care available from 8am-6pm.
  • No formal training is required. No instrument required – just an enjoyment of music
  • Our intuitive approach to exploring sound, music, composition, the voice, and the weekly themes also functions as a great supplement to conventional music lessons
  • We also integrate crafts (instrument and mask making), backyard games, Pizza-making Wednesdays in Dufferin Grove park and other outdoor fun
  • Limited financial assistance is available on a per person basis. (Contact MusiCamp for more info)
  • 2016 Registration can be accessed here

 

visit our Flickr Gallery – click on the images below

MusiCamp at a glance

REGISTRATION 2016

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REGISTRATION FOR 2017 SUMMER CAMPS WILL OPEN MARCH 1st!

15% EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION before April 15

$25 DISCOUNT
for registering more than one child, for each additional week,* and for referrals.

AND DON’T FORGET THE FEE LISTED IS THE FEE YOU PAY
THERE ARE NO ADDITIONAL FEES OR TAXES CHARGED!

 

SECURED ONLINE 2016 REGISTRATION

or

DOWNLOAD 2016 REGISTRATION FORM

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* additional-week discount override $25 sibling discount. In other words, sibling discounts only apply to the first week. For example, a family with 2 children may register both for the first week and $25 discount is applied to that week. If they both register for an additional week, then the $25 additional-week discount is applied to each child, for a total discount of $50.
note: camp weeks with guest artists require a minimum number of registrants for specialized programming. Please contact for more details.

Diddley Bow Song

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Must Hear! Especially the ending!!
Diddley Bow Song from the Rhythm & Stuff week at MusiCamp 2015.

 

A large part of MusiCamp is making instruments and the tin-can-2X4 diddley bow featured in this post is just one type of instrument campers can choose to make during their week at MusiCamp. This past week, these three campers decided to really explore the playing of the instrument and in particular drew from the instrument’s African origins. They based this song off of a Malawian song we heard from another Youtube video that discusses the history of the diddley bow – and it was so much fun to figure out and then play – and these guys did a great job getting the groove! Have a listen to them and make sure you listen to the end to hear their singing!

 

Malawi was probably used as an example in “The History of the Diddley Bow” video because Malawians were and are so successful at using recycled containers as resonators for homemade instruments and then creating music that is exciting and fun yet distinctly Malawian. I spent a few years in Malawi in the 1990s and especially recall the Malawian Chibuku beer box guitar!

 

The diddley bow, as seen in the above video, with tin resonator attached to wooden 2X4, is believed to be an African American origins, though it is related to many different instruments found around the world, like the andibidi from the Congo, the umakweyana of West Africa, the dan bau of Vietnam, the gobichand of India. More information on instrument making at MusiCamp can be accessed here.

 

By the way, in case you are wondering, the Rhythm & Stuff week was originally scheduled as West African Drumming Camp; however, because we didn’t have enough registrants (we needed 7 registrants to run the drumming) we ran an alternative program that involved lots of rhythm fun, including lots of body percussion as well as beatboxing, rhythm games and some hand drumming and singing.

 

New host for ROOTS MUSIC WEEK!

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MusiCamp is happy to announce our new Roots Music guest host Hannah Shira Naiman!

It’s with mixed emotions that we must say goodbye to Rosalyn Dennett, the former guest-host of Roots Music Week. We are happy to congratulate Rosalyn on her new position as the Membership Services Coordinator of the Canadian Independent Music Association and Music Ontario!! Our best wishes extend to her and we are sad to see her go but thankfully we have found the wonderful Hannah Shira Naiman – an acclaimed musician, dancer and educator – to take on the guest-host of Roots Music Week.

 

Hannah Shira Naiman, Roots Music Instructor

Hannah Shira Naiman

Hannah Shira Naiman grew up just north of Toronto- a few thousand miles away from the hills of Appalachia- and yet her family home was always full of the sounds from that land. Raised by a banjo plucking Pa, and a children’s musician/dance caller/fiddling Ma, her home was a hub for American roots music in the cold heart of a Canadian metropolis. Hannah performs her original banjo driven songs internationally, and is backed by a stand-up traditional stringband. In addition to her career as a songwriter, Hannah is a traditional dance and music leader based in Toronto, Ontario. A fiddler, banjoist, guitar player, dancer and singer- Hannah has taught the gamut to all ages. Although she was trained classically in her youth, Hannah’s teaching method is to organically and joyfully immerse in the music. www.hannahshiranaiman.com.

Registration 2015

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$25 DISCOUNT for registering more than one child, for each additional week,* and referrals.

Click here for MusiCamp Registration Form 2015

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* additional-week discount override $25 sibling discount. In other words, sibling discounts only apply to the first week. For example, a family with 2 children may register both for the first week and $25 discount is applied to that week. If they both register for an additional week, then the $25 additional-week discount is applied to each child, for a total discount of $50.
note: camp weeks with guest artists require a minimum number of registrants for specialized programming. Please contact for more details.