This class explores the daunting task of developing jazz chord-melody skills... or, “how to play unaccompanied guitar arrangements like a pianist does.“ Topics will include building chord vocabulary, using II-V-I chord forms, chord substitution concepts, jazz harmony and terminology, and complex chord building skills and theory. Many song arrangements will be handed out, and will contain both TAB and conventional notation, as well as visual chord diagrams. Tunes covered will run the gamut from familiar staples like Greensleeves and Yesterday, continuing through swing and jazz standards, and hopefully progress to more advanced arrangements of tunes by Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus, and Chick Corea. Recording devices are welcome with the explicit agreement to not distribute recordings without prior consent

Paul Asbell has played and taught professionally for 45 years. He has toured and recorded with blues legends Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, Paul Butterfield, Howlin’ Wolf, Lightnin’ Hopkins, jazz greats Jon Hendricks, Bobby McFerrin, Sonny Stitt, and Nick Brignola, and performed with David Bromberg, Betty Carter, Joshua Redman, the Sun Ra Arkestra, The Wild Magnolias, John Stowell, Julian Lage, ex-student Trey Anastasio, and many others.

For solo guitarists, it’s possible and relatively easy to make completely professional quality recordings in very modest home “studios” – whether that means a dedicated room or a corner of the bedroom. In this workshop, we’ll focus on how to capture the tone of a great guitar, with an emphasis on solo or nearly solo performances. We’ll talk about the tools you’ll need, at all budget levels, and more importantly, what to do with them once you have them. We’ll discuss room acoustics, microphone choice and placement, editing and mixing, techniques for playing your best when the recorders running and more.

Doug Young is a San Francisco Bay Area fingerstyle guitarist, composer, and home recording enthusiast. As a contributing editor for Acoustic Guitar Magazine, Doug has written about recording, reviewed guitars and other gear, and interviewed many of today’s leading guitarists. Mel Bay recently published his instructional book "Understanding DADGAD for Fingerstyle Guitar." Doug was bitten by the home recording bug while working on his first solo guitar CD, Laurel Mill, and went on to build his own home studio where he records himself a well as other local guitarists.

In this workshop, we will explore Harmonic Tapping and open tunings. Using familiar songs and common chord progressions, we'll jump into the world of slapping and tapping and you'll leave with some new ideas about arranging and composing. For a head start, take a look at www.vickigenfan.com and hit the 'Guitar Talk' link. Bring a tuner and a capo. All levels welcome!

Every now and then an artist comes along whose music reaches out and touches the soul of all who hear them…virtuoso guitarist, singer and composer Vicki Genfan is among those artists… Drawing from folk, jazz, pop, soul and world music, Vicki is redefining ‘singer/songwriter culture.’ Vicki writes and beautifully sings her own brand of music and lyrics while putting her unmistakable imprint on familiar tunes like the Beatles’ Norweigian Wood. Last September, Vicki's talent was recognized by industry icons when she was chosen as the 2008 Guitar Player Magazine's 'Guitar Superstar'.

Pattis' workshop will look at a broad spectrum of ergonomic issues and possibilities when custom ordering, or considering a previously commissioned guitar. It's important to recognize hand size, playing style, musical objectives and aging/injury issues when considering a whole host of guitar-specific design features including (but not limited to) scale length, upper and lower bout size, waist size and location, and much more. Industry "standards" do not take into account what the handcrafted guitar builders can do for us as individuals, and we will explore every possible modification and measurement to aid the player and builder in creating the perfect individualized guitar.

Larry Pattis has been an under-the-radar fingerstyle guitarist that is finally receiving national and international attention for his musicianship and compositional skills. Larry recently won first-place in the 5th Annual International Acoustic Music Awards, in the "Best Instrumental" category. He also played the 2008 Montreal International Jazz Festival. Larry has three albums of guitar works, starting with "Random Chance" in 1997. "Hands of Time" was next, garnering him a #1 on the Acoustic Radio Charts in January 2003. In September 2008 Pattis released his third CD "What Tomorrow Brings." He is known for his original, lyrical and emotive music, and for his beautiful interpretations of pieces such as Ashokan Farewell and Waltzing Matilda.

In this workshop, Stefano Barbati demonstrate how to transfer the mood and groove of rock music to the acoustic guitar by means of up-to-date fingerpicking and flatpicking techniques as well as percussion and tapping techniques – all as it relates to the style of that icon of rock guitar, Jimi Hendrix. In Hendrix’s music you can trace the characteristics and peculiarities that belong to both the rock tradition and to a particular guitar language based on the blues which allow you to experiment with new rhythms and harmonies. The purpose of this workshop is to interpret these characteristics.

Stefano Barbati is an eclectic Italian guitar player. His technique is inspired by great acoustic guitar masters like Michael Hedges, Tuck Andress and the Italian guitarist Franco Morone. He sums up, in a consistent and personal way, the variety of musical forms that influence his style: from rock-blues to Mediterranean atmospheres, from Italian songwriters to South American moods. Stefano Barbati's performances include covers as well as original music, both showing a stylistic maturity and a marked propensity for melodic research. All his music is included on his 2 CDs “Il canto del mare” (2003) and “Blues de rua” (2007) released for the Italian label fingerpicking.net.

What is the key to figuring out a song in seconds? Steve's workshop will present proven methods, including the Nashville note/chord numbering system, used by session artists to quickly understand what's going on musically. You'll explore the chord scale relationship, common progressions and substitutions, transposing, key change and song extension, and all through Steve's award winning Latin/Jazz influenced Travis finger style. Beginning to intermediate players. Guitars are welcome.

Steve Wildey is the 2005 South Florida Finger style Champ and proprietor of Miami's most successful hand made acoustic guitar shop, Glades Guitars. Steve brings 30 years of music performance on drums and guitar to his daily students and festival seminars. His rock solid sense of time is the foundation of his Latin/Jazz influenced Travis picking style developed through sharing the stage with some of Miami's top jazz guitarists. A true fan of hand made guitars, Steve has a working stable of instruments from solo builder Mark Blanchard as well as small shop Collings and the legendary Martin Custom shop.

In this workshop Ken Bonfield will take you through the maze of possible tunings and share a system by which you will learn to take advantage of the myriad possibilities alternate tunings create. Focusing on today's most popular tunings: DADGAD and its relatives DGDGAD and CGDGAD, Bonfield will use the CAGED system to show guitarists how to make use of information they already know as well as teach the major scale formula and basic chord theory to show guitarists how to use the entire fingerboard in alternate tunings.

Basic Requirements: The ability to change first position chords, a guitar (nylon string guitars are ok but they may have to be tuned up), a tuner, notebook, pencil, and an open mind. The ability to read TAB and chord diagrams is very helpful, but not necessary. Samples of music in different tunings will be available.

"Ken Bonfield is one of the best guitarists recording today, possessed of technical chops, sincerity and passion, and a poet's sense of beauty in his composing." Bill Binkelman, Wind & Wire

Ken Bonfield is a self-taught fingerstyle guitarist, meaning his early teachers were found on records and includes folks like Leo Kottke, John Fahey, then later Stefan Grossman, John Renbourn, Chris Proctor, and El McMeen, as well as mentors and friends he's shared the stage with including Adrian Legg, Harvey Reid, Ed Gerhard, Bill Mize, Peter Janson, Dakota Dave Hull, Michael Manring, and even pop legend John Mayer. Ken has focused on writing original instrumentals for acoustic guitar primarily using alternate tunings, as well as modifying instruments, like his high-string guitar, or having Alan Carruth create custom guitars like the baritone guitar created for his new album Whistlin' Past the Graveyard.

This workshop was created from Peter Janson's observations while directing guitar studies at UMass Boston - that many guitarists practice a lot but still don’t see the progress they are hoping for. With that as the focus, workshop attendees will learn some basic techniques and strategies (and some advanced ones) they’ll need to get great results out of their practice sessions. A random small number of attendees will be asked to play excerpts of songs that they play well, and also excerpts of something they are struggling with in order to help demonstrate specific examples. Right-hand fingerstyle practice patterns designed to build relaxed control and independence will also be covered. All levels of fingerstyle and flat-pickers welcome, and hoped for! Tab reading or standard notation reading helpful but not necessary.

Acoustic fingerstyle guitarist/composer Peter Janson is self-managed, self-produced, and the head of his own successful record and music publishing company; EWM Records / Eastern Woods Music. Hailed as “a gifted acoustic fingerstyle guitar player” by TJ McGrath of Dirty Linen, and “perhaps the leading contemporary acoustic fingerstyle guitarist today” by Randy Alberts of NAR magazine, Peter Janson’s fingerstyle acoustic guitar music is a treat not only for guitar lovers, but for anyone with a passion for acoustic folk, Celtic, jazz, and world music with a contemporary twist. He has performed in the finest acoustic venues around the nation, and his music has been heard by millions on radio, TV, and Sirius and XM Satellite radio.

This workshop won't show you how to rip it up like Tommy Emmanuel or compose like Pierre Bensusan but will help encourage and inspire you to start the journey of finding your own unique voice on the acoustic guitar. The workshop will include open discussion, tips, an exercise and demonstrations with a breakdown on how to use modern techniques for the sake of the composition and not for the sake of the technique. Live performance and tuning strategies will also be discussed along with Complimentary tab for some of Don's music.

Don, winner of the 2007 Winfield International Fingerstyle Championships, has been featured in many acoustic guitar magazines, has performed around the world, is one of Yamaha's top clinicians and his youtube videos have seen over one million accumulative views. Don believes in pursuing dreams and is passionate in helping others to do the same. In the spirit of the festival Don, Bill Hammond and the Russian River Brewery in Santa Rosa created the Saturday evening "Extreme Guitar Night". The 2007 show packed the house and Don will host the show again this year. His latest CD "Not a Planet" features guests such as Michael Manring and Julia Thornton.

Bill’s workshop will involve demonstrations and discussions about his approach to composition and arrangements, sharing techniques he has discovered through the years. Topics include: creating melodies and interesting counterpoint; moving beyond cliches; and improving tone, timing and dynamics to connect the emotional and technical aspects of arrangements. Also, Bill will conduct a masterclass, encouraging participants to play music they are working on for constructive criticism and helpful ideas. Emailing Bill an mp3 in advance will be helpful. alienmojomusic@aol.com Bringing guitars is optional, tape players or video is also OK and all levels are welcome.

Tennessee fingerstyle guitarist Bill Mize appeared with the emerging acoustic guitar movement in the 1980s, and has continued to develop a style and sense of taste that influences many of today's guitarists. A past winner of The National Fingerstyle Guitar Competition in Winfield, Kansas, Bill has been featured on the popular guitar compilations "Windham Hill Guitar Sampler" and "Masters of the Acoustic Guitar" by Narada Records. Bill received a GRAMMY for his collaboration with David Holt on Stellaluna, and in 2009 Bill’s music will appear in the new Ken Burns’ PBS documentary “The National Parks: America’s Best Idea”.

You don't need a huge book of chords and scales to figure out the fretboard, you only need a few crib sheets and some understanding. 'Mapping the Fingerboard' develops a framework of reference points: standard tuning's foundation: primary chord forms and their octave grids; and the scales and intervals found within them. We will look at how melodies and harmonies fit together and move from string to string, from one end of the fingerboard to the other. Some materials provided. Hint: Practice barre chords, & melodies on one string. For course outline http://kinlochnelson.com/workshops-work.html

Kinloch Nelson has taught guitar since 1973. Teaching credits include: guitar instructor at The Hochstein Music School in Rochester, NY (25 years); Maryland Summer Center For The Arts; guitar workshops at guitar and folk festivals and at the University of Rochester & S.U.N.Y. at Oswego NY. Nelson's 40-year performance career has run the gamut from solo classical recitals, to folk festivals, to club dates with jazz, country, rockabilly, oldies, R & B and rock bands. Nelson has opened for John Renbourn, Leo Kotke, Tommy Emmanuel and others, and played with Tom Paxton, Amos Garrett, Luther Alison, Buddy Guy and others.

Author of the Mel Bay Publication's “Acoustic Fingerstyle Guitar Workshop” book, Richard Gilewitz takes a look at the language of the right hand using a simple chord menu. Players will learn how to incorporate a variety of picking patterns in a multitude of finger positions suitable for standard tuning, open tunings, slide guitar, and composition. This will enable them to decipher and more quickly memorize tunes, thus creating a greater depth of playing style. By unlocking the right hand, players will be able to vary their attack and create a wider range of tone and dynamics.

Recognized in the international field as a musician who composes and performs a kaleidoscopic mixture of instrumental selections, Richard forges a unique voice to include the expanse of his influences. His complex and energetic original works become stories told by the 6 and 12-string guitar, with a musical style that ranges from classical, folk, blues and the traditional. His use of banjo style picking patterns, classical arpeggios, tapping and harmonics, as well as a rhythmic and percussive approach, brings a fresh impression to the listener. According to 20th Century Guitar Magazine, "A powerhouse of eclectic guitar styles and genres, Gilewitz wears his influences well.”

Any jazz guitar method must address the central challenge of how to view the instrument. This workshop is designed to dramatize the advantages of a chord first approach over the traditional scale first model. Scale first methods stress positional and multi-positional scale forms as the primary view of the instrument. These forms are then reduced to meet the melodic demands of playing over chord changes. A chord first approach works it the opposite direction. The instrument is broken down into much smaller and more manageable note sets comprising of two and three string chord forms. From these simple, interconnected forms, we have a single source by which we can learn to build complex improvised lines, assimilate song melodies and create extended chord voicings.

It comes as no surprise to those who’ve heard him perform, that Pete Pancrazi has been described in Downbeat Magazine as a guitar player “deserving more attention” and “one to watch” on the Arizona jazz scene. Audiences there have voted him “Jazz Guitar Player of the Year” in AzJazz Magazines annual readers poll. Pete is a graduate of Bostons Berklee College of Music where he won the performer's songwriter competition four times and was awarded the “Performers Scholarship”. In addition to his busy performance schedule, Pete teaches jazz guitar and jazz improvisation at Mesa Community College. He’s also recorded four Cd's as a band leader. His most recent work, “Trio Songbook”, has gotten great reviews from Just Jazz Guitar and AzJazz magazine. Pete's energetic stage persona has made him an in demand sideman and from his solo performances to shows with his Quartet, he continues to be one of the top jazz acts in Arizona.

Steve will be presenting the popular DADGAD Tuning from a non-technical viewpoint. The workshop will cover one of Steve’s tunes (tab provided), his approach to composing and a demonstration of how DADGAD works with different styles of music. A discussion of what to consider when buying and setting up a guitar for open tunings will also be part of the workshop. The goals are to have fun, explore an alternate tuning and share a love of the guitar and music. All skill levels and guitars are welcome. Bring your guitar tuned to DADGAD.

A native of Memphis, Tennessee, currently residing in Portland, Oregon, Steve has been playing guitar since he was 12. After three decades of playing in bands, he took up Solo Acoustic Guitar, studying with Doug Smith. When asked about the switch he replied, “You have less stuff to haul and you get to sit down on stage!” Steve composes and has performed his music from the West Coast to England. He serves on the Board of the Portland Guitar Society and promotes the Art of Luthiery whenever he has the opportunity.

If you've always wanted to emulate the sound of the great rhythm guitarists of the swing era, come learn a few movable four note chord forms and discover the secrets to achieving that sound. We'll work on the right hand pulse and talk about principles of voice leading. We'll also discuss what chords can substitute for others in this style. Material will be presented for your future use as well. This will be a hands on workshop for those new to this style of playing...please bring your instrument, a flatpick and the desire to learn.

Tony Marcus has been playing stringed instruments for 40 years. He was guitarist in the swing trio Cats & Jammers, and has also played with the Cheap Suit Serenaders, Geoff Muldaur, the Royal Society Jazz Orchestra, Lost Weekend Western Swing Band, and many other groups. He has taught at the Puget Sound Guitar Workshop, California Coast Music Camp and the Augusta Heritage Workshops, and has written articles and lessons for Acoustic Guitar Magazine. He regularly plays music in theatre productions and currently performs with Patrice Haan in the group Leftover Dreams.

In this workshop we will explore traditional melodies from the Celtic lands and how to find them a home on the guitar. We will analyze an arrangement of a traditional tune to see how it works. We’ll observe the use of ornamentation, bass lines, harmonies, drone effects and other techniques. We will then take a new tune and make a rough arrangement of it. We’ll finish off the workshop with some basic chords in DADGAD for backing up some jigs and reels.

William Coulter has been performing and recording traditional music for over 20 years. His most recent recording, The Road Home, is a critically acclaimed solo project on the Gourd Music label. In 2005 he was awarded a Grammy for his contribution to The Pink Guitar, a collection of solo guitar arrangements of the music of Henry Mancini. Upcoming projects include Jefferson's Fiddle - Music from the Time of Thomas Jefferson, a new CD with classical guitrist Benjamin Verdery called Happy Here, and a new book of transcriptions and guitar instruction featuring his most requested arrangements.

In this workshop we will be exploring techniques and skills used for improvisation, using games and exercises in both group and solo settings.

Some of the best fun one can have in music is improvising. As a skill that brings ones attention to the present moment, improvisation is a world where childlike simplicity can play alongside full blown virtuosity. From blues changes to abstract sounds, Learning to listen to your inner muse is a must. Improvisational skills can also help one with composing; tapping that same creative vein for later constructions. Above all, improvising is fun! All those who don’t think they can do it are encouraged to come along and give it a try. If you can walk and talk you can improvise.

Returning to the Healdsburg Guitar Festival from New Zealand, Nigel Gavin is a musician-without-limits; a guitarist/composer whose work effortlessly traverses many different styles. He has played everything from good-natured klezmer-cabaret to touring with Robert Fripp’s internationally acclaimed League of Crafty Guitarists (which has recorded some of his compositions). Gavin invites the listener to a musical reverie which roams freely between styles and sounds. Out of this diversity one clear voice emerges: that of a musician comfortably in command of his art.

This Workshop will cover fingerings of Major and Minor blues riffs beginning in drop D tuning and then through the CAGED system of voicings on the fretboard. It's a very clear and focused workshop with tabs included which will enhance your knowledge of blues licks and how to play them in 5 different positions on the fretboard.

Tim Sparks has been redefining the acoustic solo guitar repertoire since he won the US National Fingerstyle Guitar Championship in 1993. Sparks’ concert repertoire includes everything from excerpts of the Nutcracker Suite, which he recorded for Peter Finger's Acoustic Music Records to The Mississippi Blues, which is featured on his Sidewalk Blues CD. He has produced a highly acclaimed series of recordings for John Zorn's Tzadik Records including Little Princess, recorded in February 2009 in NYC for Tzadik using an OM Custom Cutaway built by Charlie Hoffman, who will be a featured luthier at the 2009 Healdsburg Festival.

"You can hear Tim Sparks think. He plays by choice not habit: ideas not licks. I've heard him do this on guitars so badly intonated, they wouldn't make a good ashtray; the same guitars -are GUITARS in Tim's hands. Beautiful." Leo Kottke

Acoustic Guitar Magazine - "Sparks' musical goulash is spiced with Celtic, blues, and jazz flavors for a truly unique work. The effect is exotic, rich, and sensuous."

Harvey Reid has been an innovator in a number of aspects of performing, recording and playing acoustic music. One of his most important contributions is the partial capo, and he is responsible for most of what is known about it. Beginners, professionals, songwriters, pickers, composers and even recreational players can use a partial capo to discover new music and get new sounds from the guitar. Reid will take you on a tour through this amazing world hidden in your guitar, and will cover the various devices available, and dozens of ways you can use them in all kinds of musical situations.

Songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Harvey Reid has honed his craft over the last 35 years in countless clubs, festivals, streetcorners, cafes, schools, coffeehouses and concert halls across the nation. Acoustic Guitar Magazine called him "one of the true treasures of American acoustic music" and Guitar Player Magazine "...a giant of the steel strings." He has absorbed a vast repertoire of American music and woven it into his own colorful, personal and distinctive style. His 25 recordings on Woodpecker Records showcase his mastery of many instruments and styles of acoustic music, from hip-folk to country, slashing slide guitar blues to bluegrass, old-time, Celtic, ragtime and even classical. He won the 1981 National Fingerpicking Guitar Competition and the 1982 International Autoharp Contest. Yet he's also a solid flatpicker who has won the Beanblossom bluegrass guitar contest, a versatile and engaging singer, a powerful lyricist, prolific composer, arranger and songwriter, a solid mandolin and bouzouki player, and a seasoned performer and entertainer. He recorded the first album ever of 6 & 12-string banjo music. His 1991 album Steel Drivin' Man, was chosen by Acoustic Guitar Magazine in 1996 as one of 10 Essential Folk CD's of all time, along with Woody Guthrie, Joan Baez and other hallowed names.

What elements make up the most potent and engaging lyrics? In this workshop we take a look at lyrics that have that magical combination of imagery and emotion and how those two factors contribute greatly to drawing in the listener. We'll talk about some of the tools every songwriter needs to be a better lyric writer such as rhyme and point of view.

Rhyming is our best friend but it's also our worst enemy since it constricts us and makes it harder to say what we want to say in a song. We'll look at inventive ways to use rhyme that sound natural, not drawing too much attention to the rhyme and letting the listener concentrate on the content of the lyric. We will also explore eight different perspectives to choose from when deciding how your characters can best tell their story. We will look into figuring out how to find the most powerful way to tell any given story. We will then look into more complex ways to use perspective to bring out the most emotion in all your lyrics.

Steve Seskin is a successful songwriter who has written seven number one songs, including Grammy-nominated “Grown Men Don't Cry,” recorded by Tim McGraw, and “Don't Laugh at Me,” winner of NSAI Song of the Year and Music Row Magazine Song of the Year in 1999 as recorded by Mark Wills. Steve spends time in Nashville writing for Larga Vista Music and pitching his songs, while maintaining an active performing career both back home in Northern California and at festivals and acoustic venues throughout the United States and Canada. He has been a featured performer at the Kerrville Folk Festival, the Rocky Mountain Folks Festival, the Vancouver Folk Festival, and the Napa Valley Music Festival. He is currently touring in support of his latest CD, Steve Seskin "Live". Steve is also an active keynote speaker and songwriting teacher for the West Coast Songwriters Association, the Nashville Songwriters Association International, the Swannanoa Gathering, and the Song School at Rocky Mountain Folks Festival.

Jazz guitar can seem daunting to musicians because of all the chops needed on both a physical and harmonic level. Making use of key concepts that are central to playing over literally thousands of tunes, Mimi breaks things down in a logical, step by step process using major/minor blues,major/minor two five ones, and modal playing as her template. This approach has led to her instructional course Jazz Anatomy being a top seller and Mimi will have these available at the workshop.

"Fox has not only mastered the traditional forms, she has managed to reinvigorate them. - Guitar Player Magazine

Internationally renowned guitarist/composer/recording artist Mimi Fox has been named a winner in 6 consecutive Downbeat Magazine international critic's polls and is one of the most widely acclaimed jazz guitarists on today's scene. Mimi has performed/recorded with Branford Marsalis, Davis Sanchez, Houston Person, Don Lanphere, Abbey Lincoln, Diana Krall, Kevin Mahogany and Janis Siegal (Manhattan Transfer), Joey DeFrancesco, Barbara Dennerlein, Dr. Lonnie Smith, Terri Lyne Carrington, and fellow guitarists Charlie Byrd, Stanley Jordan, Charlie Hunter, and Mundell Lowe. She has also shared the stage with legends Stevie Wonder and John Sebastian and was featured on La Guitara, a special project of Vanguard recording artist Patty Larkin.

A lot of folks don't perform because they are unwittingly operating under a set of incorrect assumptions. They feel that learning to perform is some sort of hugely additive process. Stevie encourage folks to reexamine and strip away several such common (and incorrect) assumptions. He'll help absolute beginners identify and eliminate these hurdles, to bring several more advanced techniques within range. And for those who have some performance experience, he will devote a good chunk of time to developing a virtual toolkit of skills that can be used to put both the audience and the performer at ease.

Stevie Coyle didn't stand a chance ... he just had to become a musician. His dad used to bring home great armloads of LPs from the radio station he managed, and there was a bluegrass band across the driveway that happened to feature a multi-instrumentalist named David Lindley. Stevie has played professionally for 35 years (between gigs acting on TV and in movies, doing voiceovers and stand-up comedy at The Improv and The Comedy Store in L.A., training killer whales, acting in legitimate theatre and traveling with the circus!) In 1999 he co-founded and fronted The Waybacks. The band released 4 albums in that time, and collaborated with Lloyd Maines, Michelle Shocked and Bob Weir of The Grateful Dead.

If you love the sound of slide guitar then you won’t want to miss this workshop. We will explore the sound of slide guitar in Open D (DADF#AD) and open G (DGDGBD) tunings. These two different tunings made up a lot of the early blues slide players material. Songs like Robert Johnson’s “Come On in My Kitchen” and “Dust My Broom” have a great appeal even today because of the immediacy and vibrancy of the slide guitar. We will cover opentunings, proper slide technique, licks and rhythem progressions. Recording devices welcome!

David Maloney, of Reilly and Maloney, will demonstrate his techniques and theories for complimenting vocal/guitar ballad arrangements so that your performance can become more accessible and captivating. From solid intros to imaginative endings and harmony guitar note voicings, David will offer the use and placement of hammer ons pull offs, stops and slides, which will light up the imagination of your audience. He views himself as a clean, blue-collar type player but feels that with some degree of forethought and preparation, we can make our work more attractive and penetrating to the listener whether in a song circle, at a family gathering or in a concert hall. Says Maloney, "most songwriters could judiciously apply guitar moves they had already mastered to make their work shine in a new light." Join David and be surprised at what you already know!

David Maloney is well know in the West Coast folk scene as one half of the enduring west coast duo, Reilly and Maloney. David is the principle songwriter in the group and offers the lead guitar embellishments to their arrangements. He comes from the school of clean, well-placed licks that have purpose, and raise the level of accessibility to the story being told through the song’s lyrics. Maloney’s songwriting stretches the listener with a wide variety both in style and content. He has recorded seven solo albums alongside the eleven recordings produced by Reilly and Maloney. David also performs a one-person folk/opera, The Great Blight, depicting the devastating effects the Irish potato famine during the 1840’s.