Nic Gareiss (he/they) has been named one of Dance Magazine’s “25 to Watch,” and been hailed by The New York Times for his “dexterous melding of Irish and Appalachian dance.” Gareiss grew up learning footwork from Ireland, England, Appalachia, and what some people call Canada surrounded by fiddlers, banjo-players, and balladeers at folk festivals in Central Michigan (past, present and future Anishinaabe land). This mix of instrumental music, song, and movement from rural places has become the heart of Nic’s creative work as a performer across the disciplines of traditional and contemporary music and dance.
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Kristen Planeaux began playing classical piano at the tender age of eight and continued on until she found her true calling—traditional dance musician—at 23. Ever since, she has brought her own flavor of bold rhythm and warm, imaginative harmony to the English and American scenes. She is a retired member of The Ripples and a current member of River Road. When away from camp, you can find her alternately traveling long distances to play for dancers and petting cats in Western Massachusetts.
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Becky Wright fell head over heels in love with shape-note music 15 years ago, and she hasn’t stopped singing since. She has taught at singing schools up and down the east coast, and she’s known for her friendly, approachable teaching style and her wide repertoire of 4-shape and 7-shape music. She also enjoys other types of social singing, was a founding committee member for Youth Traditional Song Weekend, and recently released a duo album with Nicole Singer.
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Sophie Wellington is a Boston based musician—fiddler, flatpicker, jazz vocalist, and percussive dancer. She has a distinctive voice across these instruments, and her music creates a dialogue between them. Her solo project is influenced by her upbringing in old time Appalachian music, study of jazz vocal improvisation (Berklee Class of 2022), social dancing and Appalachian flatfooting.
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A hybrid player of classical violin and contemporary fiddle, Sarah-Hadley Yakir brings a rich sound and distinctive style to traditional music. After touring extensively internationally as a classical violinist, she was introduced to contra dancing in 2018 and frankly, the rest is history. She plays primarily with her band River Road.
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Miranda Weinberg (fiddle) delights in the freedom and interaction of playing for dancing while drawing on her training as a classical violinist. You can find her playing for English, contra, and Scottish dances in the Philadelphia area and beyond. When she’s not playing, she’s often dancing, working as an applied linguist, and adoring her two tiny dogs in Philadelphia.
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Alex Sturbaum (they/them) is a one-of-a-kind performer. Steeped in musical traditions from both sides of the Atlantic, they are equally comfortable performing for dancers in a crowded grange hall, singing original songs at an intimate house concert, belting out sea shanties at a pub sing, or playing bluegrass music at a festival. Alex’s love for the music and joy in performing it is evident in every note they play. Alex grew up in Cincinnati OH,
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Brian Lindsay (he/him) has been dancing since he could walk, singing since he could speak, and holding a fiddle to his chin for most of his life. Surrounded by both contra dance and Irish music and dance throughout his childhood, Brian spent much of his youth going to sessions in the NY area and studying with respected Irish fiddle player Brian Conway. An accomplished performer and Mid-Atlantic Irish Fiddle champion by the age of 17,
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Nicole Singer is a teacher, organizer, singer, dancer, and artist living in Easthampton, Massachusetts, now in her second year as Program Director for Harmony of Song & Dance Week. Nicole is a co-founder and organizer of Youth Traditional Song Weekend, co-author of CDSS’s Folk Sing Starter Kit (with Julia Friend), and former chairwoman of folk music and song programming for NEFFA. As an organizer, Nicole loves geeking out about fostering intergenerational communities and making sessions welcoming and enjoyable for all,
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Jamie Bunce taught high school choir and music theory in New Jersey for thirteen years and is now a full time student, having moved to South Florida to pursue her DMA in choral conducting at the University of Miami. Prior to her move, she was also an Associate Director of the Princeton Girlchoir and an adjunct choral professor at Wagner College. She is a guest conductor, contemporary a cappella arranger, and clinician who has been featured in Chorus America for bringing early music into the high school choral classroom.
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Dance, Music, & Song Camps
