Eric Schedler plays accordion and piano for contra and English country dancing with Midwest-based bands the Cosmic Otters and Supertrad. With his playing firmly rooted in traditional Irish music, Eric has performed and taught at camps and festivals around the country, and currently serves as program director of the all-ages Cumberland Dance Week, a project of the Lloyd Shaw Foundation, of which Eric is also a member of the board of directors. Eric lives in Bloomington,
Emily Troll plays fiddle and accordion and hails from South Portland, ME. An avid lover of French-Canadian and Old-time traditions, she’s spent many years at Pinewoods and Maine Fiddle camp honing her skills as informally as possible. You’ll often see Emily playing with her all-girl band, Anadama. When she’s not playing, she’s probably dancing. When she’s not dancing, she’s probably ripping weeds out of the garden.
Anna and Dennis have both attended Camper’s Week since their (very) early days and are honored to be helping to guide this iteration of Camper’s Week.
Both have lived and worked as artists in various capacities over the years, but these days Anna is a nurse working in quality and education at UNC Medical Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina and Dennis is a full-time dad and sea shanty instructor to their young son,
Elvie Miller grew up immersed in the New England music and dance community and attended Family Week at Pinewoods many times as a camper. A recipient of the Watson Fellowship in 2005, she studied traditional dance music in northern Europe, and subsequently moved to music-rich County Clare, Ireland, where she now lives with her husband, fiddler Denis Liddy, and their twin daughters. She keeps busy gigging at local castles and teaching secondary (high) school English and Music as well as teaching classical and traditional piano and piano accordion privately.
Denis Liddy, originally from Newmarket-on-Fergus, Co. Clare, has been playing the fiddle since he was eight. He is now a primary school teacher in Co. Clare, where he also runs a large traditional music school. Since 1999, his music students have competed in and won numerous competitions, recorded four CDs and toured in Ireland, the UK, France, Spain, Canada, China, Bulgaria, the US, Australia and Sweden. Denis regularly teaches and performs in many music projects and events including the Willie Clancy Summer School,
Rachel Fifer was first introduced to contra dancing when her father dropped her on her head as a particularly wild neighbor swung him off balance. Gaye Fifer leapt dramatically off the stage, only to discover that baby Rachel was unharmed, yet would have a lifetime connection to contra dancing. Rachel has since sampled every dance and music style she could. She is fascinated by the history of our creative communities and the ways that we honor our roots by continuing to both remember our past and move towards intentional progress.
Gaye Fifer has been calling at dance weekends for many years. Her pleasant style and graceful teaching put dancers at ease and set the stage for a great dance experience. She has also taught numerous waltz workshops at virtually every dance weekend in the East. She now lives in Pittsburgh, PA. and travels whenever there is a safe opportunity and it is safe to do so. Gaye is currently President of CDSS and has a passionate interest in organizing to support dance community leaders and organizers.
Alex Cumming is a traditional singer, accordionist and dance caller hailing from Somerset, England who now lives in Boston, MA. He performs songs and tunes from around the UK and beyond with a great depth of knowledge for the traditions backed up by a Bachelor’s Degree in Folk & Traditional Music from Newcastle University. Alex has made his mark on the folk scene with his rhythmic danceable accordion style, strong voice and his fun and engaging stage presence.
Fynn Crooks used to have a fear of hurdles, but she got over it. Oh, that’s terrible! As a storyteller, humorist, and teacher Fynn has been sharing bad jokes, tough riddles, and a healthy enthusiasm for life with her students, young and old, for a decade. She loves leading group games to encourage communication, cooperation and just plain goofiness. You might find Fynn launching a rubber chicken across camp, leading a silly circus, lifeguarding,
Betsy Branch, from Portland OR, is a dance fiddler and private fiddle teacher. She plays both contra and English Country Dance music, and her repertoire includes tunes from Ireland, Scotland, Appalachia and Quebec. She is also the Associate Music Director for Portland’s Christmas Revels production, where she is the house fiddler, band leader, and frequent music arranger. In 2019, Betsy co-published, with Kevin Burke, a tune book with transcriptions of Kevin’s playing on 4 of his influential solo albums,
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