Adam Hurt: Clawhammer banjo, gourd banjo and old-time fiddle
Conversations with Musicians, with Leah Roseman
02/18/23
•105m
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Adam Hurt is an acclaimed clawhammer banjo player and one of my favourite performers in any style and I was absolutely delighted that he agreed not only to speak to me at length about his life and teaching of traditional music, but also perform for this episode some of my favourite music. His albums of gourd banjo music “Earth Tones” and “Back to the Earth” are beloved by a wide range of listeners, I think partly because the sound colour of the instrument is much more mellow than other banjos. You’ll hear him play and talk about the fascinating history of both his gourd banjo and one of his favourite antique instruments. He’s also a fine old-time fiddler, and although he grew up with classical musician parents, his father a violinist with the Minnesota orchestra, Adam’s life-changing musical moment was with a wonderful and dedicated school teacher.
The video version of this episode along with the transcript: https://www.leahroseman.com/episodes/adam-hurt
Buy me a coffee? https://ko-fi.com/leahroseman
Adam Hurt website: https://www.adamhurt.com/
If you enjoyed this episode you may be interested in some of my episodes with other traditional musicians, including Janie Rothfield and Alexis Chartrand. I continue to feature many players of plucked instruments with some nice surprises coming your way in Season 3. If you subscribe to my newsletter through my website https://www.leahroseman.com/contact, you’ll get exclusive sneak peeks for upcoming episodes.
Timestamps
(00:00:00) Cold open and intro
(00:02:17) antique Dobson banjo, restoration by Will Seeders Mosheim
(00:07:43) intro to “Fortune” played on the Dobson banjo
(00:11:06) Adam’s early music education, difficulty reading music
(00:15:26) Don Payden first Old-Time teacher, learning by ear, mandolin with Brian Wicklund, clawhammer with Marianne Kovatch
(00:27:58) tone production on the banjo
(00:35:39) Ricky Skaggs collaboration on album Back to the Earth
(00:39:11) gourd banjo, performance of “Josie-O”
(00:45:05) history of this David Hyatt gourd banjo and the recording of Eartht Tones album
(00:50:04) African origins of the banjo, racist history
(00:53:47) tablature, Walt Koken story, Adam’s teaching
(00:59:21) Clifftop
(01:04:53) Adam’s father, learning fiddle
(01:09:22) open A tuning, performance of Patty on the Pike on fiddle
(01:14:17) dancing and old-time, Adam’s experience of learning flatfoot syle
(01:16:42) album Fine Times at our House
(01:18:32) why we love Bandcamp
(01:22:20) the hawk story
(01:28:51) Adam’s teaching strategies
(01:36:53) intro to performance of Snowdrop on the antique Dobson banjo
Previous Episode
Ineke Vandoorn: Jazz singer, Educator, Author
February 10, 2023
•96m
Ineke Vando orn is a wonderfully expressive prizewinning jazz vocalist, author, composer and educator. We talked about overcoming voice problems, the craft of writing lyrics, teaching vocal improvisation, her book “Singing from the Inside Out”, and many of her fascinating creative collaborations.During the recording of this episode Ineke performed 3 times, and also check out the timestamps below for the many topics we covered. The link for both the video and the transcript is here: https://www.leahroseman.com/episodes/ineke-vandoorn
Be sure to check out my episode with Ineke’s partner guitarist Marc Van Vugt: https://www.leahroseman.com/episodes/marc-van-vugt-guitarist-and-composer
Ineke's website: https://www.inekevandoorn.com/
Buy me a coffee? https://ko-fi.com/leahroseman
photo: Jiri Büller
Timestamps
(00:00) Cold open and Intro
(01:34) early days with Marc van Vugt
(03:29) voice problems
(05:57) process for writing book “Singing From the Inside Out”
(14:33) song “Holysloot” by Ineke Vandoorn
(19:57) singing workshops
(21:00) project with Cecilia Moisio “I Can See Myself Through Your Eyes”
(29:00) criticism and performance anxiety
(35:04) song “Tea”by Marc van Vugt with lyrics by Ineke Vandoorn
(41:02) use of DigiTech400 Vocal pedal
(42:50) Paris, Van Doesburg house residency, challenges of self-promotion as an independant jazz artist
(45:35) coaching students about different practical skills
(48:51) teaching improvisation
(50:30) the importance and lack of government support for music
(52:09) pitch memory, singing a cappella, Voice Lab group
(54:54) family music, early years
(56:15) coming into her own as a singer, support of Don Thompson, going to Banff
(59:17) mentoring younger women
(01:00:39) writing lyrics in English and Dutch
(01:10:01) Flora Purim, gaining confidence as a performer
(01:12:36) “Alice in Space” opera with Ingmar Heytze and Marc van Vugt
(01:14:39) free improv vocal solo
(01:19:39) collaboraing with recorder player Saskia Coolen
(01:22:34) reflections on turning 60
(01:24:18) project with Jasper van ’t Hof
(01:27:29) album “Crossing Canada”
(01:28:28) balancing time between teaching at ArtEZ, performing and creating
(01:30:58) plans for a new book about vocal improvisation
Next Episode
Gertrude "Trudy" Létourneau: Therapeutic Musician
February 25, 2023
•80m
Gertrude Létourneau, known to some as Trudy, is a flutist, pianist, singer and a therapeutic musician. During this episode, she tells many moving stories of the residents she has worked with in her many years working at Pearly Health. During the episode she frequently breaks into song and plays a variety of flutes as well as paints a vivid picture of the fulfilling role she plays working with veterans. We also spoke about her mentors Peter Wiegold, Jeffrey Gilbert, and Marie-Claire Séguin. This was an episode very much about going out your comfort zone, connecting with your audience, and learning to slow down and enjoy every day.
Help me keep this series going! https://ko-fi.com/leahroseman
Video and Transcript link: https://www.leahroseman.com/episodes/gertrude-trudy-letourneau
Gertrude's website: https://gertrudeletourneau.com/ photo credit: Dave Poulin
Timestamps:
(00:00) Intro
(03:02) how Gertrude got into this work as a therapeutic musician at Perley Health, Performance and Communication Skills at Guildhall with Peter Wiegold
(08:12) making music with the residents, sing-along culture, Kohai Educational Center working kids with learning disabilities
(12:20) learning the repertoire, playing by ear, choosing themes, different aspects of the work at Perley Health
(16:01) difference between Music Therapist and Therapeutic Musician
(17:44) story about Lili Marlene and World War II veteran
(20:55) PTSD story
(25:56) J’attendrai ton retour with story
(28:53) developing as a singer, coaching with Marie-Claire Séguin, finalist in Ma première Place des Arts competition
(34:05) Audience engagement, talking to the audience and building bridges
(38:52) Jeffrey Gilbert
(41:58) childhood music and decision to pursue the flute
(46:35) dealing with grief and loss
(52:54) planning repertoire around themes
(55:36) coping with the COVID Pandemic in long-term care, online concerts with Concerts in Care and the Music Performance Trust Fund
(01:01:03) living in the moment, Québecois culture and La Bolduc, a musician’s last gig
(01:06:50) lessons learned
(01:16:33) Let Me Call You Sweetheart, creative challenges and going out of your comfort zone
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