Gatherings

We usually get together on the first Saturday of the month.

Gatherings are held at Lawnridge Hall, a historic mansion on the campus of the University Presbyterian Church in Rochester Hills, Michigan. We aren’t affiliated with the church, we rent this building because it’s such a cool place to play, and has plenty of room for all of us. (Lawnridge Hall is located at 1385 South Adams Road, between Hamlin and Avon).

The hall opens at 5pm, and depending on current interests we may have instrumental jamming and other group activity. Various groups, we call circles, gather to jam when sufficient interest exists. Some past circles have included a Native American flute circle, fiddles, banjos, and harmonicas and others.  Many rooms are available for practice or other small groups.

Most folks arrive around 7pm, and the gathering starts at 7:30 with a one-hour presentation. Topics range from unusual instruments and music styles to hands-on “How to Play a (ukulele, harmonica or whatever)”, to historical demonstrations and presentations.

We break for snacks and conversation in the dining room and reconvene for the Song Swap at about 9:00PM.

The Song Swap is like an open-mike, except that the room doesn’t need a microphone. It’s a safe environment; a lot of people make their first public performance here. Every month has a theme, but it’s not strict.  It’s a great place to share what you’ve been practicing, or for old pros to try out new material.

After that, we may break up into small groups – like singers, instrumental jammers, and talkers. That can go till almost midnight. Sometimes even that’s not enough, and folks decide to go out for a late-night snack.