Public Acoustic Music 

Public Acoustic Music - here are some places to play music around the Frederick County area:

Open Mics

FAME Sky Stage – 2nd Friday, May through October, 7-9 PM

            59 S Carroll St, Frederick, MD

Liquidity Ale Works – Tuesdays, 7-9 PM

   8 N. Main St. Mt. Airy, MD

Prospect Pantry, Saturday nights (irregular schedule, call first!) 

1 W. Main St. New Market, MD – 240-489-1145

            

Song/Tune Circles

Songs

FAME Song Circle, Second Saturdays, 1-3 PM

           Assemblies of God Church, 3700 Burkittsville Rd.…

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Back to Thurmont, MD 

Well folks, I moved back to Thurmont, MD.  I am also officially retired.  All of that means that it is time for something new.  I am not sure what that it, but I will spend the next 12 months exploring possibilities.  I do not want to simply pick up where I left off - Everything Changes!  I am looking for new, different projects where I can use my skills as a musician, recreation leader and trainer.  It will be an interesting year!

In the meantime, I am able to travel a bit, visit with family and friends…

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The move back to Virginia 

I am moving back to Virginia!

Yikes!

Judy and I lived in Virginia about 25 years ago - Louisa, Richmond, then Harrisonburg.

Now I am moving back to serve two small churches in Highland County.

I am looking forward to being back up in the mountains, but this will be a very different experience as Highland County is one of the least populated counties in the East.

I am looking forward to making some new musical connections and finding new venues in which to play!

TAI teaching at Whittier Elementary School 

Rick will be teaching 5 classes of 2nd graders at Whittier Elementary School in Frederick County.  He will be spending four days working with the music teacher to help students learn about eight different stringed instruments.  His theme is that "we are connected to the rest of the world through the instruments we play."

The instruments are guitar, banjo, harp, nyckleharpa, bass, bowed psaltery, fiddle, and hammered dulcimer.  He will talk about where each instrument originated and how it came to the…

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Jubal's Nation Folk Church 

   Jubal's Nation Folk Church starts up on March 25 at 6:30 PM at the Presbyterian Church of Hagerstown. 
Check the website for more information.  This is something I have been working on for 30 years, ever since I heard "A Prairie Home Companion." 

Instruments for Hungry for Music 

Anita funk collected a bunch of instruments from her co-workers to be donated to Hungry for Music.  Jeff Campbell met me at the Epicure Cafe in Fairfax, VA for the exchange.  About a dozen instruments were transferred from the back of my car to the back of his. 

Excellent 11 is now REACH! 

I have completed all the songs in the Excellent 11 Series.  Since I am uncertain about Mr. Clark's perspective on my using the title of his book for my series, I am calling it "Reach! - Striving for Excellence"  I am now in the process of matching some songs by other writers with each of the 11 songs.  For instance, Harry Chapin's "Flowers Are Red" will be paired with "From Dust" since both are about creativity.  "The Ash Grove" will be paired with "East on Eden's Road" since both express appreciation for…

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Work Continues on Excellent 11 series 

I have just finished song #7 in the Excellent 11 series.  This one is about Enthusiasm.  Titled "Take That Laurel Home" it is about developing a deep sense of direction and commitment that will overcome obstacles.  Uses the story of the tortoise and the hare as an example.  Eventually we will have rough MP3s on the site so you can hear the songs.  Now on to #8!

Christmas Show 

I am working on my Christmas show.  It will be comprised of mostly the lesser known songs and carols including "Miss Hoolihan's Christmas Cake" (always a fun one!)  I am working on five songs for the harp, so I am hoping that the harp will be worked into the program!  I always want to be able to sing with whatever instrument I am playing, so singing with the harp is an interesting challenge.

New songs for the Excellent 11 series 

So far four songs have been written.  A sense of adventure, common sense, reflection, and resilience are now covered.  Ron Clark's book - "The Excellent 11" is the source of inspiration.

The newest song is "Log Roll", exploring "resilience." This is based on an actual occurence.  I watched as several turtles sat on a slowly turning log that was floating in a pond.  They adjusted themselves so they didn't fall off, but finally too many turtles got on and the whole thing went over dumping all of them back…

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