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Welcome to Vocal Harmony at the Frank Hamilton School!
Explore singing and harmonizing with fellow musicians in the folk and old time traditions.

Together we’ll determine each student’s vocal range, build a bit of an understanding of music theory plus a vocabulary to communicate with each other, but mostly we will be singing -- singing new songs, singing old songs, singing by the numbers, building and hearing our harmonies, and polishing our performance techniques in front of each other.

June 27 - Nashville numbers, ranges and two songs

 * Plan
 * Introduction, survey, Nashville numbering, ranges, singing by the numbers.


 * Demo
 * Pig in a Pen (G)


 * Rehearse
 * Chopsticks (C)


 * Assignment
 * Listen to a favorite traditional song on recording and figure out its key and the degrees of the scale for a few measures; learn words for Climbing High Mountains.

July 11 - Intervals

 * Plan
 * The major scale, intervals, and evil modes


 * Rehearse
 * Chopsticks (C), Climbing High Mountains (Cm), Grey Funnel Line (F)


 * 2nd Half
 * Chopsticks, Climbing High Mountains


 * Assignment
 * Practice thirds with instrument or self-recording; learn words for Grey Funnel Line (start with favorite verse).

July 18 - Intervals and Chords

 * Plan
 * Continuing intervals, 1-4-5 chords, listening


 * Rehearse
 * Climbing High Mountains (Cm), Grey Funnel Line (F), My Baby’s Gone


 * 2nd Half
 * Grey Funnel Line, Meeting is Over


 * Assignment
 * TBD; learn words for My Baby’s Gone.

July 25 - Faking it

 * Plan
 * Strategies when not knowing song, for learning, and making others sound good


 * Rehearse
 * My Baby’s Gone, Ballad of Captain Kidd, Your Lone Journey


 * 2nd Half
 * My Baby’s Gone


 * Assignment
 * TBD; learn words for Your Lone Journey and Ballad of Captain Kidd.

Aug 1 - Parts is parts

 * Plan
 * TBD


 * Rehearse
 * Ballad of Captain Kidd, Your Lone Journey, Adieu, Sweet Lovely Nancy


 * 2nd Half
 * Ballad of Captain Kidd


 * Assignment
 * TBD; learn words for Adieu, Sweet Lovely Nancy.

Aug 8 - Arranging

 * Plan
 * TBD


 * Rehearse
 * Babylon (Am), Adieu, Sweet Lovely Nancy


 * 2nd Half
 * Babylon


 * Assignment
 * TBD; continue learning words for Adieu, Sweet Lovely Nancy.

Aug 15 - Back to fun

 * Plan
 * TBD


 * Rehearse
 * Your Lone Journey, Adieu, Sweet Lovely Nancy


 * 2nd Half
 * Your Lone Journey, Adieu, Sweet Lovely Nancy

July 29 - Song Swap
This is the monthly get together of a open circle of singers socializing and sharing their craft in living rooms near and around Decatur. Usually there's a pot luck at 6:00 and the singing starts at 7:00. This month it is at the home of Phyllis Mueller and George Eckard. Normally you'd contact [mailto:canoe4ever@gmail.com John Miller] for details, but the man is currently on the road. So, contact Lee Leonard for now.

Various Dates - Frank Hamilton Players
Founders, teachers and students periodically play and sing at farmers markets and other events around town. Contact [mailto:wclarkbrown@gmail.com Clark Brown] to find out what's coming up.

Resources

 * Songs by Title

Crushes
Here's a list of song crushes one or more of us share. Please add a link to a song that you're obsessing about, one that wakes you in the morning playing in your head. Let's constrain it to traditionalish vocals. Give a hat tip to someone if they turned you onto it:


 * July 12, 2017 - Angelina is a modern song from Ghana, It sounds like an old song, and yet the lyrics tickle your heart with their new world sensibilities. AB Crentsil and the band Sweet Talks created this infectious gem.


 * July 1, 2017 - I've only heard spiritual versions of Climbing High Mountains, but here's a bluesy version by Blind Willie McTell with Curley Weaver singing harmony called Trying to Get Home. Weaver’s harmony is very chromatic, using a lot of half steps as he walks down the scale.


 * June 29, 2018 - Wondrous Love is an old shape note song performed by Blue Highway. It has a wondrous gospel build that we will steal when singing the Ballad of Captain Kidd. This seems only fair, since Wondrous Love stole the melody from Captain Kidd back in the mid 1800s. [H/T Caroline Anderson]


 * June 26, 2017 - Dan Boner had an awesome live video on Facebook. It's called "Professor Dan’s quick singing tips for "old school" southern/mountain bluegrass style." [H/T Barbara Panter]