# General Mandolin Topics > Jams, Workshops, Camps, Places To Meet Others >  Wintergrass 2015

## Denman John

With Wintergrass coming up in about a month's time from now, I was wondering who else is going? This will be our first time attending and we are really looking forward to it.  My kids are registered in the Youth Academy and I have signed up for Don Julin's intensive workshop on Thursday afternoon.  

I'm wondering if there will be a chance for Cafe members to meet up and do a little mando tasting?

For people who have attended in years past, is there anything that is a "must" see or do?

John

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## bigskygirl

Hi John, I'm planning on attending, my first time as well.  I'm up for a meet up, there will be a few other Cafe members I know that will be there.

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## Eddie Sheehy

Just got my flight, hotel, and concert tickets...

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## Mandobart

I'll be there as usual.  My recommendation is to check out all the acts ahead of time on YouTube to see and hear which ones you want to see live.  There just isn't time to catch them all.  Also don't expect much from the 45 minute workshops.  If you want to take in a major headliner workshop or show (like Tim O'brien) get there early.  We did have a cafe get together there a few years back; it was fun!

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## Spruce

> Just got my flight, hotel, and concert tickets...


Uh oh...
Now we have to add Irish Whisky (errr, Whiskey) to the tasting...    :Smile:

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Austin Clark

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## craigw

Bruce, you bringin' any lumber?

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## Spruce

> Bruce, you bringin' any lumber?


Yessir...

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## Pete Braccio

I'll be there again. The whole family is coming up this time. I finally was able to get my youngest and her boyfriend to make the trip.

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## DPrager

I'll be there Thursday through Sunday

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## Austin Clark

Wouldn't miss it! I'll have a bunch of stringed thingys and likely a few jars.....  :Wink:

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Mandobart, 

Spruce

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## Spruce

> ...and likely a few jars.....


...oh, me too...
Calvados for sure...

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## Eddie Sheehy

Will we playing "Whiskey in the Jar"?  Or drink in' it?

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## Denman John

Great to see that so many Cafe members will be attending this year!  Maybe someone needs to bring one of these along http://www.fyldeguitars.com/touchstone_sm_mandolin.html to make sure we cover all the basis  :Wink: 

Is anyone else taking Don Julin's workshop on Thursday afternoon?  I would have also loved to attend Joe Walsh's workshop, but it looks like they are scheduled at the same time.  I'm sure by the end of the weekend I'll have had my fill of mandolin and whatever else you guys are bringing in those jars  :Whistling:

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## Mandobart

I've signed up for Don's workshop.  I have found the "intensives" to be well worth attending.

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## mrmando

> Will we playing "Whiskey in the Jar"?  Or drink in' it?


Can't do both, son. If you play that song we won't pass you the jar. 

It'll be good to meet you. I'll be around.

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## Eddie Sheehy

Whiskey before breakfast then...

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## GKWilson

I'm busy working on a new tune. 'Whiskey till Breakfast'.
See ya there. Let me know if there's a Cafe Gathering.
Gary

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## mandopete

See ya'll there

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## craigw

I'll be arriving Thursday morning with four of my Wilson mandolins. I missed out last year because my band had a conflicting festival booking but back again this year in the Music Caravan booth that is just outside the luthiers room. the instruments I'm bringing can be previewed in these videos:
https://vimeo.com/108829557
https://vimeo.com/110189873
http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/Sh...08616-WF-5-018
https://vimeo.com/109854094

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Denman John

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## craigw

I messed up on the Café thread: http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/Sh...08616-WF-5-018

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## Jim Nollman

Especially love the sound of that first mandolin on your list. Wow! Hope to find you, Craig,  if i actually do go to Wintergrass.

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## Denman John

We have the kids registered in the Youth Academy and have to be there at 8:30am Thursday morning.  That means we'll be leaving here Wednesday evening to catch 2 ferries to get us on the mainland.  We'll probably catch a few hours sleep in a rest area in Washington state and be good to go when we get there.

If anyone wants to do some mando-tasting, I'll be bringing my Kimble and you're more than welcome to try it.  I'll be wearing a red Mandolin Cafe hat, so please come up and introduce yourself.  It'll be fun to put some faces to the names I see here.  I'm looking forward to attending Don Julin's workshop and there's a lot of good music lined up over the weekend...

I'm sure the kids in the Youth Academy would love a large turnout for their concert friday evening at 5pm in the Evergreen Ballroom.  If your free and got a few minutes ...

The kids have 3 songs to prepare for Wintergrass and they got a chance to try them out at our Open Mic here on Denman ...




See you there
John

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## Bogle

Well seeing as how Craig and Bruce will be there, I guess I might as well show up too!

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## bobrem

I think I may be a good candidate for Idiot's Guide to Mandolin. (10 a.m., Friday, Maple Ballroom)

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## Pete Martin

I'll see ya there.

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## bigskygirl

I've been studying the program and hope to see some of you there.  We're arriving Wed, there are some films being shown at the library Thurs aft before the festival starts.

History of Bluegrass Film Festival
Bellevue Library
Thursday, February 26, 2015
1:00 PM - 5:30 PM

1pm: The High Lonesome Sound [The Legacy of Roscoe Holcomb] by John Cohen, 1963. 30 minutes

2pm: Appalachian Journey [PBS American Patchwork] by Alan Lomax, 1990. 60 minutes

3:30pm: Bill Monroe: The Father of Bluegrass Music by Steve Gebhardt, 1991. 91 minutes


Show Less <<
Other Info: Sponsored by the Bellevue Friends of the Library and Wintergrass Music Festival.

Other Info: Room 1

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## ampyjoe

I'm going to attend. I'll keep an eye on this thread in case there are any get-togethers planned, either for jams or just a bit of mandolin chit-chat!

Kenny

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## Eddie Sheehy

Boarding...

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## Mandobart

Leaving tomorrow ~09:00.  Going to the Don Julin intensive workshop at 1:00.  It's about a 3 hour drive to Bellevue across the mountains.

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Denman John

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## Austin Clark

Ready to go!

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Denman John

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## Denman John

*road trip . . . safe travels everyone!*

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bigskygirl

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## bigskygirl

Got here this afternoon, jammed a bit then went to the Irish Pub for happy hour.  Kinda quiet now, gonna rest up tonight for the next few days.

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## Pete Braccio

It'll pick up tomorrow.  :Wink: 

I'm getting on a plane at just after 7 AM tomorrow. I'll be there by noon. Really looking forward to it.

Pete

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## GKWilson

Austin. I'll take the one in the red case. :Grin:

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## Mandobart

Great times so far.  Enjoyed Don Julin's workshop yesterday.  Seeing old friends and meeting new ones.

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Denman John

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## Northwest Steve

Della Mae played in Spokane last night and are headed over today.

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## Late to the Party

I didn't get to go to Don Julin's workshop, but I did get to see his performance with Billy Strings last night.  It was easily the best part of my day.  They are playing again on Saturday on case you missed them last night.

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## Spruce

Saw this puppy at Greg Boyd's here at W'grass, and thought I'd pass it on...
No financial interest, blah blah...

I figure there's 600 bucks in parts alone, counting the original (handle detached) case...







Here's the rub...
One of the worst sunken tops (and that's saying somethin') I've seen on a Gibson A...
Still intact, though...
Pop the back, heated beanbags to force the top back into shape, re-brace, viola...
Big job...    :Disbelief: 







Thought it might be up somebody's alley...
Not mine--waaaaay too much on my plate...

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## Don Grieser

If anyone sees a sharp dressed man wearing a florida bolo type, post a pic.

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## Eddie Sheehy

Are you here, Don?

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## Don Grieser

No, Eddie. But there's someone there wearing a bolo tie I made.

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## Eddie Sheehy

I'll keep an eye out...

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## Spruce

> If anyone sees a sharp dressed man wearing a florida bolo type, post a pic.

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## Eddie Sheehy

Dang it... You were holding out on me..

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## GKWilson

No Eddie I was holding out on you.
Don sent me a Bolo tie made from the Florida of a mandolin we once owned.
I went to the funeral of a friend yesterday morning then had drive 150 miles
and get there by 1:40 to catch Della Mae at Wintergrass.
In my rush I left the tie behind. :Frown: 
It was nice meeting you and a few other members there Eddie.

Don, I did wear the tie to an Amer. Mandolin Quartet concert last weekend and got a lot of feedback.
I told everyone I chopped it off my May 18th Loar with a hacksaw. :Grin: 
Thanks again Don.

Spruce, That is a nice tie. But a Florida? No. I'm thinking California.

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## AlanN

> 


So, _that's_ where the florida went on Monroe's fingerboard. 

I'll give you a bluechip for it.

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## bobrem

Del McCoury's 76th birthday party at Wintergrass:

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Denman John

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## bigskygirl

Just got back home tonight.  What a fabulous festival!  Spent the last three days going to workshops, shows, and jamming.  It's really too bad us humans have to stop and eat and rest or I would have done it straight thru.  I haven't been up that late or thought 10am was early for quite some time now....ha

Saw and played some wonderful custom mandolins, a $17k octave, and Eastman had all their mandos there.  I tried them all and they all sounded great but I really liked the 305, didn't get one as hubby would kill me if I even mention buying another mando so soon after getting my custom Northfield.....I'll have to sneak it in. :Cool: 

The workshops were great!  Del McCoury and his son Ronnie sat down for 2 hours to wow the crowd and answer the required dumb pick and string questions but they handled it well, it was Del's 75th birthday and they played two killer sets.  Other bands there were Della Mae, Steel Wheels, Steeldrivers, Sarah Jarosz, Joe Craven, Mr. Sun, Billy Strings and Don Julin and so many others.

Met some fellow Cafe members and friends from other music camps.  The Hyatt was a wonderful host site and all the people, cars, buildings, and concrete in Bellevue reminded me of why we moved out of the Northern Virgnia area.

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## Denman John

My son, Tai, calling this tune around 1:30am Saturday morning ... thought it might be relevant  :Wink: 




More to come ...

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## billhay4

Good job, Tai.
Bill

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Denman John

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## GKWilson

Still jammin' hard at 1:30!!! Tai's my new hero.
Wintergrass is so much fun. Just walking down the hallways jam after jam going on.
And you never know who might join in. Some of your Bluegrass hero's standing right
next to you. And on the other side some young gun like Tai. And not just holding their
own, but pushing us old guys around [musically speaking]. Gotta love it.

That's Jason Bowerman playing fiddle next to Tai.
He builds great Tenor 4,5, and 8 string guitars.
He built my Tenor when he was in the Breedlove custom guitar shop.
He showed me his second F5 mandolin he just finished. He isn't selling them.
But, I checked it out and it's perfect and beautiful in every way.
So, somewhere down the road we'll probably start seeing some.
Gary

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Denman John

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## Mandobart

It was a great time.  Gets better every year since I know more of you great folks to jam with.  All the bands were great, but my favorite show was "I Draw Slow".  Sunday of Wintergrass after the kids show always feels like the day after Christmas; sorry it's over so soon.  At least I get to jam with my local bluegrass club tomorrow, and I'll see The Henhouse Prowlers this Friday and Fruition next Saturday.

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Denman John

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## Eddie Sheehy

The BG changed to Irish when the whiskey was brought out...

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DataNick, 

Denman John, 

GKWilson

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## Denman John

Wow ~ where to begin ... the last week has been a whirlwind of music and driving.  I can't say enough good things about the Wintergrass Youth Academy program that they put on.  The kids went from 8:30am to 9:00pm with a couple of breaks for food.  In the morning and afternoon they did small and large group activities and prepared for their performance Friday evening.  They even got to sing Happy Birthday to Del McCoury friday afternoon up on stage!  From 6-9pm there was a Youth Jam in one of the rooms that Ben Hunter and Joe Seamons lead.  These guys were amazing with the kids and some great friendships were made.  

Friday night we caught Don Julin and Billy Strings up on the 3rd floor and man those guys can play. I also really enjoyed his workshop and was officially my first lesson as a mandolin player after almost 5 1/2 years of playing.  After leaving the show around midnight, Jason Bowerman and gang were jamming at the top of the stairs and invited my oldest son, Tai, to join in.  That's the jam that the video was posted from earlier.  Jason is a great guy and we always enjoy spending time with him.  The reddish/brown dred in the jam was Jason's guitar and it sounded awesome.  The guitar players were passing it around and drooling on it  :Wink: 

Saturday morning we went looking for a fiddle for Tai but left empty handed.  Again, Jason introduced us to a few very knowledgeable people (you never know who you will see at Wintergrass) and helped Tai out trying different fiddles and explaining what to look for and what to avoid when looking for an instrument.  He's been renting a fiddle for about 6 months and has gotten a taste of what the nicer ones sound and play like.   :Disbelief: 

Tristan Scroggins and Ronnie McCoury's workshop were entertaining and they played us a  few things, but we didn't touch our mandolins.  Tim Connell had us playing in his Gypsy, Jazz & Swing Chords for Mandolin workshop and was a bit too advanced for me. I was understanding what he was saying, but my fingers couldn't move fast enough.  :Crying:  Tai on the other hand was eating it up.  

Tai and Ekou  (my youngest son - also playing mandolin) asked me if they could post this video on the Mandolin Cafe.  After the youth jam on Saturday night, the kids went down to one of the main hallways and opened a case and jammed for another couple of hours.  They had been playing 10-12 hours for the past 3 days and just didn't want to stop.  As a parent it was amazing to watch the friendships and music grow in them.  We'll definitely be back next year

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GKWilson, 

Mandobart

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## Bogle

This photo shot by old buddy Craig (builds outstanding mandolins, but is not the greatest photographer) Wilson pictures me with the $17K octave Big Sky Girl referred to in her earlier post. Crafted by Mike Kemnitzer, it is I believe one of only two he ever built. It's in amazingly fine condition, sounds terrific, and $17K doesn't seem like a bad deal at all for a giant Nugget.

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Denman John, 

GKWilson

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## GKWilson

I saw you playing that bad boy Bogle.
I would have hung around and said hi if I new you were a member.
I went through that door behind you to see Austin Clark.
I found Lawrence Smart, Cahalan Morrison and Greg Spatz jamming on
some of Austin's tasty toys. Nice.
Greg [a John Reischman Bluejay] and his wife [in the WA. BG Hall of Fame]
were selling fiddles next to Jason and his guitars. That's probably who Denman
John spoke to. As it seems to happen in BG they're great people.
Glad you and the boys had a good time D John.
Eddie and I were looking for you. I hope he found you. Hope to see you next year.
Gary

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## Denman John

GKWilson is correct, it was Greg Spatz and his wife who were helping us out.  I forget her name, (Welsh), but I know it took me 3 tries to pronounce it somewhat similar.  She has been doing repairs and restorations for the past 8 years and is now apprenticing with Jonathan Cooper (who's booth it was).  She had her first build there and a student Chinese fiddle that she modified and finished.  Very nice, but a little out of our price range at this time.  Jonathan Cooper's violins started at $15,000 and they were incredible.  

Out of the 3 mandolins that Austin Clark had, the 2 point spoke to me the most.  I didn't know that Jason Bowerman had a mandolin with him.  From his guitars and an octave I've seen, I would imagine that they would be top shelf.  He was the one that recommended us to go to Wintergrass a couple of years ago.  We finally made it  :Grin: 

I did bump into and introduce myself to Eddie Friday morning. I was hoping our paths would cross again ... Great playing from Cafe member John in the Don Julin's workshop ... Great people, great music and great memories ...

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## DSDarr

> Out of the 3 mandolins that Austin Clark had, the 2 point spoke to me the most.


I liked Austin's 2 point a lot  as well, probably my fave of his instruments, but he also had a really nice F5 that had just been strung up a week prior to Wintergrass that was going to be a winner for someone for sure.

David

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Austin Clark

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## Denman John

> I liked Austin's 2 point a lot  as well, probably my fave of his instruments, but he also had a really nice F5 that had just been strung up a week prior to Wintergrass that was going to be a winner for someone for sure.
> 
> David


I really enjoyed spending time with Austin and playing his mandolins.  Really good guy that just happens to build incredible mandolin family instruments.  My son preferred one of his F5's and I liked the 2 point ~ you can't go wrong either way.  I don't really like the looks of most 2 point mandolins, but that one just felt right in my hands.  Nice neck profile, great setup and a little rounder tone that had hints of an oval hole sound.  Take what you will from it.  That was the nicest sounding and playing mandolin I played at Wintergrass, other than my own.  I probably won't be in the market for another mandolin for at least a couple of years, but if I were, I'd be on that one!  Saw a really nice Heiden in Don Julin's workshop.  Checked out a Northfield and couple of Collings that were nice. I also briefly checked out Cafe member John's Sonny Morris F4 that was really good.  It had a nice organic look and it felt and sounded very nice!  So many nice instruments there ...

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Austin Clark

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## bobrem

Caridwen Irvine-Spatz

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Denman John

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## Eddie Sheehy

Looks like I left my Bluechip CT-55, with Sorensen logo on the back, behind at Wintergrass.  Whoever found it please enjoy picking with it and spread the good word about Sorensen mandolins...

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