October 26-29, 2023

Join us for a long weekend of all things harmonica - great instructors, classes, jams, and a concert, too.

Artistic Director, Kim Field has been a professional harmonica player, singer, and songwriter for four decades. He's gathered a stellar group of players and teachers who will help you reach the next level in your harmonica playing and performing.

Come join us! We are thrilled to have this stellar group of instructors for 2023!

Joe Filisko, Ross Garren, Eric Noden, Andrew Alli, and Kim Field.

 

Register

The costs below are per person and all-inclusive of class fee, all 9 meals (Thursday dinner - Sunday lunch), public concert, and lodging. Your cost will vary according to the number of people you are willing to share a room with.

Triple Occupancy (you and 2 roommates) $672

Double Occupancy (you and 1 roommate) $768

Single Occupancy (just you!) $868

Commuter (classes, lunches & dinners, no overnight lodging at Menucha) $585

Would your spouse/partner like to come with you but not attend classes? They can! You all will have your own room, will eat all meals with participants, get to enjoy the concert, but while you're in class, they can read, hike, and generally enjoy Menucha and the surrounding area. The cost is an additional $176 for a non-participating spouse. When you register - choose Double occupancy for yourself, then "add participant" and choose the non-participating spouse to when registering. The total cost for you and your spouse is $944.

We will be asking for proof of vaccination or negative covid test in order to attend. This may change, but as of 12/2022 this is our policy.

This is the schedule from 2022, the schedule for 2023 will be posted later this summer.

Downloadable Harmonica Northwest schedule

Thursday
Wright Hall
3:00 PM Arrival & Check-in
4:15 PM Welcome & Orientation
5:50 PM Meal servers to dining hall
6:00 PM Dinner
7:15 PM Staff intros, class overviews, Q&A with instructors
10:00 PM  Quiet time in Wright Hall  (Jams use Greenhouse)
Friday Wright Hall
8:00 AM Breakfast
9:00 AM--Class 1 Groove Class 1: Joe Filisko & Eric Noden
10:30 AM Break
10:45--Class 2 Repertoire 1: Andrew Alli
12:00 PM Lunch
1:00 PM--Class 3 Tongue Blocking: Joe Filisko
2:30 PM Break
2:45 PM--Class 4 Achieving and using overblows: Ross Garren
4:15 PM Break
4:30 PM All Instructors Topic: Tone
6:00 PM Dinner
7:00-7:30 PM Zoom Session with Celebrity Harmonica Player
10:00 PM  Quiet time in Wright Hall (Jams use Creevey or Greenhouse)
 
Saturday Wright Hall
8:00 AM Breakfast
9:00:00 AM--Class 1 Groove 2: Joe Filisko & Eric Noden
10:30 AM Break
10:45--Class 2 Repertoire 2: Andrew Alli
12:00 PM Lunch
1:00 PM--Class 3 Chromatic harmonica:             Ross Garren
2:30 PM Break
2:45 PM--Class 4  Playing in Different Contexts: Ross Garren
4:15 PM Break
4:30 AM All Instructors Topic: Playing in Different Positions
5:30 PM Dinner
7:00 PM Staff Concert at nearby Corbett Grange Hall
10:00 PM  Quiet time in Wright Hall (Jams use Greenhouse)
Sunday
8:00 AM Breakfast
9:15 AM Pack-up time, early jam, or sleep in
10:30 AM Gospel Jam
11:30 AM Debrief with students and instructors
12:00 PM Lunch
Depart by 1pm

 

 

 

Learn more about the musicians you'll get to learn and make music with.

Kim Field

Kim Field has been a professional harmonica player, singer, and songwriter for four decades. He has taught classes on the harmonica for the Seattle Folklore Society and the Puget Sound Guitar Workshop. Kim has toured internationally and performed at such showcases as the San Francisco Blues Festival, the Bumbershoot Festival, and the Waterfront Blues Festival. Over the years he has appeared on bills with such rhythm and blues legends as Muddy Waters, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Robert Cray, the Fabulous Thunderbirds, Gregg Allman, James Cotton, Otis Rush, John Lee Hooker, Albert Collins, the Righteous Brothers, Walter Horton, and Big Mama Thornton. Kim is the author of the book Harmonicas, Harps, and Heavy Breathers: The History of the People’s Instrument, published by Cooper Square Press, and the co-author of the book The Blues Dream of Billy Boy Arnold, published by the University of Chicago Press.

Joe Filisko

The Hohner harmonica company has described Joe Filisko as “the world’s foremost authority on the diatonic harmonica.”Joe is an American blues harmonica player and maker of customized harmonicas based in Chicago, Illinois. Joe records extensively and performs internationally in a celebrated duo with Eric Noden. In 2001 he was named "Harmonica Player of the Year" by the Society for the Preservation and Advancement of the Harmonica. In addition to performing, building customized harmonicas, and working as a consultant for the Hohner company, Filisko has been teaching the harmonica since 1990, most frequently at Chicago’s fabled Old Town School of Folk Music. in Chicago. Joe has conducted harmonica teaching workshops on five different continents and has developed a rigorous yet accessible method. He also teaches each year at the annual convention of SPAH (Society for the Preservation and Advancement of the Harmonica), the world’s largest harmonica organization, and has also given workshops at Centrum’s Country Blues Workshop in Port Townsend, Washington; the Euro Blues Northhamptom teaching festival in the United Kingdom; the Paramount Blues Festival in Grafton, Wisconsin; the Kerrville Folk Festival in Texas, Les Harmonicales Condat in France, the Hawaiian Harmonica retreat; the Blast Furnace Blues Festival in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania; the World Harmonica Festival in Trossingen, Germany; and Augusta Blues Week in West Virginia.

Eric Noden

Eric Noden is an award-winning acoustic blues and roots guitarist, harmonica player, singer and producer based in Chicago, Illinois. Eric has been featured on music festivals in over 15 countries and three continents and has released nine albums. He has taught the guitar and the harmonica at workshops around the world, including at Chicago’s Old Town School of Folk Music, the Harmonica Masters workshops in Germany, and at the Augusta Heritage Festival in West Virginia.

Andrew Alli

A native of Richmond, Virginia, Andrew Alli began playing the harmonica at the age of 20. He quickly became a passionate student of the instrument, learning from the classic sounds of the legendary blues harmonica players and establishing a notable style of his own. Alli has toured with dozens of musicians, both domestically and abroad. For years, Andrew led the band "Andrew Alli and the Mainline." He currently plays in duos with either local musician Josh Small and Georgia-based musician Jontavious Willis. Alli has taught the harmonical for many years, at convocations like the Richmond Folk Festival, Centrum’s Acoustic Blues Workshop in Port Townsend, Washington; and at the Augusta Heritage Center. Living Blues magazine has noted that "When Alli sings in a deep, rich tenor and plays his fierce harp that cuts straight back to the golden era, everybody looks up at amazement. It is clear that great things are coming for this talented singer and harmonica player.”

Ross Garren

Ross Garren is a harmonica player, keyboardist, composer and record producer living in Los Angeles, California. He plays many different models of harmonica, including the diatonic, chromatic, chord, and bass harmonicas. Garren’s distinctive harmonica playing has made him an in-demand musician in the recording studios in Los Angeles. His playing has been featured on recordings by, among others, Bon Iver, Kesha, Ben Folds, Bruce Hornsby, Brad Mehldau, Lupe Fiasco, Moses Sumney, Rita Coolidge, Keb' Mo', Jim Keltner, Marco Beltrami, Bear McCreary, Lyle Workman and Alf Clausen. Garren performs regularly in the Los Angeles area with the Sheriffs of Schroedingham and Vignes Rooftop Revival, and tours occasionally with Ben Folds, Marc Cohn and Chelsea Williams. Garren’s outstanding harmonica instruction videos as some of the most popular on harmonica.com, the world’s most popular harmonica instruction web site.

Testimonials from 2022:

“Superb instruction AND entertainment. The setting, accommodations, and food were absolutely superb in every way.”

“The best harmonica event I’ve ever been to!! Some of the nicest teachers/performers in the world.”

“This workshop was world-class quality. Now I have more of a roadmap of what to practice!!!!”

“A great experience where we learned, played, shared ideas and experiences. We also made friendships with others that share the same love of playing the harmonica. You and the instructors taught us some of the subtleties and basics that we needed to advance our skills. I really appreciate how the instructors bonded with the attendees all during the 3-plus days. It was a great to jam and interact with you guys! I highly recommend attending for anyone who wants to gain knowledge for improving and have a good time doing it. You can be sure I’ll be there next year!”

“Already looking forward to next year! Such a fantastic camp with some truly committed players and instructors. Even a complete novice like me was made to feel comfortable and worthy of the expertise these guys exude. Harmonica players at every level were here and able to get maximum benefit from this fun and exciting camp.”

“I was a bit concerned, as a more beginning level player, the instruction would be beyond me. I came away with some very specific skills to practice that give me a roadmap to move forward. The instructors, fellow students, and staff could not have been more friendly and kind! Gorgeous setting and delicious meals! I will be back next year!”

“This was quite a special ‘first of’ and I am more than fortunate to have attended. The selection of instructors was just perfect in all ways.”

“I can’t say enough about the classes and the entire course! It was really terrific. It was an excellent teaching experience, even for a relatively newcomer to the harmonica!! Congrats on a VERY successful program.”

“I’ve been to several harmonica weekends and although I’ve gotten something from each of them, this one stands out as exceptionally good. Joe Filisko’s expert teaching was a great opportunity to revisit the building blocks of harp playing, something I need to do every so often in order for me to make progress as a player. Andrew Alli’s teaching and soulful playing and beautiful tone were truly inspirational, and Ross Garren’s superb playing and introductions to other styles of playing make me want to explore new ways to play harp. Kim did a great job pulling the weekend together, and setting an overall tone that was supportive, collegial, and a lot of fun. Well done!”

“Already looking forward to next year! Such a fantastic camp with some truly committed players and instructors. Even a complete novice like me was made to feel comfortable and worthy of the expertise these guys exude. Harmonica players at every level were able to get maximum benefit from this fun and exciting camp. Thanks to Kim and all the great instructors.”

Kim Field interviews the faculty for Harmonica Northwest: