By Starr Munro Riverbend News
Banjo and guitar pickers from Suwannee Valley and around the country have had a difficult time doing what they love, lately. Live shows aren't as easily organized as they typically can be due to social distancing measures, so many performers are out of commission. It's been hard times for those folk who would love nothing more than to get together with other people and make music.
Suwannee Banjo Camp (SBC) based out of Live Oak is planning on filling those empty spaces that a lack of music can bring by offering a virtual camp on Saturday, March 13 and Sunday, March 14. The virtual format hosts two full-days of classes, with five class "time-slots" per day and 10 class options per time-slot. SBC boasts an impressive collection of talented instructors this spring, and four levels of instruction in clawhammer, old-time fingerpicking and bluegrass techniques. The camp also hosts full-time programs in old-time fiddle, bluegrass guitar and bluegrass mandolin year-round.
SBC offers 10 class sessions, five each on Saturday and Sunday with 10 class options offered per session. Each session is one hour and 15 minutes long. There are 18 instructors to choose from this year for the virtual camp, each of them uniquely talented in their own way.
The camp is usually located at the beautiful Cerveny Conference Center at Camp Weed and hopefully by 2022 the regulars will be able to sit by the lake again and pick away the day together. Formed in 2002 by folklorist Jon Kay, the idea of a banjo camp at Stephen Foster State Park has evolved and turned into what it is today, when SBC finally found its way into Suwannee County and to picturesque Camp Weed. This year, the camp will be even more accessible via their website and the Whova app. For more information on who their featured instructors are or to access class prices and details, please visit www.suwanneebanjocamp.com/.