The print., November 30, 1983, Page 6, Image 6

Old Time Fiddlers jam on campus
By Charlene Jengen
Of The Print
. Fiddlers, guitarists, smiles
and classic fiddle music
greeted the audience last week
at the free concert performed
by The Old Time Fiddlers in
the Community Center at
Clackamas Community Col­
lege.
The Old Time Fiddlers is
a group of musicians who play
frequently at events. “The Old
Time Fiddlers are a bunch of
wholesome, fun loving, great
people,” Greg Baker,
chairperson for the organiza­
tion, said.
The popularity of the
group has to do with the at­
mosphere their music creates.
“It’s the sit-back-relax, very
low key kind of perfor-
mahce,” Baker said, “The
music lets people remember
how things used to be years
ago.”
Although most of the per­
formers have been playing
music for many years, The Old
Time Fiddlers also has novice
fiddle players. Some of the
performers who played at the
Community Center concert
have been playing for only a
year. “To see them up on a
stage already is pretty im­
pressive,” Baker said.
Other musicians perform­
ing at the concert were John
Melnichik and his seven-year-
old daughter Katie. Melnichik
is this year’s State Fiddle
Champion.
The Men’s National Fid­
dle Champion Joey McKenzie
was also performing at the
event. McKenzie, 19, also
holds championships in guitar,
mandolin and four-stringed
banjo.
Just recently Baker performing country music.
started his own publishing The program will take place in
company and hopes to publish the Community Center of the
his series of fiddle books by College and is free.
A performance is also
April. “These six books take
people from rock bottom to scheduled on Saturday, Dec.
being a good fiddle player in a 10 by the Beavercreek Fid­
year and a half if they stick dlers. Held in the Community
with it and practice,” Baker Center, the concert is free and
will present fiddle music and
said.
“Part of the reason I got Christmas sing-a-longs.
Canned food donations
involved with the Old Time
Fiddlers is I wanted to play the are welcomed and a hat will be
songs the way they play them passed to help the needy in the
and present them that way in community. Proceeds will go
my books, using the keys the the Interagency Food Bank in
Old Time Fiddlers play in so Portland.
Playing “The Orange
that the music would be useful
and people could apply it,” Blossom Special” was eleven­
year-old Jason Ewing, the
Baker said.
The fiddling books teach youngest boy at the concert. A
music with a method Baker fiddle student of Baker’s, Ew­
has developed himself. Also, ing has also studied music at
there are cassettes recorded in the College through Bob
stereo with backup guitar so Misley’s country, folk and
the student can turn off the bluegrass class.
Baker pointed out that
fiddle and practice with the
guitar or vise versa. “I’m go­ most of the Old Time Fiddlers
ing to make the series highly are retired. “Many of the fid­
applicable. I’ll have the stu­ dlers have been brought up
dent learn things they can app­ with the older music. It’s
ly immediately,” Baker said. music that brings back a lot of
“I also will teach back-up and memories,” Baker said. “In
improvisation in each book fact, it kind of touches my
step by step and cords, so that heart when I’m performing
by the sixth book the student somewhere and a person
should have a fair idea how to comes up and says, ‘I’m from
sit in with a band and play a Missouri and my Dad used to
song without knowing what play such-and-such a song.
the song is. You can play Will you play it for me?’ I
songs you’ve never heard never turn anybody down on a
before if you have an idea of request like that. I always play
it and if I don’t know the song
what the cords are,” he said.
“I just want to have a I get one of the other fiddlers
really good time playing with who does know it to play it.”
In addition to the Old
the Old Time Fiddlers and
train as many people to play as Time Fiddlers, Baker teaches
I can,” Baker said.
music both at Clackamas
More concerts are plan­ Community College and
ned in December beginning privately. Baker also performs
Dec. 9 from 6-8 p.m. with the in the band “Gold Rush.”
Cabin Fever Moonshine Band The group is made up of
teachers from the local area.
Other members of
Gold
Rush
are Bob Misley, a
biology and music teacher at
Clackamas Community Col­
lege, Loren Wolfford who
teaches psychology for
Clackamas Community Col­
lege and Monte Trautman of
Sunset High School.
Gold Rush
plays at
many county fairs and have
“We have (' Gold Rush )
made it enough so that we
don’t have to take just any old
job that comes along. In fact
we very rarely play in smoke-
filled honky-tonks,” Baker
said.
Photos Courtesy of Public Information Office
Page 6
Clackamas Community College