School of Music Slow Jam

All are welcome!

We love to meet new pickers, and we love putting on a good show for listeners!

This weekly program is made possible by the generous support of PHLY Foundation.

There are no pre-show reservations for the jams. Suggested donation at the door: $5.00 per person.

Our jams are about sharing songs, making new friends, and enjoying a relaxing and casual evening of irresistible string band music. Join the circle for an afternoon or evening of classic grass, new grass, and folk favorites. We sometimes refer to our genre as eclectic acoustic.

Red Spruce and Adirondack Song Dogs will kick off each session with a few tunes, then open the floor for musicians to lead their favorite bluegrass tunes and folk music, backed by the other pickers in the gathering. Simple tunes are always popular. So sharpen up your axe, come prepared with your song, and let us hear some good old fast, high and lonesome, some slow and low, or a good old favorite.

What is a Slow Jam?

It is a group of string instrument players and singers who get together to have fun making music. The "slow" modifier indicates the jam is targeted to the following musicians:
- people who have been playing solo and want to get used to playing in a group setting
- people who have just learned how to play and want to play with others
- people who have instruments that have been gathering dust for a "few" years
- experienced players who are trying out instruments other than their primary instrument
- people who are comfortable playing their instrument but want to become more comfortable singing/leading a song

Tunes are played at about 80 to 110 BPM and usually in basic keys such as G, A, D, C major, though minor keys such as a, e, and g are also used. We will try to avoid "jam busters." It is our hope that after this experience you will feel more comfortable playing at the many open jams and open mics found in our area.