Appalachian South Folklife Center

Applications are now closed. 

If you would like to be put on a wait list for this year or mailing list for next year, please email Maggie at maggie@pianotechmaggie.com .  

Thanks for your interest! 

These are intensive workshops for piano technicians to learn aural tuning concepts. 

The first camp is 5 days, April 27-May 1 (arrive April 26 & leave May 2), and is $600. This camp is for those who are at late beginner or early intermediate levels when it comes to aural tuning. It is not for beginning tuners. Students will be expected to already know their intervals. The first day will review the harmonic series and coincident partials, and the rest of the camp will focus on aural checks and how to use them. It is an excellent prep for the second camp. Those in the first camp will have higher priority in the list for the second. The instructors will be Maggie Jusiel, Morgan Seig, and Tim Mainland. This camp is limited to 6 seats. If two people would like to share a seat (sharing a practice piano and dorm room), they may split the cost, but both people must let us know their intention during the application process. 

TO APPLY TO THE FIRST CAMP:
Please make a video tuning (or attempting the tuning of) a unison, then playing as many of the following intervals that will fit into any single octave on a piano, saying what they are before you start the first interval type: minor thirds, major thirds, perfect fourths, perfect fifths, minor sixths, major sixths, minor sevenths, and major sevenths. (Example: there are 10 minor thirds in an octave but only 2 major sevenths.) Upload this video to YouTube with an unlisted link or to a Google Drive and email the link to maggie@pianotechmaggie.com along with your name and phone number. 

The second camp is 7 days, May 3-May 9 (arrive May 2 & leave May 10), and is $650. This camp is late intermediate or early advanced. It is for those who have some aural skills (including checks) but are struggling to put all the puzzle pieces together and are unsure about troubleshooting. The concepts learned in this camp can be used to practice setting temperaments and tuning pianos aurally. This workshop is based on the concepts of "mini-temperaments". We set a lot of mini-temperaments, starting with a major third, moving to a fourth, fifth, and sixth before working with an entire octave. One can not learn to aurally tune pianos at an advanced level in a single week, but one can gain more foundational knowledge and understanding that one can take home with them for more directed and productive practice. Anyone in the first camp will have higher priority in the choosing for this camp. The instructors will be Maggie Jusiel, Morgan Sieg, and Mae Tipple. This camp is limited to 6 seats. If two people would like to share a seat (sharing a practice piano and dorm room), they may split the cost, but both people must let us know their intention during the application process. 

TO APPLY TO THE SECOND CAMP:
Anyone who attends the first camp is automatically eligible for the second camp and has first priority. If you don't need to attend the first camp, please made a video of yourself tuning the following:  an octave at the second coincident partial (CP), an octave at the third CP, a fifth at the first CP, a fifth at the second CP, a fourth at the first CP, and contiguous thirds in any single octave between C3-C5. When tuning everything except contiguous thirds, use aural checks/tests to tune the interval and to demonstrate that it is in tune at the desired CP. After playing any aural check, please ghost the aural check at the correct CP. Lastly, play (not tune) through a basic up-a-fifth-down-a-fourth temperament sequence in any octave, but keep it within a single octave (you will need to play 2 fourths in a row once). Upload this video to YouTube with an unlisted link or to a Google Drive and email the link to maggie@pianotechmaggie.com along with your name and phone number. 

Applications will be accepted from January 2 through February 28. Participants will be chosen by the end of March. 

For more information, please visit this webpage: https://folklifecenter.org/appalachian-piano-tuning-camp 

If you have any questions or would like to be put on a mailing list for next year, please email Maggie at maggie@timandmaggie.net .

Thanks for your interest! 

The Folklife Center is located at 820 Rocky Mount Road; Pipestem, WV 25979. One road you do NOT want to take is Pipestem Knob Road. (It's not only a private road, low riding cars can bottom out or get stuck.) Once you are on Indian Ridge Road, stay on that until you get to Rocky Mount Road, then turn left. Most map programs are correct about everything else. 

PLEASE read about the facilities: This is a relatively primitive campground. Participants will have private dorm rooms in a co-ed dorm with 2 shared bathrooms. There will be two extra bathrooms available if needed in two other dorms, one for men and the other for women. ALL beds are single sleeper bunk beds. You must bring your own bedding/sleeping bag, pillow, towel, etc. There is a primitive camping area for tents or campers but no water, or "hook ups". We do have a few locations that can have an extension cord. We will have a few tents available for loan. There are no laundry facilities on site. Please click here for more information. 

On a clear evening we can have an optional fire circle. 

Regarding food: There will be coffee and hot water available 24/7. No food will be provided, but there are 3 refrigerators, a pantry, and a commercial kitchen (fully stocked with pots/pans, dish-ware, silverware, etc.) There is also an outdoor gas grill. Please bring your own food as there are no restaurants nearby except one at Pipestem State Park. There are grocery stores in Hinton (20 min) and Princeton (30 min). Princeton is further away but has more variety. 

If anyone wants better accommodations, there are several locations nearby but one must cover that cost on their own. Pipestem State Park is the closest. Pipestem Place Log Cabins is the next closest. Bluestone State Park cabins is only 15 minutes away. There are some other places that have cabins or B & B, but those are scattered and constantly change, so you will have to find those on your own. There is a restaurant available at Pipestem State Park.

Many thanks to Shane Lowther with Kanawha Piano Gallery for providing and moving pianos!

If you have any questions, please contact Maggie at 304-952-8615 or maggie@pianotechmaggie.com .