Stage Show
Friday Night Performers
Mountain Dulcimer Stage Show
Thornapple Valley Dulcimer Society
Larry Unger
Ilace Mears
Bill Bosler
Dan Levenson
Steve & Ruth Smith
Bing Futch
SONAS
All shows start at 6:30pm...
Thornapple Valley Dulcimer Society
We are a group of musicians who gather together for the enjoyment of playing music with friends. There is an organized jam, everyone brings snacks, and the club furnishes coffee and tea. All types of non-electrical string instruments are welcome.
We have a variety of instruments at our meetings - hammered dulcimer, mountain dulcimer, autoharp, mandolin, guitar, musical saw, fiddle, banjo, bass and others. Music is available for club members. The club is also available for performances.
Larry Unger
Larry Unger was raised in Detroit, and he moved to the Boston area as a young adult. He has been a full-time musician since 1984, and he has presented a diverse range of music at contra dances, Scottish and English country dances, waltz events, dance weekends, dance and music camps, festivals, coffee houses and concerts all across the United States.
Larry gives solo concerts that include a wide variety of music: finger-style blues and slide guitar, rags, old-time banjo tunes, original waltzes and fiddle tunes. He likes to play a number of unusual instruments such as banjo guitar, fretless banjo, jaw harp and piano harp.
Ilace Mears
Ilace Mears ("Eye-less") is the 2016 National Hammered Dulcimer Champion and violin player - but hasn't figured out a way to play both at the same time.
In the meantime, she brings a classically trained background to the world of traditional folk music with a deep appreciation for both. Ilace is having a blast teaching and playing with friends from across the continent at dulcimer festivals, jams, and other gatherings. She can also make a wedding or event even more unique with personally tailored programming for either dulcimer or solo violin!
Bill Bosler
Bill has been a percussionist since childhood, tapping on things his whole life. Over 25 years ago he was introduced to the hammered dulcimer and immediately fell in love. Taking his percussive rhythms and focusing them on both original melodies as well as unique interpretations of traditional and popular tunes.
Bill regularly performs at Michiana venues with guitar accompaniment and bands. Bill can be found playing the hammered dulcimer for solo gigs as well as pick up duets/trios with other area musicians. On percussion, he is regularly found behind his trap set with the Box of Dreams Band and other occasional groups. He has also played cajon/percussion with groups such as the Bucktown Ramblers, Kevin Joiner and the Hidden Chambers, Lee and Rico, as well as others in the region.
Dan Levenson
DAN LEVENSON is an Appalachian native who has grown up with the music of that region. Today he is considered a respected master teacher and performer of both the clawhammer banjo and Appalachian style fiddle.
Banjo Newsletter’s R.D. Lunceford describes Dan “as an interpreter, rather than a music re-creator”. Fiddler Magazine’s Bob Buckingham described him as “an accomplished fiddler and …one of the best clawhammer banjo players in the country.” Ken Perlman has called him “The Johnny Appleseed of the Banjo.”
Dan performs and teaches regularly throughout the world, including in England, Ireland, Israel and Brazil. He has taught at many music schools and camps, including in the John C. Campbell Folk School, Mars Hill, Maryland Banjo Academy, The Ozark Folk Center at Mountain View, AR, Banjo Camp North, The Rolland Fiddle Camp and Dan’s own Clawcamp and Old-Time Music instructional weekends held at various locations throughout the country.
Dan has won awards on both instruments including a 2017 Master Artist Award from Arizona’s Southwest Folklife Alliance, first place at the 2005 Ohio Clawhammer Banjo Championship and Grand Champion at the 2010 Ajo, AZ Fiddle Contest.
Dan has eight recordings of his own and is one of the most prolific authors of instructional and tune books for clawhammer banjo and fiddle (see the shopping pages in the menu) with 14 Mel Bay publications to his name, including Clawhammer Banjo From Scratch; Old Time Fiddle From Scratch and the Clawhammer Banjo Masters series with co-author Bob Carlin (Kyle Creed, Wade Ward and Fred Cockerham & Tommy Jarrell volumes available). He is also a writer and editor for Banjo Newsletter’s “Old Time Way.”
Steve and Ruth Smith
From the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, Steve and Ruth play a heartwarming blend of acoustic Americana music featuring hammered dulcimer and guitar. Steve and Ruth play and sing the music reminiscent of the old homeplace where family, love, faith, and sense of place are the foundations of heritage and traditions.
Steve and Ruth have been performing together for 48 years across the United States and around the world.
Dirty Linen Folk & World Music Magazine says “ Ruth Smith's touch on the hammered dulcimer is absolutely magical, with exquisite phrasing, highlighting the range of the instrument especially on her own pieces.”
Steve, an ASCAP award-winning song-writer, adds fingerstyle guitar, old-time banjo, and vocals to the duo. Of Steve’s songwriting, Dulcimer Players News says, “He is a master story teller and the perfect vocalist to convey the meaning of his lyrics. Steve's songs stand out for their imagery and melodic strength . . .
on a par with John Denver’s songs.”
Steve and Ruth's music is regularly heard on Sirius XM Satellite Radio, Spotify, YouTube Music, Amazon Prime Music, Pandora, NPR and acoustic music format radio stations around the U.S. Steve and Ruth have been featured on the PBS TV series Song of the Mountains, NPR’s All Songs Considered and Thistle & Shamrock, in Ohio Magazine, and Dulcimer Players News.
Bing Futch
Using Appalachian mountain dulcimer, Native American flute, ukulele, and stompboxes, Bing Futch celebrates traditional and modern music with passion, humor, and boundless energy. As a nationally touring solo performer, he's headlined at The Walnut Valley Festival, The Florida Folk Festival, Old Songs Festival, and Common Ground On The Hill.
Bing has enjoyed a career as a rocker and folkie, first with post-punk act Crazed Bunnyz in 1986 and later in 1999 as co-founder of Americana rock band, Mohave. In 2016, he competed in the International Blues Challenge in Memphis, TN, emerging as a finalist and winner of the "Best Solo Guitar" award, despite performing solely on mountain dulcimer.
Over the years, his music has been featured in film, video, theatrical productions, and themed attractions, including The Castle of Miracles at Give Kids The World Village in Kissimmee, Florida.
Since 2008, Bing has been an endorsing artist for Folkcraft Instruments and has written a number of books for them, including the best-selling Method For Beginning Mountain Dulcimer. He’s also worked with V-Picks to develop a pick specifically for mountain dulcimers. This collaboration resulted in the “Bing” Lite and “Bing” Ultra-Lite models.
Bing keeps a busy schedule of performances, workshops, and production that includes shooting episodes of Dulcimerica, a video series on YouTube that’s been viewed by millions of people worldwide and is currently in its 15th year. He's also one of the Top 5% Prolific Creators on Patreon (out of 250,000), where he makes his life work available for just $5 per month (Patreon.com/BingFutch.) He lives in Orlando, Florida with his wife, Jae, and a menagerie of rescued critters.
SONAS
SONAS is comprised of three Michigan artists - DeeDee Tibbits, Tom Krause, and Kelly Sible. Together they play a multitude of instruments from Irish Whistles to Bouzoukis and Fiddles. Their style is a unique combination of Celtic, Bluegrass, and originals.
The word SONAS is Gaelic for “happiness or contentment“ which is what they feel when playing together.
Mountain Dulcimer Stage Show
Every year we invite all mountain dulcimer players to join in a massive jam session at the start of the Friday evening concert. This is why we are here, to celebrate the players, the music, and the instrument. Join us!
