Spring Festival
The Stables, Milton Keynes, Bucks, UK

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Last year's Spring Festival 2008 This year's Spring Festival A Day and Evening of Playing and Learning The 2009 Spring Festival will be held at The Stables, Stockwell Lane, Wavendon, Milton Keynes MK17 8LU on May 16th 2009. It is being organised by the London Harmonica Group and will be starting at 10am and finishing at 11pm. Workshops are aimed at Chromatic and Diatonic players of intermediate level and upward. There is a list of local B&Bs and hotels at the bottom of this page. Directions - Click here for directions to The Stables. You can find details and times for travel by bus, train, coach, ferry or underground by visiting The Traveline web site. The Stables: This large, modern and professional venue (just off the M1) gives us the opportunity to run a variety of workshops for chromatic and diatonic players and bring in a band for a jam session in the evening. The venue has a bar, which will be open from lunchtime, and a large and comfortable reception and bar area. Light lunches (sandwiches etc) will be available, but people wishing to stay for dinner should book well in advance at the popular Café in2 Restaurant. The Price: the full days activities cost £15 for NHL members and £25 for non-members. NHL Membership: you can join the NHL here. Tickets: tickets are on sale now from the Stables Booking Office web site. NHL members should book their places promptly as only 80 are available. The Stables has been running harmonica events for several years, so we can expect competition for tickets from non-NHL folk. Timetable Registration: 10-10.15am Workshops: 10.15-11.30. 11.45-1pm Lunch: 1-1.45pm (Sandwiches, panini and hot and cold fluids available from the bar) Workshops: 1.45 to 3pm Harmonica Surgery Troubleshooting Masterclass: 3-4pm Unstructured Jam: 4 to 5.30pm Break Jam/Gig Doors Open: 8.15ish, Band 8.30pm End: 11pm Workshops for all levels will be held from 10:15am. Workshops will be 60-75 minutes long, giving us the chance for more depth and more participation. These workshops are already confirmed: Lee Sankey - Blues Diatonic Will Greener - Blues Improvisation Will Greener - Playing in a Band Joff Watkins - Beginning Jazz part 1: Jazz Blues on the Chromatic and Diatonic. Con O'Neill – Beginning Jazz part 2: Two Jazz melodies - Summertime and Autumn Leaves Bill Eborn – Jazz diatonic Neil Warren - Jazz Chromatic Eddie Ong - Phrasing and Tonality on the Chromatic and Diatonic Harmonica Surgery Troubleshooting Masterclass: you will be welcome to approach our tutors for help and advice on any element of harmonica playing, or just come and watch and learn. Unstructured Jam We have a space for those wishing to jam away the afternoon, with instruments and jam tracks provided. Play nicely, now. Break: 5.30 to 8.30 Evening Meal: There is no shortage of shopping or eating opportunities for those mobile enough to get back to MK, or you can book at Café in 2 at the Stables (open 6 to 8pm) or take a ten minute walk into the village of Wavendon and eat at The Wavendon Arms, the local gastro pub. Jam/Gig: the evening jam session will be hosted Giles Hedley and the Aviators, who have seconded a keyboard player for the evening, giving them added versatility. Whether you are a first timer or a jam veterans, you will be welcome to come and play. The Stables Stage 2, where the jam will take place, comes with a professional sound engineer and PA. Tickets for events at The Stables can be booked over the phone, by email or fax, or in person at the Box Office, before and on the day. This information is from the Stables Booking Office web site By phone: 01908 280800 By email: boxoffice@stables.org By fax: 01908 280825 In person: The Stables Box Office. Opening hours: The Box Office is open from Monday to Saturday from 10am-6pm (open later on show nights). On Sundays the opening hours are from 5pm-8pm on show nights only. Handling charge: With the exception of in person bookings, all bookings are subject to a handling charge of £2.50 which includes postage. Local accomodation: click here for a list of local B&Bs and small hotels. Contact person for queries or further information is Con O'Neill. Return to this page for updates - www.harmonica.co.uk/sfestival.htm Return to the top of the page