Gen Strings draws upon the specialized expertise of our teaching artists: an eclectic group of dynamic and authentic musicians. Our classes inspire young string players to generate new possibilities, find their voice, and share it.
Gen Strings Summer Class Schedule
$180 for 6 sessions: 6/13, 6/27, 7/11, 7/25, 8/8, 8/22
Click here to sign up for Gen Strings 1 ( 9-12yo), meeting at 2PM Eastern/1PM Central/12PM Mountain/11AM Pacific
Click here to sign up for Gen Strings 2 (13-17yo), meeting at 3PM Eastern/2PM Central/1PM Mountain/12PM Pacific
All classes are held on Zoom, moderated by Rachel and Neil. Sessions are recorded--you can play along with the replays of your group as many times as you want during the series! String teachers are also invited to participate.
For any questions about the Summer 2020 Gen Strings series, please contact us.
Meet the Teachers and click on their pictures to learn more
Jordan Hamilton, cellist of Last Gasp Collective and the Southwest Michigan Symphony Orchestra, merges songwriting, loop pedals, sample machines, and vocals to create a sonic landscape of experimental hip-hop, folk, soul, and classical music. The Western Michigan University graduate aims to find new ways for the cello, a traditional instrument, to relate to a modern audience where it can be found playing the music of Bach, the Beatles, or Thundercat. Filled with a wide range of songs, Jordan’s song writing aims to represent the heart and mind while reflecting on different possibilities.
Andy Reiner and Dr. Joy Adams are a Colorado-based duo that met while teaching at fiddle camps across the USA. As performers, composers and educators with a rich background of classical, folk, folk/hip-hop, heavy metal, jazz, Celtic, Swedish, Appalachian, bluegrass, and Scandinavian fiddle, they bring thoughtful consideration and cosmic creativity and groove to their compositions and collaborations. These two can be found often on the slopes with their instruments, demonstrating their passion for music, fun, and the great outdoors!
Jason Anick, violin professor at Boston’s Berklee College of Music, is considered “a rising star in the world of jazz violin and mandolin” (Downbeat Magazine). Over the past few years, Jason has been focusing on arranging and composing for the Rhythm Future Quartet, Jason Anick Acoustic Trio, and the Anick/Yeager Quartet. The Rhythm Future Quartet, which Jason started with Finish guitar virtuoso Olli Soikkeli, is rapidly becoming one of the preeminent Gypsy jazz groups in the country.
The Jason Anick Acoustic Trio, which formed in 2017, applies Jason's formidable improvisational and compositional chops to the roots/fiddle music of his youth. The Jason Anick/Jason Yeager Quartet draws on the wide swath of musical interests of its co-leaders, blending straight-ahead and post-bop jazz, world music, funk and pop, eagerly embracing what Anick and Yeager have defined as “jazz without borders.” Jason is also a sought-after educator, and has taught jazz violin and mandolin to students of all ages at string camps, workshops, and clinics around the world. Jason regularly contributes educational columns to Fiddler Magazine and instructional videos to DC Music and Christian Howes' Creative Strings Academy.
Fiddle champ Georgia Rae has been teaching workshops and private lessons for the past 8 years. She has taken her positivity and infectious joy for playing throughout the country to teach various fiddle styles, improvisation and tune writing to players of all ages and abilities.
Georgia has been on faculty at Chrstian Howes' Creative Strings Youth Camp for two years, team teaching with Chili Dog Strings' Neil Fong Gilfillan.
Ben Katzen is a multi-genre cellist, composer and singer-songwriter based in Dallas-Fort Worth. He has performed on stage with artists such as The Roots, Chaka Khan, Robert Glasper, Erykah Badu, Wyclef Jean, Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith. He can also be heard playing flamenco fusion with Pistolero Pistolero, Latin-infused rock with Tres Hombres, and gypsy jazz with his own trio, as well as with several symphonies and chamber ensembles.
Shana Tucker: Cellist. Singer-Songwriter. Arts Advocate. Teaching Artist. Collaborator. Cultural Conduit. In each role, Shana is a builder-of-connections, whether she’s associating STEM concepts with backbeats or engaging a packed house through candid song-storytelling in performance. Shana's unique genre of ChamberSoul™ weaves jazz, roots, folk, acoustic pop, and a touch of R&B into melodies that echo in your head for days. Of her work, Shana says, “I’m intrinsically drawn to acoustic instruments because of their resonance, warmth, and intimacy. ChamberSoul brings musician and audience close, and makes the music tangible, no matter how large or small the room is."
In addition to her rigorous touring/performing, collaborating and recording schedule, Shana is a front-line advocate for arts education, bringing her workshops, residencies, informances and masterclasses to communities across the nation. Educators appreciate her passionate advocacy and willingness to build on existing curriculum and class projects. Shana is a teaching artist with Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning Through the Arts, United Arts Council of Raleigh & Wake County, and Durham Arts Council. Shana is also a North Carolina A+ Schools Fellow, working with educators toward curriculum-wide arts integration and increased knowledge retention.