Dear Friends,
Here's the latest information regarding this year's Banjo Gathering (formerly Banjo Collectors Gathering). I hope some of you will make it!
Best regards,
Greg
Registration:
This year’s Registration Fee is $280 — with a special half-price offer for students and first-time attendees. You can register for the upcoming Banjo Gathering by making out a check to Peter Szego and sending it to: Peter Szego 2 Beekman Lane Hillsborough, NJ 08844 Attendance is limited so register early and spots on field trips are not guaranteed without a complete registration. Please click here fill out a form and let us know which field trips you are attending. |
Hotel Reservations:
The Hilton Alexandria Mark Center in Alexandria, VA, will host the Banjo Gathering. The guestroom rate is $139 per night for single or double occupancy. On-site parking is $15 per day but off-site parking is available. We have reserved a block of guestrooms from Wednesday, November 1, through Sunday, November 5. You can make reservations on-line through this pass-key link (the SRP Code is “BANJO”).
The number of reserved guestrooms is limited and availability is on a first-come, first-serve basis. Please be aware that we were not able to reserve enough guestrooms at the host hotel last year and quite a few Banjo Gathering participants had to stay at nearby hotels. We therefore urge you to make guestroom reservations at the Hyatt Alexandria Mark Center ASAP.
The Hilton Alexandria Mark Center in Alexandria, VA, will host the Banjo Gathering. The guestroom rate is $139 per night for single or double occupancy. On-site parking is $15 per day but off-site parking is available. We have reserved a block of guestrooms from Wednesday, November 1, through Sunday, November 5. You can make reservations on-line through this pass-key link (the SRP Code is “BANJO”).
The number of reserved guestrooms is limited and availability is on a first-come, first-serve basis. Please be aware that we were not able to reserve enough guestrooms at the host hotel last year and quite a few Banjo Gathering participants had to stay at nearby hotels. We therefore urge you to make guestroom reservations at the Hyatt Alexandria Mark Center ASAP.
PROGRAM
Thursday, November 2nd
10:00am-2:00 pm |
Early Bird Activity: Banjo Tour of the American Folklife Center, Library of Congress (FULL)
|
6:00-6:45 pm |
Welcome to the Gathering! Introductions.
|
7:00-7:45 pm |
Bania, Panja, Creole Culture: An examination of two early banjos, a reinterpretation of the Old Plantation painting, and a secret history of the word ‘banjo,' by Kristina Gaddy and Pete Ross
|
8:00-8:45pm |
"Searching for Banjo Ancestors Within Washington's Vaults, by Bob Carlin
|
Friday, November 3rd
8:00-11:00am |
Curator-guided tour of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture(NMAAHC). (Please register if you have not done so already.)
|
11:00am-Noon |
LUNCH
|
12:30-2:30pm |
Banjo tour of the Smithsonian National Museum of American History (NMAH). (Please register if you have not done so already.)
|
3:00-7:00pm |
Free time, Dinner
|
7:00-7:15pm |
Banjo Project Update with Marc Fields
|
7:30-8:15pm |
Northeast Ohio Banjo Collecting Adventures, by Bob Smakula
|
8:30-9:15pm |
Early Banjo Recordings on Period Machines, by Christian Stanfield
|
Saturday, November 4th
9:00-9:45am |
The Strychnine Banjo-Jake Wallace, Charley Rhoades, and the Days of '49, by Chris Bayer
|
10:00-10:45am |
Golden Age of the Tenor Banjo, by Michael Wright
|
11:00-11:45am |
A Field Guide to Gretsch Metallic Rim Banjos 1928-1964, by John Hoft
|
Noon-2:00pm |
LUNCH
|
2:00-2:45pm |
Period Boston Banjo Factories, by Shawn McSweeny
|
3:00-3:45pm |
Institutionalizing the Banjo: Acquisitions, Access, and Exhibitions, by Scott Odell and Greg Adams
|
4:00-4:45pm |
Banjo Rim Production: A Modern Builder's Take on Historical Rim Manufacturing, by Patrick Heavner
|
5:00-7:00pm |
DINNER
|
7:00-7:45pm |
An Illustrated History of the Banjo in Britain (1850-1900), by Bob Sayers
|
8:00-8:45pm |
Modern Building with a Traditional Mind, by Will Seeders Mosheim and Richard Newman
|
Sunday, November 5th
Clean up and Sunday brunch in suburban Maryland (details to be provided at Gathering).
***Time for Networking, Trading, and Jamming
Throughout the day and evening, there will be time between presentations for conversation and jamming, as well as viewing, trading, or purchasing banjos, other instruments, and banjo-related ephemera.
