For enthusiasts of early banjo

All Blog Posts (281)

Songs of the Civil War in the Classroom

“Bob Welch’s “Songs of the Civil War” performance was a treat! Bob kept them engaged and kept the questions coming, helping our students to remain involved and to delve even deeper into our country’s history from a fresh perspective. I would recommend this program to any teacher looking to bring an enlightening and entertaining discussion to their classroom.” Kim Forbes Taft Alternative Middle School Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Added by Songs of the Civil War-Bob Welch on November 11, 2014 at 7:04am — No Comments

Great Program!

“Your program was most enjoyable. If history teachers could present like you, we would have more kids interested in history! Great program!” Cedar Rapids, IA. Public Library

Added by Songs of the Civil War-Bob Welch on November 11, 2014 at 7:03am — No Comments

A Great Historical Program!

“Thank you Bob. Your program was just wonderful…a great historical program and a highly entertaining show. Your stories and songs make the Civil War times come alive”. Kathy Williams-East Dubuque, IL. District Library

Added by Songs of the Civil War-Bob Welch on November 11, 2014 at 7:03am — No Comments

Spirit of the Civil War

“With these songs one can feel the “spirit of the Civil War” and an amazing connection Bob Welch has with the Civil War. If reincarnation is a fact, then Welch experienced all of the war, for his songs are filled with a reality of the times.” Ken Allers Jr. Co-author of “The History Buffs Guide to Gettysburg” and "The Fog of Gettysburg".

Added by Songs of the Civil War-Bob Welch on November 11, 2014 at 7:02am — No Comments

A Great Asset!

“You were a great asset to our show... I heard from several people that said you were their favorite part of the weekend.” Mike Faivre-Polo, IL. Sesquicentennial Chairman

Added by Songs of the Civil War-Bob Welch on November 11, 2014 at 7:01am — No Comments

Excellent Program!

The Board Members of the Dubuque Arts Council are very appreciative to have had you as our Artist in Residence. From the evaluations and comments we have received from the schools, you have done an excellent job for us. The board members were thrilled by your performance and by the response of the teachers and students during your performance.

Thanks again for your excellent program.

THE DUBUQUE ARTS COUNCIL

(The Songs of the Civil War/Lincoln & Liberty Too…

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Added by Songs of the Civil War-Bob Welch on November 11, 2014 at 7:00am — No Comments

"Ya'll are gonna want Goober Peas on your IPods aren't you?"

Thank you so much for coming...We all enjoyed it. I've had many
compliments from teachers and students... We had to sing Goober Peas
again during 2nd grade music this afternoon.

--Patty Griffin Music K-4 Manchester, Iowa Lambert Elementary

Added by Songs of the Civil War-Bob Welch on November 11, 2014 at 6:59am — No Comments

26 School Programs in Ten Days!

As the Education Program Chairman of the Dubuque Arts Council I recently had the pleasure of observing performances by Bob Welch. Bob was hired by the Arts Council as an Artist in Residence for the Dubuque area schools. He performed 26 times during a two week period. The reactions of the student audiences and the written evaluations from teachers and administrators were all very positive. I also was privileged to watch Bob entertain and educate an adult audience. It too,…

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Added by Songs of the Civil War-Bob Welch on November 11, 2014 at 6:59am — No Comments

Excellent!

"Your performance here was excellent and I look forward to more in the future."

--Phil Funkenbusch-Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum Springfield, IL July 2009

Added by Songs of the Civil War-Bob Welch on November 11, 2014 at 6:58am — No Comments

Extremely Positive!

"Thank you very much for performing "Songs of the Civil War" at the library. All the feedback I received was extremely positive."

--August 2009 Bob Conklin- Reference Librarian Moline, IL Public Library

Added by Songs of the Civil War-Bob Welch on November 11, 2014 at 6:57am — No Comments

Just Plain Fun!

...on Monday evening a gathering of area residents were treated to an unusual medley of musical selections from the Civil War era performed by Welch on a banjo and guitar interspersed with commentary on the history of that era. This was an outstanding program which kept the audience, of all ages, engaged. There was a story presented giving a brief history of every song. And it was just plain fun.

--Dan Miles-The Clinton Daily Democrat…

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Added by Songs of the Civil War-Bob Welch on November 11, 2014 at 6:56am — No Comments

A Great Day!

Just wanted to send you line of great appreciation and thanks for making a good day into a great day for my residents on your performance. They loved you and your music and like I told your sponsor in a letter I wrote them, I saw a couple of my residents singing along with you and on an average day they dont speak very much at all. Bob you made their day yesterday and they are still talking about it today. You do have a very special gift and a huge heart and we hope we can…

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Added by Songs of the Civil War-Bob Welch on November 11, 2014 at 6:55am — No Comments

Songs of Civil War to come alive at Fillmore County History Center

Newspaper feature from the Republican-Leader in Fountain, MN.

--April 2013

Added by Songs of the Civil War-Bob Welch on November 11, 2014 at 6:54am — No Comments

Thank you so much

Thank you so much for your time spent with us in Des Moines. Your "Songs of the Civil War" program connected wonderfully with the performance of "The Civil War" that happened on our Civic Center stage. All of the teachers that participated in your program have sung your praises and were very pleased with the connections made. We will be sure to think of you the next time we have a show of this topic! Many thanks.

--Des Moines Performing…

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Added by Songs of the Civil War-Bob Welch on November 11, 2014 at 6:51am — No Comments

A happy heart...

Thank you so much for presenting a wonderful program at our library. Several people told me how much they enjoyed the stories & music and I, myself, left after the program with a happy heart and humming a tune from your program. Thanks again.

--Sandy Barron-Guttenberg, IA Public Library June 2014

Added by Songs of the Civil War-Bob Welch on November 11, 2014 at 6:51am — No Comments

Exceeded My Expectations!

Bob's program was a perfect blend of songs and interesting stories from the

Civil War period. His performance more than exceeded my expectations!
Everyone left with a smile on their face while praising the performance. The
community was abuzz for days about the event. We will definitely invite Bob
to perform next year!

--Oelwein, IA Public Library- Susan Machen-Director 2013

Added by Songs of the Civil War-Bob Welch on November 11, 2014 at 6:49am — No Comments

Tunes, memory, and insanity

The darndest thing happened tonight. I was sleuthing out tunes in Kerr's and came across one I liked. It was the Zig Zag Hornpipe. After I recorded it and put it up in Youtube, I realized that I had done it already some months earlier. I had no memory or recollection of it. I listened to it, and the interpretation was basically the same, with a minor fingering change. Still pondering what this means.......

Anyway, I posted the new version. Has a pretty relaxed feel. Hope you…

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Added by Tim Twiss on August 29, 2014 at 11:24pm — 1 Comment

Game Changer

One thing that really turned my playing around was adjusting my nails. One day, I took a file and went down to the nub......never regretted it. You would think that you would lose sound, but instead I gained. I always file down short before I play.

It was a blasphemous change from my Classical guitar past.

Added by Tim Twiss on July 15, 2014 at 9:10pm — 12 Comments