Words can hardly capture the extraordinary experience of jamming with fellow musicians. It’s a unique blend of connection, inspiration, and musical growth.
Group Classes & Workshops
Bluegrass Jamming Course
(Intermediate)
Taught by Mary Kussmaul & Michaela Mae
This 8 week course is designed to take your Bluegrass jamming to the next level by refining your solo skills, expanding your repetoire, playing at faster tempos, and leading songs with confidence.
Course Goals:
Create a safe space for soloing
Play confidently at faster tempos
Expand your song repertoire
Lead songs with assurance
Identify ideal keys for your voice
Foster supportive backup playing
Develop melodic solos with clarity
Qualifications:
Intermediate level or higher in playing one of the core bluegrass instruments (guitar, upright bass, fiddle, banjo, dobro, mandolin)
Familiarity with bluegrass jamming or related musical genres
When: October 2nd - November 20th
8 week course (plus concert)
Time: Wednesday evenings 6:30pm-8:00pm
Ages: 16 years +
Duet Singing (FULL)
Taught by Michaela Mae & Ryan Harlin
This 6 week course is designed to help you learn how to recognize and sing duet harmonies while exploring the music theory of why harmonies work. In each class we will learn a collection of bluegrass, folk and country harmonies.
Course Goals:
Foster a communal environment for singing together
Strengthen vocal techniques for seamless blending and nuanced expression
Gain a deeper understanding of duet harmonies compared to three and four part harmonies, and discovering the greater creative freedom duet singing offers
Expand your repertoire of duet songs
Qualifications:
Beginning to advanced level of experience singing
Willingness to share your voice
You do not need a duet partner to be a part of this class
When: October 15th - Nov 19th
6 week course (plus concert)
Time: Tuesday evenings 6:30pm-8:00pm
Ages: 15 years +
Roots Rhythm Guitar (FULL)
Beginning - Intermediate
Taught by Samuel Gray Edmonson & Michaela Mae
This 8-week course is designed to introduce you to roots rhythm guitar playing, focusing on flatpicking and fingerstyle guitar. This class will refine your left and right hand technique, and improve your rhythm guitar playing.
Course Goals:
Learn flatpicking guitar fundamentals
Learn fingerstyle guitar fundamentals
Expand rhythm guitar repertoire in roots music (Americana/folk/bluegrass/country)
Qualifications:
Ability to tune guitar
Ability to play cowboy chords (C, F, G, D, A, E)
When: September 26th - November 14th
8 week course (plus concert)
Time: Thursday evenings 7:00pm-8:15pm
Ages: 16 years +
Bluegrass Jamming (FULL)
(Beginning)
Taught by David Thiessen & Michaela Mae
This 8-week course is designed to introduce you to Bluegrass jamming, focusing on building foundational skills, expanding your repertoire, playing in a group, and gaining confidence in leading songs.
Course Goals:
Create a welcoming space for playing in an ensemble
Play comfortably at various tempos
Lead songs with confidence
Foster supportive backup playing
Develop basic melodic solos with clarity
Qualifications:
Ability to transition between basic chords smoothly on one of the core bluegrass instruments (guitar, upright bass, fiddle, banjo, dobro, mandolin)
Interest in learning bluegrass jamming or related musical genres
When:
Monday Evenings (September 30th - November 18th)
8 week course (plus concert)
Time: Monday evenings 6:30pm-8:00pm
Ages: 16 years +
Meet the Teachers
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Michaela Mae
Founder & Multi-class Teacher
Michaela Mae is a professional singer, musician, and music instructor with over fifteen years of performance experience. She teaches harmony workshops, songwriting courses, family music classes, and private lessons in the North Bay Area and at music camps around California. Michaela has studied voice for over 25 years and has 45+ credits in Music Education. In her personal projects, she performs and collaborates with Wyld Iris and Miranda Mallard.
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Ryan Harlin
Harmony & Duet Singing Teacher
Ryan is a music producer, songwriter, performer, and educator with feet firmly planted in American roots music. He has been a lead instructor at Walker Creek Music Camp and California Bluegrass Association’s Music Camp and collaborated with artists as diverse as dance music legend Paul Van Dyk and banjo icon Kermit the Frog. He is the Senior Creative Executive for Reason Studios and has earned tens of millions of views on YouTube.
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Mary Kussmaul (Felton)
Jamming Class Teacher
Mary is the California Bluegrass Association’s Regional Activities Director, coordinating jams and activities in Sonoma, Napa, and Lake Counties. An active bluegrass performer, she plays mandolin in the all-women’s band Bluegrass Holiday and often appears with the Bloomfield Bluegrass Band. Her musical journey began with classical piano as a child, and she transitioned to mandolin and bluegrass after attending a fiddle camp with her children. Even though she loves performing, the sense of community she finds through jamming is what brought her into bluegrass and is her favorite part of the genre.
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Dave Pascoe
Workshop Teacher
David Pascoe is a multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter and touring musician whose music blends traditional folk with playful improvisation. He performs with multiple groups in the San Francisco Bay Area, including Late for the Train, Eric Long, and the Jimbo Scott Band. David also co-founded Every Folk, a camp for adults to explore traditional folk music and culture and is a lead teacher at the Pacific Songwriting Camp.
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David Thiessen
Bluegrass Jamming Teacher
From the moment David picked up the mandolin at age ten, Bluegrass and Americana music became an integral part of his life. Soon after, he formed a band with his twin brother and best friends that lasted for more than a decade. Since then he has played in countless bands around California including Windy Hill, One Grass Two Grass, and currently Mission Blue. He continues to play shows and festivals regularly.
David has many years of experience teaching music to individuals and groups alike.
It’s his belief that the first step to learning is being excited about the music and realizing that musical goals can be achieved through effective practice. His goal is to develop students into the musicians they want to be, while remembering that the main purpose of music is enjoyment, fun, and community.
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Samuel Gray Edmonson
Roots Rhythm Guitar Teacher
Sam loves every aspect of the acoustic guitar — from how they’re built to the vast differences in how they’re played. He has been studying music and playing guitar for more than 30 years and has recorded 5 original albums as a solo instrumentalist/songwriter. Will McNicol, noted as one of the world’s great acoustic players, has described Sam’s playing as “the best of what acoustic guitar is about.”
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Michael Greenberg
Fingerstyle Guitar Teacher
Michael Greenberg discovered his passion for guitar at age 15, teaching himself the basics before being inspired by a college friend to explore fingerstyle playing. During those years, he balanced his love for physics with the joy of mastering songs by artists like Jim Croce, James Taylor, and Dan Fogelberg, deepening his connection to music. Today, Michael plays and teaches for the sheer joy of it, cherishing the moments spent creating music with others and sharing his love of fingerstyle guitar with fellow enthusiasts.