Black Mountain Music Festival

05/22/2024

In just a few weeks I'll be going to what I believe is one of the premier dulcimer festivals - Kentucky Music Week. For over 20 years Nancy Johnson Barker has done an AMAZING job as an organizer. I've looked to her over the years as a mentor and friend. The line-up is stellar and in the 12 years I've been attending, I've never been disappointed. It's my summer addiction! Of course, BMMF has the fall covered...(clears throat humbly for effect)...but the summers belong to KMW. There's still time to register. Go to www.kentuckymusicweek.com I'll look forward to seeing you all there! 🤟😎

05/11/2024

So, let me start by saying…W-O-W!!!!! Best first day of class registration in the festival’s history! By my count there were 140 folks who sent in registration for classes…IN ONE DAY!!! That’s crazy! And the punchline is – there are still 5 more months for folks to register! So, thank you to everyone who registered yesterday. It was extremely hectic but very exciting. Now, we start the process of responding to and confirming all of those registrations. This will take about 4-5 days so if you haven’t heard from me in a week definitely let me know.

A word on the housing. Obviously, the Blue Ridge Assembly was swamped with our registrations as well. Here is a clip from a response I received from the housing director…

“I sent a brief email out to anyone who registered before about 2pm today to let them know we received their information, and plan to follow up with registrants within the next month or so to share out building assignments and other general confirmation details. Just based on the nature of our system (it unfortunately allows for overbooking), we'll certainly have a few folks who were hoping for Blue Ridge Center who will get bumped to another building. But getting information about what building they're assigned to by sometime in early June should allow folks to make other arrangements if they're unhappy with their placement.”

So, if you registered for room/board with the Assembly yesterday, you should be hearing from them sometime in the next 2-3 weeks. Bear in mind, the Assembly hosts groups all year and are currently beginning one of their busiest seasons. So, please have some patience with them. We have been blessed with the quality of the Blue Ridge Assembly over the years and have only seen a growth in that quality from year to year. They are amazing folks and we’ve built a strong and caring working relationship with them over the years. So, please be patient.

Bottom line, we’re off! And in an exciting way! We have five months to work on tweaking the events of yesterday and we are going to do everything we can to make sure this year is one of the best festivals ever. So, thank you again for your patience and support. It seriously means the world to me. Bless you all! 🤟♥️

05/06/2024

REGISTRATION INFORMATION!!!...Registration will start officially THIS FRIDAY - MAY 10 @ EXACTLY 9am!!

You can see the room/board info here - https://blueridgeassembly.org/etn/black-mountain-music-festival-2024
*This link will not be "live" for registration until 9am Friday. *

For those who are new and as a reminder to our returning folks - There are TWO registrations. The one served by the link above is for folks wanting to stay on site at the festival. You will register for room/board at the Blue Ridge Assembly ONLINE ONLY. There will be NO PHONE RESERVATIONS made!

There are plenty of hotel, campground, and Air BnB accomodations locally which are very close to the venue if you'd like to look in that direction.

The other registration is for classes and that can be done by going to www.blackmountainmusicfest.com That will also be available on May 10.

We'll have the above link on our website to take you to the registration mentioned above for room/board at the Assembly.

If you want to stay at the Assembly be aware that this year we have three buildings (Blue Ridge Center, Weatherford & Ashevlle) reserved and two lodges (Breazeale Family & Lotz)! Lotz is so new it hasn't even officially opened yet. But we will get it! If you are inclined to cook your own meals, the lodges are for you. This year we'll also be able to use the lodges with the meal plan! And just FYI, the lodges are AWESOME!

I'm happy to field any questions you might have. So, don't hesitate to let me know if you need some assistance. Our email is... [email protected]

HOPE TO SEE YOU IN THE FALL!! 😎

Oct. 12-17, 2019. Courses, jamming, & concerts, for mountain dulcimer, hammered dulcimer, ukulele, banjo, guitar, and Native American flute. Join us at the Black Mountain Music Festival!

05/02/2024

Sooooo....the question on EVERYONE'S mind is - "When will registration begin?" We're working to make it happen in THE NEXT 7 DAYS! I cannot wait!!!! 😎

03/19/2024

Well, we've almost made it to spring!! Fall is still a couple of seasons away, BUT just wanted to let you know that we're working on starting registration HOPEFULLY by the end of April! The class descriptions are coming in and they're looking amazing! Add a top drawer staff of instructors and you've got yourself a VERY good time this fall!

For your budget info here are the fees (per person) for the room/board plans at the Blue Ridge Assembly. These totals include ALL meals during the festival and a $16 facility fee paid by all of us - including commuters w/o meals.

SINGLE - $727 DOUBLE - $472 TRIPLE - $387

If you would like to stay on site without a meal plan you can reserve rooms in either the 10-bedroom lodge OR the BRAND NEW Lotz Lodge. Those fees (per person w/ $16 facility fee) are:

SINGLE - $526 DOUBLE - $271 TRIPLE - $ 186

COMMUTERS W/O MEALS - $16 facility fee

These room/board fees will be paid through the registration link that will be available when we start registration and is handled by the Blue Ridge Assembly NOT BMMF.

Of course, you aren't required to stay on-site. There are ample Air BnB's and hotels within 5-10 minutes of the venue.

The class registration fee will stay the same as last year - $300 or $310 if you pay through PayPal (extra $10 covers process fees). Also, as usual, non-participant spouses/partners don't have to pay the $300 fee. This fee IS handled through BMMF.

If you have any questions at all don't hesitate to let me know. Our email is [email protected]

Seriously....GET EXCITED!! ✌️😎

12/03/2023

Be a part of an amazing Christmas concert with our very own Rick Thum!
https://mailchi.mp/0d691ce3eb8a/rick-thum-christmas-concert-live-on-zoom-and-in-person-dec-17611724?fbclid=IwAR3OOGQSkKkKMZMUy5AbpRdZUcHNVH9G3P5A41VMyz-0VZglHTn4EvFOcGo

10/23/2023

Well, the 2023 BMMF is in the books and...W-O-W!! Thank you to everyone who made BMMF 2023 a part of their lives. The Mo D**k staff and instructors all worked hard to make it a good one and YOU made it great! We're already working on next year's festival and hope to see you ALL on the mountain OCTOBER 12-17, 2024! Can't wait! Love to you all! 🤟😎 ♥️

10/17/2023

2023 BMMF Tuesday Open Mic Night

09/19/2023

One of our very own - Mickey Sweeney - just WON the Hammered Dulcimer championship at Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield KS!! She'll be attending the festival in a few weeks and maybe we'll be able to coax her onstage on evening?? Congratulations, Mickey!

06/23/2023

ODD REQUEST: I received emails from 2 people making requests for classes. If you are one of those people please email again. I have inadvertently deleted them! So sorry for the inconvenience! :)

04/25/2023

Well, registration has been open TWO WEEKS and…W-O-W!!! Looks like folks are coming to Black Mountain! We are closing classes at 20 students (for now) and 5 classes have been closed for registration. Don’t worry because there are still plenty of great options available! The on-site housing still has a small number of rooms remaining. So, we are adding another lodge - Barnhardt Lodge. Barnhardt will be added to our “no-meal” plan registration. There is a wonderful kitchen area and common area for our guests. Based on previous years I suspected that a no-meal option would be good for a lot of folks, and it looks like that’s the case this year. Barnhardt is an amazing housing option. Barnhardt is a little further up the hill from the Blue Ridge Center but don’t worry, we’ll give you a lift, so you won’t have to walk. There is parking at Barnhardt as well. So, you could drive down each morning. Either way, we’re preparing to make this as easy as possible for all of our participants. Some of you might consider using local hotels. The Super 8 and Quality Inn in Black Mountain would be great options. They’re both located about 5-10 minutes from the Assembly. The cost (as of this post) is $532 for Quality Inn and $495 for Super 8. With 2 in a room that would be about the same cost per person as a double room on site at the Assembly with no meals AND breakfast is included at these hotels. There are still 5 months remaining in registration so the hotels will probably be the only option at some point. We’re all super excited about this year’s festival - we’re going to have a blast! If you have any questions at all don’t ever hesitate to let us know [email protected] We would love hearing from you!

04/08/2023

This is it!! REGISTRATION FOR ROOM/BOARD AND CLASSES IS OPEN!!
Link for classes - https://www.blackmountainmusicfest.com/register
Link for Room/Board at Blue Ridge Assembly -
https://blueridgeassembly.org/etn/bmmf/

There are TWO registrations (EVEN COMMUTERS). One is class registration and the other is room/board registration. I HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THE ROOM/BOARD REGISTRATION. All inquiries for room/board should be directed to the director of housing at [email protected] ALL room/board reservations are made ONLINE - NOT ON THE PHONE.

A couple of things I want to make sure you all know. Currently the cottages and 10-Bedroom Lodge are for people wanting a no-meal plan ONLY. That could change as we get closer to the
festival if there are still rooms available. I just want to make sure that as many as need this option are able to take advantage of the option. The cottages (as listed on the Assembly website) are for groups. If you have a few friends coming with you who want to go that route this is a great option. There are 3 bedrooms in each cottage (one is a bunk room). So, technically, 3 people could be a “group”. I’ll be discussing the definition of “group” with the Assembly if there are enough individuals wanting to use the cottages. As I’ve said before, (even though all lodging is great) the cottages are a fantastic option and honestly are some of the
“finer” lodging on site. The other housing (Blue Ridge Center, Weatherford Hall, and Asheville Hall) will be open for reservations as they have in years past. All housing will be held with a deposit of $100.

For those with mobility issues who have not attended the festival in the past, we work VERY hard to make sure you have transportation. We employ drivers and will be using a car, 2 golf
carts and an ATV to help you navigate the campus. So, don’t be alarmed if you are not able to get lodging in the “main” building (Blue Ridge Center) which usually fills up within the first hour
of registration.

At this point there are no limits to how many are in a class. I wait until closer to festival time to assign rooms that match the number of people in that class. So, don’t stress (at this point) over not being able to get into a class.

So, that’s all I have for now - I’m sure the coming days will bring many more questions - lol! ButI cannot tell you how excited I am that we are finally starting the wheels turning for this year’s
festival! It’s going to be a great time and I hope you will want to be a part of the fun. Don’t hesitate to let me know if you have any questions. I’m usually good to get back within hours of your email. Looking forward to seeing you all on the mountain!!

Chuck

04/04/2023

Good day! Just wanted to let you know that we’ll start registration sometime within the next week, and you’ll be notified literally the second registration is available. This will be the earliest we’ve opened registration. So, I’m very thankful for that.

Before we start registration I want to let you know about a new option for housing this year. Last year, some of us used cabins located on site at the Assembly and they were A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!! During the week I also had the opportunity to check out a 10-bedroom lodge at the Assembly that (IMHO) looked - and SMELLED - brand new! It’s just a few years old but it’s in like new condition. The 10-room lodge is so nice my family is considering renting it for our Christmas vacation! The cabins and the 10-room lodge all have full kitchens that were a dream for those of us who stayed in the cabins last year. And that experience got the “wheels turning” for me. It seems that every year there are folks who will ask if they can stay at the Assembly but do so without having to purchase the meal plan. There are plenty of food options within short distance of the Assembly and some folks have wanted to purchase and prepare their own meals. Some for dietary needs and others to help curb some of the expense. Unfortunately, we couldn’t offer that option…until now.

I am reserving three cottages and the 10-bedroom lodge for our use this year and offering it with a NO MEAL PLAN for folks using those accommodations. In other words, if you choose to stay in one of the cottages or the 10-bedroom lodge you will either be eating off-site (there is a 2-hour lunch break) or you will be planning and/or preparing your meals on your own. If you choose this option your lodging cost will be reduced by $192! So, in the cottages or 10-room lodge for October 14-19 a single room will be $511 per person or $258 per person for a double, and $177 per person for triple occupancy!! For those considering triple occupancy there are bunk rooms in each of these buildings that are great - I stayed in one last year! Lol! For comparison (I welcome you to do your own) the local hotel I have used many times in the past is currently $495 for the week for a room with 2 beds. That price is today - APRIL 4. I’m sure that price will go up before we arrive. So, these prices are extremely competitive with local prices. And, FYI, these cottages and the 10-room lodge have their own parking areas.

I cannot tell you how excited I am to offer this option! I have envisioned groups of friends who want to stay together OR anyone wanting a single room with the option of preparing or purchasing off-site meals. There are more than few possibilities.

And as is the case for all housing options, these will be FIRST COME FIRST SERVED and I’m certain they will fill up quickly. I will ask that if you are considering a double or triple occupancy option that you have people in mind to share that room. We want to make sure that these are filled. A “full” cottage would be 5-7 people and the 10-room lodge would be 15-21 people filled. So, that’s a MAX of about 40 people.

If you would like to check out the layout and see some pictures of the cottages and 10-room lodge here are the links:
-Cottages - https://blueridgeassembly.org/cottages
-10-Room Lodge - https://blueridgeassembly.org/lodges (scroll
down to 10-Bedroom lodge)

So, that’s the exciting news for now! We’re coming down the home stretch! And, as usual, please let me know if you have any questions at all. [email protected]

Hoping to see YOU on the mountain this fall! 😎

03/01/2023

A PREVIEW OF THE NEW AD - This is going to be AMAZING!!

02/28/2023

Just FYI, we're just about finished getting all of our stuff together for the fall and it's looking AWESOME! We're working on a NO MEAL PLAN which will include lodging in an A-M-A-Z-I-N-G brand new 10 bedroom lodge with full kitchen facilities! So, if that's an interest to you we'll be opening that soon. BUT - in. the meantime - here's one of our very own Mo D**k family, Lydia Brittan doing an awesome rendition of the classic, Summertime. Enjoy! :)

BOPFLIX session with rock 'n' roll, soul singer - LYDIA BRITTAN - covering classic track 'Summertime' (George Gershwin). Filmed at the iconic Parthenon, Nash...

10/20/2022

For all the hose who were interested in seeing the Ethno USA performance in the amphitheater at Blue Ridge Assembly, here's a link. Enjoy! https://www.facebook.com/ethnousa/videos/828911941789008

10/20/2022

Well, the 2022 Black Mountain Music Festival is in the books! What an amazing time we had! I want to thank Steve and Ruth Smith, Kirk and Judy House, Danny Shepherd, Stephen Seifert, Rick Thum, MaryLynn Michal, Bing Futch, Butch Ross, Dave Haas, Don Pedi, Erin Mae, Jim Miller, Ken Kolodner, Linda Weber-Collins, Lorinda Jones, Maddy Mulany, Tina Bergmann, Mark Alan Wade, Richard Ash, Sissy D**kle, Lydia Britan, Melissa Kohler, Caleb Moseley Barry Moseley, ETHNO USA, Joe Collins, Mandy and Joe Tyner and ALL OF YOU for making this year such a magical event! NEXT YEAR'S DATES ARE OCTOBER 14-19. Already working on next year's festival. So let's stay in touch and hope to see you there!!

10/15/2022

Good evening! We've had glitch in our setup tonight. So, the session with Don Pedi and Ethno USA won't be seen as we had hoped. But, starting tomorrow evening at 7:15 we'll be up and running for sure. Sorry for any inconvenience. :)

10/13/2022

Well, SATURDAY we start the excitement!! Just wanted to remind everyone (attending or not) that our evening programs at 7:15pm will be broadcast again on FB live! So, 1 1/2 - 2 hours of great music every night FOR FREE! As a bonus, we're hoping to test our equipment on FRIDAY evening (10/14) at about 8:30pm when Don Pedi will be leading a class for Ethno USA! Should be a lot of fun! BTW, Ethno USA will be opening the program on Monday evening (10/17). Last year we had thousands of viewers and we're hoping to reach those numbers again. So, (if you haven't already) be sure to "LIKE" us! If you're seeing this on our FB page then you've already done that. Looking forward to 4 great evenings of fun and music. LOVED the chat last year. So, get some popcorn (or whatever) and join the fun each evening starting SATURDAY OCTOBER 15 @ 7:15PM. Hope to see YOU there!!
✌️😎

08/31/2022

Well, looks like a lot of our classes are full! While it is limited, there are still a few rooms available for onsite lodging.There are still some great classes to register for and the bootcamps still have plenty of room. So, as long as we have classes, we have registration! This is going to be an amazing gathering and I'm thankful for all of you who are already a part of the fun and those who are yet to sign up. :)

08/27/2022

NEW TEACHER INTRODUCTION: Hi Everyone! We're getting super close to the festival and for me the excitement is building! We've had a teacher change-up in our shape note singing class and I wanted to introduce you to our new teacher for. that class - MADDY MULLANY! Coming to us from Madison County, Maddy isn't just an excellent shape note singer, Maddy is also an old-time musician. I'm excited to have Maddy on board for this year's festival and I know she's going to make this year's festival that much more special. Here's a video of Maddy showing her Old-Time music skills. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fwj-l5hTaK4

This new Old Home Place Recording features Maddy Mullany and Clarke Williams of Asheville, NC. We met up with them on an overcast and windy day on the campus...

06/24/2022

Hi Everyone! Just wanted to say first how great registration is going! Thank you to all who have registered so far! We're looking forward to seeing you all. I also wanted to let you all know that I am away from home until Wednesday, June 29. So, I will be confirming payments after that date. If you have any questions don't hesitate to let me know. Again, thank you all for your support!

06/08/2022

CLASS REGISTRATION IS OPEN!! We're so excited to start the registration on what we know will be an awesome festival! There are a lot of selections from a stellar group of instructors for each session. Please make sure to fill out EVERY field on the form. You'll notice that even if you select one of the bootcamps or choose to skip a session those options are listed on each session. If you forget, your form will not allow you to submit it.

You'll also notice that we have a fee for using the PayPal option. PayPal charges a fee for each person who uses that option. In years past we've been absorbing that fee. As the festival has grown, so has the amount of money we pay to use the PayPal option. So, to continue to offer that option and not lose a substantial amount of money we've attached the fee of $10.

Again, I cannot tell you how excited I am thinking of this year's festival. This fall is going to be an amazing time for us all and I cannot wait! If you have any questions at all don't hesitate to let me know. We'll work with everyone to make this process as pain free as possible. Thank you for making Black Mountain Music Festival a part of your world. We look forward to seeing you there!!

https://www.blackmountainmusicfest.com/register

05/27/2022

Hallelujah! ROOM REGISTRATION IS OPEN!! !

DO NOT CALL THE ASSSEMBLY! Registration will be done online at the following link https://blueridgeassembly.org/now-registering

ALL COMMUTERS MUST REGISTER! There are 2 packages for commuters - 1 w/ lunches and 1 w/ lunches and dinners. There are no commuter options without meals.

While rooms in the Blue Ridge Center fill up quickly there are enough rooms on site for everyone.

We'll be starting class registration some time next week. We'll let you know as soon as we have that ready.

Thank you all so much for being a a part of this year's festival. It's going to be amazing!!

Let me know if you have any questions at all. Looking forward to seeing you this fall

If you are having trouble registering, please fill out the printable form at the top of your event’s registration page. After filling out the form you can scan and email the form to [email protected], or you can fax it to our guest services team at 828-669-5147.

05/10/2022

So...who's up for some Shape Note singing??? Coming to BMMF this fall!! New class! 🎶🎵

05/01/2022

Guess what's coming soon??? REGISTRATION!! We're getting the classes lined up and our spot at the Blue Ridge Assembly ready. It will start SOON!! You'll want to get ready for an awesome time "up on the mountain" this fall. We're going to have an incredible time and I hope YOU will be there! Hold on...it's coming! 😎 🎶🎵🎶🎵🎶🎶...

03/09/2022

REGISTRATION HOPEFULLY STARTING BY MAY!! This...is....going...to...be.... A-W-E-S-O-M-E!!

08/29/2020

Hi All! As many of you have already heard we're making the hard decision to cancel this year's festival. As you might imagine, there have been folks forced to cancel due to health concerns. At the same time, the state of North Carolina is currently at “Phase 2” which limits indoor group sizes to 10 or less. That will be in effect until at least September 11 and after that, who knows? It leaves us in a position where we wouldn’t be able to conduct the festival in the way it should be done.

The Blue Ridge Assembly has graciously agreed to either give you a refund on any money you’ve paid OR you may apply it to next year’s festival. Either way, you need to contact them to make those arrangements. I also want to make the same offer; I will be happy to make a refund (minus the $30 non-refundable fee = $245) OR you can keep your registration paid for next year. I know there will be folks who are like me; you have festivals that are repeats every year. So, you have the option to move into 2021 with your BMMF registration already paid as well as any money paid to the Blue Ridge Assembly. That being said, next year's dates are – OCTOBER 16-21, 2021. So, the same week in October next year.

The upside to all of this is that next year’s festival is pretty much already planned! Almost all of the instructors and classes will be exactly the same. There will be a few changes but not many. So, I’m expecting an amazing time in Black Mountain next fall and I hope you’ll want to be a part of the fun!

07/20/2020

Here's a great memory from 2018...:)

Playing Amelia's Waltz at Black Mountain Music Festival in Black Mountain, N.C. Featuring Ken Kolodner (fiddle) and Rick Thum (guitar). https://www.blackmoun...

07/18/2020

Registration is going great! The following Classes have reached capacity...

EARLY BIRD

Sunday Early Bird w/ Aaron O'Rourke

Wednesday Early Bird w/ Gary Sager

SESSION 1

The Art of Playing Slow w/ Dave Haas

Mastering Rolls w/ Tina Bergmann

SESSION 2

Songs That Tickle Me w/ Don Pedi

SESSION 3

Playing The MD for the Elderly in a Residential Setting w/ Lorinda Jones

Backup, Hearing Chord Changes & Jamming Skills w/ Ken Kolodner

SESSION 4

Master Your Fretboard w/ Dave Haas

A Bunch of Ways to Play Anything w/ Stephen Seifert