MarkinSonoma - Posted - 03/05/2025:  19:01:40

Ivan Rosenberg will be making a rare appearance here in Northern California this Sunday March 9 and will put on a workshop at Manning Music in Berkeley, from 3 pm to 6 pm. Cost is $60 per person. Mike Witcher has used this location in the past for lessons and workshops. 

Ivan and his family have been living in New Brunswick in Eastern Canada for a number of years but he grew up in Marin County in the Bay Area. I'm sure the majority  of our members are familiar with Ivan, he is a fine player and an outstanding dobro teacher.

I will be in attendance, and I asked Ivan if he would like me to post on the hangout to see if anyone else in the region would like join in - I think we have around nine attendees at this point.

He announced it on Facebook, and I realize that not everyone "does Facebook." If you would like to attend send Ivan an email (it's listed below, twice) and he'll give you the details on the Manning Music location and where to park.

The doors will be open around 2:30 to get yourself situated and tuned up. 

If anyone from the North Bay wants to ride with me let me know. I'll be leaving Windsor a little after 1 pm to head down to "Berzerkely."

Here is the full spiel from Ivan:

Hey California Bay Area Dobro pickers - I'm teaching a Dobro workshop at Manning Music in Berkeley on March 9th from 3 to 6pm. Cost is $60 each. Please email me at ivanDrosenberg@gmail.com to register. Here's a quick workshop description:

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I’m looking forward to my first Dobro workshop at Manning Music! I live way across the continent in New Brunswick, Canada these days, so it’s rare I get a chance to do anything on the West Coast anymore. This will be an all-levels workshop, but it will move at an intermediate pace. Everything will be in standard G tuning (low to high: GBDGBD). I’ll have a big pile of handouts for you to take home, and we’ll stop to record little videos of important parts you’ll want to remember, so if it moves too fast you’ll be able to review the material at your own pace after the workshop. If there are sufficient beginners who are interested, I can add a beginning workshop earlier in the day or make time for private lessons – let me know.

With so many Dobro pickers learning online these days, I want to focus on topics that are best addressed in person:

Rhythm Skills Beyond The Chop

There are many ways to play rhythm and add unique texture with the Dobro. In bluegrass settings, most Dobro players just chop when they’re not soloing or playing fills, but usually the role of playing a percussive offbeat is already filled by the mandolin, fiddle, or banjo in a bluegrass band, while in a more pared-down ensemble or with certain tempos and feels, chopping might not suit the music at all. We’ll work through several other possibilities for contributing to a band sound and adding textural variety so you can make a better contribution to your next jam.

Greasy Bluesy Bluegrass

We’ll learn/review the pentatonic blues scale in G, learn how to navigate it with the bar, and learn a tune or two while we’re there.

Solo (unaccompanied) Dobro

I’ve been teaching this subject a lot lately. I’ll give you a brief intro to the topic of solo Dobro, run you through some exercises, and then we’ll learn the melody to “Elk River Blues” and look at ways to play it as a solo piece by adding some chords, bass notes, and open strings.

Technique Tune-up and Dobro Set-up Inspection

During the entire workshop, for each attendee and whatever we’re working on, I’ll be watching you play and offering any advice that comes to mind to help you tighten up your technique. I’ll also have a look at your instruments and make sure your set-ups look and sound correct.

Time permitting I’ll get to any questions you may have about other topics, but I have a feeling the above material will get us through all three hours of this workshop with no time to spare. Shoot me a message if you have any questions:

ivanDrosenberg@gmail.com

Edited by - MarkinSonoma on 03/05/2025 19:08:24

Dobrojan - Posted - 03/06/2025:  11:56:39

I wish I could sprout wings to be there. Ivan is a terrific player as well as a great guy. Ivan contributed to ResoGat for many years. Please tell Ivan I said hello and thank him for making my job easy.

Edited by - Dobrojan on 03/06/2025 11:57:13

MarkinSonoma - Posted - 03/06/2025:  13:08:02

quote:

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Originally posted by Dobrojan

I wish I could sprout wings to be there. Ivan is a terrific player as well as a great guy. Ivan contributed to ResoGat for many years. Please tell Ivan I said hello and thank him for making my job easy.

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I will pass it on to Ivan Jan! 

Dobrojan - Posted - 03/06/2025:  14:35:19

Thank you Mark!