Northwest Passage 2008
Staff

Sue Rosen

A leading caller of contras, squares, English country dance and family dance programs, Sue Rosen has been actively calling for years in the Boston area, one of the hottest contradance spots in the country. Over time she has built a collection of great dances, featuring the best of contemporary choreography, and has written contras that have become part of the standard repertoire of dance callers across the country and overseas. Sue's speedy and encouraging walk-throughs will have you cruising through dance after wonderful dance.


Merri Rudd

The calling of Albuquerque's Merri Rudd is well-known throughout the American Southwest. Her repertoire includes contra, English country, and the occasional square. An evening with Merri is replete with literary quotes, funny quips, and lots of fast swings, gypsies, and medleys. Her contagiously energetic and enthusiastic calling, combined with her trademark high-energy dances, routinely propels participants to dance nirvana.



Bruce Hamilton

Bruce Hamilton has been leading English and Scottish country dancing in California's Bay Area for over 30 years. One of our country's most in-demand English callers, he's taught throughout the U.S. and in three other countries. Bruce focuses on tying together country dancing's many parts—music, choreography, body mechanics, and the social and mental aspects. He's also an expert in teaching callers and dance teachers how to become better leaders. Bruce is currently the president of the Country Dance and Song Society.



Notorious

Eden MacAdam-Somer is one of the most exciting and versatile young musicians performing today. With roots in classical music she has also grown to love traditional fiddling, jazz, and folk music from around the world. Now, from symphony halls to coffee houses, she beguiles her audiences with a style that is truly her own. Having begun her classical studies at the age of four, as a teen Eden became an active member of the traditional music and dance community. She is a past winner of the MTNA and the Lennox Young Artists Competitions, and has been a featured soloist with symphony orchestras, jazz bands, bluegrass, DAWG and American folk groups. Besides her fiddling and singing in folk/swing band Notorious, she can also be found playing with the early-music ensemble Istanpitta, and as violinist in the MacAdam-Somer String Quartet.

Larry Unger has been a full time musician since 1984, presenting a diverse range of musical performances at dances, festivals, and concerts across the United States, Canada, France, Scotland, Denmark, and Sweden. He has played with many top contradance bands, including Notorious, Reckless Abandon, Uncle Gizmo, Big Table, and the Reckless Ramblers, and has accompanied such fiddlers as Judy Hyman, Elke Baker, Rodney Miller, Alasdair Fraser, Matt Glaser, Ralph Blizard, Lissa Schneckenburger, and Eden MacAdam-Somer. Larry's original waltzes and fiddle tunes have been played and recorded by musicians around the world. He has a great breadth of understanding of traditional music to complement his considerable technical proficiency and enjoys telling stories about the origins of his music and the people who taught him.

Ralph Gordon is a consummate musician. His rhythm, tone, knowledge and experience with all styles of music make him one of the world's best all around bass and cello players for dance music. He has worked with many bands over the years, has about 50 recordings to his credit, and has graced many a concert stage, dance camp and festival here and abroad.




Phantom Power

Performing traditional New England fiddle repertoire for the dance crowds of today, Phantom Power has never failed to delight and excite its audiences. The band originally formed when Bruce Rosen (piano and guitar) and Lissa Schneckenburger (fiddle) toured California in 2001. Since then the duo has been playing dances together wherever and whenever they can, appearing in venues from Alaska to Denmark. Both are accomplished musicians. Bruce has been part of Boston's contra and English country dance community since the mid-70s as a dancer and musician. Lissa grew up in Maine as an active member of the contradance community, where she cut her teeth both as a musician and a dancer at a very young age. She has now played all over the world as a fiddler and vocalist, with three solo recordings and three band collaborations under her belt.

Recently the band has grown to a foursome with the addition of Mark Roberts and Stefan Amidon. Mark has been playing traditional music for almost 30 years, recording and touring extensively on five-string banjo, flute, bouzouki, and other instruments. Some of the bands he's been associated with: Touchstone, The Red Clay Ramblers, The Sevens, The Clay Foot Strutters, and Childsplay. Mark's flute and whistle can be heard on the soundtrack of the Jon Sayles film The Secret of Roan Inish.

Stefan has been the percussionist for the cutting-edge contradance band Assembly (formerly Popcorn Behavior) since he was ten. A recent graduate of the jazz percussion program at Oberlin Conservatory, he is in demand at dance weekends and recording studios around the country. Stefan has also sung his way through Europe with Northern Harmony, and has taught singing at Oberlin College.