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Getaway

If you love good music and good fellowship, you'll love the Getaway! Each year we gather for a weekend in the fall at West River Conference Center, on an inlet of the Chesapeake, for a weekend of music-making and fun with old friends and new, including a fine line-up of special guests. One of our friends from California has described the Getaway as a gathering of musicians, with all attendees being just folks, whether they are professional musicians or shower singers. West River Conference Center has heated facilities and flat terrain — a lovely spot with lots of inviting places to jam or sing, from first light to the wee hours. 

Questions?  Contact the Getaway Chair

Getaway 2018

Our special guests 

                Bryan Bowers                                 Jon Pickow                             Bonnie & Dan Milner                              Bill Destler 

We’re pleased to have a great lineup of special guests this year. The one and only Bryan Bowers will be joining us, with his autoharp, songs and stories. Jean Ritchie’s son Jon Pickow will bring lots of family lore and songs along with his dulcimer, banjo, and guitar. Dan and Bonnie Milner will be with us – he is an expert on Irish traditional music, and she, as a member of The Johnson Girls quartet, knows all about sea songs. An old friend of the Folklore Society and the Getaway, Bill Destler will contribute his beautiful tenor, banjo expertise, and wealth of songs. The wonderful blues singers and multi-instrumentalists Resa Gibbs and Jackie Merritt promise great songs and blues technique. From the southern mountains, we welcome Melanie Rice Penland and Donna Ray Norton (daughter and cousin of sheila Kay Adams), who will beguile us all with traditional Appalachian songs and stories. And – to top it all off – the fabulous Sally Rogers will be with us again!

   Jackie Merritt and Resa Gibbs              Melanie Rice Penland                                    Donna Ray Norton                                      Sally Rogers

How the weekend goes

The weekend starts off on Friday evening with a pot-luck supper and a big open sing. On Saturday and Sunday we have a full program of informal participatory workshops, mini-concerts, song circles, and jam sessions, with 3 or 4 (and sometimes 5) events occurring simultaneously, so there's always plenty to choose from. Each evening we have sign-up concerts - a chance to show us all what you can do - and lots of spontaneous songfests and jam sessions at all hours. There are CDs and some instruments and crafts for sale, and a silent auction to benefit our scholarship fund. Bring an item to donate and take a different one home!

We're hoping to encourage more folks to bring their kids (or grandkids) and want to plan appropriate activities for them, so do let us know in advance how many children you'll be bringing, and their ages.

Accommodations

50 bedrooms in buildings with heat and AC, up to four bunks in a room (discount offered if you'll take an upper bunk; if you cannot manage one, please let us know). Hot showers. Tents and RVs are OK, but no hookups available. Public gathering areas and some bedrooms are handicapped accessible. Special dietary needs may be accommodated if you let us know in advance. Be sure to let us know if you'd like to be in a "music-all-night" cabin.

Limited kitchen facilities (fridge, freezer, microwave) are available to us at all times. No smoking is permitted indoors

Map of the camp (shows cabin locations)

Directions (goes to the facility's web site, includes driving directions)

Rates and Registration

Overnight Admission

		1 Night	2 Nights	3 Nights
Members	Upper Bunk	$107	$175	$205
	Lower Bunk	$111	$181	$211
Non-Members	Upper Bunk	$117	$195	$225
	Lower Bunk	$121	$201	$231
Children	Child to age 3	Free	Free	Free
	Child 4 to 12	$49	$78	$106
	Child 13 to 17	$58	$102	$128
Student	Over 18	$78	$127	$155

Day Admission

To dine at the Getaway buffet you MUST register in advance. When you register for two nights, the fee covers three meals each day and a late-night snack both Saturday and Sunday. A three-night registration gives you an additional night's lodging and breakfast on Monday morning. A one-night registration gives you all meals and snacks on either Saturday or Sunday and, if you wish, a bed on either adjacent night.

If you need a scholarship or price break, contact, Charlie Baum, head of the Scholarship Committee.  If you need to pay in foreign currency, and don't want to register on-line, we may be able to make alternate arrangements - contact Charlie Baum for that as well

Register For This Year's Getaway

Questions?  Contact Charlie Baum.

What to bring

Along with voices, instruments, and your love of music, bring bedding, pillows, towels, soap, flashlight, and a coffee mug to help save paper. 

What not to bring

• No pets, please.
  

• No alcohol (the facility requests that we not bring alcohol or provide alcohol) 

Schedule for 2018

Previous years

2017 schedule (pdf, 54K)