Dewey Balfa Cajun & Creole Heritage Week & other Great Stuff

(April 21, 2003) March and April have been great fun here in Lafayette, LA.   Lots of music going on, some of which I have been able to capture on video and will eventually edit down and put on my website.  Perhaps the most unusual event during this period was seeing Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys perform Cajun music accompanied by the Acadiana Symphony Orchestra at the River Ranch Music Festival (they were headliners, and followed the pops & opera segments!).  It worked, sort of. But it was lots of fun listening to the orchestra  swelling up dramatically at the end of each of the 4 songs in their set. I've also attended other small festivals including the Rice & Gravy Festival at Acadian Village (with Geno Delafose) & the Catfish Festival in  Washington (Keith Frank, Hadley Castille, Steve Riley, among others), plus made the rounds at Whiskey River,  Pat's Atchafalaya Club,  Hamilton's, El Sido's, Downtown Alive    (<--Little Band of Gold ), Randol's, Blue Moon Saloon, Mulate's,  the Third Thursday program in Opelousas  & Vermillionville to name a few. Also fun were jams at the Savoy Music Center & Mitch & Lisa Reed's  Louisiana Heritage & Gifts.  Plus I  have been working my way through the menu at Cafe des Amis using the Saturday zydeco breakfast or Wednesday night music programs as the excuse to eat there yet again.         

The highlight of the past several months, by a long shot, has been  spending time at Louisiana Folk Roots Dewey Balfa Cajun & Creole Heritage Week, and their "Stompin' at the Swamp"event.  Held at beautiful Lake Fausse Point on the Atchafalaya  near St. Martinville, LA., this is a truly special event.   If you love Louisiana French Cajun, Creole or zydeco music and want to learn to play or sing it, or gain a closer understanding of the culture and people it comes from, here is your opportunity to learn personally from the folks whose names are synonymous with it:  the  musical staff included Christine Balfa & Courtney Granger who are descendants of Dewey Balfa,   Preston & Keith Frank,   Adam Hebert,  Edward Poullard, Al Berard,  Dirk Powell, Kevin Wimmer, Mitch Reed,  Jesse Lege,  Goldman Thibodeaux, & Wilson Savoy.  Food was provided by Cajun celebrity chef Pat Mould; desserts by Linda Handelsman.  Also available were  nature walks & canoe rides, instruction in Cajun language & songs.   Cajun & zydeco dance lessons, and classes in Cajun cooking & crafts. The program is intimate and varied, and the setting is idyllic.  

You can stay for the week in lovely cabins on the bayou,  or attend, as I did, the  Local Lagniappe program, which included afternoon classes, dinner, an evening dance, plus after dance jam sessions.   I took triangle lessons with Christine Balfa,  instruction in Cajun language & song by Helena Putney & Courtney Granger, attended  a session on Dennis McGee fiddle tunes with Mitch Reed, Al Berard & Ferren Serrette.   I also went on a night hike through the park trails with Ranger Larry Dugas, attended several jam sessions and  attended dances with The Basin Brothers,  and The Frank family (with Preston & Keith Frank taking turns playing accordion).  Saturday was "Roots Heritage Day".  You could dance from 10am thru 11pm to such bands as Geno Delafose & French Rockin' Boogie, Charivari, Willis Prudhomme, Veillee,  Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys & the Huval Family Band.  In the Heritage  Pavilion, D.L. Menard,  Feufollet, Bois Sec Ardoin, & Jeremy & the Zydeco Hot Boys were interviewed and performed. (My favorite story was from D.L.'s session:   he said that when he got married, he wanted to do so at Wal-Mart because, if you kept the receipt, you could return your spouse.... and it didn't matter if you got married in Breaux Bridge... you could  make the return in the Lafayette store). I also enjoyed the Roots Pavilion sessions immensely:  Ed Poullard and Mitch Reed discussed and demonstrated Creole & Cajun fiddle styles, Preston Frank & Jesse Lege  doing the same for Creole & Cajon accordion styles, Courtney Granger & Kevin Wimmer showcasing Balfa fiddle styles, & finally Al Berard & Ferren Serrette highlighting twin fiddles.  There were also sessions going in the Jam Pavilion and Youth Pavilion. 

It is hard to fully describe what a wonderful event the Balfa camp is.  It is not just about the classes.   If you love this music,   there is an extraordinary sense of connectedness you  get from being in the environment where it developed and among the folks whose culture it sprang from. The Balfa camp is the best way I know of to touch and be touched by the heart of this amazing place.    

There's going to be another Balfa camp this fall, with a full time dance instruction program, as well as the other classes. More info can be found at www.lafolkroots.org.

The Bay Area was well represented at this year's camp, and Linda Castle, who is learning to play the fiddle,  shares her impressions below:

Dewey Balfa Cajun and Creole Heritage Week:  What’s in it for you?

The Dewey Balfa Cajun and Creole Heritage Week was held April 13-19 at Lake Fausse Pointe State Park outside of St. Martinville, Louisiana. My firsthand observation is that the Balfa camp offers something that other camps do not. First of all, the setting is truly Louisiana.  Think swamp, bayou, cypress trees, alligators and unusual nighttime wildlife noises (animal and otherwise).  Think excellent Louisiana cuisine. Think Bon Temps Roulez to the max. 

Balfa camp is much smaller and therefore more intimate than other camps I’ve attended, (Augusta for example).  You can easily spend time getting to know interesting people from all over the country and world. And there are a multitude of opportunities to interact with attendees and staff from the local area.  Talk about a refreshing human experience.  These people are the real thing! 

Additionally, the individual attention and interaction with staff is incomparable.  As an aspiring fiddle player, I was more than pleasantly surprised to get small group instruction from Kevin Wimmer, Faren Serrette, and Courtney Granger in addition to my daily scheduled class with Mitch Reed.  Ed Poullard was on staff to teach fiddle but found time to give Agi Ban and Bruce Veldhuizen private lessons on accordion. All of this was a true demonstration of lagniappe. And the spirit in which these people gave their instruction was from the heart: authentic and generous.  

Balfa camp also has a strong program for the non-musician.  An extensive nature class run by local outdoor experts takes you into the swamps to learn first hand about birds, reptiles, mammals and flora of the area.  A canoe trip and a night hike were fascinating and fun. This year there was also a French lyrics class, rubboard and triangle seminars, and sessions with local Chitmacha tribe members on traditional fishing and basket weaving methods. And for those of you who are dance-oriented, the next camp scheduled for early November will include both Cajun and Zydeco dance as main classes. 

Speaking of dance, the nightly outdoor dances on a spacious wooden dance floor provided a variety of Cajun and Creole music from the best of the best. This year’s bands included Balfa Toujours, Preston and Keith Frank, Lawrence “Black” Ardoin and Ed Poullard, Chris Ardoin, Jesse Lege, Geno Delafose, Steve Riley, Charivari, and the Basin Brothers, among others. The late night jam sessions held lots of surprises and provided a unique opportunity to listen to, play, and party with great musicians and people.   

The Dewey Balfa Cajun Creole Heritage Week offers a chance to become fully immersed in one of our country’s most distinctive cultures.  It’s a great way to learn more about the origins and influences of the music and dance so many of us have grown to love, in an atmosphere of openness, camaraderie, and just plain fun.  If you’re looking for that next great high in your exploration of the Cajun/Creole dance, music, or culture, try this one.  I guarantee you won’t be disappointed.

For more information on the Fall Dewey Balfa Cajun and Creole Heritage Week at Chicot State Park (outside Ville Platte), check out the website at www.lafolkroots.org or ask any of us who attended this year*.  We’d be glad to fill you in on the details.  

*  Linda Castle, Christy Leichty, Jim Phillips, Agi Ban, Bruce Veldhuizen