Louisiana Folk Roots' Fall 2003 Dewey Balfa Cajun and Creole Week

I attended a wonderful cultural immersion program at Louisiana's Chicot State Park, during the 1st week of November, 2003.   Sponsored by Louisiana Folk Roots, we lived in rustic cabins, just yards from the lake (with its cypress knees and a friendly gator),  and filled our days playing music, learning about Louisiana's rich culture, food, nature, dance and song, meeting local residents, and making great friends who came from all over the world.  There were intensive sessions in the morning, lagniappe sessions to chose from each afternoon, dances held in the afternoons and evenings, and late night jams.   Cajun and Creole Masters shared their musical gifts and stories with us every afternoon.

After getting settled in, the days formed a nice routine and went by way too fast.  In the morning, after breakfast,  I took Beginning Guitar with Blake Castille.  The class was small, just 5 of us, so there was a lot of personal attention and the change to ask questions and interact with fellow students.  After a short break,  I chose to go either to Band Lab or to hear David Greely of the Mamou Playboys talk about Vocals & French Language or Cajun History.  One session he brought in Hadley Castille, who spoke about his childhood, growing up as a sharecropper in rural Louisiana.  Before lunch, there was a 'Rendezvous', which included preview' of the Masters sessions, which were held right after lunch.   I thoroughly enjoyed the sessions by Rodney Fontenot (who played Dennis McGee influenced fiddle); Rodney Miller (a major influence on Cajun steel guitar playing);  Shelton Manuel (fiddle);  Goldman Thibodeaux and Preston Frank (both Creole accordion players) and Ethellie Tate Fruge (who sang and played guitar; including a fascinating version of Jolie Blonde, which included 2 extra lines per verse). 

There were 7 different Lagniappe sessions to choose from each afternoon, or you could sign up for private lessons with the music instructors.  I did a little of both... among the sessions were cuisine with Joanne Delafose,  zydeco & Cajun dance parties,  jams, rubboard and triangle sessions,  different styles of accordion and fiddle playing,  different levels of guitar, accordion and fiddle lessons.   After a short break, and dinner, there were early evening sessions that included night hikes,  and more dance lessons, followed by the big dances with such bands as Geno Delafose,  Jason Frey, the Frank Family Band (with Preston & Keith),  and Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys.  

The local Ville Platte/Eunice/Mamou community showed up in full force during the evening dances, which really added to the energy level.  There were quite a few local residents in my day classes as well, which added to the feeling that you were contributing, in a small way, to keeping the culture alive .. us outsiders seemed to serve as a mirror to let local residents see how truly special their culture was, and in turn, we got the benefit of learning from and socializing with local folks. 

In addition to the weeklong classes, all day Saturday was "Stompin' at the Swamp", an all day Roots Heritage Festival.  You could party to zydeco and Cajun music all day in the large Dance Tent (to Geno Delafose, Zydeco Force, Chris Ardoin, Savoy Family Band, Hadley Castille, T-Sale (does this band ever rock!) or Terry & the Bad Boys),  play music in sessions led by Steve Riley, Jeffrey Broussard, Kevin Wimmer, Hadley Castille, Sam Broussard, Peter Schwarz,  attend various 'master' sessions, workshops (with the extended Ardoin family, above) or more intimate dance or music performances. 

Balfa Week is a wonderfully enriching experience, quite unlike attending a festival or a dance.  If you love Cajun or Creole music and would like to further your appreciation and gain an insider's view of this unique culture, I highly recommend attending next year's event, which I just learned has already been scheduled as a 2 day Spring Weekend for 2004 (see below).

Register Now - $365 337-234-8360 info@lafolkroots.org www.lafolkroots.org