Master Classes at the Bear on the Square Mountain Festival.

Master Classes will be held Sunday, April 21, in the historic Vickery House, home of the Georgia Appalachian Studies Center of the University of North Georgia.


The classes will be taught by some of the most sought after instructors  and musicians in North Georgia, and are designed to be very hands on and individualized for the students.

Class size is limited to 8 students and will last 1hour and 45 minutes.

Cost of the master classes is $10 and pre-registration is highly recommended due to  popularity and limited class size.

Class times are:

12:30 - 2:15  banjo and bass

2:30 - 4:15  fiddle and guitar

This year’s Master Class Instructors are;

Geoff Hohwald: teaching “Back-up Bluegrass Banjo”, what to do when you’re not playing lead. How to enhance the vocals and other lead instruments while not detracting from their performance,  by using tasteful fills, licks and rhythm techniques.

Curtis Jones:  teaching “Rhythm Guitar”, the essential building block of any bluegrass band is the rhythm guitarist, and there is none better than Curtis. He will show you how to improve your timing and how to enhance your band’s sound with several different rhythm techniques for different types of songs.

Martin Norgaard:  teaching “Improvising Over Standard Fiddle Tunes”, adding variety and spontaneity to your playing. Martin will show you how to easily improvise over any fiddle tune using his proven methods and techniques. Unlock the stigma associated with improvising, quickly and easily with Martin’s tried and true instruction.

Chris Enghauser:  teaching “Bass-Spelling Chords”, chord functions and understanding what we are playing. Let your fingers do the walking, as Chris shows  you how to move beyond the 1-5 progression. Learn some simple techniques to take your bass playing to the next level and enhance your understanding of the finger board. 

The sponsor for the Master Classes is the SouthEastern Bluegrass Association (SEBA).

As sponsor, SEBA is offering to discount its normal $15 online membership fee to just $5 for anyone taking and paying for one of the Master Classes.