Skill level: Beginner Can you really learn to play recognizable melodies on the autoharp in a single ninety-minute workshop? Yes, you can! No matter what your level of proficiency – even if you have never played the autoharp before – this informal hands-on beginner’s workshop will develop your musical abilities. Explore simple techniques for strumming, chording, and picking familiar tunes. Learn how to organize your practice time, making music instead of excuses. The ability to read music is not necessary. Participants need a chromatic autoharp (tuned to the best of their ability), two fingerpicks, and one thumb pick. Easy-to-read workshop handouts are provided in the keys of F and C.  

Skill level: Intermediate Although the chromatic autoharp has a twelve-note scale, many of the songs we play on the instrument use only the seven-note diatonic scale (do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti). Are you ready to move beyond playing “1-4-5” songs with the same three and four chords? This workshop explores melodies with decidedly chromatic chord progressions that use the 12-note chromatic scale, including: Hit the Road, Jack, Sixteen Tons, Greensleeves, House of the Rising Run, and Freight Train. The ability to read music is not necessary. Participants need a tuned chromatic autoharp (no diatonic autoharps, please) and picks. Workshop handouts are provided in the keys of Dm and C.  

Skill level: Intermediate – Advanced I’m a bit of an odd-ball in the autoharp community: I never use fingerpicks. I play with bare fingernails or a flatpick, and my style of chromatic autoharp playing involves the use open-chording tricks that are usually reserved for the diatonic autoharp. In this workshop, I’ll share these uncommon but nevertheless effective techniques. If you’re an intermediate-level player ready to go beyond pinching and plucking, this workshop will certainly broaden your musical horizons. The ability to read music is not necessary. Participants need a tuned chromatic autoharp, fingers picks, and a flatpick. Workshop handouts are provided in the keys of Dm, F and G.

Skill level: Beginning This workshop is targeted at beginning players who love old-time music. Here’s a fun opportunity to develop your autoharp skills while stumming traditional songs – many from the original Carter Family. We’ll concentrate on techniques for accompanying vocals, playing back-up chords, and executing simple melody breaks. Build your confidence and your repertoire, and develop your rhythm, timing, fingering accuracy, and muscle memory. The ability to read music is not necessary. Participants need an autoharp (tuned to the best of their ability), two fingerpicks, and one thumb pick. Easy-to-read workshop handouts are provided in the keys of D and G

Skill level: Intermediate This workshop is targeted at intermediate players who want to expand their instrumental skills. Practicing scales is great exercise, but there’s no substitute for certain traditional chestnuts, like "Grandfather’s Clock," and "O Holy Night," that have the fingering challenges built right into the melody. We’ll breakdown right-hand and left-hand techniques for mastering such spirited compositions. Enhance your chops for tackling even the most acrobatic obstacle course of a melody. The ability to read music is not necessary. Participants need a tuned chromatic autoharp and picks. Workshop handouts are provided in the keys of Dm, F and G.

Skill level: Intermediate A handful of the melodies written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon have transcended the genre of popular music and become part of our oral tradition. Approaching the autoharp as a solo instrument, we’ll learn arrangements of several lyrical Beatles tunes including, "Yesterday," "I Will," "Norwegian Wood," "In My Life," and "Let It Be." Here’s an opportunity to learn a few beautiful and enduring songs. This workshop is targeted at intermediate players who are already comfortable playing simple melodies. The ability to read music is not necessary. Participants need a tuned chromatic autoharp and picks. Workshop handouts are provided in the keys of F and D.

This virtual concert begins at 6:00 pm CENTRAL TIME ZONE, Tuesday, May 18, 2021. https://www.deforestlibrary.org/woody-guthrie-when-worlds-fire-registration-required

This free virtual program begins online at 6:00 pm CST, Thursday, May 27, 2021.

Legendary folksinger and storyteller, Adam Miller performs I Dreamed I Saw Joe Hill Last Night—Folksongs of the American Labor Movement, a free sing-along concert, at 5:30 pm, Tuesday, July 7, 2026, at the Lake Oswego Public Library, 706 Fourth Street, in Lake Oswego, Oregon. For more information, please call (503) 636-7628 This event is sponsored by the Friends of the Lake Oswego Public Library.