Click on the calendar below to see current events:

What Ever Happened to….? 

A former songmaker is alive and well in Portland.  Here is what Larry B. Wilder has been up to:

Larry Bulaich Wilder
Songmakers Hoot Leader 1976-1981

Opening for Pete Seeger changed my life.  It was Pete who always said: “The best music is everyone singing together!”

The very soul of Songmakers.

I can feel Pete’s hand is on my shoulder when I lead songs.

Growing up in post-WW2 Burbank, I went away to a college where I quickly learned that campus notoriety of folksingers more than compared to that of us basketball players. As my grades fouled out, guitar and banjo waxed brighter and brighter.

Completing service as an Army Sergeant, I finished college and began 33 years as an English and history teacher, coaching girls and boys hoops 22 of those years. A parallel career in music has taken me on 3 Euro tours, Japan and all 50 states.

Becoming a Songmakers hoot leader put me on the axis of musical enjoyment.  Helping each other learn and have fun without judgment is wonderful!  At the risk of omissions, I won’t attempt listing the Songmakers who have influenced me.  I appreciate and am indebted to you all!

Relocating to Oregon in 1981, I sang for tourists on the Rogue River and helped form the Foxfire Band. We made two national tours, opening for Willie Nelson, Bonnie Raitt, Hazel Dickens and John Hartford.

A fundraising passion first kindled by my dad’s horrific stories of child trafficking cases he worked as an LAPD Detective, I am honored to have done 18 concerts for abuse victims.

In 2008, I was somehow miraculously chosen North American Yodeling Champion by the International Western Music Association. Yodeling is one of the workshops I love to lead.

After retiring at Franklin High here in Portland, I worked 5 great years for American Cruise Lines educational voyages. Now playing mostly locally, I was blessed with more than 250 audiences in ’24. That number will go up this year.

Just open your heart to the people, welcome them in and let them sing out! Their hearts and voices fill me!

Thank you, Songmakers! You trained me!

How I wish I could lead you all again!

Note: Larry lives in Portland with his wife Teri, accomplished painter and art mentor.  He has plenty of air miles and a place to stay in Burbank.

For more information: https://larrywildermusic.com/

Roundup 2025

2 new board members were elected at Roundup. Welcome Warren Hasselberger and Michael Singletary! They are replacing Dana Charette and Andy Gelenscer who have resigned. Thanks Dana and Andy for all you have done for Songmakers!

The board is as follows:

President/Facebook/Meetup – Steve Berman

1st Vice-President – Paul Jenkins

2nd Vice-President/Membership Chair – Doug Kerr

Treasurer – Louise Dobbs

Recording Secretary – Janice Gelenscer

Corresponding Secretary/Social Media/Sunshine and Showers – Sally Charette

Hoot Co-ordinator/Sunshine and Showers – Sandy Lessner

Archivist/Historian – Linnea Richards

PR Chair – Louis Richter

Webmaster/Calendar/E-chord – Mary Zangerle

Director – Alan Stillson

Director – Robert Dingus-Deville

Director – Chuck Behrman

Director – Warren Hasselberger

Director – Michael Singletary

Non-board position: Election Chair – Linda Szitkar

[Show slideshow]

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Far-West Campfire Zoom-based Songcircles

We have been invited by Far-West to participate in their twice a month Songcircles:

Every month on the 2nd & 4th Tuesdays Join us around the virtual campfire for our twice-monthly song circle, where artists and audiences from the FAR-West region and beyond are welcome to enjoy original songs, favorite covers, and tunes inspired by that week’s theme.

Don your slippers and join us around the campfire. First timers are always welcome!

Sign up in advance using the link to perform or be in the audience.

Every 2nd and 4th Tuesday of the month (with the exception of November and December due to holidays) you can register for free at found.ee/farwestcampfire. What started during the pandemic to keep us Folkies busy is still going strong! We would love to see a Songmakers presence there.

The dates for the 2025 camp outs, and the approximate dates when you can reserve your site. Ventura Co are listed below. Parks says you can reserve 180 days in advance, but I just checked and reservations for KG are currently open through December 21, which is almost a week less than 180 days from today. We tried to space these well, not bump into holidays, and not start when it’s too early and cold! 

Spring Break
March 27-30, 2025
[Reserve c. Sept 18, 2024]

Spring Fling
May 1-4, 2025
[reserve c. Nov. 2, 2024]

Summer Camp
June 19-22, 2025
[reserve c. Dec. 21, 2024]

Fall Out
October 16-19, 2025
[reserve c. April 4, 2025]

To make reservations up to 6 months in advance, go to https://www.venturaparks.org click on Camping & RV at the top, Select Kenney Grove Park and find your site. 

Sally Charette

• If you are aware of any LIVE or virtual song circle or performance that will welcome Songmaker participation (or want to host one), please provide the info to the webmaster for inclusion to the calendar. Do you know of an upcoming musical event that may be of interest to our readers? Please provide a write-up with dates & website &/or other pertinent information and send to: webmaster@songmakers.org.
   
• Joining Songmakers is not accomplished via Meetup. The www.songmakers.org list of events will continue. Songmakers membership is only $10 per year per family / household – join via https://songmakers.org/member-registration

Old Time & Celtic Music Calendars. The latest revisions on the oldtimeSF & celticSF groups.io groups. To join these groups go to https://groups.io/g/oldtimesf & https://groups.io/g/celticsf. Also available via: https://www.berkeleyoldtimemusic.org/ – select “Monthly Calendar of Old Time Music” under the About menu AND here https://sites.google.com/site/davbrown2/celtic Join the CelticSF group via https://groups.io/g/celticSF