Raise the Rafters Traditional Song Weekend
Donation protected
Welcome to our fundraiser for Raise the Rafters , a new youth-oriented (although by no means youth-exclusive) traditional singing event based in the Pacific Northwest!
What is Raise the Rafters?
Raise the Rafters is a gathering of singers and people who are interested in traditional song! This November - and hopefully for many years after - we will gather to sing, teach and learn from each other, sing, share songs and ideas, sing, make friends, talk about the tradition and its future, and sing some more! There will be concerts and workshops from staff artists, spaces for attendees to teach workshops, discussions, song shares, and more. We are an intergenerational event and welcome anyone regardless of age, experience, or background.
When and Where:
Raise the Rafters will take place (pandemic permitting) November 5-7, 2021 at Mt. Hood Kiwanis Camp in Rhododendron, OR (about an hour east of Portland).
Our Mission:
Raise the Rafters is an event dedicated to fostering the next generation of singers and of people interested in traditional folk songs, singing styles, and their cultural context. We believe that social singing creates community, and that the continuation of singing traditions depends upon connection and continuity between generations. We will provide an inclusive, accessible, and affordable space for singers and organizers of all ages to meet and to exchange songs, ideas, and knowledge through shared spaces, workshops, and song sessions.
Who We Are:
The organizing committee for Raise the Rafters is made up of singers based primarily in Seattle, Portland, and the Bay Area. Many of us have been involved before in organizing comparable events, such as contra dance weekends, music retreats, monthly pub sings, and Morris ales.
Why a Fundraiser?
Putting on an event like this, and keeping it accessible, requires lots of funds, and while we are supported in part by the Country Dance and Song Society (CDSS), further support is needed to ensure that this Raise the Rafters will live up to its goals. This event will be a paid weekend, but fundraising now will help make the event financially accessible for all attendees and sustainable for future years. Your support will help us with:
Venue
Mt. Hood Kiwanis Camp, our venue, will provide food, lodging, and accommodations in addition to spaces for our workshops, concerts, discussions, and song sessions. Donations will help us offset the cost of reserving and renting the venue for the weekend.
Staff
We will be hiring several fantastic singers (to be determined) to teach workshops and perform a concert during the weekend. Donations will help us pay these musicians for their time and labor.
Accessibility
One of our main goals for this weekend is to keep it accessible, and ensure that everyone who wants to come can come. We will ensure this by providing travel grants to those who need them and having a sliding scale registration cost. Donations will help us fund these travel grants and allow more flexibility with the cost of registration.
Continuation
While we’re super excited about this November, we’re just as excited to keep this event going for years thereafter. Your support will help us put on not only a great event this year, but give us a solid foundation for next year’s weekend.
Fundraiser Events:
Friday, March 26: Livestream Concert with Countercurrent (Alex Sturbaum and Brian Lindsay)
Join Alex Sturbaum and Brian Lindsay, musicians and RTR committee members, for a night of songs, tunes, and stories. Alex and Brian have been playing concerts and contra dances all over the country for the last ten years, and are excited to share their music in support of RTR!
Saturday, April 10: Online Social Hour with RTR Committee
Come meet the Raise the Rafters Committee! We’re here to answer questions, share ideas, or just chat!
Saturday, April 17: Zoom Sing with RTR Committee
Join the RTR committee and friends for a Zoom sing! Sing along with us, or lead a song yourself!
Get Involved:
While we are deeply grateful for all the donations to this fundraiser, there are other ways to help ensure that Raise the Rafters is successful! One of our biggest goals is to get the word out about this event, and you can help by sharing this fundraiser, liking our Facebook page, or visiting our website to find out more. If you have questions for our committee, feel free to contact us!
FAQ:
What do you mean by “youth”? Am I still allowed to come?
We call ourselves a ‘youth-oriented weekend’ because we’re committed to making sure that younger folks in the tradition, who might have less financial flexibility or experience with singing, are able to attend and feel welcome to participate in this event. That said, we’re just as committed to making sure that people of all ages feel welcome to attend - to quote our mission statement, we believe that continuation of singing traditions depends upon connection and continuity between generations.
What do you mean by “social singing”?
We do community singing at RTR. There are many traditional genres and singing styles that encourage people to sing together. These songs are generally learned by ear, harmonized and joined without rehearsal, and include (but are not limited to): work songs, labor and union songs, drinking & pub songs, blues, gospel, old-time, Appalachian, sea songs and chanteys, ballads, railroad songs, prison songs, lullabies, forebitters, broadsides, hymns, vaudeville, camp songs, farming, mining and factory songs, country, bluegrass, spirituals, cowboy songs, American, English, Irish, Scottish, Canadian, Caribbean and Australian songs, children’s songs, field hollers, and love songs. They can include contemporary songs in traditional genres, as well as songs that have stood the test of time.
I’ve never sung with other people, can I still come?
Absolutely! Beginners are welcome at Raise the Rafters. At the start of the weekend, we will have an introduction to social singing for folks who haven’t done it before, as well as going over the norms, community guidelines, and code of conduct with everyone.
There’s still a pandemic on, how are you addressing that?
Many things are still uncertain, but we are hopeful that it will be safe to gather and hold this event by November. That said, we are planning to re-evaluate in August, before registration opens, and make sure we still feel comfortable doing so, at which point we will be transparent about our decision process regardless of outcome. If there are doubts as to the safety of the event, it will be postponed until spring or next fall.
When will registration open?
Assuming it is safe to hold Raise the Rafters by November, registration will open sometime in early August. In the meantime, join our mailing list to stay updated!
What is Raise the Rafters?
Raise the Rafters is a gathering of singers and people who are interested in traditional song! This November - and hopefully for many years after - we will gather to sing, teach and learn from each other, sing, share songs and ideas, sing, make friends, talk about the tradition and its future, and sing some more! There will be concerts and workshops from staff artists, spaces for attendees to teach workshops, discussions, song shares, and more. We are an intergenerational event and welcome anyone regardless of age, experience, or background.
When and Where:
Raise the Rafters will take place (pandemic permitting) November 5-7, 2021 at Mt. Hood Kiwanis Camp in Rhododendron, OR (about an hour east of Portland).
Our Mission:
Raise the Rafters is an event dedicated to fostering the next generation of singers and of people interested in traditional folk songs, singing styles, and their cultural context. We believe that social singing creates community, and that the continuation of singing traditions depends upon connection and continuity between generations. We will provide an inclusive, accessible, and affordable space for singers and organizers of all ages to meet and to exchange songs, ideas, and knowledge through shared spaces, workshops, and song sessions.
Who We Are:
The organizing committee for Raise the Rafters is made up of singers based primarily in Seattle, Portland, and the Bay Area. Many of us have been involved before in organizing comparable events, such as contra dance weekends, music retreats, monthly pub sings, and Morris ales.
Why a Fundraiser?
Putting on an event like this, and keeping it accessible, requires lots of funds, and while we are supported in part by the Country Dance and Song Society (CDSS), further support is needed to ensure that this Raise the Rafters will live up to its goals. This event will be a paid weekend, but fundraising now will help make the event financially accessible for all attendees and sustainable for future years. Your support will help us with:
Venue
Mt. Hood Kiwanis Camp, our venue, will provide food, lodging, and accommodations in addition to spaces for our workshops, concerts, discussions, and song sessions. Donations will help us offset the cost of reserving and renting the venue for the weekend.
Staff
We will be hiring several fantastic singers (to be determined) to teach workshops and perform a concert during the weekend. Donations will help us pay these musicians for their time and labor.
Accessibility
One of our main goals for this weekend is to keep it accessible, and ensure that everyone who wants to come can come. We will ensure this by providing travel grants to those who need them and having a sliding scale registration cost. Donations will help us fund these travel grants and allow more flexibility with the cost of registration.
Continuation
While we’re super excited about this November, we’re just as excited to keep this event going for years thereafter. Your support will help us put on not only a great event this year, but give us a solid foundation for next year’s weekend.
Fundraiser Events:
Friday, March 26: Livestream Concert with Countercurrent (Alex Sturbaum and Brian Lindsay)
Join Alex Sturbaum and Brian Lindsay, musicians and RTR committee members, for a night of songs, tunes, and stories. Alex and Brian have been playing concerts and contra dances all over the country for the last ten years, and are excited to share their music in support of RTR!
Saturday, April 10: Online Social Hour with RTR Committee
Come meet the Raise the Rafters Committee! We’re here to answer questions, share ideas, or just chat!
Saturday, April 17: Zoom Sing with RTR Committee
Join the RTR committee and friends for a Zoom sing! Sing along with us, or lead a song yourself!
Get Involved:
While we are deeply grateful for all the donations to this fundraiser, there are other ways to help ensure that Raise the Rafters is successful! One of our biggest goals is to get the word out about this event, and you can help by sharing this fundraiser, liking our Facebook page, or visiting our website to find out more. If you have questions for our committee, feel free to contact us!
FAQ:
What do you mean by “youth”? Am I still allowed to come?
We call ourselves a ‘youth-oriented weekend’ because we’re committed to making sure that younger folks in the tradition, who might have less financial flexibility or experience with singing, are able to attend and feel welcome to participate in this event. That said, we’re just as committed to making sure that people of all ages feel welcome to attend - to quote our mission statement, we believe that continuation of singing traditions depends upon connection and continuity between generations.
What do you mean by “social singing”?
We do community singing at RTR. There are many traditional genres and singing styles that encourage people to sing together. These songs are generally learned by ear, harmonized and joined without rehearsal, and include (but are not limited to): work songs, labor and union songs, drinking & pub songs, blues, gospel, old-time, Appalachian, sea songs and chanteys, ballads, railroad songs, prison songs, lullabies, forebitters, broadsides, hymns, vaudeville, camp songs, farming, mining and factory songs, country, bluegrass, spirituals, cowboy songs, American, English, Irish, Scottish, Canadian, Caribbean and Australian songs, children’s songs, field hollers, and love songs. They can include contemporary songs in traditional genres, as well as songs that have stood the test of time.
I’ve never sung with other people, can I still come?
Absolutely! Beginners are welcome at Raise the Rafters. At the start of the weekend, we will have an introduction to social singing for folks who haven’t done it before, as well as going over the norms, community guidelines, and code of conduct with everyone.
There’s still a pandemic on, how are you addressing that?
Many things are still uncertain, but we are hopeful that it will be safe to gather and hold this event by November. That said, we are planning to re-evaluate in August, before registration opens, and make sure we still feel comfortable doing so, at which point we will be transparent about our decision process regardless of outcome. If there are doubts as to the safety of the event, it will be postponed until spring or next fall.
When will registration open?
Assuming it is safe to hold Raise the Rafters by November, registration will open sometime in early August. In the meantime, join our mailing list to stay updated!
Organizer
Raise The Rafters
Organizer
Olympia, WA
