Bing Futch
Bing Futch brings big energy to every stage. A crowd favorite at the Walnut Valley Festival, The Florida Folk Festival, the Old Songs Festival, Indiana Fiddlers Gathering, and Common Ground On The Hill, he unleashes a torrent of music with his voice, Appalachian mountain dulcimer, ukulele, Native American flute, and a looper pedal.
Bing’s musicianship blends raw, rootsy groove with fearless improvisation. He pairs expressive vocals with mountain dulcimer virtuosity in a dizzying array of musical styles. His sets travel widely, from Delta blues and Americana to reimagined rock and synth-pop alongside traditional material.
Workshops
1. Ein Prosit to “Edelweiss”
In the spirit of Helen Oktoberfest opening weekend, we’ll learn the traditional song “Ein Prosit” — not only how to play it on the mountain dulcimer, but how to sing it as well, right down to ein Prosit, ein Prosit der Gemütlichkeit. From there, we’ll move into the graceful 3/4 waltz of Edelweiss from The Sound of Music. Techniques will include staccato phrasing, inverted chords, and selective strumming to provide rhythmic fill and harmonic support.
2. Shaken Awake / Walking Off the Egg Nog
Learn to play two very different tunes written by Bing Futch as we ease into the feeling of fall in Helen, Georgia. In the first half of the workshop, students will take on Shaken Awake, a lively tune full of energy, groove, and forward motion. Then the class will dive into Bing’s holiday favorite Walking Off the Egg Nog and learn how to embellish the tune in ways that bring its story and humor vividly to life.
3. Welcome to the Mountain Dulcimer. Now What?
This beginner workshop is the perfect place to start if you are brand new to the mountain dulcimer, have been playing for just a little while, or are coming back to the instrument. In a relaxed and friendly setting, we’ll cover the basics of strumming, playing melody and simple harmony, reading tablature, and getting comfortable with how the instrument works, while also playing a few easy tunes so you can make music right away and leave feeling encouraged, informed, and ready for more.
4. The Classical Mountain Dulcimer
In the spirit of Helen’s Bavarian setting, we’ll bring classical favorites to life on the mountain dulcimer. With special focus on Pachelbel’s Canon in D from Germany and Mozart’s Eine kleine Nachtmusik from Austria, we’ll take short excerpts directly from the original scores, divide them into parts, and use one note at a time to build surprisingly rich melodies and rhythms with basic chords.