ESL Folk

28 July 2010

American Musicians Ramble Across Russia

By David Fay
Special Correspondent

Moscow — Strumming and singing across southern Russia, a group of four American teachers has introduced traditional American folk music to thousands of Russian children.

“Traditional American folk music embodies an aspect of American culture which young Russians aren’t normally exposed to,” said Matthew Nelson of Oklahoma, one of the founders of the group that calls its project “Ramblin’ Across Russia: Accessing Language and Culture Through American Folk Music.”

“So much of what these kids know about our country comes from Hollywood films and MTV, and what we wanted to do was offer them a different perspective,” Nelson said.

Nelson spent the last year as a Fulbright Program English teaching assistant (ETA) at a university in the Russian far east city of Vladivostok. He traveled with the group in June 2010 to five cities — Elista, Rostov-on-Don, Gubkin, Ufa and Samara — where the U.S. State Department funds English-language camps for secondary school students through its English Access Microscholarship Program.

Elista is the capital of the Buddhist republic of Kalmykia and is famous for its temples, throat-singing and affinity for chess. Gubkin is a small mining city near the Ukrainian border. Ufa is the capital of the Republic of Bashkortostan, with large populations of Turkic-speaking Bashkirs and Tatars. Samara is a city of immense historical importance on the bank of the Volga River, where most Soviet government bodies were located during World War II.

MUSIC AS A TEACHER

Nelson, along with Brendan Mulvihill of Philadelphia, another Fulbright teaching assistant working in Tomsk in Siberia, came up with the idea for the group during the English teaching assistants’ program orientation in Moscow last fall.

“We were hanging out with a group of ETAs in Moscow. I had brought along my banjo and we were just playing songs and talking about our expectations for the upcoming year of teaching in Russia when the idea hit us,” Nelson said. “We realized that our interests, abilities and experience could be used to do something out of the ordinary, something that would truly fulfill the Fulbright organization’s mission of cultural exchange.”

Nelson and Mulvihill drafted lesson plans and content for the project, but knew they needed help. Mulvihill got in touch with Gillian Grassie, who was traveling through India and China with her harp, studying emerging music on a Thomas J. Watson Fellowship. Nelson contacted Jordan Stern, a classmate from Lewis and Clark University in Portland, Oregon, who not only plays guitar and banjo, but also has experience working with youth in after-school programs and as a counselor at a drug rehabilitation center in San Francisco.

The Ramblers perform for an enthusiastic audience in Gubkin.

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After months of planning and preparations, the group, calling themselves The Ramblers, assembled in Tomsk at the end of May to begin their journey.

The project was sponsored by the U.S. State Department’s Fulbright organization and the English Language Office of the U.S. Embassy in Moscow. The goal was to create a fun and relaxed atmosphere where students could study English while experiencing a different part of American culture. The project, the group says, is the first of its kind and is unique in its marriage of English as a Second Language (ESL) techniques used in American schools with cultural exposure through music.

Their lessons and musical repertoire focused on traditional American folk music dating back to the first immigrants from Europe. “Through their lessons students learned about the diversity of cultures and musical traditions which came together to create American folk music; they learned about historically important events such as the Great Depression and the civil rights movement; and they learned about the lives of folk musicians, farmers, coal miners and train-hopping hobos,” Nelson said.

The students also had a unique opportunity to interact with native English speakers in an informal setting. Many of these camps are located in remote areas of Russia that rarely receive visitors from the United States. For many of the students, The Ramblers are the first Americans they’ve encountered in person.

“Interacting with the students is by far the best part of our tour,” Stern said. “Just chatting with the kids, playing games and acting silly — this is what it’s really all about. The kids really open up to us and the typical teacher-student relationship disappears, which I think makes it much more interesting and fun for everyone involved.”

The Ramblers worked with local teachers, both within the five camps and in the larger communities. Teachers observed and assisted the group during their lessons to see how they incorporated music and cultural content into the study of English. With a grant from the State Department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, the group also received help from more than 60 Russian alumni of various U.S. programs. The alumni will be involved in the compilation and promotion of a study package developed as a result of the project.

The Ramblers gave presentations to local teachers about American folk music and its use in teaching English, as well as other topics such as the role of Web 2.0 and other Internet resources in ESL education.

“For us, it’s about discovering small and unique pockets of Russian culture and seeing vast amounts of the gorgeous countryside through train windows,” Mulvihill said. “It’s so easy to visit the big, famous cities, so being able to see a different side of Russia has been a pleasure.”

Read more about The Ramblers’ project on their website, where you’ll find lesson plans and multimedia resources developed by the team for use by teachers, students and others interested in learning about American folk music or studying English.

You can also watch a video on their trip.

David Fay is a regional English language officer at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow.

(This is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://www.america.gov)

Our amazing trip is now over, and the ramblers have all gone their separate ways. This was without a doubt one of the most incredible, interesting, fun, and fulfilling experiences in all of our lives. Thank you so much to all of the camp directors, counselors, and teachers for hosting us and helping to make this program work. Thank you to David Fay, Natalia Fomenko, and everyone else in the ELO office in Moscow for supporting our idea and making this a reality! And most of all, thanks to all of the kids who played, studied, and hung out with us! You are all great, fun, and bright kids.

I am posting a slideshow which contains photos and audio clips from our project, which I think captures just how great this trip was. Also, on the audio and Video page there are clips of us playing some of the songs we performed at the different camps that you can download.

Once again, thank you to everyone who helped to make the Ramblin’ Across Russia project a huge success!!!

Samara Dessert

On June 24th we got to our final camp, about an hour outside of the city of Samara. Unlike the other camps, where the campers lived with their families and hung out with us for a few hours each day, this was straight up sleepaway summer camp, and we were with the young’uns 24/7!

"Rub-a-dub-dub! Thanks for the Grub!"

Our camp was located at a resort of sorts in the woods outside of Samara, which meant we shared the area with a bunch of other summer camps. We met kids from Muslim camp, Boxing camp, and general be silly-in-the-woods camp.

We first met our campers in the dining hall for breakfast. These kids were super excited to see us and very friendly, like all the other places we had visited. But something about being in the woods made it feel different, a little more loose and casual. Upon entering the cafeteria, all our campers looked at us and said “enjoy your meal!” Bewildered as to how to respond, we stared at each other blankly, until Brendan remembered how to say grace at American summer camps:

“Rub a dub dub, thanks for the grub!”

Camp Cheers and Dusty Soccer

Sing-along!

After our breakfast, we spent the day working with each of us leading one group of kids. We taught them some songs, played games where they used their English vocabulary, and answered questions about the United States. We also each created a cheer to share with the other campers. My campers chose the name Boom Chika Boom, and of course we sang the Boom Chika Boom Cheer. Its a basic repeat-after-me kind of thing, and the kids did it in Opera Style, Sick Old Man style, and Dub Style! Classic summer camp. After our groups, we ate lunch with the kids. We took turns sitting at the different tables and getting to know them some more. I had campers guess my age and teach me how to say silly phrases in Russian, and Brendan turned his hot dog into a marionette of sorts. The campers were rolling over with laughter.

Jordan gets buried

After lunch the kids had free time. Some went to the river, and other played a big game of soccer with us on the all dirt soccer pitch. It was like playing in a sand storm, and after about five minutes we looked like we had rolled around in a big cinnamon shaker. All the more convenient, then, when we discovered that the running water at the camp was shut off for repairs! Our campers barely noticed, however, grabbing their towels and running to the river. These kids were really good at playing games like the throw-the-ball-around-a-lot, splash Matt as much as possible, and bury me in the sand! Needless to say it was blast.

Wet Hot Russian Summer

Campers hard at work.

The rest of the weekend pretty much followed suit, the focus of our efforts there mainly centered around hanging with the campers. We enjoyed dancing with them at the camp disco, playing big group games, and performing Lonesome Road Blues with them in front of all the other people staying there.While we got to know all the kids at our camps, this camp was different because we all lived in the same place. I think this was valuable because it gave us a common experience to relate with the campers about–the food in the cafeteria, the heat and dust, the dancing at the camp disco, etc.  This gave us a context for our conversations which I imagine helps with language retention. It also gave us more space to be casual with the kids and get to know them, and by the end we had inside jokes and a strong rapport with each other.

Presentation to local teachers

Teaching Teachers

Our stay in Samara also involved giving our presentation to a bunch of English teachers. We were able to share our curriculum with them, explain American folk music and what our trip was all about. We made them do some of the activities we did with the youth, including singing Down by The Bay and calling on them randomly to come up with verses. Our camp director, Yulia, was caught off guard when we called on her and she gave the most affirmative ‘no’ I’ve ever seen!

Teachers of Samara Region

Giving a presentation to a room full of adults was a new experience for me, and fun. We were really well respected and appreciated by them, and it felt good to know that some of our curriculum might pass on and be continued in other language education settings.

Overall, I think this camp worked best for our teaching model. This is mainly due to the fact that we lived with the campers and shared a whole experience with them for a few days. We were also much more practiced by this point with regards to how to teach our material. Being there gave Matt, Brendan and myself wild ideas of doing the trip again next summer, but spending more time in less places, running a whole camp for a week. I had forgotten how fun it is to be a summer camp counselor!!!

Group Foto!

The next stop on our tour was the wonderfully named city of Ufa, located on the west side of the Ural Mountains. We pulled in at four in the morning and were greeted by camp director, Gulnara, and camp counselor, Irina. These two wonderful young ladies were impressively energetic and cheerful, given the late hour. We could tell immediately that we would have a lot of fun the next few days working and hanging out with them.

Ufa is the capital city of the Republic of Bashkortostan. This was our second stop during our trip in a region designated as a  “republic,” (the first was Elista, in the Republic of Kalmykia). There are 21 of these republics in Russia, each one home to a large population of one or more of Russia’s many minority ethnicities. Bashkortostan is home of the Bashkirs, as well as the second largest population of Tartars, both Turkic speaking ethnic groups.

Our students at this camp were all of Bashkir descent, and spoke the Bashkir language in addition to Russian and English. The first day at the camp was filled with introductions, lessons, and a wide variety of sporting events including baseball and american football. The kids taught me a few Bashkir words and laughed as I struggled with the new sounds. The evening was capped by a trip to the local bowling alley where Jordan surprised us all with his raw natural talent, and Brendan schooled us all in the art of speed-bowling.

The birthday boy goes for a ride.

The next day was a very special day – Brendan’s 24th birthday! That afternoon, after classes and an epic game of sandlot soccer, we went with all of the kids to an outdoor rock climbing gym. Jordan once again impressed us all with his raw athleticism, and the whole camp cheered the birthday boy on with a heartwarming rendition of the birthday song. In the end we all started to feel like old geezers as we watched, with aching muscles, as the tireless kids scaled wall after wall

That evening we went out to celebrate Brendan’s b-day at a nice sushi spot with camp teachers, counselors, and friends. Gulnara and Irina gifted Brendan some wonderful, traditional Bashkiri garb, and Jordan gifted us all the joy of watching him eat a golf-ball-sized blob of sushi.

My mismatch outfit and crazy hairdo

The following day at the camp was designated as “crazy hair and mismatched outfits day.” We arrived back at the dormitory after Brendan’s birthday dinner and made some preparations for the occasion. We decided to go all out for crazy hair day, and for the second time during the trip I let Gillian practice her hairdressing skills on me, as did my two male counterparts. The resulting trio of mohawks were crazy,punk, and undeniably awesome. Not to be outdone, many of the kids put together very creative outfits as well.

The craziest outfit of the day.

Our last day was a sad one for we were saying goodbye to Gillian, who was headed to Moscow to continue working on her research project about emerging music scenes. After a month of hanging out and traveling together it was difficult to watch her go. We took her to the train station, helped her lug her harp onto the train for one last time, and said our goodbyes. We then went to pack our own bags for the trip to Samara.

Before we could leave Ufa however, we had to try one of the local Bashkiri specialties: fermented horse milk. This slightly carbonated, sour, and incredibly intense beverage was not really my cup of tea, but Brendan loved it and downed the whole bottle.

Our short stay in Bashkortostan confirmed what our visit to Kalmykia, two weeks earlier, had suggested – namely, that the republics of Russia contain very interesting and diverse cultures that in some ways reflect the society of the country that they are part of, but also contain their own unique cultural flavors that add a little spice to the Russian recipe.

As we left Ufa the absence of Gillian’s harp among our luggage was light on our backs but heavy on our hearts. We were excited for the next camp, but were very sad to part ways with Gillian and our new friends in Ufa. Lucky for us, the next stop in Samara was about to provide us with many fun and exciting adventures!

One of the best things about this trip has been getting to see towns in parts of Russia that tourists don’t typically visit. At the camps, people are often curious and ask us about the other cities we’re traveling to on the ESL Folk Tour. Whenever we run down the itinerary, there’s always one place that gets the same response: “Wait, Gubkin? Where’s that?!”

with Elena, our trusty camp leader

I was excited to check out this city that so few people seem to have heard of, and waited with no small amount of anticipation by the door of our train compartment with the Ramblers and our gear. We arrived in the middle of the night and our “train mom” had urged us to be prepared to get off quickly since the train would only be stopping for 2 minutes at the Gubkin station before pressing on. We grabbed our bags and instruments and were bundled off the train, and my harp and I fell directly into the arms of Elena, our camp coordinator.

harp sandwich

Elena and her family helped us lug our stuff over to the hotel where we were booked in four single rooms for the first few nights – an unexpected luxury after so much time spent cramped in platzkart bunks and squashed under my harp in the backseats of taxis. We were each handed a key with an ornate swan chain and ascended some sparkling stone diaz-style steps to the chimes of a thousand fire alarm bells set off by sportsmen surreptitiously smoking in their rooms. After some refreshing showers, we collapsed into our fluffed pillows for a few hours sleep.

David Fay, Sarah, and the Ramblers in front of the biggest hole I've ever seen

In the morning, we took a walk to explore this mysterious city. It turns out that Gubkin is a relatively young city, founded just seventy years ago, and built around an enormous iron mine – a vast, gaping crater seven kilometers wide that we visited with some guides from the camp. The town is beautifully laid out, with charming neighborhood apartment complexes each with their own playground and lots of trees. There was a neat park with a mining display and statues celebrating the town’s history and mining practices.

Matt plays with a handicap

We reviewed some new songs, got our materials ready for the next day’s teaching, and then prepared ourselves for the U.S.A. vs. Slovenia world cup match by playing pick-up soccer in the school fields with some of the campers. It was a “no parents, no rules” game that involved all sorts of inventive goal keeping and ball stealing.

The Ramblers practice the Camp Rainbow dance routine

The next morning, we were treated with a visit from David Fay from the English Language Office of the American Embassy in Moscow and his lovely sister Sarah (We’ve been tossing around the idea of re-naming our group the David Fay Tribute Band). They joined us for a rousing set of morning performances by the Rainbow Summer Camp teams. After being serenaded by the four camp groups, who had rehearsed songs for us, we opened up our introduction to American Folk Music with some songs of our own.

Jordan & Brendan getting their teach on

I thought that performing live song examples as we talked about their background was an nice way to break up the opening lecture, especially since listening to a long block of talk can be super exhausting for students who are learning English as a second language. The kids  seemed to especially enjoy an experimental mash-up of jigs in E minor that Brendan and I tried out when we were discussing immigrants from the British Isles and their influence on American culture and music.

the opening lecture/concert

After our presentation/concert, Matt played some samples of traditional folk music from around the world and the students had to try and guess what country each song came from. Brendan had the chance to visit Tuva with some other Fulbrighters this year and brought back some incredible music from that region. It’s always funny when the Tuvan throat-singing track comes on during this game, because none of the kids ever guess that this music is actually from their own country! I think it’s great to bring up Russia’s cultural diversity in these English camps, because it lets us shift the focus off of all the questions we get about life in America and remind the campers about how cool and interesting and vast their own nation is!

with new friends

One of the most remarkable highlights of this trip for me has been getting to experience Russian hospitality. It seems that every camp we visit adopts us Ramblers, and this was especially true at Gubkin. When we asked Elena for a recommendation of a local restaurant to grab some dinner, she responded by inviting us over to her house for some homemade okroshka, a traditional Russian cold soup made from chopped vegetables and hard-boiled egg with a broth of kvass – a beverage made (as I understand it) by straining water through dark rye bread and allowing it to ferment slightly. This is one of our favorite refreshing drinks, but I’d never had it in a soup before!

our family dinner

After a mere two days in the hotel, we were also invited to stay in Elena’s sister-in-law’s parents’ house, which was a welcome respite for both our budgets and souls. Turns out that after living in such close quarters for so long, those single hotel rooms were starting to feel pretty lonely! We were thrilled to do some laundry and cook a wonderful “family” meal, which we ate beneath the approving (I hope) gaze of an impressive collection of Russian icons.

Ramblers reacting to some local press

On our last night, we were also invited out to a dacha for some sensationally delicious shashlik (Russian bar-b-q)! We enjoyed the evening sun, homemade pickles, samagon, and – in addition to the scrumptious chicken and pork skewers – some of the best grilled carp I’ve ever tasted; a veritable feast! With Masha, Olya, Nastia, and Elena among the guests, the feeling was of a family reunion cook-out. Brendan wrote an experimental shashlik ballad on a makeshift guitar, and we finished off the night with some more crazy, hybrid ball games.

The morning came too soon, and with it the time for us to leave for Ufa. Our goodbyes were heartfelt and teary, but we took with us many memories – and some sweet camp T-shirts the campers signed!

The next time someone asks me where Gubkin is, I’ll just point to my heart.

-Gillian

Group shot!

The directors of the Elista camp invited an amazing local musician to play a few traditional Kalmyk songs for us. Amazing!

The Ramblers play ‘Farmer’s Daughter’ for in their underwear curious onlookers by a river near Taganrog, birthplace of Russian author and playwright, Anton Chekhov. Then they kill some mosquitoes.