Poulsbo and Leavenworth - Exploring Washington's Euro-Themed Towns

We did a close to home "European" vacation this past week, visiting both of Washington state's European style towns: Poulsbo and Leavenworth. Here's a comparison of the two.

Poulsbo sits on the water at Liberty Bay about 18 nautical miles from Seattle. The downtown area offers many water views from its shops and restaurants. Poulsbo's maritime history relied on commercial fishing and seafood processing, plus logging with transport by water. Today, the town attracts recreational boating, sport fishing, kayaking, rowing, and day trippers from Seattle.

Poulsbo's Liberty Bay at night

Originally a bustling logging and sawmill town, Leavenworth is surrounded by mountains in every direction with some peaks reaching over 8000 feet in elevation. The town has cold, snowy winters and warm, dry summers. The surrounding area offers many outdoor activities including snowshoeing, mountain biking, and hiking.

Poulsbo has an authentic claim on its "Little Norway" nickname since it was actually founded by Norwegian immigrants in the 1880's. These Scandinavian settlers were drawn to the area's resemblance to Norway's landscape. Norwegian was the primary language spoken in Poulsbo until World War II. The town leans into this Scandinavian history and cultural identity with folk art, murals, and flags, an annual Viking Fest, and other Nordic aesthetics and traditions.

On the other hand, Leavenworth's German history only dates back to the 1960's when town leaders came up with the idea to turn the declining logging town into a Bavarian-themed tourist village. Existing buildings were remodeled in a German style and henceforth any new construction within the town limits has had to conform to these Bavarian design aesthetics. The marketing strategy was a success and Leavenworth was transformed into a major tourist attraction in an otherwise remote part of Washington state.

Downtown Leavenworth in a smoky haze

Poulsbo's most iconic shop/restaurant has to be Sluys Bakery. Located on Front Street in the heart of Poulsbo, Sluys is open everyday from 5am to 6pm. Sluys sells baked goods and traditional Norwegian pastries, including the Viking Cup, a cinnamon bun filled with cream cheese frosting. That's what I got.

If the lines to order are any indication, Leavenworth's can't miss eatery must be München Haus, an outdoor beer garden specializing in Bavarian sausages with a wide variety of mustards and other toppings available. We ate there one evening after the line had died down. It was worth it.

Painted steps in Poulsbo

The best place in Poulsbo for a tourist to grab a drink and mix with the locals is definitely The Brass Kraken, a lively no minors allowed bar/restaurant located directly on the water at Liberty Bay. They had a great pork belly taco and a welcoming atmosphere. Leavenworth didn't seem to have a Brass Kraken equivalent, but Blewett Brewing Company is a good place to get away from the tourists and enjoy craft beers and delicious pizza. It was a breath of fresh air only one block off the main drag.

Other notable places we went to in Poulsbo included Valholl Brewing, Tizley's EuroPub, and The Loft at Latitude Forty Seven Seven. Poulsbo also has a pleasant park for walking called Fish Park, a short drive from downtown. In Leavenworth we liked Icicle Brewing, Andreas Keller Restaurant, and the dog-friendly Bushel and Bee Taproom. And we liked that Leavenworth had walking paths right in town along the picturesque Wenatchee River as part of Waterfront Park.

Enzian Falls Championship Putting Course

Poulsbo's tranquil location on Liberty Bay reminded me of other harborside small towns I have visited such as Lunenburg Nova Scotia and Akureyri Iceland. Leavenworth had more like a Deadwood meets Telluride feel, with a little bit of old country Busch Gardens mixed in.

Between the two I probably liked Poulsbo better, even though Leavenworth has more tourist amenities including Enzian Falls Championship Putting Course (like a putt-putt but with real grass that looks like a tiny version of an actual golf course!). Poulsbo is worth an overnight stay so that you can have time to explore nearby Bainbridge Island. Leavenworth, with its middle of nowhere setting and multiple lodging options, is definitely a place you'll want to rest your head. You'll be driving through the mountains and then all of a sudden there you are!

Portland Oregon is a great city for playing Irish music

Portland, OR is a great city in general, but it's an especially great city for an adult hobbyist to engage with others under the auspices of Irish traditional music. Just this past week, I participated in 4 separate sessions over 5 days. Saturday was an outdoor afternoon session at a block party in an idyllic setting within the wonderful Mt. Tabor neighborhood. Sunday evening was a recurring session at a bar/restaurant in Vancouver, WA just across the river from Portland. (My presence at this one made no difference whatsoever but it was still a learning experience). Tuesday night was a lively session that happens every week at a brewery in Tigard, which is a town a little south and west of Portland. And Wednesday was a super fun gathering at a meadery in the "wow I wish I lived here" neighborhood of Sellwood where I was able to lead on several tunes. 

To top it off, I didn't even go to the session that I usually attend each Sunday afternoon in Northwest Portland at the Hostel Cafe. And that's not all. There were other open sessions happening on Saturday and Thursday that I knew about but didn't attend. Plus there are also closed or invite only sessions most nights of the week that you can go to as a listener. I'm still meeting people that I've never even seen before when I go to these things.

For someone like me who is at best a mediocre adult learner who has been putting in lots of work to get up to speed and increase my repertoire, it's very motivating to know that there are opportunities like this in abundance. At those four sessions in the last week not only was I welcomed to participate and play but I was in the same circle as some top notch musicians. I often still think that I am the least qualified participant at the table, but I also feel privileged to even be able to take part in the unison tune playing. Sometimes while driving to a session I make an effort to clear my mind and get into a really positive headspace before walking in.

I'm sure there are lots of DIY music communities in the area: bluegrass, old-time, ukulele clubs, trad jazz, guitar groups, early music, singing sessions, choro jams, and so on. But the Irish jigs n' reel clique seems like the only one that checks all the boxes...get to play tenor banjo (check), no chords/accompaniment or solo breaks required (check), all instrumental and no singing (check). I guess old-time also qualifies but there are no jigs, slide or slip-jigs in old-time so you miss out on a diversity of rhythms. Plus tenor banjo is not the right type of banjo for that.

Despite my focus on the Irish trad repertoire, I don't think of myself as having a style or playing in a style. What I want to do is solely play a banjo or banjo-like instrument. Tuned in 5th or maybe 4ths. Played using a plectrum/guitar pick. And with this instrument and that plectrum I only want to play melodies 100% of the time. I don't want to have to play chords or even think about chords, or strum or sing or anything like that. Irish music completely falls within those whims/constraints.

It's great that I have this DIY Irish music community to be a part of. Although if it didn't exist I would still play music. The only difference is if there were no Irish trad scene the whole wide world of music would now be at my disposal for melodic inspiration. I would go back to doing exactly what I did from 2017 to 2020 where I listened to anything and everything from Phish jams to field recordings to marketing jingles and library music to African kwela melodies and Trinidadian calypso songs to Spotify release radar picks to stuff I hum to myself while driving or walking. It was all fodder for copying and tweaking into my own little fake compositions.

It's actually almost the exact same process now as it was then. I listen to a recording and then make up a melody that sounds like the melody on that recording. Only know that recording is called Gravel Walks or Dusty Windowsills and now I get to play my interpretation of that with others who actually know these better than I do rather than just by myself on the couch. What could be better?

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Gold Tone AC-6 Mini Banjitar review

I don't play guitar, so for me getting a six string guitar (banjitar, guitjo) was simply a way to use an all 4ths tuning with a banjo sound. Before learning about the Gold Tone A-6 Mini Acoustic Composite Banjitar, I never actually considered getting a six string banjo because the neck would be too long for me. I actually played around with the idea of getting a Puerto Rican cuatro since that is tuned in all 4ths BEADG with a scale length of about 20.5 inches, which is in my comfort zone. 

The Gold Tone AC-6 Mini Banjitar has a shorter scale than most guitars or banjo-guitars at approximately 22.8 inches. As soon as I learned of this instrument's existence I tried to buy one but it looked like the left-handed ones were out of stock. I called Gold Tone and David said that they could set it up left-handed with side dots for no extra charge so I was sold.

The instrument arrived and played OK right out of the box. As I expected, the 22.8 inch scale was still a little bit too long for me. It's not the finger stretch that bothers me but the shoulder position. Anything longer than a 17-fret, 21 inch scale tenor banjo causes bursitis in my shoulder to flare up. So I got a Shubb capo and I use that on the 2nd fret which makes the scale length about 20.3 inches. Problem solved.

The open string tuning I use is E-A-D-G-C-F low to high, which is like standard tuning with the top two strings tuned up a half step to keep the 4ths ratio throughout all the strings. With a capo at the 2nd fret this becomes F#-B-E-A-D-G. I think this is going to work well for Irish tunes since the open string notes B, E, A, D, and G are found in almost every Irish session tune. I don't play chords or strum. Just melodies played with a guitar pick.

I took it to a local music shop over the weekend and they made a few minor adjustments to the neck angle and head tension which improved the action and playability. Now it sounds just fine, I think. My main instrument will remain the tenor banjo tuned in 5ths, but my goal is to learn a few tunes at a time on the banitar so that I can break it out at a slow Irish session. It's also good for ear training - trying to find where the notes are.

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Bend, Oregon - is it worth a visit?

My wife and I moved to Oregon last year but had not been the to the Central OR tourist town of Bend yet so we did a late summer mid-week trip to check it out. The 3.5 hour drive to Bend included a boring stretch of I-5 from Tigard to Salem and a scenic 120+ miles through mountains and alongside rivers, creeks, and lakes via OR-22 and US-20. I would not want to do that drive during the winter, but it would be a pleasant way to go during other times of the year.

Bend is described as breathtaking in marketing blurbs. The area around Bend may be breathtaking, but it's not a term I would use once you are in the town itself. The term I would use is walkable. There is a high concentration of shops, restaurants and breweries in the downtown area. Most are within a ten minute walk. Plus there are pathways and parks along the Deschutes River. As I mistakenly found out, there is no reason to walk all the way to the Old Mill District as it really is just an outdoor mall with big box stores and chain restaurants.

Bend sits at 3,623 feet above sea level. This arid high desert climate is at just enough altitude to experience the effects of thin air. I normally wouldn't give this a second thought but the massive 23,000 acre Flat Fire was burning not far away in Sisters OR which made the air quality unhealthy. With daytime temps hitting 90 degrees plus unremitting sunshine, we weren't really motivated to do any of the outdoor activities that Bend is known for. Like I said, the town itself is walkable. The place we stayed had its own parking spot so once we parked we didn't have to move the car again for two days. Our main outdoor activity involved walking from one place to another! Consumer, consumer.

Bend did live up to some of its stereotypes. For example, there is a high concentration of tall, skinny, outdoorsy types who look like they just walked out of a Patagonia, Stio, or Carhartt catalog. These folks procreate so you can expect their blonde-haired 2.5 kids to be running wild at any brewery or restaurant you go to that isn't 21 and up. I don't think it was quite as bad as usual though since we were there mid-week when kids are supposed to be back in school.

Here are some places worth mentioning:

Jackson's Corner - a nice spot for breakfast, coffee or lunch in Old Bend. An excellent BLT sandwich. 

The Cellar - kind of like a basement speakeasy with a British pub theme. Featuring cask-conditioned ESB, red ale and porter from Porter Brewing Company in Redmond, and imported Kilkenny, Guinness and Old Speckled Hen on nitro. They have old-time Appalachian fiddle-style music on Wednesdays and an Irish session on Thursdays!

Spider City Brewing Downtown Tasting Room - a smaller, quiet space offering beer and wine. 

McMenamins Old St. Francis School Hotel - another one of the sprawling McMenamins properties that can be found throughout and Oregon and Washington. There's nothing else like it in Bend. See if you can find the hidden Broom Closet Bar!

Dudley's Bookshop Cafe - a two-story book store with a mix of new and used books. I always like going into bookstores while traveling and Dudley's was a pretty good one.

Pine Tavern and Bend Brewing Company - both of these places have outdoor areas along Mirror Pond, an impoundment of the Deschutes River. Both are better than you might expect them to be.

Mirror Pond, Drake Park and the Deschutes River Trail - Bend has made good use of its location along the Deschutes River by having green spaces and walking paths. Not much shade though!

Thai restaurants - Bend is not known for its diversity, but it does seem to have a different Thai restaurant on each block. What's up with that?

Cool poster in McMenamins Art House

River walk in Bend, OR

Our place had a welcoming courtyard

Tin Pan Alley in Bend

Was it worth the visit? Yes, although it's no match for the Oregon coast.

Would I go back to Bend? Maybe for a concert at the Hayden Homes Amphitheatre just across the river from downtown. 

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How to Change your Banjo Strings

One of my music goals for this year is to get better at and more comfortable with banjo string changes. I have a custom made 5-string tenor banjo with five equal length strings so at least I don't have to deal with re-stringing that short drone or thumb string, but otherwise everything else is the same. You hook the loop end of the string at the tailpiece and run it through the tuner at the headstock. Banjos and mandolins with floating bridges are similar in this regard.

Let me say this. I am not good at changing strings. I sweat and agonize over it, and I have to make an effort to remain calm while doing it. And it takes me like 45 minutes. But that is about to change with practice and a new mindset. This is not a post by me telling you how to change banjo strings because I am not qualified to do that. I am simply sharing some articles that I found helpful and will want to refer back to later.

Whenever I have had a luthier or shop tech do a string change for me, the instrument always came back with the new strings winded (wound?) two or three revolutions or more around the tuner. This looks pretty but I just don't see myself doing that. Fortunately there's a simpler method where you simply lock-in the string. 

Here's a link to a page demonstrating this step by step. What I like about this is it's written as an article with pictures. That works better for me than a video.

http://frets.com/FretsPages/Musician/Banjo/BanjoStringing/banjostr2.html

I actually think his mandolin restringing article from the same site is equally if not more helpful.

http://frets.com/FretsPages/Musician/Mandolin/MandoString/mandostring1.html

I'll be checking these out the next time I change strings!

All 4ths versus All 5ths Tuning

I'm most familiar with all 5ths tuning like on a tenor banjo. I have also experimented with all 4ths by tuning my Vagabond travel guitar in all 4ths EADGCF. To that end, I thought I would jot down some compare/contrast notes about each tuning.  

All 4ths

-Easier to play in any key.

-Utilizes closed shapes, doesn't rely on open strings.

-Pattern oriented.

-You can play melodies anywhere on the fretboard, not just first position.

-You have more fingering choices for how you want to play a melody and sometimes you might have the same note in two places.

-Due to the way the strings are spaced, you might have string jumps that you wouldn't have in all 5ths tuning.

-Due to the shorter range from string to string, it's better to have 5 or 6 strings like on a guitar rather than 4 like on a violin.

-Works for guitar length scale of 25 inches, although could also work for a shorter scale length.

All 5ths

-Suited to fiddle tune repertoire.

-Wider intervals means you rely on open strings to play melodies.

-You tend to stay in first position.

-Only needs 4 strings total or 5 at the most.

-Best for shorter scale instruments like 21-inch scale or shorter.

-Some say the 5ths interval has more resonance or a more pleasant harmony than 4ths.

If I Could Have Musical Influences, What Would They Be?

If I was going to take music lessons again, it would be on the subject of "what can I learn from these musicians?". I would work with an instructor who is willing to go over the playing styles and techniques of 3 or 4 musicians with me to see what I can learn or draw from their playing. 

As someone who is learning/memorizing Irish tunes on tenor banjo and then bringing said tenor banjo to Irish pub sessions and using it to play monophonic unison tunes in a group setting, it would make sense for me to be influenced by players who do that specifically. Those cats would include John Carty, Angelina Carberry, Kieran Hanrahan, Kevin Griffin, and Daithí Kearney. I especially like Daithí Kearney's playing since he does a lot of slides and polkas, which you don't always hear Irish tenor banjo players doing.

Surprise, surprise. None of these musicians in the subject of this hypothetical study with an instructor would be players of Irish music, even though my goal would be to take whatever influence I could extract and apply it to my hobby of playing Irish tunes. The first four musicians would be:

-Puerto Rican Cuatro player Maso Rivera. Suggested track: De La Montaña Venimos from Reyando Con Maso Y Su Cuatro.

-Kali, a banjo-mandolin(?) player from Martinique in the French West Indies. Suggested track: Bel Plesi from his Racines, Vol 1 & 2 CD.

-Another banjo-mandolin player...Dennis Pash of the Etcetera String Band and the Ragtime Skedaddlers. The super obscure CD Bonne Humeur - in which Pash plays his interpretations of the early dance music of Haiti, Trinidad, Martinique, and the Virgin Islands - may have already been a big influence on me.

-Sylvester McIntosh, also known as "Blinky", who was the band leader and alto saxophone player in Blinky and the Roadmasters plus other scratch music bands in the United States Virgin Islands. Anything from their 1990 Rounder records release Crucian Scratch Band Music. 

I suppose four is enough of a start. Three of those four are stringed instrument players - Maso Rivera, Kali, and Dennis Pash - who each use or used some type of pick/plectrum to pluck/flat-pick the strings. The only non-string instrument player is Blinky, so I'm not exactly sure what I'd be trying to get from his playing but that's where an instructor could help.

An extended list of musicians who I'd like to draw from would include Norman Blake, Jerry Garcia, Elmer Snowden, Michael Kang, Don Vappie, Tiny Moore, and Jamaican mento 4-string banjo players in general. Once again, not to play their styles of music per se, but to continue playing Irish tunes albeit with the feel of those musicians in mind. 

One thing you wouldn't hear in most of these influences,  I am guessing, is some of the rhythmic qualities that show up in Irish trad, such as the 6/8 jig, the 9/8 slip jig, and 12/8 slides. Those are some of my favorite types of tunes! So it could be a bit of a leap to go from listening to Maso Rivera, for example, and then apply those picking techniques to an Irish jig. But it could be done I suppose.

Does this make any sense at all?

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