Hanneke Cassel's Pure Dead Brilliant Fiddle Weekend
February 13 - 16, 2026
Registration will open in November -- check back here for exact date!
What is it?
Pure Dead Brilliant Fiddle Weekend started in 2007 as a small retreat/workshop for advanced fiddle players in the Scottish scene. It is the original vision of Hanneke Cassel, Jerry Bell, and Nancy Bell and has taken on a life of its own over the years. Hanneke remains as director and is surrounded by an incredible team of people who pretty much do everything.
PDB is held at the lovely location of Grotonwood in Groton, MA, which allowed us to expand our scope and number of attendees. We strive to make PDB an intimate and FUN weekend.
Details
When
Past Instructors
Past Instructors
Camp:
Fri, February 13 - Mon, February 16, 2026
Pre-Camp Concert:
Groton Hill Music Center
Thursday, February 12, 2026
Past Instructors
Past Instructors
Past Instructors
- Hanneke Cassel, Director
- Natalie MacMaster
- Kevin Henderson
- Natalie Haas
- Jenna Moynihan
- Laura Risk
- Katie McNally
- Galen Fraser
- Maria San Miguel
- Sarah Collins
- Mary Frances Leahy
- Lissa Schneckenburger
- Keith Murphy
- Neil Pearlman
- Mike Block
- Eamon Sefton
- Conor Hearn
- Elizabeth Anderson
- Louise Bichan
- Brendan Hearn
- Sean Wood
- and more!
2025 PDB TEACHERS
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FAQ
IS PDB RIGHT FOR ME?
The goal of PDB is to encourage and inspire musicians to push the boundaries in their own playing - creatively, technically, and EMOTIONALLY. We learn a lot of tricky tunes, we stay up all night jamming in the kitchen, and we get in LOTS of conversations.
We have a designated slow jam time early in the morning and we have some classes that move at a slower pace labeled “I JUST WANNA CHILL!” Things move fast at PDB and there is an expectation that if something is out of your comfort level, you will embrace the opportunity to sit back, learn what you can, let some of it go, and be content to listen, dance, chat, or party in some other pure dead brilliant way while the notes whirl around you.
The weekend operates in a spirit of generosity and collaboration. IF YOU REALLY want to do something (like play tunes only in Eb for an hour or play only slow airs) and you don’t see it on the schedule, grab some friends, go find a room, and make it happen.
HOW OLD DO I HAVE TO BE?
In the past, PDB has been geared towards advanced players who are at least 16 years old. We don’t have kid-specific activities, but we do have classes and jams for advanced students of ANY AGE. Attendees under 18 are required to have a guardian (a paid participant) with them at the weekend. If you are under 16, email hanneke@hannekecassel.com and we’ll sort out if this is the right scene for you!
WHAT KIND OF MUSIC???
Scottish & Cape Breton fiddling is at the center of this scene. Other styles have been known to sneak in… YOU ARE ALLOWED to play Irish, Swedish, Finnish… even Old Time. But the music of Scotland holds our hearts and you will definitely get bonus points if you start an ALL STRATHSPEY JAM. Oh and also… no bluegrass. Just kidding. No actually we’re not.
PDB is a sheet-music free learning zone (If you ask for it, you will be forced into a small room with a bagpipe playing Road to Errogie in B major -- for minimum of 7 hours.)
WHAT KIND OF FOOD??
Glorious! Nancy Bell is in charge and the kitchen experience (the making, the eating, and the jamming while it’s being made) is... pure dead brilliant. FOOD is a central experience to the weekend, and there will be plenty of opportunities to help out if YOU WANT TO!