CAMP WOODLAND REUNION FOCUSES ON CATSKILL FOLK MUSIC

NEW PALTZ — Campers who attended the historical Camp Woodland during the early half of the century will have an opportunity to reunite and remember the Catskill Mountain folklore and folk music the camp is famous for spawning. The group will gather at the State University of New York at New Paltz on October 4 and 5.

“Camp Woodland has a remarkable history,” says Neil Larson, director of the Hudson Valley Study Center (HVSC) at SUNY New Paltz. “It has played a pivotal role in recording the folklore and folk music of the Catskills.”

The archives of the camp’s founder, Norman Studer, are housed in the HVSC Carl Carmer Center. “We planned the reunion to expand the archive, develop interest in the camp’s preservation and rekindle an awareness of folklore in regional studies,” Larson added.

Camp Woodland operated in Phoenicia, New York, from the late 1930s to the early 1960s. Many well-known musicians, singers and arrangers, were associated with the camp, including Pete Seeger, Janis Ian, Eric Weissberg and Robert DeCormier.

The keynote address for the reunion weekend will be “The Legacy of Camp Woodland.” Other activities include:

• Camp Census and Who’s Who
• Help Build a Camp Woodland Web Page
• Camp History: Identify photos and materials in the Studer Collection
• Saturday night concert featuring folk music and dancing

The event is sponsored by the Hudson Valley Study Center. There is a $50 registration fee to cover the cost of refreshments and meals. For a detailed schedule of events, check the Camp Woodland Reunion Web page at http://www.eelab.newpaltz.edu/hvsc/woodland/woodland.html or call the Hudson Valley Study Center at (845) 257-2891.