Instructors
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Jess Klein
Over two decades and 11 albums, Jess Klein—who possesses what MOJO calls “one of those voices you want to crawl up close to the speakers to listen to” has pursued a remarkable creative evolution that’s seen her dig ever deeper for resonant emotional insights, while continuing to refine her eloquently melodic, effortlessly accessible song-craft. Jon Pareles of The New York Times calls her “a songwriter with a voice of unblinking tenacity…who finds parables in the everyday and also finds humanity behind the archetypal.”
Klein has performed to rapt audiences at the Newport Folk Festival, Winnipeg Folk Festival, Fuji Rock Festival in Japan and packed houses in notable listening rooms like Joe’s Pub, NYC, The Borderline in London, Club Passim in Boston and Fogartyville in Sarasota, FL. She has appeared on Good Morning America and NPR’s All Things Considered and has toured across the US, Europe and Japan on her own and with such artists as Arlo Guthrie, John Fullbright and Carlene Carter.
Jess's live shows explore the musical offerings of many styles - from rock n roll to folk to classic jazz standards. She shares songs of personal healing, growth and change with her audience, always leaving them moved, uplifted, and empowered.
Jess has taught songwriting at workshops in North Carolina, Nashville, Maryland and over Zoom. She finds teaching songwriting to be incredibly rewarding and loves to share what she’s learned with her fellow students of the craft.
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Jane Kramer
Lauded by UK music reviewer Three Chords and the Truth as sounding like she was “…born to gypsy poets and raised in the mountains by Emmylou Harris,” Asheville, North Carolina songstress Jane Kramer has garnered international recognition for the sultry, heartrending originality of her vocals and for the heavy-hitting lyrical eloquence of her songwriting.
With deep roots in the musical traditions, culture and lore of her beloved Appalachia, Kramer’s songs are introspective, gracefully gritty and fiercely memorable. They elegantly sweep listeners down the gravel roads and southern coastal highways, midnight truck stops and lonely motel rooms of “hard learning” and lead home to the wooded Blue Ridge Mountains with moving acceptance of our flawed human experience. Kramer’s live performances are equally as poignant and engaging; rich with accessible, warm, often hilarious storytelling and gracefully lifting the veil between audience and performer.
A former social worker, domestic violence crisis counselor and avid humanitarian, Kramer continues to perform and teach about the songwriting process in prisons, shelters for the unhoused, programs for at-risk youth, classrooms, hospitals and animal shelters, sharing her message of music as a powerful tool for healing, connection and compassion.
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Abigail Dowd
Singer/songwriter/guitarist Abigail Dowd grew up under the longleaf pines in the Sandhills region of North Carolina. Known for her storytelling and command of an audience, she has been called "a writer of the highest caliber” (All Scene Eye). Pulling from her heritage of storytelling and determination, Dowd weaves hints of Celtic melodies with the soulful gospel of the south to create a sound that dances between folk, rock and blues.
Abigail is currently working on her fourth studio album. About her latest release Beautiful Day (2021) , Musikreview magazine writes “this album combines pretty much everything that makes contemporary songwriting worth listening to.”
In addition to her career in music, Abigail has a background in anthropology (UNC Chapel Hill) and city planning. She has served on her hometown Planning Board and as an elected member of the Town Council. She is also the co-founder of The Academy of Classical Design (Southern Pines, NC) and the Classical Design Foundation. She was the executive director for the Weymouth Center for the Arts & Humanities, and she continues to teach leadership development to companies throughout the NC Piedmont.
Abigail weaves all of this experience into teaching songwriting as she helps students mine stories into songs through fearlessness, remembering to find joy in the process. She has taught songwriting retreats in North Carolina and Maryland, for both adults and children.
In this session, Abigail will also lead daily yoga classes that connect participants to their mind, breath and body.
