Raise The Rafters 2026 Staff
The weekend schedule will feature several workshops led by our staff, as well as open slots for camper led workshops and sings.
Charmaine Slaven
Originally from western Montana, Charmaine has worked for more than 18 years as a professional musician, flatfoot dancer, dance caller, and instructor. She takes great joy in sharing her passion for music and dance with people of all ages and abilities and has gained a great reputation for her fun methods of engagement and knack for teaching and organizing.
Charmaine spent years street performing around Seattle with her music projects, Squirrel Butter and The Tallboys, and became an anchor in the Pacific NW old time music and dance communities, leading to appearances at a huge array of events including the Portland Old Time Gathering, Olympia Old Time Festival, NW Folklife Festival, Alaska Folk Festival, Festival of American Fiddletunes, Los Angeles Old Time Social, Hermit Music Festival, Dare to be Square West, Nimblefingers, Victoria Old Time Tidal Wave, Willamette Old Time Social, A Prairie Home Companion, Puget Sound Revels, & Boston Revels.
Over the last few years, Charmaine served as the Music & Dance Coordinator for the John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, NC, and now works as the Director of Development for the Country Dance & Song Society.
Downbeat Collective
The Downbeat is a vibrant collective of friends, singers and listeners from the Bay Area. They are vocal improvisers from the lineage of musicians like Bobby McFerrin, and his collaborators Rhiannon, Dave Worm, and Joey Blake. Their style of circle singing is part of a different vocal tradition rooted in live play rather than collected lyrical songs, and we’re so excited to learn from them! Downbeat members Claire Kimmel, Kyle (Seabass) Schmolze, Marcus Van Duren, and Carla Bagdonas will join RTR to lead approachable workshops on Improvising and Listening through vocal games – no experience required! The Downbeat Collective has led workshops in homes, buildings, and forests getting thousands of people to sing joyfully in unified, totally improvised, beautiful song.
2025 Staff:
Nicole Singer & Becky Wright
Fae Wiedenhoeft
2024 Staff:
Kat Eggleston
Ken Schatz
2023 Staff:
Saro Lynch-Thomason
Janie Meneely & Rob van Sante
Cate Clifford
2022 Staff:
The Vox Hunters
Thrive Choir
Mary Garvey
