THE STORY OF THE ROMP
RiverJam Romp is an annual weekend-long, all-ages, community-rich celebration rooted in sharing and evolving the traditional local music and dance traditions of the Southern Vermont region.
Come for the weekend, come for a day, bring your family and friends, and be part of the dynamic legacy of our local traditions!
The Romp began in 2021 as a creative spark among friends: Peter Siegel, Mary Fraser, Amanda Witman, and Louisa Engle. With a desire to celebrate our locally rooted music and dance traditions, a commitment to building inclusive connections, we put our heads together and created RiverJam Romp.
We have been inspired by a number of events, including Maine Fiddle Camp, Pinewoods/CDSS, Ashokan, John C. Campbell Folk School, Meadowlark, TradMaD, Dance Flurry, and more. All of these serve their regions well, but they require significant travel for those in our area. Why not keep it local and create a new camp right here at home? So we did.
Our local traditions have their roots in Southern Vermont (VT), the Monadnock Region (NH), and the Pioneer Valley (MA); spanning rivers, mountains, valleys, and state lines; including dancing, singing, playing, jamming, and romping. We couldn't fit all those words, so we picked a few and named it RiverJam Romp.
Then, for good measure, we started a nonprofit, Southern Vermont Traditional Music, Inc. (SVTM), under the auspices of CDSS. We want to develop and support other events to in carrying forward musical community, collaboration, and the evolution of various traditions. SVTM is currently a co-sponsor of the Village Dance and the (hibernating) Brattleboro Dawn Dance.
We owe a debt of gratitude to all who have inspired us and brought us to this point. We hope you will join us in seeing our beloved traditions reach and inspire the generations that follow.
Logo credit: Satya Moses
Photo credit: Julia Friend
