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Lanny
Fiel & the Ranch Dance Fiddle Band
perform historic music from the days of cowboy and ranch dances
in the Texas Panhandle and the Llano Estacado. Drawing from
a repertoire of traditional two-steps, waltzes, vocal numbers,
fiddle tunes, polkas, schottisches, and folk dances, the band
recreates music that has been played for dances since the arrival
of the first settlers on the Texas Plains.
Musician Lanny Fiel founded the group in 1995 as a result of
his experience learning from traditional West Texas musicians
such as cowboy fiddler Frankie McWhorter, Texas State Fiddle
Champion Joe Stephenson, and cowboy poet and singer Buck Ramsey.
Fiel, in turn, is teaching the music to young string players.
The Ranch Dance Fiddle Band consists of six fiddles with guitar,
bass, and drum accompaniment.
The group performs regularly across West Texas, entertaining
audiences with this rich musical heritage. Recent appearances
include authentic “platform dances” at the Naturally
Yours Dance Platform in Lipscomb, Texas; the Ranch Dance Summer
Series 2002 at the American Wind Power Center in Lubbock, Texas;
the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum in Canyon, Texas; Bob
Wills Day in Turkey, Texas; the West Texas Western Swing Music
Festival in Snyder, Texas; the Region XV Education Service Center
in San Angelo, Texas; and a showcase appearance at the Texas
Music Educators Association Convention in San Antonio, Texas.
Through their work with fellow artists, institutions, and associations
that value the past, Lanny Fiel & the Ranch Dance Fiddle
Band are working to broaden public awareness of the region’s
musical heritage and preserve this rich legacy for future generations. |
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