Workshops & Lectures
Osher Lifelong Learning Society, Florida Atlantic University
Course information on LLS website:   Boca Raton     Jupiter
new courses and concerts in 2021

May 25, 2021 Updated . Rod MacDonald also lectures for private organizations (see list of lectures)
and leads workshops for songwriters 
     
Boca Raton 9/22, 9/29; 10/6, 10/13
 Jupiter 10/26, 11/2, 11/9, 11/16
Boca Raton 11/3, 110, 17; 12/1
 Jupiter 12/2 7 pm
Boca Raton 12/8 7 pm

Music Americana:
The Music Of Modern Times

Instructor Rod MacDonald
Recipient of the LLS 2012 Distinguished Faculty Award

Music Americana: The Music Of Modern Times
Instructor Rod MacDonald

    With melody, a sound, and a lyric, great artists find themselves on the leading edge of their own times. From the hip classics of “West Side Story” to the romantic teens of Motown; from the profound ramblings of Arlo to the insights of Sondheim; from the laid-back Jackson Brown to the spectaculars of Bocell, Shakira, and Grande, songwriters, musicians and singers tell our story in song. This series will examine the work, biographies and enduring importance of these musical artists, with videos and excerpts from feature films, live performances and a few surprises.

The Wisdom: Leonard Bernstein, Arlo Guthrie
The Motown Women: The Marvelettes, Supremes, Martha & Gladys
The Wordsmiths: Stephen Sondheim, Jackson Brown
The Next Wave: Andrea Bocelli, Shakira, Ariana Grande


Boca Raton Campus
Course #SUM343B
Time: 3 pm
Date: 9/22,29;10/6,13
Location: Barry and Florence Friedberg Auditorium, Boca Raton Campus
Fees: $100 / member; $130 / non-member
Registration Info call  561-297-3171 or click here
Biographical Information: Rod MacDonald began his career as a singer/songwriter in Greenwich Village in New York City in 1973. He has 21 songs in the Smithsonian Folkways collection and 12 solo CDs, including the 2020 release "Boulevard". He performs at festivals and in clubs and concerts locally and throughout North America and Europe, and was named Best Local Acoustic Performer in Broward and Palm Beach counties by New Times, and one of the Ten Magnificent Musicians of Palm Beach County by the Palm Beach Post. An instructor with LLS since 2006, his previous series include Folksinging in Modern Times, The Great American Songbook, The Roots of Rock & Roll, and Mastery Of The Art.
Music Americana:
Roots & Acoustic Music

  Drawing on basic forms of music in their communities, artists celebrate their times in song. From the sincere yearning of Ben E King’s “Stand By Me” to the heartfelt wisdom of Dolly Parton; from the raw commentary of Buffy Sainte-Marie to the smooth pickin’ of Chet Atkins and the heartland sound of The Band, they lit the way for today’s modern acoustic songwriters.
     This course will examine the work, biographies and enduring importance of these musical artists, and attempt to sort myth from reality, using updated videos and excerpts from feature films, live performances and a few surprises.

Rhythm & Pop: Ben E King, The Drifters, Lieber & Stoller
Folksingers Then & Now: Buffy Saint Marie, Current Artists
Guitar Gods: Chet Atkins, Mark Knopfler
Living Legends: Dolly Parton, The Band


Jupiter Campus
Course #tba
Place: Lifelong Learning Complex, Jupiter Campus, Donald Ross Rd
Dates: Tuesdays — 10/26, 11/2, 11/9, 11/16
Time: 2:30 p.m.
Fee: $100 / member; $130 / non-member

(561) 799 - 8547 or click here
Boca Raton Campus
Course # F343B
Time: 3 pm
Date:
Location: Barry and Florence Friedberg Auditorium, Boca Raton Campus
Fees: $100 / member; $130 / non-member
Registration Info call 
561-297-3171 or click here

Biographical Information: Rod MacDonald began his career as a singer/songwriter in Greenwich Village in New York City in 1973. He has 21 songs in the Smithsonian Folkways collection and 12 solo CDs, including the 2020 release "Boulevard". He performs at festivals and in clubs and concerts locally and throughout North America and Europe, and was named Best Local Acoustic Performer in Broward and Palm Beach counties by New Times, and one of the Ten Magnificent Musicians of Palm Beach County by the Palm Beach Post. An instructor with LLS since 2006, his previous series include Folksinging in Modern Times, The Great American Songbook, The Roots of Rock & Roll, and Mastery Of The Art.
The Songs Of
The Class Of 1941
with
Rod & The Humdingers

The year 1941 was a banner year for music stars, with those celebrating an 80th birthday in 2021 including Little Anthony (of the Imperials), Joan Baez, Neil Diamond, Aaron Neville, Sergio Mendes, Brian Holland & Lamont Dozier (Motown writers Lamont-Dozier-Holland), Buffy Sainte-Marie, Mike Pender (lead singer The Searchers), Mike Love (The Beach Boys), Graham Edge & Mike Pinder (The Moody Blues), Ann-Margaret, Eric Burdon (The Animals), Bob Dylan, Charlie Watts (The Rolling Stones), Shirley Owens (The Shirelles), Martha Reeves (Martha & The Vandellas), George Clinton (Parliament Funkadelic), Darlene Love, David Crosby (The Byrds, CSNY), Jackie DeShannon, Chubby Checker, Paul Simon & Art Garfunkel, Otis Williams (The Temptations), Jesse Colin Young (The Youngbloods), Pete Best (The Beatles’ original drummer), and Bobby Elliott (The Hollies).
    Join Rod MacDonald & the Humdingers for a fun and low-decibel celebration of the lifetime of music the class of 1941 has given us, as told in their son

--Rod MacDonald has 13 CDs of his songs, including 2020’s Boulevard, performs frequently in South Florida and throughout North America and Europe, and is a lifelong devotee of popular song. He has been an instructor with LLS since 2006.
--Bill Meredith, drums, is the backbone of several Palm Beach County rock and roll bands, including Big Brass Bed and Illumination. He has toured throughout the US and Canada, and appears on more than a dozen CDs.
--Brad Keller, keyboards, has performed at the Montreux Jazz Festival and with Maynard Ferguson and the Ink Spots, is the jazz piano instructor at Palm Beach State College and has taught music in Palm Beach County public schools for twenty years. He is also the co-author of the “Jazz Cats” books used internationally to introduce young students to jazz.
--Doug Lindsey, bass and vocals, has been playing in south Florida bands for 30 years.
--John Smotherman, lead guitar, plays with Big Brass Bed, Illumination and several Palm Beach County bands. His exquisite solos led the Palm Beach Post to label him one of the “Ten Magnificent Musicians of Palm Beach County.”

Lectures
lectures at community associations and libraries...recent topics have included live performance/lectes such as "Songs of Greenwich Village" (solo),  "The Life & Times of Bob Dylan," (solo or with Big Brass Bed), and "The Search for the Birth of Rock & Roll" (solo or with The Humdingers).....Lectures using dvds and video materials include "The Beatles: Coming to America," "Cole Porter/Johnny Mercer," "Frank Sinatra" and many other topics. To see a list of lectures, click here.
Songwriting Workshops
 "Songwriting For Self Expression" and "Songwriting & Current Events" are for beginning thru advanced songwriters, to inspire and sharpen each writer's skill and ability to express oneself. At the New York Open Center, the Amp Shop in West Palm Beach, Common Ground on the Hill, the Southeast Unitarian-Universalist Summer Institute, the Endicott (NY) Arts Center, S Florida Folk Festival, etc, from one session to several, sometimes one evening a week.

Here's an article in Binghamton, NY: