Folk and world music at
Glasgow’s Concert Halls this spring |
Glasgow’s Concert Halls will host a wealth of folk and world music over the next few months, including a series of performances by a top line-up of acts in the atmospheric Old Fruitmarket entitled Fruitmarket Folk.
The legendary traditional Irish supergroup Patrick Street will launch Fruitmarket Folk with a performance on 9th May. This all-star ensemble features the superb fiddle playing of Kevin Burke (of The Bothy Band), the haunting vocals and mandolin, harmonica and bouzouki playing of Planxty veteran Andy Irvine, the fine guitar playing of Ged Foley (The House Band) and new recruit John Carty on fiddle. They will be supported by the Henrik Jansberg Band.
Ireland’s all-star high energy quintet Lúnasa will make a welcome return to the Old Fruitmarket. The band reopened the venue following its refurbishment in 2006 with an exhilarating sell-out performance at Celtic Connections. Celebrated for their inventive arrangements and bass-driven grooves, Lúnasa are steering Irish acoustic music into surprising new territory.
Frances Black’s enchanting vocals have established her as one of Ireland’s best-loved singers. Sister of Mary Black (also a successful singer), and former member of trad band Arcady, Frances has twice been awarded the Irish Recorded Music Association’s Best Irish Female Award.
The Danny Kyle Open Stage 10th Anniversary Concert will bring the Fruitmarket Folk season to a celebratory close. We mark ten years of the Danny Kyle Open Stage competition (which takes place every year at Celtic Connections) with an all star line-up of previous winners and folk favourites including Scottish firebrands Breabach, singer/fiddler Lori Watson, Canadian fiddler and pianist Troy MacGillivray. Also on the bill are the Clan Wallace Band, the Jamie Smith Trio, Swing Guitars and Scottish American singer-songwriter David Ferrard. Hosting the evening will be Arthur Johnstone, Archie Fisher and Brian McNeill.
Elsewhere at Glasgow’s Concert Halls, top folk and world music acts appearing over the next few months include Karine Polwart (tonight), Cherish the Ladies, Christy Moore with Declan Sinnott, Martha Wainwright, Buena Vista Social Club, Pentangle and the Caledonian Fiddle Orchestra. |
| Stokes Bay Festival |
Capercaillie; The Levellers; The Saw Doctors; Bellowhead; Show of Hands; Martyn Joseph; Michael McGoldrick and Glenn Tilbrook of 'Squeeze' are among the many star names confirmed for the Stokes Bay (Wickham) Festival in Hampshire this summer.
The 4-day Festival runs from Thursday 31 July to Sunday 3 August at a picturesque seafront location with stunning views over the English Channel and Isle of Wight.
Other artists include The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain; Dick Gaughan; Chumbawamba (acoustic); Martin Hayes & Dennis Cahill; The Blues Band; Huun Huur-Tu (Tuva); The New Rope String Band; Gretchen Peters; Devon Sproule; Roy Bailey & Tony Benn; Phill Jupitus & The Blockheads; The Shee; 3 Daft Monkeys; The David Munnelly Band; Karen Tweed's Circa Compania; Kent DuChaine; The Chair; The Silk String Quartet (China); Lauren MacColl, Rachel Hair & Maeve Mackinnon; and many more.
Other attractions at the Festival include the Cirque de Normandy from France, a solar-powered cinema, puppet theatre, storytelling, street entertainers, Punch & Judy, healing area, dance displays, craft fayre and exotic foods fayre.
The Festival location at Stokes Bay near Alverstoke, Gosport is one of the most scenic settings for any festival in the U.K. with stunning views across the English Channel to the Isle of Wight. There's over a mile of unspoilt coastline plus a golf course, seafront bistro, childrens paddling pool and pitch & putt course.
The Stokes Bay (Wickham) Festival is rated one of the safest and friendliest festivals in Britain with not a single theft, crime or incident of trouble in either 2006 or 2007.
Day and weekend season tickets (with or without camping) are now on sale via the Festival website http://www.stokesbayfestival.co.uk |
| Festival Bursting with Outstanding Talent |
Oxfordshire’s Towersey Festival offers five nights and four days of fantastic concerts, workshops and dances and the 2008 line-up is simply bursting at the seams with outstanding talent. This year’s guest list includes Bellowhead, Show of Hands, Kathryn Tickell Band, Lunasa, Salsa Celtica, Blowzabella, Chris Wood, Whapweasel, Park Bench Social Club, Ruth Notman and Last Orders.
Towersey 2008 also presents exciting new collaborations between some of the Folk scene’s finest musicians. BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards 2008 winner Martin Simpson will be joined by the fellow
Folk Awards winner Andy Cutting on accordion and the fantastic Andy Seward on bass. Meanwhile, The Poozies are making a welcome return to the Festival, complete with two stunning new recruits. Three of the original members, Sally, Patsy and Mary, will be joined by Eilidh Shaw’s faultless fiddle and Mairearad Green’s delicately dextrous accordion to create a sound that is still as fresh and delightful as ever. Continuing the collaborative theme, hot new band Faustus boasts a trio with top class credentials; Saul Rose is a member of Waterson:Carthy, whilst Benji Kirkpatrick and Paul Sartin are from super-group Bellowhead. Finally, fine young ceilidh band Mawkin will be joined by the honey-voiced Jim Causley in a unique performance simply too good to be missed.
Towersey’s line-up also presents five of the greatest male voices of the Folk world. In addition to
BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards 2008 winner Martin Simpson, The Festival will also be welcoming
Chris Wood, Roy Bailey, Jez Lowe and Leon Rosselson to its stages. All five are exponents of outstanding thought-provoking new material and first class performance.
As well as offering an eclectic mix of concerts, dances and workshops, Festival goers can also relax on the colourful Towersey Showground, browse the international trade market, craft and music fairs and be refreshed by a great selection of food and drink from around the world. The Festival is renowned for being one of the most relaxed and family friendly festivals of its kind; it provides great value for money and offers a truly sensational festival experience. What’s more, Early Bird ticket discounts are available until 31 May (inc.) and if you buy 9 tickets of any one type, you get one more absolutely FREE. Its enduring popularity is demonstrated by the fact that it sold out again last year, so visitors are encouraged to buy tickets early.
Towersey Village Festival also provides dedicated Youth and Children’s programmes which offer a wide range of events, workshops and activities. The Shooting Roots youth project caters for those between 12-25 years, whilst the Children’s Festival offers activities for the younger ones including storytelling, puppets, crafts, music and much more. For Full Season ticket holders, the Festival has three great camp sites which are all well equipped with toilets and hot showers. The site is within easy reach of the M40 and main line railway stations.
For a great August Bank Holiday Weekend, Towersey Village Festival offers the chance to experience the magic of this little village with big ideas.
Latest news and information, money saving offers and tickets are available online at www.towerseyfestival.com. Alternatively, the Festival Box Office number is 01629 827016. |
| STELLAR LINE UP FOR SHOW OF HANDS SUMMER FESTIVAL |
Tickets for Show of Hands hugely popular annual summer family concert on the Dorset heritage coast will go on sale next Monday (March 3).
Singer songwriter Steve Knightley and multi instrumentalist Phil Beer’s 2008 signature festival at Abbotsbury’s glorious sub-tropical gardens, near Weymouth, will take place on Saturday, July 5 – fielding one of the finest line ups ever.
This year’s event will see the duo (joined by their regular double bassist and vocalist Miranda Sykes) spearheading over six hours of non-stop open-air entertainment on Abbotsbury’s West Lawn. See http://abbotsburytourism.co.uk/garden/tg0010.htm
The Devon duo are delighted to announce their special guests will include one of the world’s leading acoustic finger-style and slide guitarists, Martin Simpson, winner of Best Album and Best Original Song at the 2008 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards.
Also coming to the alfresco Abbotsbury stage will be one of the most unusual and captivating young singer songwriters on the UK roots scene – Martha Tilston (whose style was recently dubbed “Rococo Folk”) and her band The Woods while reprising their guest appearance at last Easter’s sell out Show of Hands gig at the Royal Albert Hall will be the brilliant Cornish choir Fishermen’s Friends, from Port Isaac. One more act is still to be announced to complete the line-up.
In the midst of a hectic festivals schedule which this year includes appearances at WOMAD, Wickham and the Welsh Proms this will be a “local” gig for Show of Hands and an old stamping ground for Knightley, who used to live near Bridport.
The event will start at 3pm. Tickets are available on 01305-871130, price £20 (adults); £10 (children) or £48 for a family (two adults and up to three children). Further information on www.abbotsbury-tourism.co.uk or email info@abbotsbury-tourism.co.uk
Please note this booking number is available Monday-Friday, 9am-1pm and 2pm-5pm but not weekends.
Concertgoers are invited to bring low-backed seating, rugs and picnics into the grounds - entry to the West Lawn area is from 1.30pm. The grounds open at 10am for those interested in looking round the magnificent 20-acre gardens. For the youngsters, there will also be a children’s entertainer and face painters. |
| FIVE CULTURE ANNOUNCES CONTEMPORARY FOLK MUSIC SERIES |
Five Culture, the partnership between Five and Arts Council England, has commissioned an exclusive series of documentaries exploring the musical influences of four of the most successful artists in contemporary folk music, it was announced last week on Wednesday 6th February.
Produced by the Proudfoot Company, My Music consists of four, hour-long programmes which, for the first time, gets under the skin of musicians; Seth Lakeman, Kate Rusby, Eliza Carthy and Athena.
The series launches on Five on April 6th and is the latest in the Five Culture initiative which sees Five and Arts Council England encourage viewers to engage in the arts.
Tom Ravenscroft, son of legendary Radio One DJ John Peel, narrates the programmes that focus on a separate artist in each episode. Meanwhile high profile contributors including Billy Bragg, Jennifer Saunders, Stewart Lee and Willy Russell comment on the artists and their contribution to popular culture.
Executive producer Michael Proudfoot has secured exclusive behind the scenes access to all artists – as well as in-depth interviews that reveal the highs, the lows, the history and aspirations of these influential musicians. Michael said: “We wanted to get under the creative skins of these artists. The songs they write and the music they make are products of the places in England that they live in, so the My Music documentaries are not just music shows, they are about the English landscape, or in Athena's case the Greek landscape.
“We wanted to show how music gets created, how songs are written and how it can be done these days without being part of a major record label, if you've got Garage Band on your Mac you can make a record."
Five Culture consultant, Kim Peat, said: “This series is superb. The quality of the music, the passion that is projected, the testimonies from so many people make it a joy to watch.
“My Music will not only give people within the scene a reason to celebrate what they love about modern folk music, but also introduce a new audience to a diverse and influential part of our culture.”
Five Culture follows on from the successful three-year project, Fivearts Cities and is designed to encourage viewers to participate in the additional features planned alongside its forthcoming music projects.
Arts Council England Head of Broadcasting, Gill Johnson, said: “We’re delighted that the relationship with Five – now in it’s fifth successful year - has evolved to encompass an area of the arts that is supported so passionately and which reflects a diverse range of regional talent. We hope this series will inspire more young musicians and singers across the country.”
The series is overseen by Five’s Head of Factual, Ralph Lee. |
| Award-winning acts for
Fairport's Cropredy Convention |
Award-winning Gaelic singer Julie Fowlis and her band will play at Fairport's Cropredy Convention on Saturday 9 August 2008. With two acclaimed solo albums to her name, vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Julie was awarded 'Folk Singer of the Year' at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards on February 4 2008.
Voted 'Best Duo' at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards, John Tams and Barry Coope will appear at Cropredy on Thursday 7 August 2008. John has been a guiding light of the British folk community for over thirty years and Barry is well known for his work with acapella trio Coope Boyes and Simpson.
Vocal duo Jeana Leslie and Siobhan Miller, winners of Radio 2's Young Folk Award, will perform at Cropredy on Friday 8 August 2008.
Friday night will be headlined by legendary folkrock band Levellers (celebrating its twentieth anniversary this year). Levellers was recently honoured with the award for 'Festival Feel-Good Act' at the 2007 UK Festival Awards, voted for by the public.
The full list of acts at Cropredy 2008 will be announced shortly.
Fairport's Cropredy Convention is a uniquely-friendly festival of rock, pop and acoustic music and this year's event takes place on 7, 8, 9 August.
The popular festival attracts up to 20,000 music fans – last year, all the tickets were sold weeks before the gates opened. opened. |
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