Eighteen artists/acts have been selected to perform Official Showcases during the 2015 Southwest Regional Folk Alliance (SWRFA) Conference, Sept. 23-27, at the Holiday Inn – Midtown in Austin, TX. Nine will perform on Friday night, while another nine will do so on Saturday night. In addition, seven alternates have been invited to showcase their talents late Thursday night.
Slated to perform in the ballroom on Friday evening, from 7:30-10 p.m., are Ryanhood, Lyal Strickland, Friction Farm, Hardin Burns, Freddy & Francine, Justin Farren, Clint Alphin, Lisa Sanders and Brown Sugar, and The Flyin A’s. Saturday night’s lineup features Mt. Thelonious, Thad Beckman, Susan Cattaneo, Wes Collins, Amy Kucharik, Andrew Delaney, Rebecca Folsom, Heather Styka, and No Fuss and Feathers Roadshow. Rich Warren, host of the nationally syndicated “The Midnight Special” radio show that emanates from Chicago’s WFMT-FM, emcees both nights.
Besides the official showcases, the conference will feature open mics, in-room showcases extending into the early morning hours, and daytime panel discussions and seminars that address many facets of the music business, according to Dalis Allen, who produces the conference, as well as the annual Kerrville Folk Festival. “We eat meals together, form wonderful new relationships and renew old ones,” she notes. “And we are certain to have fun.”
Following a popular pool party and open mic hosted by singer-songwriter Butch Morgan on Thursday night, Charlie Stewart of Handshake Management will emcee the Official Alternates Showcase in the hotel’s Elm Room. Set to perform short sets beginning at 10:30 p.m. are Berkley Hart, Chase Gassaway, Nancy Beaudette, Michael Braunfeld, George Ensle, Katie Marie, and Ordinary Elephant.
Conference registration is $195 if paid by Sept. 15 and rises to $225 after then. Included with registration are five meals and a cocktail party. The official showcases are also open to the public for a $10 cover charge each night.
SWRFA is a regional affiliate of Folk Alliance International, a nonprofit organization that aims to nurture, engage and empower the international folk music community — traditional and contemporary, amateur and professional — through education, advocacy and performance. SWRFA includes the southwestern United States and Mexico. Its 16th annual conference is expected to draw performing artists, presenters, managers, agents and others engaged more than peripherally in the world of folk and acoustic music.
For more information, visit www.swfolkalliance.org.
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