Finalists have been named in the 2020 South Florida Folk Festival’s Singer-Songwriter Competition. Each of them will perform two songs live during the festival at its new location, the Bergeron Rodeo Grounds in Davie, on Saturday, Feb. 8.
The 12 finalists, chosen by a preliminary selection committee from the local folk community, are Randy Emmons (Osprey, FL), Mike Glick (New York, NY), Susan Levine (Newburyport, MA), Pamela T. Machala (Boulder, C), Mel and Vinnie (Lake Worth, FL), Aaron Nathans (Chester Heights, PA), Karyn Oliver (Stokesdale, NC), Mike Ryan (Clifton, VA), Jan Seides (Austin, X), Paul Smithson (Eustis, FL), Think Twice (Robby Layton & Teresa Pembroke) (Boulder, CO), and Joe Virga (Cape Coral, FL). Each had submitted two original songs in the acoustic, folk, inde, Americana, singer-songwriter and associated genres.
Three winners selected by a panel of judges will each receive the Vic Heyman Songwriting Award – a $200 cash prize and an invitation to perform at the following year’s festival. In addition, all winners and runners-up will be afforded the opportunity to play ‘in-the-round’ during the festival’s second day on Sunday, Feb. 9.
The songwriting competition is co-presented by the Broward Folk Club (the nonprofit organization that stages the festival) and Reba Heyman. Along with her late husband, Vic, Reba has been an integral part of the folk community in South Florida and nationally for many yeas. The couple has been known for decades for their generous financial backing of folk festivals and artists. They ran a concert series in Rockville, Maryland known as Vic’s Music Corner, established scholarship funds for artists, and served o the boards for several music festivals.
In its 26h year, the South Florida Folk Festival (www.southfloridafolkfest.net) is expected to feature more than 40 Florida-based and nationally touring artists performing and leading workshops. There also will be a jam area where amateur musicians can play traditional folk and other acoustic styles of music.
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