‘Westchester’s Greatest Hits’ to be Sung, Sept. 28

Tribes Hill, a lower Hudson Valley collective of singer-songwriters, musicians and their patrons, will celebrate and pay tribute to some of Westchester County, New York’s finest regional artists with a special concert at Tarrytown Music Hall. Entitled “Westchester’s Greatest Hits,” the concert, slated for Sunday, Sept. 28, at 3 p.m., will feature talented musicians from the region performing songs that were written or made famous by current or former Westchester County residents. Headlining the show will be Westchester’s own Sloan Wainwright and Gandalf Murphy and the Slambovian Circus of Dreams. Tickets, priced at $20, are available for purchase at the venue or online at www.tarrytownmusichall.org. “Our objective is to educate our community about the rich musical heritage of Westchester in a fun and entertaining way while, at the same time, introducing the region to talented musicians living in their own backyard, many of whom they may not be aware of,” says Rick Rock, Tribes Hill’s executive director. [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]

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Celtic Classic Returns to Bethlehem, PA in Late September

Throngs of people are expected to converge on Historic Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, Sept. 26-28, for the 21st annual Celtic Classic. The Tannahill Weavers (Scotland) Presented by the nonprofit Celtic Cultural Alliance, the free event is a celebration of the Irish, Scottish and Welsh cultures and heritage.  Its six stages of continuous entertainment will feature performances by The Tannahill Weavers, Teada, The Elders, Bodega, Seamus Kennedy,  Charlie Zahm, Clandestine, Malinky, Findlay Napier and the Bar Room Mountaineers, Cantrip, Prydein,  Slide, The Town Pants, button accordionists David Munnelly and John Whelan and their bands, as well as Irish and Highland dancers.

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Long Island AcoustiCalendar for September-Early October 2008

With the advent of fall, live music on Long Island moves back indoors and many of the region's monthly folk and acoustic music concert series start anew. The Folk Music Society of Huntington launches its 40th anniversary season. Acoustic Long Island in St. James debuts a new format. The Fifth Annual Port Jefferson American Music Festival features a number of acoustic artists. And in Brooklyn, the 11th Annual Park Slope Old-Time & Bluegrass Jamboree features a day and a half of workshops, jamming and concerts of traditional American music. More than 100 concerts, open mics and jam sessions slated for September through early October 2008 appear in this installment of the AcousticMusicScene.com's Long Island AcoustiCalendar. [To see the detailed calendar listings, click on the headline.]

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Folk Alliance Regional Conferences Fall Into Place

The 21st Annual International Folk Alliance Conference is slated for next February 18-22 in Memphis, Tennessee, while regional conferences of the North American Folk Music and Dance Alliance (Folk Alliance) are shaping up for this fall. The conferences provide useful and enjoyable learning and networking opportunities, not to mention plenty of fine listening and performing opportunities for artists, presenters, agents and managers, folk DJs, folk societies and clubs, media, and others actively engaged in the folk music field; they are not intended for casual folk fans. Booking gigs is the primary objective of some performers who attend these annual conferences, while many presenters and folk DJs come primarily to scout out new artists and those who they have not previously heard and seen in live performance. However, the conference experience is much more than that; it’s really about forging connections and building an acoustic community. Although artist showcases and educational workshops and panel discussions are common to all of them, the regional conferences hosted by Southwest Regional Folk Alliance (SWRFA), Folk Alliance Region Midwest (FARM), Folk Alliance Region West (FAR-West), Northeast Regional Folk Alliance (NERFA), and the new Southeast Regional Folk Alliance (SERFA) all have their own tenor and style. [To read the entire article, which includes information on each of the regional conferences, click on the headline.]

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World United Music Festival & Radio Conference, Nov. 14-16

The Roots Music Association’s inaugural convention, radio seminar and music festival, originally slated to take place earlier this summer, has been rescheduled for the fall. Renamed the World United Music Festival and Radio Conference, the three-day event will take place November 14-16 at a 500-acre site in San Marcos, Texas, located between Austin and San Antonio. [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]

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Ronnie Drew, Founding Member of The Dubliners, 1934-2008

One of the most recognizable voices in Irish folk music has been quieted. Ronnie Drew, a founding member of The Dubliners, died in a Dublin hospital on August 16, just one month shy of his 74th birthday. The gravelly-voiced folk singer had suffered a long bout with throat cancer. Drew was a pioneering and much revered and loved figure in Irish folk music since helping to form The Dubliners, in 1962. “Ronnie Drew was an iconic figure in Irish music over the last five decades,” said Irish Prime Minister Brian Cowen in a prepared statement. “Whether as part of The Dubliners or during his solo career, Ronnie will also be remembered for his promotion of Irish music both at home and around the world.” [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]

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Americana Music Association to Honor Joan Baez, Sept. 18

Joan Baez is slated to receive the “Spirit of Americana” Free Speech Award during the Americana Music Association’s Seventh Annual Honors and Awards Ceremony, to be held Sept. 18 at the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee. Past recipients of the Spirit of Americana Award, which recognizes and celebrates artists who have ignited discussion and challenged the status quo through their music and their actions, also have included Johnny Cash, Kris Kristofferson, Mavis Staples, Judy Collins and Charlie Daniels. [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]

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LI Artists Pay Tribute to Harry Chapin, Aug 27

In these tough economic times, hunger is an even greater problem than usual on Long Island, with local food pantries and soup kitchens running bare. On Wednesday evening, August 27, at Eisenhower Park in East Meadow, many talented Long Island musical artists will present a concert and food drive in tribute to the late singer-songwriter, humanitarian and anti-hunger activist Harry Chapin -- playing his songs for the cause to which he dedicated himself. [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]

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Erik Darling, 1933-2008

Erik Darling, a singer, guitarist and banjo player, who replaced Pete Seeger in The Weavers 50 years ago and was part of the folk music revival of the 1950s to early 1960s, died of Lymphoma on August 3. Darling, who also was a member of The Tarriers and The Rooftop Singers, as well as a solo artist and an accompanist on recordings by other notable folk artists, was 74. [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]

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NoDepression.com to Re-Launch in Late September

When No Depression, which billed itself as “The Last Alt. Country (Whatever That Is) Bimonthly” ceased publication earlier this year, its owners vowed to continue a web presence. Now comes word that plans for a major overhaul of NoDepression.com are well under way this summer, with a new site set to be launched in late September. NoDepression.com, which will be edited by the magazine’s founding co-editor Peter Blackstock, will include regular blogs by many of the magazine’s most frequent contributors, including Blackstock and fellow founding co-editor Grant Alden, according to a news release issued this week on their behalf. [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]

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Independent Music Awards Extends Entry Deadline

The submissions deadline for the Independent Music Awards (IMA) has been extended to August 22. Produced by Music Resource Group, publishers of The Musician’s Atlas, the Independent Music Awards feature more than 50 music and design categories. Music categories (album and song) that might be of particular interest to AcousticMusicScene.com readers include such genres as Alt. Country, Americana, Blues, Children’s Music, Folk/Singer-Songwriter and World (traditional). In addition, finalists and winners will be selected for songs of social action and covers of established songs. Among the design categories are album packaging, music video, photography, swag and websites. [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]

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