Entry Deadline Nears for Mountain Stage NewSong Contest

July 21 is the application deadline for entering the regional live rounds of the Mountain Stage NewSong Contest, presented by Folk Alliance. The submission deadline for the general round – open to anyone from anywhere without respect to geography – is September 1. Now in its seventh year, the contest is open to performing songwriters in all musical genres. Cash and other prizes and opportunities will be awarded. [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]

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It’s Music Festival Time In Michigan

Among the music festivals of note taking place in Michigan this summer are Blissfest, the Flint Folk Music Festival, the Great Lakes Irish Music Festival, the Hiawatha Traditional Music Festival, Bluegrass in the Park, Riverfolk, and the Great Lakes Folk Festival. (For capsulized information about each of these festivals, as well as web links, click on the headline.]

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Music Festivals Abound in New England in July

Here’s a look at a few music festivals taking place in and around New England in July: Greater New Bedford Summerfest (July 4-6 in New Bedford, Massachusetts), Green River Festival (July 17-19 in Greenfield, Massachusetts) and the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival (July 24-27 in Hillsdale, New York). In addition, bluegrass festivals are slated for July 4-6 in Stafford Springs, Connecticut; July 19 in South Hadley, Massachusetts; and July 31-August 3 in East Hartford, Connecticut. [For details on these six festivals, click on the headline.]

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Blue Ridge Music Hall of Fame Inducts 10

Earl Scruggs and Doc Watson are among the inaugural class of inductees in the new Blue Ridge Music Hall of Fame in Wilkesboro, North Carolina. The two nationally known artists from the greater Blue Ridge Mountains region, which extends from north Georgia to northwestern Virginia, were honored during ceremonies June 13 at the Walker Center on the campus of Wilkes Community College (home to Merlefest). The Blue Ridge Music Hall of Fame was created in 2006 as a project of the Wilkes Heritage Museum and the nonprofit Old Wilkes, Inc. Through exhibits, interactive displays and an annual celebration of inductees, the Hall of Fame seeks to educate visitors, while defining and interpreting the rich musical heritage and traditions of the Blue Ridge Mountains area and musicians in all genres from the region who have contributed to it. [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]

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Huntington Summer Arts Festival Features Acoustic Music

Among the more than 50 free outdoor performances during the 43rd Annual Huntington Summer Arts Festival that gets under way on Friday, June 20, and runs through Sunday, August 17 at Heckscher Park (Prime Avenue and Main Street/Route 25A, Huntington) are quite a few featuring talented touring and local acoustic music artists. Among those slated to grace the Chapin Rainbow Stage are such notables as Tom Paxton, Janis Ian, Aztec Two-Step and Christine Lavin. The performances, presented by the Town of Huntington and produced by the Huntington Arts Council, are set for 8:30 p.m. (except for Tuesday night family performances, which start at 7:30 p.m.). Bring folding chairs or blankets. [To see the descriptive listings for 10 evenings of music this summer, click the headline.]

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Old Songs Festival Set for June 27-29 in Altamont, NY

The 28th annual Old Songs Festival takes place June 27-29, at Altamont Fairgrounds in Altamont, New York. Produced by Old Songs, Inc., a nonprofit organization based in the New York State Capitol Region that seeks to keep traditional music and dance alive through this event, as well as twice monthly concerts, monthly dances and educational programs, the festival will feature an array of folk, Celtic and multicultural musicians. This year’s music will range from the acoustic blues guitar riffs of Scott Ainslie to the Indian vibes of Galitcha, the traditional Quebecois sounds of Le Vent du Nord, and the fine fiddling and step-dancing of the Ottawa Valley’s April Verch and her band. Also featured will be such talented singer-songwriters as Joe Jencks and Si Kahn, the eclectic string band Walt Michael & Co., American folk and blues traditionalists Sparky and Rhonda Rucker, the Scottish quintet Malinky, Irish singer and instrumentalist Andy Irvine, and the Irish fiddle and guitar duo of Liz Carroll and John Doyle, among others. [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]

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Tribes Hill Honors WFUV’s John Platt

Tribes Hill, a nonprofit organization in New York’s lower Hudson Valley region that seeks to unite and encourage a diverse group of musicians and their patrons to find community both personally and musically, has conferred honorary lifetime membership on John Platt, host of Sunday Breakfast on WFUV-FM in New York. Platt, who has hosted the show since the spring of 1997, was honored during Tribes Hill’s annual meeting and hootenanny, June 14, at Hammond House in Valhalla. He shares this “special status” with Pete Seeger, the organization’s only other lifetime member. [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]

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2008 Music to Life Contest Winners Perform at Kerrville

Ten artists from across the U.S. were named as finalists in the 2008 Music to Life Songwriting Contest and had an opportunity to share their original songs of social and political significance during the recently concluded Kerrville Folk Festival in the Texas Hill Country. Performing songwriters included grand prize award winners Ellen Bukstel and Nick Annis (who co-wrote “By My Silence”), Randy Browning (“Radical Rags”), Ellen Bukstel (Tikkun Olam, Repair the World”), Ellis (“City on Fire”), Jon Fromer (“Welcome”), Rachael Kilgour (“Cheap Grace”), Lisa Rogers (“Jesus and Jesus”), Eugene Ruffolo (“Dear Father”), Amy Speace (“The Weight of the World”), and Amy Carol Webb (“Raise Your Hand”). The Music to Life contest is sponsored by the Public Domain Foundation, a nonprofit organization launched by Noel Paul Stookey more than 30 years ago to encourage the making and use of music for social change. The foundation seeks to foster awareness of issues, provide funds for causes of social concern, enhance the capacity of music to effect social change, and build community through shared values and global understanding. [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]

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WFDU Rebroadcasts Stan Rogers Documentary, June 1

Highly influential Canadian folksinger-songwriter Stan Rogers died 25 years ago, June 2, in an airplane fire while en route home after performing at the Kerrville Folk Festival in the Texas Hill Country. On Sunday, June 1,in recognition of this sad anniversary, WFDU-FM in Teaneck, New Jersey will rebroadcast “Remembering Stan Rogers,” a radio documentary that Ron Olesko, host of its long-running “Traditions” program, produced in 2003. The three-hour music-filled documentary, airing from 3 to 6 p.m. ET at 89.1 FM in the New York City area and online at www.wfdu.fm, takes a look at Stan Rogers’ life and music. It features, as Olesko puts it, “full songs, not just snippets,” interspersed with commentary from his family and friends (including producer & musician Paul Mills and musician Grit Laskin), and Rogers himself. [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]

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Long Island AcoustiCalendar for June Through Mid-July 2008

Warm weather and some hot acoustic music are in the forecast for Long Islanders this summer, including a number of outdoor concert series and festivals. More than 125 concerts, open mics and jam sessions set for June through mid-July appear in this installment of the Long Island AcoustiCalendar. [To see the listings, click on the headline.]

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2008 Grassy Hill Kerrville New Folk Winners Named

Six songwriters were named as 2008 New Folk Winners after performing, along with 26 other finalists, in the Grassy Hill Kerrville New Folk Concerts, May 24-25, at the Threadgill Theater on the Quiet Valley Ranch Campgrounds at the Kerrville Folk Festival in the Texas Hill Country. This year's winners were RJ Cowdery of Columbus, Ohio; Robby Hecht of Nashville, TN; Betty Soo of Austin, TX; Devon Sproule of Charlottesville, VA; CJ Watson of Nashville, TN; and Hans York of Seattlle, WA. [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]

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Folksinger, Storyteller, Railroad Tramp Utah Phillips Dead at 73

Utah Phillips, a seminal figure in American folk music, who performed extensively and tirelessly for audiences on two continents for 38 years, died Friday, May 23, of congestive heart failure in Nevada City, California. [To read the entire article, click on the headline.]

Continue ReadingFolksinger, Storyteller, Railroad Tramp Utah Phillips Dead at 73