Robin Morton, who played an integral and pioneering role in traditional Celtic music as a founding member of Boys of the Lough, manager of Scotland’s Battlefield Band, avid song collector, and founder & owner of the Scottish label Temple Records, died on Oct. 1, 2021. He was 81.
Billy Strings was the recipient of the coveted Entertainer of the Year Award, the top honor in the 32nd Annual IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards, presented September 30, 2021 at Raleigh, North Carolina’s Duke Energy Center for the Arts. [Click on the headline to continue reading this article and to view the complete list of award winners.]
Rob Lutes (Come Around) and Allison Russell (Outside Child) top the list of nominees for the 2022 Canadian Folk Music Awards with four nods each, while Cedric Dind-Lavoie, Whitehorse, The Hello Darlins, Rosier, Rick Fines, and Polky snagged three nominations each. They are among the 105 nominees from throughout Canada vying for awards in 19 categories to be presented in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, April 1-3, 2022. [Click on the headline to continue reading this article and see the complete list of nominees.]
The 20th annual Americana Honors & Awards were presented at the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee on September 22, 2021. Brandi Carlile, Sturgill Simpson, the late John Prine, Black Pumas, Charley Crockett, and Kristin Weber were named as recipients during an awards show that is the highlight of the annual AmericanaFest, a multi-day celebration of American roots-inspired music put on by the Americana Music Association, that extends through Sept. 25. [Click on the headline or link below to continue reading this article.]
Four Folk Alliance International regional affiliates have opted to present their annual conferences online this fall in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. First up is the Southwest Regional Folk Alliance (SWRFA) virtual conference that is slated for September 24-26. Folk Alliance Region-West (FAR-West) hosts its virtual conference October 14-16; Folk Alliance Region Midwest (FARM)’s Virtual Connections The Gathering takes place October 27-30; and the Northeast Regional Folk Alliance (NERFA) 2021 virtual conference is set for November 11-14.
The 2021 Celtic Classic highland games & festival is set for Friday-Sunday, September 24-26 in downtown Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Presented by the nonprofit Celtic Cultural Alliance, the free annual event is a celebration of the Irish, Scottish and Welsh cultures and heritage and will feature five stages of continuous entertainment – including traditional Celtic music, Celtic rock and folk.
Music festival impresario George Wein, founder of the Newport Folk & Jazz Festivals and the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, died September 13 in his New York City apartment. The noted pianist, producer and promoter was 95.
Nanci Griffith was the most-played artist and had five of the 10 most-played songs on folk radio during August 2021, while Jackson Browne’s Downhill From Everywhere was the month’s top album. So say charts compiled by Folk Alliance International based on radio playlists submitted to FOLKDJ-L, an electronic discussion group for DJs and others interested in folk-based music on the radio. [Click on the headline to continue reading this article and to view the monthly charts that are posted with permission.]
Nanci Griffith, a Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter, whose music straddled the line between folk and country, died on August 13, 2021 at age 68. [Click on the headline to continue reading this article , including reflections from other artists.]
Diana Jones, an American singer-songwriter, had the top album (Song to a Refugee) and was the most-played artist on folk radio during July 2021, while Canadian singer-songwriter Murray McLaughlin’s “Pandemic Blues” was the month’s most-played song. So say charts compiled by Folk Alliance International based on radio playlists submitted to FOLKDJ-L, an electronic discussion group for DJs and others interested in folk-based music on the radio. [Click on the headline to continue reading this article and view the monthly charts that are posted on AcousticMusicScene.com with permission.]
For more than a quarter of a century, lovers of Celtic music, crafts and culture have gathered each August at a park along the shores of Lake Huron in Goderich, Ontario for the Goderich Celtic Roots Festival. Like a number of other music festivals forced to cancel or postpone over the past 17 months due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the festival’s organizers have arranged an online festival in its place. Featuring pre-recorded musical performances and live hosts, the 2021 Celtic Roots Virtual Festival will stream on Friday, August 6 from 7-11 p.m. EDT and on Saturday, August 7, from 1-5 p.m. EDT. [Click on the headline to continue reading about this virtual festival and a few workshops that precede it.]
After going completely virtual last year in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival has adopted a hybrid model for its 33rd year and will be considerably shorter than in previous years. A one-day only festival with full pandemic precautions and both socially distanced in-person and livestream options is set for Saturday, July 31, 2021 at the Goshen Fairgrounds in Goshen, Connecticut.
