Emerging Artists Showcase Performers Chosen for Falcon Ridge Folk Festival
Twenty-four artists/duos or groups have been selected to perform in the Emerging Artists Showcase during the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival on Friday afternoon, July 31, from noon to 4:30 p.m.
To continue reading this article and see the list of Emerging Artists Showcase performers, click on the headline.
Two Music Festivals in July Have Mass. Appeal
Two music festivals of note take place in Massachusetts in July: The New Bedford Folk Festival (July 4-5) along the cobblestoned streets of the old whaling port city, and the Green River Festival (July 10-12) featuring music, hot air balloons and more at the community college campus in Greenfield.
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Caitlin Canty is 2015 Telluride Troubadour Winner
Caitlin Canty, a Vermont-bred, New York City-based singer-songwriter with an Americana-rootsy rock style, won the 2015 Telluride Troubadour Competition. She then performed a short set on the main stage during the 42nd Annual Telluride Bluegrass Festival, a roots-oriented music festival set amid Colorado’s rugged San Juan Mountains, June 18-21.
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It’s Music Festival Time in New York State
Music festivals abound in New York State in late June. Among those of note are Clearwater’s Great Hudson River Revival (June 20-21 in Croton-on-Hudson), Old Songs Festival (June 26-28 in Altamont), American Roots Music Festival at Caramoor (June 27 in Katonah) and Rockland-Bergen Music Festival (June 27-28 in Tappan).
To continue reading this article, which also includes information about the Huntington and Falcon Ridge Folk Festivals that take place later in the summer, click on the headline.
Remembering Jean Ritchie, 1922-2015
Jean Ritchie, the Kentucky-born folksinger, songwriter and song collector who helped to popularize hundreds of traditional Appalachian ballads and spur the so-called folk revival of the mid-20th century in the U.S., died June 1, 2015 at her home in Berea, KY. Ritchie, 92, was surrounded by members of her family, who sang at her bedside during her last hours.
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Entries Sought in Mid-Atlantic Song Contest
Entries are now being accepted in the 32nd annual Mid-Atlantic Song Contest (MASC) produced by the Songwriters’ Association of Washington. The submission deadline is Sept. 15, 2015, while the early-bird deadline is July 15.
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Six Kerrville New Folk Winners Named for 2015
David Berkeley (Santa Fe, NM), Wes Collins (Chapel Hill, NC), Amy Kucharik (Somerville, MA), Tom Meny (Buda, TX), Anna Tivel (Portland, OR) and Becky Warren (Nashville, TN) have been named as winners in the 2015 Grassy Hill Kerrville New Folk Competition for Emerging Songwriters. The six winning songwriters were chosen from among hundreds of applicants following performances May 28-29 by 32 finalists during the New Folk Concerts held as part of the Kerrville Folk Festival in the Texas Hill Country.
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Top Albums & Songs of May 2015 (FOLKDJ-L)
Joe Hill’s Last Will by John McCutcheon was the most-played album on folk radio during May 2015, closely followed by Sue Massek’s Precious Memories. The title track of McCutcheon’s latest album was the most-played song during the month. So say charts compiled by Richard Gillmann from radio playlists submitted to FOLKDJ-L, an electronic discussion group for DJs and others interested in all folk-based music on the radio.
The May 2015 FOLKDJ-L charts are posted on AcousticMusicScene.com with permission. To view them, click on the headline.
SERFA Conference, a Musical ‘Family Reunion,’ Set for May 13-17 in North Carolina
Several days of contemporary and traditional folk music, networking, and learning opportunities await the nearly 200 people expected to converge on the Montreat Conference Center in Montreat, North Carolina, just off the Blue Ridge Parkway, near Asheville, May 13-17, 2015, for the eighth annual Southeast Regional Folk Alliance (SERFA) Conference. AcousticMusicScene.com will again host late-night song swaps.
[To continue reading this article -- including comments from renowned singer-songwriter and activist Si Kahn and a listing of Official and AcousticMusicScene.com Showcase performers -- click on the headline.]
Guy Carawan, Folk Musician and Musicologist, 1927-2015
Guy Carawan, a folksinger, musician, ethnomusicologist and activist perhaps best known for introducing the anthemic protest song “We Shall Overcome” to the American civil rights movement during the 1960s, died in his sleep May 1 following a lengthy illness. He was 87.
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Top Albums & Songs of April 2015 (FOLKDJ-L)
Pharis and Jason Romero’s A Wanderer I’ll Stay was the most-played album on folk radio during April 2015, while its title track was the most-played song for the second consecutive month. So say charts compiled from radio playlists submitted to FOLKDJ-L, an electronic discussion group for DJs and others interested in all folk-based music on the radio.
The monthly FOLKDJ-L top albums and song charts are posted on AcousticMusicScene.com, with permission. To view them, click on the headline.
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