Folk and Roots - Features and Articles

Meurig Bowen has announced the programme for the 64th – and his first – Cheltenham Music Festival (Friday 4-Saturday 19 July).

The major theme of this year’s Festival is the 50th anniversary of Vaughan Williams’ death which prompts a broad-ranging investigation of classical music’s connection with folk-song in the 20th century. The various compositions of the folk-inclined RVW, Holst, Grainger, Britten, Bartok, Kodaly and Lutoslawski are all performed at the Festival by distinguished folk influenced artists such as the greatest ambassador to British folk music, Kathryne Tickell. Kathryn will also explore the possibilities of combining Indian and British folk traditions with percussionist Kuljit Bharma in collaboration with SPNM. The Manchester Camerata with Gordon Nikolitch bring together Vaughan Williams’ expansive masterpiece with folk tunes and the (Cheltenham raised) Holst’s St Paul’s Suite, as well as Bartok’s 1939 Divertimento which brilliantly combines modernist and folk-like influences.

Alongside their folksong arrangements for more conventional vocal or orchestral line-ups, Vaughan Williams, Holst and Grainger all created folk suites for the remarkable sonorities of military band and they have become central showpieces in the HM Royal Marines Band repertoire around the world.

Wells Cathedral School Chamber Choir, the jewel of the specialist music school will include two choral works by Maxwell Davies, as well as Britten, Kodaly, Peter Dickenson, Bardos and Vaughan Williams in their programme.

The Trio Medieval on 5th July will dazzle with the purity of their voices and immaculate blend combining with the simplicity and pathos of their country’s folksong. ‘Early Music’ and ‘Folk’ has never combined more beautifully.

The emphasis on Folk continues with virtuoso Venezuelan Band, Trabuco. Featuring folk instruments like the cuatro (four-string guitar) and the lute-like bandola, Trabuco brings together eight of the finest classical and traditional performers in Venezuela. Their astonishing repertoire focuses on Venezuelan ‘joropo’, derived over many centuries from styles as diverse as Spanish Baroque music, Arabic dances, flamenco, melaguenas and fandangos. This is music to make you smile and dance, to mesmerise and dazzle.

- Paired concerts from the BBC Philharmonic, to include Holst’s The Planets, Lutoslawski’s Concerto for Orchestra and VW’s The Lark Ascending
- An opening-weekend early music triptych, featuring Trio Medieval, the Rolf Lislevand Ensemble and John Potter’s project with saxophonist John Surman
- Schubert’s three song cycles, performed consecutively on the Festival’s final three days by Mark Padmore, Allan Clayton, Florian Boesch, Paul Lewis and Roger Vignoles
- Arvo Pärt and Veljo Tormis sung by the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir
- Handel and Vivaldi from mezzo Sarah Connolly and La Serenissima
- A pianos and percussion extravaganza, combining Carmina Burana with Reich’s Sextet and Grainger’s The Warriors
- Premieres by Peter Maxwell Davies, Mark Anthony Turnage, Tansy Davies and Jo Duddell

The Messiaen centenary is marked with performances of the Quartet for the End of Time and Ex Expecto Resurrectionem Mortuorum – in the magnificent, lofty surroundings of Tewkesbury Abbey.

In a Festival whose performers range as widely as Romanian gypsy legends Taraf de Haidouks, Northumbrian pipist Kathryn Tickell and the Royal Marines Concert Band, the many mainstream artists appearing feature exciting, emerging talents alongside beloved, established names:

The published programme of the 2008 Cheltenham Music Festival will be available in early April, and public booking opens on 21 April.

May 2007 marks a triumphant return to these shores for the acclaimed trio The Wailin’ Jennys, Canada’s undisputed darlings of that countries acoustic roots scene. Last seen here in 2007, the band has been sweeping all aside in the US as a hugely successful touring regime has garnered them a healthy and vibrant audience. The tour will feature Heather Massey alongside original members Nicky Mehta and Ruth Moody.

Firecracker, the girl’s second album was released in September 2006 to great reviews. Recorded in Toronto and Winnipeg in early 2006, Firecracker features the trio in a vibrant combination of settings and roots styles. From the startling bluegrass workout of the opening “The Devils Paintbrush Road” to the atmospherical, drop-dead gorgeous acapella three-part harmonies of “Long Time Traveller,” this is the sound of three distinct voices at the very peak of their art.

The band have played sessions on Bob Harris (BBC Radio 2) and Loose Ends (BBC Radio 3), amongst a multitude of regional radio shows.

The organizers behind TRUCK, the UK's coolest small-but-perfectly-formed summer festival, are creating a new kind of music event, powered by bicycles, wood-burning stoves and the sun. The aim of the festival is to celebrate music and nature, so naturally it's called… WOOD!

We should say 'here's the first purpose-designed green-eco-sustainable festival' but we'd sound like 'Dave' Cameron! We prefer to keep things simple, natural and… woody! Things made of WOOD include the composting toilets, the showers, the campfire, the guitars, the yurts (yes, you can hire one!) and, of course, the stage. The food and drink are not made of wood, but will be cooked in a wood-fired oven. And we're making all the performers do a song by our patron saint, Woody Guthrie!

The festival will be held at Braziers Park, Oxfordshire (once the love-nest of Mick Jagger and Marianne Faithful!) on May 16th, 17th & 18th 2008. The Rolling Stones aren't performing (not even Ron!) but these people are:
GET CAPE. WEAR CAPE. FLY, LIGHTSPEED CHAMPION, ASHLEY HUTCHINGS' Rainbow Chasers, CIRCULUS, KING CREOSOTE, DEVON SPROULE, THE COAL PORTERS, DANNY & THE CHAMPIONS OF THE WORLD and many more.

We're not really hippies, though one of us has a beard, so we've teamed up with some professional tree-huggers including The Ecologist, Oxford Green Pages, Environmental Graffiti, the TRUCK foundation and the Braziers Park community to bring you the workshops, activities and talks, at WOOD, from circle-dancing to making stuff (out of wood, naturally).

Robin Bennett, who founded TRUCK festival as a teenager in 1998, became a dad on the morning of the rescheduled TRUCK in September last year: 'that got me thinking about what kind of festival I would put on if I was starting again now, where all 3 members of the family could have fun at the same time. I also tried to start a moustache; let's hope they both grow into something wonderful!'

Robin is available for interview; For further details contact Genevieve Willis: 01235 821262 / 07753 651079 / Genevieve@thisistruck.com

Folk From Here, an spnm project headlined by new artistic director Kuljit Bhamra and Kathryn Tickell, showcases five outstanding musicians from Indian, Celtic and English folk traditions, who will perform new repertoire for tabla, pipes, sitar, fiddle and melodeon. The vibrant soundworlds created by this unique band will feature music by four of the UK's best emerging composers from the spnm Shortlist. These new pieces are the result of a five-month devising process with the band exploring the palette of new sounds opened up by such an eclectic combination of instruments. The composers, who have been mentored by composer and folk flautist Eddie McGuire, are developing innovative ways of working with the band, creating new structures for notational and improvising musicians to perform new music together.

Artists:
Kuljit Bhamra - tabla, percussion www.kuljitbhamra.com
Kathryn Tickell - Northumbrian small pipes, fiddle www.kathryntickell.com
Jonathan Mayer - sitar www.jonathanmayer.co.uk
Marie Fielding - fiddle www.mariefieldingmusic.com
Julian Sutton - melodeon www.auvoquartet.com
Composer mentor
Eddie McGuire www.scottishmusiccentre.com/edward_mcguire

8 May - Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester
0161 907 5555 www.rncm.ac.uk

4 Jun - Spitalfields Festival, London
020 7377 1362 www.spitalfieldsfestival.org.uk

Headline artist biographies:
Kuljit Bhamra is a composer, producer, tabla player and pioneer of the Bhangra phenomenon. He has recorded over 2000 songs to date and worked on award-winning film scores such as Bend it like Beckham and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. He was an on-stage percussionist in Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical Bombay Dreams and wrote music for the musical adaptation of The Far Pavilions.
Kathryn Tickell is a composer and performer whose work is deeply connected to the landscape and people of Northumbria. She has toured extensively throughout the UK and abroad, collaborating with artists as diverse as Sting, Andy Sheppard and Sir Peter Maxwell Davies.
spnm promotes the creation, performance and appreciation of new music through a range of unique opportunities and services, having launched the careers of many of the UK's leading composers. From catwalk to concert hall, working in theatres, galleries, night-clubs, cinemas and even power stations, spnm seeks to showcase their talents in ever-broader and more exciting environments.
spnm shortlisted composers taking part in the project:

Jonathan Booty
(b. 1956) After initial training as a flautist at the R.C.M. and in Paris, Jonathan Booty spent a number of years as Assistant Principal Flute in the Hallé Orchestra. He now combines work as a freelance flautist with composition, tutoring at Manchester University. This is his second time on the spnm shortlist.
http://www.spnm.org.uk/?page=shortlist/composer.html&id=50

Adam Melvin
Adam Melvin (b.1977) studied at Queens University, Belfast and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. He is doing a PhD at the Royal Academy of Music and teaches at Ulster University.
His music has been performed by the Manson Ensemble, Artea Quartet, Kate Lucas and the New Juilliard Ensemble, New York. A great deal of his recent work has involved collaborations with the visual arts.
http://www.spnm.org.uk/?page=shortlist/composer.html&id=236

Nick Redfern
Nick Redfern (b.1962) studied composition at Huddersfield Polytechnic, King's College London, the Royal College of Music and Birmingham Conservatoire and was active as a composer throughout the 1980's and early 1990's. However, between 1992 and 2002 ill health caused him to stop writing, and since then he has been relearning the skills lost in the previous decade.
http://www.spnm.org.uk/?page=shortlist/composer.html&id=228

Laurence Rose
Laurence Rose (b.1957) started composing as a hobby in 2003, developing his skills with the encouragement and tuition he received at CoMA (Contemporary Music-making for Amateurs) Summer Schools. Apart from early violin lessons, music had barely featured in his formal education and career until then. He is a Board member for CoMA and the Huddersfield Festival and works for the RSPB.
http://www.spnm.org.uk/?page=shortlist/composer.html&id=289

“You will adore this album. Corinne West is a brilliant songwriter with a powerfully eloquent singing voice” Maverick – Tour Sponsor

Echoes of an idyllic hippy lifestyle abound when you look at the early musical career of Corinne West. At age 15, she dropped out of school and joined a group of musicians and artistes travelling around the United States in an old school bus. Living with an intriguing mix of counter-culture artistes and crazy characters had a profound influence on her future musical endeavours.

The next logical step was to start busking, playing her own material, a heady mix of country, bluegrass, folk-rock and Americana. Her Grandfather had taken her to the famed honkytonks from an early age, so country music was always to be a major influence, bluegrass having the strongest appeal. She soon had enough original songs for her stunning debut album, released in 2004 entitled BOUND FOR THE LIVING, thirteen tracks of superb acoustic folk and bluegrass. The album won rave reviews from esteemed media such as Maverick, Relix and Sing Out!

After a hugely successful tour of the UK in 2007 Corinne is back in 2008, accompanied by guitarist extraordinaire Walter Strauss and armed with yet another musical masterpiece. SECOND SIGHT, her second release is a master class in the art of the singer songwriter. The album is an inspired collection of songs showing a new level of confidence in her music, all produced by the legendary Mike Marshall who in the past has worked with such notables as Bela Fleck and David Grisman. Featured musicians on the album include Jerry Douglas (Alison Krauss and Union Station), Darol Anger and Tony Furtado.

Corinne will be recording a session for Bob Harris’ BBC 2 radio show when she touches ground in the UK on April 1st. The show will air the following Saturday. This lady is on the move with a full 5 week touring schedule in England, Scotland and Ireland.

SECOND SIGHT is a strong, focused and emotionally powerful album, rich with stellar musicians and featuring eleven original songs of the highest quality. What shines through the most is the vocal delivery of Corinne West, her voice is a most dynamic instrument, at times subtle and sophisticated and then again unbridled and passionate, capturing both the fragility and the strength of the human spirit. Summed up in one word, magical.

One listen to Second Sight should be enough to convince you that Corinne West is worth your attention. Vintage Guitar Magazine

This girl can sing! I can listen to music of this quality for hours. Freight Train Boogie

Corinne West is on her way up. Great songs and powerful singing are going to take her far. Montrose Daily Press, Colorado

April 2008
Wed 2nd – Kent – Fulston Manor – 01795 475228
Thu 3rd – Bournemouth Folk Club – 01202 707498
Fri 4th – Rotherham – The Rock @ Maltby – 01709 585977
Sun 6th – Bristol – Bordeaux Quay – 01179 041870
Wed 9th – Isle of Wight Quay Arts – 01983 822490
Thu 10th – Devon – Otterton Mill – 01395 568521
Fri 11th – London – Kalamazoo Club – www.kalamazooklub.co.uk
Sat 12th – Hampshire – Ashcroft Arts Centre – 01329 223100
Sun 13th – Twickenham Folk Club – 020 89915461
Mon 14th – Maidstone : Zebra Bar – w/Kimmie Rhodes – 01622 744481
Wed 16th Dunfermline, Scotland – Abbott House Heritage Centre – 07872 428341
Thu 17th – Glasgow Scotland – Rutherglenn Town Hall – 0141 6135700
Sat 19th – East Harptree – East Harptree Village Hall – 01761 221448
Mon 21st – Sharpthorn, Acoustic Sussex – Ravenswood Hotel 01342 714810
Wed 23rd – Oswestry – The Ironworks – 01691 679123
Fri 25th – Barton Upon Humber: Ropewalk – 01652 660380
Sat 26th – Kirkbymoorside – The Band Room – 01751 432900
Tue 29th – Castlerock, N. Ireland - Crusoes Coffee Shop - 028 7084 9618

MAY 2008
Sat 3rd – Enniskillen, N. Ireland – Copper Kettle Folk Club – Railway Hotel
Sun 4th – Limavady, N. Ireland: Danny Boy Festival – 02877760304
Thu 8th – Belfast, N. Ireland: The Errigle Inn – 02890323744
Fri 9th – Naul. Co. Dublin, Ireland – Seamus Ennis Centre – 01-8020898
Sat 10th – Lismore, Co. Waterford – Lismore World Music – 058-53970

The English Folk Dance and Song Society is proud to announce a series of Saturday workshops at Cecil Sharp House. The workshops are set to begin on 19 April 2008. Sessions are geared toward beginners, although students of all levels of experience are welcome. Classes will occur on the first and third Saturdays of the month, from 10.30-12.30 at Cecil Sharp House in Camden Town. The series will feature widely renowned teachers, lecturers, and workshop leaders. Instruction will be offered in banjo, piano accordion, and voice . Each day will include both classes and lectures, with classes in the morning and lectures following. Please see the EFDSS web page for more information.

Classes will run for two terms. The first term will begin on 19 April and end on 19 July, and the second will begin 6 September and run through 12 December. Instructors include Ed Hicks (banjo), Paul Hutchinson (Accordion), Sam Lee (voice), and Tim van Eyken (voice). Lecturers include Malcolm Taylor, Vic Gammon , Doc Rowe, Shirley Collins, John Howson, and Reg Hall.

Places in the workshops are limited, so advance booking is recommended. Some instruments may be available for students who do not have their own; please call Cecil Sharp House on 0208 485 2206 to enquire about instruments or to book a place.

Cecil Sharp House is located at 2 Regents Park Road, Camden Town, NW1 7AY. For directions, please visit www.efdss.org . The Vaughan Williams Memorial Library will be open on Saturday workshop days.

JSL Productions present a picnic concert of sublime contemporary folk music set amongst the wooded fields of Hatfield Park.

The line up features an award winning gathering of musicians whose contemporary style of folk will open up a whole new acoustic world to those who haven't visited the folk genre for a while. A revolution in acoustic music, inspired by traditional roots, has been quietly evolving. Folk By The Oak will reveal the incredible wealth of talent that makes these artists so unique and exciting.

Seth Lakeman:
The MERCURY PRIZE nominee and folk sensation Seth Lakeman, has done more than anyone to bring folk into the mainstream and is a truly magnetic live performer.
Cara Dillon:
Award winning Cara Dillon described in MOJO as having 'a stunningly beautiful voice' will team up with the extraordinary talent of rising 'nu-folk' star John Smith.
Martin Simpson:
A spell-binding master of his craft and winner of BBC RADIO 2 Best Album and Best Original Song Award 2008. Julie Fowlis:
Hailed by Mark Radcliffe as ''enchanting and beguiling and as fascinating as songs by Kate Bush and Bjork" Julie is winner of BBC RADIO 2 Folk singer of the year 2008.
Ruth Notman:
A remarkable, pure and powerful voice. '…one of the most assured, varied and impressive debut albums of the year'. THE GUARDIAN. "A new voice in British Folk" The Independent - ALBUM OF THE WEEK"

Breabach:
"A young group performing with technical assurance and a feel for traditional idioms....Their raucous, driving attack is energised and exciting!" The Scotsman. These Scottish firebrands will have you up on your feet!
Matthew Ord:
An exciting newcomer on the UK roots music scene - an exceptional player and vocalist who will entertain you with his own brand of technically exquisite acoustic guitar at its best.

Bring a picnic or have one delivered, sit back and absorb yourself in wistful ballads or dance along to jigs and reels surrounded by ancient trees in the beautiful Queen Elizabeth Oak Field at Hatfield House. In addition to the musical programme there will be traditional fairgrounds side stalls, craft stalls, music stalls, recycled gifts and a selection of tasty produce on site. There will also be a selection of quality refreshments and bars on site.

JSL Productions look forward to inviting you to an afternoon and evening of some of the finest acoustic music you'll hear today.

Concert arena opens 1.30pm (Ticket holders can enjoy the rest of the park at Hatfield for free from 11.00am)
Concert commences 2.30pm
Concert finishes approximately 9.30pm

Ticket information:
Info and booking line: 01432 355 416 website: www.folkbytheoak.com
Adult: £26 (£33 on day of concert subject to availability), Child under 16 years: £14, Family Offer: (2 adults and 2 children) £72.
Group Offer: Advance groups of 10 or more qualify for a £2 reduction per ticket
Children under 5 years free.

The English Originals Folk Festival presents a perfect weekend celebration of English music traditions over the weekend of 25-27 April at Town Hall and Symphony Hall Birmingham, paying tribute to a musical heritage passed down through centuries and generations.

With its sense of identity in representing the sounds of city and country, folk culture continues to have a universal influence on music and art in the 21st century and is currently enjoying a huge renaissance.

From 'one man Clash' Billy Bragg to the distinguished voices of experience in Daughters of Albion, the English Originals Folk Festival programme is packed with seasoned folk singer-songwriters and bright new talent in three unique concerts, free performances and events.

Featuring:
Billy Bragg, Norma Waterson, June Tabor, Martin Carthy, Seth Lakeman, Kathryn Williams, Tim Van Eyken, Chris Woods, Tunng, Sharron Krauss, Bishi, Lou Rhodes, Lisa Knapp, Little Sister and The Old Dance School

25 April Symphony Hall
Local band The Old Dance School light the festival fuse in a lively fashion with a free performance in the Level 3 Bar as part of Rush Hour Blues from 5.30pm. With an inimitable mix of traditional social dance songs, ceilidh and roots rhythms and country melodies, the young Birmingham group dance along the folk trail, setting the scene for a rousing weekend ahead.

25 April Town Hall
The recently restored Birmingham landmark venue welcomes national treasure and renowned singer songwriter Billy Bragg reading from his engaging book The Progressive Patriot at 6.30pm which examines idea of nationalism before launching into a full evening of musical exploration from 7.30pm. Supported by acclaimed 'renaissance man of folk' and intimate story teller Chris Woods plus North London family rockabilly from Kitty Daisy & Lewis, the 'Bard of Barking' looks at his own English roots, and performs songs from his fantastic new album Mr Love and Justice.

26 April Town Hall
Rising Folk (7.30pm) sees the new generation of English talent with a Mercury Music Prize nominee, a shape-shifting folk electronica collective and a heart-stirring dark folk lyricist all building on the work of a musical history that began hundreds of years ago.

Hailing from the glorious wilds of Dartmoor, violinist and singer Seth Lakeman is undoubtedly one of the rising stars of folk with album sales in excess of 100,000 and an impressive list of collaborations to his name. Label-mates with KT Tunstall and Joss Stone; the 2007 BBC Radio 2 Folk Singer of the Year releases his fourth album Poor Man's Heaven later this month, and paints truly evocative pictures of love and loss through thrilling and haunting melodies.

Fresh from releasing her third stunning solo album Mr Fox's Wedding, Oxford based singer and musician Sharron Krauss draws inspiration from English and Appalachian folk traditions, and performs with an utterly mesmerising flourish. Described as 'spine tingling' and 'wantonly beguiling', the storyteller and balladeer takes audiences on stark and vivid journeys through dark folk stories, weaving her craft into a rich tapestry of poetry and performance.

Experimental East London collective Tunng make up the triple bill, twisting familiar folk soundscapes with a stunning production, striking live vocals and eclectic music inspired by anything from British pop to Icelandic folk rock. Founded in a Soho basement, the sextet perform live with an all-embracing and dub-like musical approach, with burning melodies, hooks and samples layered over live instruments producing a delicious aural collision of sounds, past and present.

27 April Town Hall
Fans of folk have a chance to watch the acclaimed BBC Four documentary Folk Britannia starting at 2.00pm, a film which charts the history of folk from World War II to the present folk revival. The three part series examines the evolution and subsequent influence of folk music in England on all manner of movements, from revolutionary leftwing artists to the hippy prog-rockers of the 1960's. Now firmly back in mainstream culture, the history of an indigenous music is told by the artists who helped shaped it. A must-see for newcomers and enthusiasts alike.

27 April Symphony Hall
Playing arrangements of world folk songs ranging from Irish to Latino to American Country alongside original compositions about frogs in love, falling over in the street, magpies and other such wonders, Little Sister are Birmingham's answer to the Be Good Tanyas. Blending influences from the Midlands, Wales, Oxfordshire and Yorkshire into stomping sets, the four singers and musicians play live in a free show in the Level 3 Bar at 6pm, hot on the heels of their new EP Little Sister and with a debut album in the offing.

27 April Symphony Hall
Intertwined in a meeting of folk royalty and ultramodern brilliance are a myriad of styles and sounds from the enchanting Daughters of Albion in an evening of ethereal and exquisite vocals from June Tabor, Norma Waterson, Kathryn Williams, Bishi, Lou Rhodes and Lisa Knapp from 7.30pm.

Following on from sell out shows at Cork Festival and The Barbican, the group sing songs of experience, accompanied by a very special house band including legendary guitarist Martin Carthy, widely recognised as one of the most influential figures in British traditional music, and former Waterson: Carthy melodeon player and singer Tim Van Eyken.

Lost 19th century gypsy songs sit side by side with slinky trip-hop tracks, all shot through with a deliciously dark seam of melancholy in imaginative and thrilling arrangements from outstanding producer and composer Kate St John for a concert extraordinaire.

Experience a spectacular festival finale from the post-Lamb wilting melodies of Lou Rhodes and the stark urgent stories of the soulful June Tabor to the fresh sounds of BBC Radio 2 Folk Horizon Award nominee Lisa Knapp. The tender tones of Americana-inspired Kathryn Williams share a stage with 'doyenne of British folk' Norma Waterson and the golden sitar work of DJ and singer Bishi all in a moving night of duets and collaborations.

Singer songwriter Steve Knightley and multi instrumentalist Phil Beer will spearhead the first Folk Prom on Tuesday, July 22 - a melting pot of music with a Celtic influence.

They will be joined by two contrasting Cornish acts - the funky 3 Daft Monkeys - an institution on the festival circuit with their infectious acoustic jiggery - and the on-song shanty singers Fishermen's Friends (left) - - a crew of real fishermen, coastguards, lifeboatmen and others all living within a nautical mile of each other in Port Isaac and making their first foray into Wales.

Fishermen's Friends guested with Show of Hands at their sell out Royal Albert Hall gig last Easter and have appeared on Show of Hands recordings, providing a rousing chorus line for some of the band's best known songs like Roots and Cousin Jack.

One of the highlights on Cardiff's cultural calendar, the Proms event at St David's is bigger and better this year, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the opening of the National Concert Hall of Wales. The 2008 season (running July 3 through to the Last Night of the Welsh Proms on July 26) will feature no less than seven magnificent home grown orchestras, also including the BBC National Orchestra of Wales whilst Terfel and Evans will star in a performance of Mendelssohn's Elijah. There will also be Gamelan, Organ and Children's Proms as part of the programme.

The Show of Hands gig will showcase some of the mighty musical talent to come out of the West Country. Based at Topsham, near Exeter, Knightley and Beer have sold out the Albert Hall three times and played almost every leading festival from Glastonbury and Cambridge to Scotland's Celtic Connections.

Nominated for both Best Duo and Best Live Act at the 2008 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards - and previous winners of the latter - they continue to champion the West Country and regularly weave its people, places, legends and history into their inspirational, diverse and often anthemic songs.

Tickets for the Show of Hands gig, which starts at 8pm, are available on 029 2087 8444, price £16. More info at www.stdavidshallcardiff.co.uk

This years festival is officially launched at Manchester Town Hall on Friday 7 March, it continues until Wednesday 20 March.

The community based festival features two weeks of Irish Art, Dance, Comedy, Culture, Music, Sport and Educational workshops.

Highlights during the opening weekend include the launch of Levenshulme’s ten day ‘Tradfest’ on Friday 7 March. On Saturday 8 March St Bede’s College stage their sell out ‘Young, Gifted & Green’ Irish Music and Dance show at the Lowry, in aid of ‘Francis House’ Children’s Hospice. The show features a number of award winning musicians and the three times world champion – JAMES Keegan from ‘Lord of the Dance’. While on Sunday 9 March the Festival Irish Parade takes place in the city centre.

Other highlights include an attempt to set the UK’s largest Irish session on Wednesday 12 March at the Union in Levenshulme. The area’s award winning Irish community Radio show ‘The Full Irish’ will be broadcasting the event live on air and over the internet.

On Saturday 15 March the celebrations for St Patrick’s Day itself kick off at 12 noon in Levenshulme with a whole host of live family orientated entertainment and special live screenings of Irelands match against England in the Six nations. While over in Fallowfield ‘Toss the Feathers’ celebrate their 21st anniversary with a special concert on Saturday 15th March.

Other major Irish events taking place in March in the city include ‘Westlife’ at the MEN Arena and ‘Van Morrison’ at the Bridgewater Hall and Brendan O’Carroll’s new Irish Comedy play at the opera House. Irish singer songwriter ‘Ray Heffernan’ who wrote ‘Angels’ for Robbie Williams performs a special set at m19.

Easter is at its earliest this year and St. Patrick’s Day has been moved to Saturday 15 March as the original date of the 17 March falls on the Monday of Holy Week. No liturgical feast takes precedence over the days of Holy Week so religious celebrations will come two days earlier on Saturday March 15th to avoid such a conflict.

The Vatican has approved the new date of Saturday March 15th as the feast of St Patrick for 2008 only to minimize conflict with the scheduled civic events around the world. The last time this happened was in 1940 and it will be probably another 68 years before it happens again.

The first festival was launched in 1996 by the then President of Ireland Mary Robinson, it has since grown into one of the biggest Irish Festivals in Europe. The festival has played host to the likes of Shane McGowan, Toss the Feathers, Riverdance, Lord of the Dance, Young, Gifted & Green, Westlife, The Corrs, Van Morrison , Mary Black, Sharon Shannon, Hazel O'Connor, Stocktons Wing and The Oyster Band.

Irish Comedians involved have included Ardal O'Hanlon, Peter Kay, Tommy Tiernan, Jason Byrne and Dylan Moran.

Facts and figures about the festival
*Tradfest: Levenshulme village will stage a ten day ‘tradfest’ which will feature over one hundred traditional Irish musicians, singers and dancers. There will be a series of concerts and events staged in a number of the Irish venues in the village. Most events are free or are a nominal charge to make them accessible to the general public.

* The mounted police, the Lord Mayor of Manchester, along with representatives of the Irish Government, representatives of the Irish Community, local MPs & Councillors and approximately 40 floats take part in the Parade every year – stretched out, the Parade is a mile long .

* Over a million people get involved with the Festival every year – and 250,000 people line the streets of Manchester to watch the Parade alone.

*St Patrick’s Weekend Funfair is being held in Cringle Fields in Levenshulme on Saturday 15 and Sunday 16 March.

*UK record attempt for the Country’s Largest Irish session will take place in the Union Inn in Levenshulme on Wednesday 12 March.

*The Festival stages a number of Educational Irish Music and Dance workshops aimed at Schools.

*Irish Culture - its history and language is well catered for in the festival with a number of special events taking place during the two week festival.

*The Festival is a city wide event with venues throughout Greater Manchester putting on events. The main areas are Levenshulme village which is home to the biggest Irish community outside of London plus Chorlton, Fallowfield, Whalley Range, Cheetham Hill, Wythenshawe and the City Centre.

* The festival has grown each year and in 2006 gained support from Irish superstar Michael Flatley .

Tickets for Show of Hands hugely popular annual summer family concert on the Dorset heritage coast will go on sale next Monday (March 3).

Singer songwriter Steve Knightley and multi instrumentalist Phil Beer's 2008 signature festival at Abbotsbury's glorious sub-tropical gardens, near Weymouth, will take place on Saturday, July 5 - fielding one of the finest line ups ever.

This year's event will see the duo (joined by their regular double bassist and vocalist Miranda Sykes) spearheading over six hours of non-stop open-air entertainment on Abbotsbury's West Lawn. See http://abbotsburytourism.co.uk/garden/tg0010.htm

The Devon duo are delighted to announce their special guests will include one of the world's leading acoustic finger-style and slide guitarists, Martin Simpson, winner of Best Album and Best Original Song at the 2008 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards.

Also coming to the alfresco Abbotsbury stage will be one of the most unusual and captivating young singer songwriters on the UK roots scene - Martha Tilston (whose style was recently dubbed "Rococo Folk") and her band The Woods while reprising their guest appearance at last Easter's sell out Show of Hands gig at the Royal Albert Hall will be the brilliant Cornish choir Fishermen's Friends, from Port Isaac. One more act is still to be announced to complete the line-up.

In the midst of a hectic festivals schedule which this year includes appearances at WOMAD, Wickham and the Welsh Proms this will be a "local" gig for Show of Hands and an old stamping ground for Knightley, who used to live near Bridport.

The event will start at 3pm. Tickets are available on 01305-871130, price £20 (adults); £10 (children) or £48 for a family (two adults and up to three children). Further information on www.abbotsbury-tourism.co.uk or email info@abbotsbury-tourism.co.uk
Please note this booking number is available Monday-Friday, 9am-1pm and 2pm-5pm but not weekends.

Concertgoers are invited to bring low-backed seating, rugs and picnics into the grounds - entry to the West Lawn area is from 1.30pm. The grounds open at 10am for those interested in looking round the magnificent 20-acre gardens. For the youngsters, there will also be a children's entertainer and face painters.

As the long-anticipated collaboration Mawkin:Causley prepare for their spring tour, a frisson of excitement is whipping throughout the British folk scene. It seems that all over England, audiences are clamouring for the cleverly textured tunes and energetic performances that Mawkin:Causley so cheerily deliver.
Throughout the country, Mawkin:Causley are performing at a collection of theatres and folk clubs, offering the chance to see them in the friendly and jovial atmosphere that best complements their lively sound. Both components of the Mawkin:Causley collaboration have their own well-founded claims to success. BBC Radio 2 have acknowledged both Mawkin's guitarist David Delarre and Jim Causley as variously a Young Folk Award finalist and a Horizon Award nominee, whilst reviewers have consistently celebrated Mawkin's and Causley's considerable achievements. Essex boys Mawkin have played over fifty festivals in the past four years, perfecting their live performances whilst amassing an incredibly dedicated following. The combination of punchy melodeon, driving violin, earthy guitar and solid bass is showcased beautifully within the band's 2006 debut album 'The Fair Essex', which MOJO's Colin Irwin has described as 'unconditionally mighty'. Meanwhile Jim Causley's richly bittersweet tones have been widely recognised as sensitive, hypnotic and fiercely traditional. Stirrings Magazine's Raymond Greenoake has claimed that Causley is 'a man to watch', which is true both in metaphorical and literal terms as a result of Causley's rousing stage presence. Luckily, Causley's intelligently charming debut, 'Fruits Of The Earth', parallels his spellbinding live performances, which will leave Mawkin:Causley fans eagerly anticipating a collaborative album.
Don't let the opportunity to see Mawkin:Causley live in an intimate setting pass you by…you'll definitely regret it.

CONFIRMED APRIL DATES
22nd MARCH - The High Barn, Great Bardfield, Essex, CM7 4SL - 01371 811291
23rd MARCH - Topsham Folk Club, Topsham, Exeter, Devon - 01395 267029
29th MARCH - Acoustic Routes Club, Norfolk Street, Cambridge, CB1 2LD - 07971 299659
4th APRIL - Oxford Folk Club, The Port Mahon, St Clements St, Oxford, OX4 1AW - 01865 768128
6th APRIL - Fisher Theatre, Broad Street, Bungay, Suffolk - 01986 897130
7th APRIL - Colchester Arts Centre, Church Street, Colchester - 01206 500900
11th APRIL - Bridgewater Arts Centre, Castle Street, Bridgwater, Somerset TA6 3DD - 01278 422700
12th/13th APRIL - Oxford Folk Festival, Oxford Town Hall, Oxfordshire - 01865 305305

http://www.mawkin.co.uk
http://www.jimcausley.co.uk
http://www.myspace.com/mawkin
http://www.myspace.com/mawkincausly
http://www.myspace.com/jimcausley

The new issue of English Dance & Song magazine is available today, published by the English Folk Dance and Song Society.

To celebrate Liverpool European Capital of Culture, the magazine has several features about music in the city. After an introduction, entitled ‘In My Liverpool Home’, the feature Songs of a Seaport looks at Liverpool’s maritime heritage, with a ‘new’ version of the well-known song The Leaving of Liverpool.

Jack Coutts writes about the International Shanty Festival, Shanties 08, which will accompany the start of the Tall Ships Race in July. The importance of Irish music in the city is explained by Chris Boland, chairman of the local branch of Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann (the Irish traditional music association) and Clive Pownceby looks at the long-running Radio Merseyside Folkscene programme. There are also features on eighty years of morris dancing in Liverpool, and Mersey Morris Men’s Morris Ring meeting in July, and on the folk scene in Liverpool.

The cover feature is the Young Coppers, representing a new generation of singers from this famous family of Sussex folk singers. To coincide with the release of their debut CD, Passing Out, the ‘Singer, Song and Source’ feature looks at the Young Coppers (written by Vic Smith), the song Come All Bold Britons, and editor Derek Schofield looks back at singing amongst previous generations of the Copper family.

Gavin Atkin investigates a new tune book from East Anglia, Before the Night was Out, and accompanying the article, there are two versions of the tune Oh, Joe, the Boat is Going Over, from Oscar Woods and George Craske.

Caller Cat Kelly is interviewed by Joan Crump and contributes a new dance. There is a feature on Fay Hield’s project about singing communities.

In Sam Bennett – the Film Star, Elaine Bradtke describes an amazing film of the traditional Warwickshire fiddle player – a ‘talkie’ that pre-dates The Jazz Singer. The EFDSS is appealing for funds to help restore this unique film.

Ron Smedley draws on his experience as a dance teacher with the Royal Ballet School in the article Teaching Billy Elliot, to explain the use of folk, morris and rapper sword dance in the training of the young ballet dancers.

The EFDSS has a new Chief Executive, Katy Spicer, and this issue has a feature article about her.

There are eight pages of reviews, including CDs by Chris Wood, Ruth Notman, the songs of Lal Waterson and the amazingly titled ‘Sensational Jimi Shandrix Experience’, a DVD review of Tony Palmer’s new documentary about Ralph Vaughan Williams, and a book review of the Ben Harker’s new Ewan MacColl biography.

English Dance & Song magazine also includes regular features such as Festive Round Up; Lives Remembered, News; The Spring Dancing Season (list of dance events); and EFDSS Matters.

The magazine’s website http://eds.efdss.org gives access to sound files of the Coppers’ Come All Bold Britons, as well as to illustrations of the front cover and details of back issues. The list of folk festivals in 2008 published in the Winter issue has now been updated and is available on the EFDSS website, www.efdss.org Over 130 events throughout England and Wales.

English Dance & Song magazine has been published regularly since 1936, making it one of the world’s longest-established folk magazines. Published quarterly, in full colour, it is available to members of the EFDSS, or on separate subscription. Individual copies can be purchased at festivals and other events and also from the EFDSS. Since 2005, the editor has been Derek Schofield.

February 29th 2008 marks the centenary of the birth of A.L. (Bert) Lloyd, the renowned English singer, folklorist, journalist, and writer. To mark this anniversary, the English Folk Dance and Song Society will publish a biography, by Dave Arthur, entitled Bert: The Life and Work of A.L. Lloyd.

To launch the publication and to celebrate Bert Lloyd’s life and work, the English Folk Dance and Song Society will host a day of concerts at its London headquarters, Cecil Sharp House, on Saturday 15 November 2008.

Guests confirmed so far include folk luminaries Frankie Armstrong, Martin Carthy, Bob Davenport with Roger Digby, Will Duke, Dan Quinn and Alex West, Roy Harris, Louis Killen, Maddy Prior, Dave Swarbrick, Norma Waterson, Martyn Wyndham-Read with Iris Bishop and, from the current explosion of young singers and musicians, Lisa Knapp and Sam Lee.

Bert Lloyd (Albert Lancaster Lloyd, 29 February 1908 – 29 September 1982) was not only a world-famous scholar but also a spellbinding singer who inspired many of today’s leading folk performers, giving generously of his time and material. He continues to influence new generations of singers through his books and recordings.

Bert’s daughter Caroline Clayton and her husband Ted are pleased to support the occasion, all proceeds from which will be donated to the English Folk Dance and Song Society’s Vaughan Williams Memorial Library.

This years Manchester Irish Festival ‘Tradfest’ in Levenshulme will attempt to set a Guinness world record for the biggest Irish music session held in a Pub. The attempt will be made on Wednesday 12 March at the Union Irish Pub on Stockport Road in Levenshulme village. Levenshulme is home to the biggest Irish community outside of London. The award winning ‘Full Irish’ radio show will be broadcasting the event live on ALL FM on 96.9fm and on the internet to a world wide audience. Doors open at 6pm, with the live broadcast starting at 7pm.

The event is part of a ten day ‘Tradfest’ in the village which will feature over one hundred traditional and contemporary Irish musicians, singers and dancers. It is launched on Friday 7 March and continues until Monday 17 March. Full details of events during the festival are on www.manchesteririshfestival.co.uk

Musicians who can play Irish music from Manchester and around the UK will be invited to take part in the ‘Irish session’ which is being hosted by the award winning Irish musician ‘Grace Kelly’ who hosts a weekly session at the venue. Promoter James Hennigan said “The idea came about after we filmed the session during last years Manchester Irish Festival and received over 6,000 hits on Youtube (http://www.youtube.com/user/acousticfest).”

“ We have had people from all over the world contacting us after seeing the clip, so we decided to do something special for this years festival and broadcast it live on the internet. The session is an open event; you do not have to be an accomplished musician. We want as many different groups to get involved in the attempt and will be inviting players from Manchester’s numerous sessions and Irish music groups and Schools to get involved with the project. An invitation is to be sent out to every member of the festival committee and every councillor at the town hall to come down and show their support.”

“The session is open to musicians or singers of any nationality who can play a traditional Irish tune using any one of the following instruments: fiddle, guitar, harp, bodhran, drums, whistle, flute, accordion, squeeze box, banjo or Spoons!

'The tune we will be using in the world record attempt is 'The Maid behind the Bar' which is featured on the Youtube clip of the session. We would like people to register their interest in advance so we have a record to send to the Guinness book of records. They do this by sending their name and details to irishsession@hotmail.co.uk or by texting me on 079 125 129 78.'

Early bird tickets available now
Greener Festival Award Winner – UK Festival Awards 2007

“Big Session is the best kept secret of the festival circuit right now – get in while you still can”- Virtual Festivals “A highly enjoyable festival that’s easy and comfortable even in the most inclement weather” - Efestivals

A leading light in environmentally friendly music festivals, acclaimed Leicester event The Big Session has confirmed country-rock legend Steve Earle as one of the headliner’s at this summer’s line-up. Earle is best known for classic albums such as ‘Guitar Town’, ‘Train a’ Comin’ and ‘I Feel Aright’ and released his most recent album ‘Washington Square Serenade’ last year.

The festival – held at De Montfort Hall and Gardens from June 13^th-15^th – has also added Earle’s wife Allison Moorer to a bill that already features the talents of Oysterband, Seth Lakeman, Bellowhead, The Handsome Family, Cara Dillon, Devon Sproule, Kila, Lau, The Troubadours, Hey Negrita and Vincent Vincent & The Villains. Many more exciting acts will be announced imminently.

Now in its fourth year, The Big Session Festival has been heralded by fans and critics alike as one of the UK ’s finest boutique festivals. Three sold-out festivals provide evidence of the event’s popularity with the public, while critical acclaim has included a prestigious win (Greener Festival Award) and two nominations (Best Family Friendly Festival and Best Small Festival) at 2007’s UK Festival Awards.

The Big Session Festival prides itself on its welcoming atmosphere and environmentally friendly organisation – indeed, it was one of only ten festivals to be awarded the Red Kite mark in recognition of its environmental planning that has made the festival as self sustainable as possible.

Since launching in 2005, The Big Session Festival has featured an eclectic array of artists including The Levellers, Chumbawamba, Nizlopi, The Men They Couldn’t Hang, Alabama 3, Eliza Carthy and Transglobal Underground.

A strictly limited number of early bird tickets are available now from the box office number 0116 233 3111 or online at https://kiosk4.ts.com/k?Demontfort&BSF. Early bird tickets are priced at £55 for adults, £20 for children and £5 for camping and only available until March 1st.

Thurs 12. Muni Arts Centre, Gelliwastad Rd, Pontypridd, WalesCF37 2DP
Tel: 01443 485934 Tickets £12.50 & 11.50 (Members) -- From 7.30 p.m.

Fri 13. The Forge (Anvil) Churchill Way, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 7QR
Tel: 01256 844244 £13/Concessions £11 00 -- From 7.30 p.m.

Sat14. NorwichArts Centre, St Benedicts St, Norwich, Norfolk, NR2 4PG
Tel: 01603 660352 £12.00/10.00 -- From 7.30 p.m.

Sun 15.The Stables, Stockwell Lane, MiltonKeynes, Bucks, MK17 8LU
Tel: 01908 280800 £16.50 -- From 7.30 p.m.

Over the Hills is her most personal recording to date, with a stunning range of material, from stories about family—those that have gone before and follow after, of lives lived and roads travelled—to a compelling collection of classic songs by other writers, performed with Lucy’s distinctive interpretive sensibility. Over the Hills is Lucy’s story and her reflection upon her times. Special guests include Eliza Gilkyson, Buddy Miller, Richard Shindell and Jonatha Brooke

While Lucy’s last album The Red Thread tells of her journey to adopt her daughter Molly from China, Over the Hills is the story of how Lucy’s family came to be in Americaand the struggles they have endured. The album connects to universal themes of love, joy, loss and dreams for the future. Lucy says. “As a mother, I find myself thinking about what kind of life and what kind of world my daughter Molly will experience”.

After five years on the road Patsy Matheson, Becky Mills, Jools Parker and Rachel Goodwin are calling it a day.

Says Patsy: "We've had a fantastic time on the UK acoustic circuit and are really proud of what we've achieved but we all feel it's time to pursue other things and spend more time with our families."

Puzzling the pigeon holers, the girls burst onto the Leeds music scene in 2003 with their light and shade folk, blues, jazz and rock and quickly gained a name for their strikingly innovative songwriting and pitch perfect four-part harmonies.

All singer songwriters with distinct styles and capable of playing a plethora of instruments between them, from slide guitar to jaw's harp and mandolin the girls went on to appear at Glastonbury, Trowbridge and Cambridge festivals and tour tirelessly, and were championed by several broadcasters including BBC Radio 2's Janice Long and former BBC Radio London world music presenter Charlie Gillett.

They have made three stand out CDs - the debut album Like Everybody, the sparsely effective Hands and Bridges and the consummate Boys from the Abattoir, produced by Dave Creffield (The Kaiser Chiefs).They will all be showcased for the final time on the tour which starts in Oxfordshire on Saturday, February 2 and takes in 18 performances ending at Cranleigh Arts Centre in Surrey on Saturday, April 26. It includes a special Leap Year weekend trio of gigs in Scotland.

There's a chance that Becky Mills may be absent for some of the final gigs as she is expecting a baby in April. Says Jools: "If you'd like to bring plenty of clean fluffy towels and hot water along to our spring gigs we'd be very grateful and if Bex isn't on stage for any of our last few performances you'll know there's a lovely reason why!"

Waking the Witch have just been presented, for the second year running, with the Classic Rock Society UK award for Folk/Roots Performer of the Year and Boys from the Abattoir was voted runner up for Best Album of 2007 while Becky Mills, who also performs solo, was voted runner up in the Performer of the Year category. In the Cambridge and Beyond/FATEA Awards Boys from the Abattoir was also runner up in the 2007 Album of the Year category.

A live DVD, recorded on home ground at Leeds City Varieties during the mammoth Boys from the Abattoir tour has also been released by the band. - see YouTube clip http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5AxGrG160c .For this they were joined by Jon Short (bass), Mick Bedford (drums), Jon Burr (harmonica) and "Fluff" of The Incredible String Band, on cello and violin.

Says Jools: "We'd like to thank everyone for their brilliant support over the past five years. We worked hard to produce a memorable live show and played some great gigs to really excellent audiences all round the country - we've had a ball."
www.wakingthewitch.co.uk www.myspace.com/rachpatsjoolsbex

WAKING THE WITCH 2008 FAREWELL TOUR

Sat 2nd Feb - N.Oxfordshire, Duns Tew Village Hall 01869 347106
Fri 8th Feb - Southend, Riga www.rigamusicbar.co.uk 08700 600 100
Sat 9th Feb - Manningtree, Red Lion 01206 395052
Fri 15th Feb - Cambridge, Folk Club www.cambridgefolkclub.org 01223 304447
Sat 16th Feb - Battle, Memorial Hall
www.blackhorsemusicfestival.org.uk/docs/wtw_concert.pdf 0845 2741001
Fri 22nd Feb - Barton-upon-Humber, The Ropewalk www.carnivalinn.co.uk 01652 660380
Sat 23rd Feb - Knaresborough, Frazer Theatre 01423 550519
Thurs 28th Feb - Lossiemouth, Warehouse Theatre www.thewarehousetheatre.co.uk 01343 814004
Fri 29th Feb - Glenfarg, Glenfarg Hotel www.mundellmusic.com 01577 830216
Sat 1st March - Glenfarg, Glenfarg Hotel www.mundellmusic.com 01577 830216
Sun 2nd March - Dundee, Woodlands Hotel 01382 480033
Sat 8th March - Selby, Arts Centre www.selbytownhall.co.uk 01757 213758
Fri 14th March - Maltby, The Rock www.therock.org.uk 01709 585977
Sat 15th March - Nr Chipping Norton, Chadlington Memorial Hall 01608 676642
Fri 28th March - Lichfield, Arts Centre www.lichfieldarts.org.uk 01543 262223
Sat 29th March -Halifax Square Chapel Arts Centre www.squarechapel.co.uk 01422 349422
Sat 19th April -South Petherton, Somerset, David Hall Arts Centre www.thedavidhall.org.uk 01460 240340
Sat 26th April - Nr Godalming, Surrey, Cranleigh Arts Centre www.cranleighartscentre.org 08456 128128

The first of these will feature Show Of Hands award winning multi-instrumentalist and vocalist PHIL BEER with support from Kent based duo Galliard plus Les & Pete.

The first concert in the series will take place at Ruskin House, 23 Coombe Road, Croydon, Surrey, CR0 1BD, on Monday 7th April 2008 and start promptly at 8:00pm. Tickets will cost £10.00 available on the door.

For further information contact Les 020 8656 8770 (E Mail: leselvin1@fsmail.net) or Pete on 020 8680 4302 (E Mail: petefyfe@aol.com)

Fresh from her fROOTS front cover, the first such honor given to an American artist this decade, acclaimed songstress Devon Sproule has announced a number of UK dates for early 2008 to promote her excellent album, Keep Your Silver Shined released earlier this year to huge critical attention. For these dates, including a show at the famed Roundhouse in London, Sproule will be joined by her husband and fellow singer-songwriter Paul Curreri.

Over the past twelve months Canadian-born Sproule, now resident in Charlottesville, Virginia, has garnered huge praise both for her album and live performances. A full-page feature in The Guardian, who described the album as “Elegant and cheeky in equal measure, the record is deliciously unhurried, redolent of high-summer dog-day afternoons and balmy southern nights, was bolstered with excellent reviews in the likes of Word, The Independent, Uncut, The Sun, and Hi-Fi News, where the Keep You’re Silver Shined was voted ‘Album Of The Year’ in last month’s issue. Mark Radcliffe is a huge fan at BBC Radio 2, where she recently recorded a live session.

In the last couple of months Sproule has supported Lucinda Williams at London’s o2 arena, Kurt Wagner, and a number of shows with Rachel Unthank And The Winterset.

Paul Curreri has released five albums, all of which have been championed by the press. His unique brand of lyrical wordplay and maverick musicianship are none better apparent than on his latest album, The Velvet Rut, that The Indpendent called “Spontaneous and poetic” whilst Uncut savored what was for them a “4**** riveting trip.”

Keep Your Silver Shined and The Velvet Rut are out now on Tin Angel Records

Feb 2^nd GLASGOW, Oran Mor (0141 353 8000; www.oran-mor.co.uk)

3^rd EDINBURGH, Café Royal Bar (0870 903 3444; www.thevoodoorooms.com)

6^th DUBLIN, The Crawdaddy (00353 16486000; www.crawdaddy.ie)

8^th MANCHESTER, Club Academy (0161 832 1111; www.manchesteracademy.net)

9^th BIRMINGHAM, Mac (0121 440 3838; www.macarts.co.uk)

10^th NEWCASTLE, The Cluny (0191 230 4474; www.theheadofsteam.co.uk)

12^th BIRKENHEAD, Pacific Road Arts Centre (0151 647 0752; www.pacificroad.co.uk)

13^th SHEFFIELD, Boardwalk (0870 145 1207; www.theboardwalklive.co.uk)

14^th COVENTRY, Taylor John’s House (0247 6559 958; www.thetinangel.co.uk)

15^th CARDIFF, The Point (02920 230 130; www.thepointcardiffbay.com)

16^th READING, South Street (0118 960 6060; www.readingarts.com)

17^th BRIGHTON, The Hanbury Club (01273 606312; www.thehandburyclub.com)

18^th BUXTON, Pavilion Lounge (0845 127 2190; www.buxtonoperahouse.org.uk)

Mar 6th LONDON, The Roundhouse Studio (0207 424 8456; www.roundhouse.org.uk)

Tanglefoot, the rambunctious five piece from Ontario, has won Best Vocal Group in the 2007 Canadian Folk Music Awards. Tanglefoot were up against (amongst others) The Be Good Tanyas and Blackie and the Rodeo Kings, but carried off the top honour.

Tanglefoot has been touring in the UK to ever-increasing audiences since 1998. May 2008 sees their 12th tour, all of them organised by Jacey Bedford of Jacey Bedford Tour Management and formerly songstress with Artisan. "I first met Tanglefoot at Nova Scotia's Lunenburg Folk Harbour Festival in 1995," says Jacey. "I was touring with Artisan and I saw them - then a four piece - playing the main stage. I was utterly gobsmacked by both their musical ability and their stage presence. I had to bring them over to the UK to tour. It took a couple of years to make it happen, but once it did they've never looked back."

Since 1998 Tanglefoot has had a few personnel changes. Only rhythm guitarist/vocalist Steve Ritchie and bassist/vocaslist Al Parrish are still originals from that first UK tour, but like the hammer that's had three new heads and two new handles, the band is still very much Tanglefoot with that big vocal harmony sound, superb multi-instrumentals and Canadian-based songwriting. They acquired, lost and re-acquired Steve Ritchie's brother Rob on thundering piano, adopted Terry Young as their main multi-instrumentalist on anything from mandolin to pennywhistle, and broke with tradition by having a girl in the band when they stole Sandra Swannell from the Owen Sound Symphony Orchestra, complete with fiddle and viola.

Asked about the actual Canadian Folk Music Awards ceremony in Ottawa, Tanglefoot's Steve Ritchie said, "I know this will sound like false modesty, but up until a few minutes before the announcement I hadn't given much thought to actually winning. It was enough of an honour to nominated, and even that was unexpected. So when they called out our name I kind of just sat there stunned for a moment. It's a really nice acknowledgement from our peers and from the Canadian mainstream folk music community that they see what we do as worthy of notice. That may sound a bit dry, but it means an awful lot to me. The whole thing is brilliant, because it gets people talking, and that was the whole point of the Canadian Folk Music Awards in the first place - to get people outside the folk community talking about Canadian roots music."

Tanglefoot also enjoys the unusual claim-to-fame of having had one of their CDs fly aboard the space shuttle. 'Music In The Wood' accompanied Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield into orbit aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavor in April of 2001.

Tanglefoot's 2008 UK tour in May-June is now fully booked, and dates are already booking for their 2009 tour in June-July. May-June 2008 dates include festivals at Cromer, Chippenham, Southwell (Notts) and Chester and venues from Montrose to Leigh on Sea. Full details are on their gig list at www.tanglefootmusic.com. Dates are already booking for their June - July 2009 tour via www.jacey-bedford.com.

Show of Hands fans dug deep and raised nearly £1,400 for the UK's leading children's cancer charity - CLIC Sargent (Cancer & Leukaemia in Childhood) - on Sunday night (December 2).

They bought tickets for a raffle to win a unique recording of the Bristol Colston Hall gig - a special night as singer songwriter and frontman Steve Knightley was able to join the line-up having pulled out of the band's UK winter tour when his six year old son Jack was diagnosed with leukaemia.

The first three gigs of the tour were cancelled and the tour then recommenced last week with Steve's musical partner Phil Beer at the helm.

In a message to fans Steve announced that Jack had contracted acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. He said: "This is a life threatening but often curable cancer. My wife Clare and Jack will be travelling to Bristol to begin an intensive round of tests and treatment. For the near future I will be looking after our two youngest children."

Multi instrumentalist Phil Beer quickly shaped a new show to stage at the remaining venues together with the other original members of the line-up - Show of Hands's regular bass player and vocalist Miranda Sykes and special guest, Texas-based cult singer songwriter Slaid Cleaves, accompanied by skilled guitarist Michael O'Connor.

The result was that few ticket holders opted for a refund. Said Phil: "The show of solidarity from Show of Hands fans on our website and elsewhere has been incredible as has that of fellow musicians and we thank everyone so much for that. Steve's family and friends are giving wonderful support and young Jack is in very good hands."

The Colston Hall concert was an emotionally-charged, exceptional evening with Steve starting the show by talking personally to the audience and the gig ended in two standing ovations. They opened their set with Steve's apt song The Bristol Slaver. He was able to join the tour as his son is being treated at Bristol Royal Children's Hospital, within striking distance of the venue.

The CLIC Sargent charity has provided a family room in a house close to the hospital for Steve, Clare and their other two young children - and the money raised by the raffle will pay for five other families in a similar situation to stay at the house for a week.

Following the wonderful response at Bristol, Show of Hands have decided to have further collections for CLIC at the remaining gigs on the tour - Hall for Cornwall, Truro (Weds Dec 5); Lancaster University (December 6); Lawrence Sheriff School, Rugby (December 7) and the sold-out Exeter Phoenix Arts Centre on December 8.

Chris Banting of the Bristol CLIC fundraising office said: "It was an excellent and heartfelt evening at Colston Hall. We were bowled over by the fans goodwill and support for Steve and his family."

The gigs will continue to showcase the newly released milestone double album "Roots -The Best of Show of Hands" which marks the unique 15-year partnership of the award winning duo of Knightley and Beer, who have sold out the Royal Albert Hall three times. Last week they were nominated in two categories of the 2008 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards - Best Duo and Best Live Act.

A new show with all the Show of Hands hallmarks will take to the road on Wednesday (Nov 28) as a replacement for the Devon band’s scheduled UK autumn/winter tour.

The first three gigs of the November /December tour were unfortunately cancelled at the last minute following news of the serious illness of singer songwriter Steve Knightley’s six-year-old son Jack last week.

In a message to fans at the weekend, Steve said: “On Friday afternoon my wife and I were told that Jack has contracted acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. This is a life threatening but often curable cancer. Clare and Jack will be travelling to Bristol to begin an intensive round of tests and treatment. For the near future I will be looking after our two youngest children.”

Following discussions, a decision was taken to keep the show on the road. Although Steve is clearly unable to take part in the tour at this time, his multi instrumental partner Phil Beer is shaping a new show to stage at the remaining venues together with the other original members of the line-up – Show of Hands’s regular bass player and vocalist Miranda Sykes and special guest, Texan singer songwriter Slaid Cleaves.

At one venue – Truro’s Hall for Cornwall - Cornish shanty choir Fishermen’s Friends will also join the show. The choir from Port Isaac has appeared with Show of Hands several times, mo

Early bird tickets available now Greener Festival Award Winner – UK Festival Awards 2007

Early bird tickets available now
Greener Festival Award Winner – UK Festival Awards 2007