|
Eisteddfod - NYA Festival of Traditional MusicPerformers - 2009 |
Concert Emcees
| ||
 |
Claire BoucherClaire is a native of Sarzeau, on the Presqu'Ile de Rhuys in southern Brittany, the Celtic region of France. She sings traditional songs in French and Breton, a Gaelic language similar to Welsh. Now living in Montréal, Claire teaches traditional dances from her region, performs occasionally with the group Pevar and also sings traditional duet material from Brittany with Olga Zaric. |
 |
Jerry Epsteinis a fine singer of (mostly) unaccompanied traditional song of the Eastern US and Canada, and a pretty fair concertina player. He has taken the American traditional songs and ballads to far-flung places around the world, including Australia, New Zealand, China, and Russia. |
 | |
 |
Paul Geremia
has
built a reputation as a first rate bluesman, songwriter, a “scholar” of
early jazz and blues, and one of the best country blues fingerpickers
ever with his tools - six and twelve-string guitars, harmonica, piano
and a husky soulful voice - and with an innate sense of the humour as
well as the drama of the music, he keeps traditional blues fresh and alive with his performances. |
 |
Howard Glasseris the founding father of the Eisteddfod and Festival Director Emeritus. He recorded an important and impressive collection of songs in Scotland from the original source singers in the 1960s. He generally provides us with samples of his collection and his stories of the people he collected from. A noted calligrapher, Howard designed the Eisteddfod-NY logo. |
 |
|
 |
Lorraine & Bennett Hammond
Lorraine
and Bennett Hammond play and sing in perfect complement: blending their
instruments with consummate skill, they create a new voice for music
that ranges in style from classical through Celtic, blues and
contemporary. The joy they take in their music is contagious,
and their flair for tailoring their selection of songs and tunes for
individual audiences lends a lively freshness to each performance.
Bennett Hammond began teaching himself to play guitar in 1959
and has been helping others learn to play since 1960. His
workshops bring a wealth of technical ability and understanding within
reach, derived from the simplest and most familiar chords and strums.
A lifelong New Englander, Lorraine has played fretted dulcimer
for over thirty years, performing mountain ballads and jazz standards
with equal skill. " |
 | |
 |
David Jonesis a master of English traditional song: everything from the ballad tradition to the lyrical and agricultural songs, to the English Music Halls. He is always a welcome regular at the festival. |
 |
Norman KennedyNorman
Kennedy is an unaccompanied singer of traditional Scottish songs who
learned his songs by growing up around some of the great Scottish
singers of the last generation. He learned them, not because he
wanted to be a folk singer, but because even as a boy he was drawn to
the music. In concert, Norman draws from that body of old
songs. He comes out on stage, takes a seat and seemingly starts a
conversation with the audience; his dry sense of humor and memory of
the stories surrounding the songs make his listeners appreciate not
only the old songs, but the old ways as well. "You can tell stories,
you can recite them, you can sing them," he says. With this
directness he presents ballads -- stories of love won and lost,
betrayal, death -- in a way that holds everyone's attention. In
June 2003 Norman Kennedy was awarded the National Heritage Fellowship
by the National Endowment for the Arts .
|
 |
Enoch KentScotland born and now Canada-based, this legendary interpreter and songsmith's love of traditional music was first inspired by his family. His father played the concertina, and popular songs, Scottish songs and old-time favourites were often sung at home. After graduating from the Glasgow School of Art in sculpture and ceramics, In the 1950s, Enoch formed the traditional Scottish group, The Reivers, with Josh MacRae, Rena Swankie and Moyna Flanagan. Enoch's own songwriting craft was further developed through The Singers Club (aka "The Critics Group") which he co-founded with internationally renowned folksingers, Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger. |
 |
John KrummJohn
has been performing traditional and vintage music for over 38
years. He is perhaps best known as a caller of square and contra
dance, but he also has an international reputation as a composer
of rounds. He sings and plays guitar, fiddle, banjo, piano, and mandolin. He teaches
all of the above plus a variety of music theory and composition
classes.
|
 | Evy Mayersings and plays ukulele, guitar, dumbek and a host of other percussion instruments. She collects popular songs of the early 1900s, as well as humorous songs, children's music, plus Balkan and other international music. She loves to sing harmony and funny songs, and to folk dance. |
 | Anne Priceis a versatile and gifted singer born and raised in New York City. She sings a wide variety of traditional folk songs and many songs from contemporary songwriters, as well as songs she has written. |
 |
Alison McMorlandAlison was born in Renfrewshire into a musical family. Since then she has enjoyed a long involvement in traditional music on various levels: singer, collector, broadcaster, author and tutor on the Scottish Music course at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, Glasgow. She is the author of a very well received recent book on the fine singer and Border shepherd, Willie Scott.Geordie McIntyreA Glaswegian of Highland and Irish descent, his lifetime involvement in song, ballad and poetry is reflected in his singing, collecting and songwriting. His early years as a radio and television technician and later as a Modern Studies teacher, coupled to his passion for the outdoors have in diverse ways fueled and complemented his central interest in folk music. |
  |
John Roberts and Tony BarrandJohn and Tony have performed to great acclaim in every corner of the US and Canada for more than 35 years. Their numerous recordings are available from Golden Hind Records. They are the recipients of the 2008 Eisteddfod Award for service to traditional music and dance.John is a superb English singer who plays banjo, guitar, concertina, and hurdy-gurdy, as well as being a fine musicologist and music editor. Tony is an active teacher, singer, and scholar. Currently on the faculty at Boston University, his courses include "English Ritual Dance and Drama" and "Folk Songs as Social History." Much of Tony's work has focused on various forms of the seasonal display dances now known generically as Morris and Sword dancing. |
 | Sonja SavigHer mother, from Eastern Norway, would read her stories, poems, and sing songs to her. Her father, from Western Norway, also sang, and played Norwegian melodies on the mandolin and violin. When she was six years old, she moved to Denver where there were few Norwegians, and in 1958 She traveled around Norway living with relatives in various regions. Her repertoire contains old medieval ballads, newer folk songs from rural traditions, and written songs by well known composers. |
 | |
 |
Happy Traum |
 |
Sarah UnderhillSarah Underhill is a resident of Kerhonkson, a small town in Ulster County, New York. She is known throughout the region as "Banshanachie", Gaelic for "Woman Bard", because of her vast repertoire of traditional songs from Scotland, Ireland, and Northern England. Sarah augments these with songs from the Hudson Valley and elsewhere in North America, as well as with contemporary songs composed in traditional style by writers such as Sandy Denny and Archie Fisher. Long active with the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, Sarah has appeared many times at the Clearwater's annual Hudson River Revival Festival. |
 |
Bill & Livia Vanaverare the founders and artistic directors of the famed Vanaver Caravan dance and music ensemble. Together they sing and play old and newer style, traditional music from across the world. Along with banjo and guitar, expect to hear unusual ethnic instruments such as the Bulgarian tambura, Greek lauto and much more. Bill enjoys leading the audience in song, so get your pipes in order! |
 |
George WardTraditional & original music celebrating the Adirondacks & beyond on countless instruments. |
 |
Eric WeissbergConsidered by aficionados to be one of the best five-string banjo players, Eric Weissberg has been a major force on the folk scene and a ubiquitous prescence on the studio scene for more than four decades. in 1958 he was a founding father of the New York bluegrass trio "The Greenbriar Boys." He joined the folk group "The Tarriers" in 1959, recording and touring worldwide for six years. As a top New York studio musician Eric has done thousands of sessions; he had a number one single and album with "Dueling Banjos," which earned him two gold records and a "Grammy" award. He has won numerous other awards. Lately Eric has reappeared on the live scene singing and picking music in concert, both solo and as accompanist.He performs with Mickey Vandow; together they are veterans of many decades of the folk revival in many forms. |
 |
Heather Woodis a veteran singer from the English revival for some 40+ years, dating from her days with The Young Tradition. She has a great repertoire of ballads, historical songs, love and agricultural songs, and a lot from the humorous side. In addition to the old songs, she has written some dynamite new ones. |
| Jerry Devokaitis, guitar; Dave Howard, guitar and mandolin; Dave Kiphuth, old-time and bluegrass banjo; Neil Rossi, fiddle and mandolin | Wreck Room String Bandis a bunch of guys who have played together for decades, who know the tradition inside out, and have the chops to knock your socks off on the instruments and the voices as well. Old-time mountain music to Bluegrass and everything in between. |
 | Olga Zaricoriginally from Serbia, now lives in Montreal. She sings traditional duet material from Brittany with Claire Boucher and is a strong singer of a capella Serbian and Macedonian traditional music She speaks French, Spanish, Italian, and Serbian, and currently co-directs the Breton Union vocal ensemble in Montreal. |