Artist Category: Trad | Page 4

Green Heron

The music of Green Heron stretches across the entire folk landscape. Old-time, folk, bluegrass, country, celtic and blues music are all represented as the band brings the back porch to the stage. Featuring Betsy Heron (formerly Green) on fiddle, banjo and vocals, and Scott Heron on guitar, banjo and vocals, the duo has been sharing New England stages together since 2017. The two songwriters weave the contemporary with the traditional and deliver high energy performances.

Betsy, brought up playing country music with her family’s band in rural Massachusetts, still plays alongside her three sisters in The Green Sisters. Meanwhile, Scott spent several years in various metal bands touring New England and much of the country before discovering folk and bluegrass. Despite their very different backgrounds in music, the pair still draws from their roots when writing and performing and have found a common love for Americana music.

To date, Green Heron has released three albums: Folk Heroes in 2018, New Pair of Shoes in 2019 and Feet on the Floorboards released in 2021. The latter of which was recorded at their home during the pandemic by Ben Haravitch and Circus Tent Studio.

Throughout their home state of New Hampshire, the duo has been featured in a variety of publications and have made appearances on several television and radio stations including WMUR’s New Hampshire Chronicle as well as NHPR’s All Things Considered and The Folk Show. New Hampshire Magazine featured Green Heron among the Editor’s Choice picks for their Best of 2020 issue and Seacoast Edge listed Feet on the Floorboards among their best albums of 2021.

The band occasionally performs on stage and records in studio with a variety of acts throughout New England. The two founded the Americana quartet Mama Ain’t Dead and released their self-titled debut album in September 2019.

Green Heron has shared the stage with several touring acts including The Del McCoury Band, The Seldom Scene, The Way Down Wanderers, and Them Coulee Boys in world-class venues such as Prescott Park, Belleville Roots Music Series, Ossipee Valley Music Festival, Stone Church, Bank of New Hampshire Stage, Club Passim, and Word Barn.

Larry & Joe

Larry & Joe were destined to make music together.

Larry Bellorín hails from Monagas, Venezuela and is a legend of Llanera music. Joe Troop is from North Carolina and is a GRAMMY-nominated bluegrass and oldtime musician. Larry was forced into exile and is an asylum seeker in North Carolina. Joe, after a decade in South America, got stranded back in his stomping grounds in the pandemic. Larry works construction to make ends meet. Joe’s acclaimed “latingrass” band Che Apalache was forced into hiatus, and he shifted into action working with asylum seeking migrants.

Currently based in the Triangle of North Carolina, both men are versatile multi-instrumentalists and singer-songwriters on a mission to show that music has no borders. As a duo they perform a fusion of Venezuelan and Appalachian folk music on harp, banjo, cuatro, fiddle, maracas, guitar, upright bass, and whatever else they decide to throw in the van. The program they offer features a distinct blend of their musical inheritances and traditions as well as storytelling about the ways that music and social movements coalesce.

Larry & Joe estaban destinados a hacer música juntos.

Oriundo de Monagas, Venezuela, Larry es una leyenda de la música llanera. Proveniente de Carolina del Norte, Joe es un músico de bluegrass y oldtime que fue nominado para un GRAMMY. Larry tuvo que exiliarse a Carolina del Norte y es solicitante de asilo. Joe, después de una década en Sudamérica quedó varado en su tierra natal por la pandemia. Larry trabaja en construcción para llegar a fin de mes. Cuando el ascenso de su renombrada banda Che Apalache se detuvo, Joe pivotó para trabajar con migrantes solicitando asilo.

Actualmente basados en el Triángulo de Carolina del Norte, ambos hombres son multi-instrumentistas versátiles con una misión de mostrar que la música no tiene fronteras. Como dueto tocan una fusión de folklore de Venezuela y de los montes Apalaches en arpa, banjo, cuatro, violín, maracas, guitarra, contrabajo y cualquier otra cosa que decidan subir a la camioneta. Como músicos su programa ofrece una mezcla única de sus diversas herencias y tradiciones, y cómo cuentacuentos demuestran cómo la música y los movimientos sociales interactúan.

Karan Casey

Irish singer-songwriter Karan Casey has been blazing a trail for over 30 years. A lover of ballads, love songs and searing versions of social justice songs, fond of a good yarn, she has toured the world making deep connections with her audience connecting via Ireland’s past but crucially repositioning women and songs in a universal and a modern setting. Karan has been striking out lately to explore new areas of performance on the piano and with spoken word and theatre. She has released eleven albums as well as contributing to numerous other artists’ projects – appearing on more than 80 albums so far – and has toured extensively throughout North America, Europe and Japan, performing with her own band as well as collaborating with such diverse musicians as Maura O’Connell, James Taylor, Bela Fleck, Boston Pops Orchestra, Kate Ellis, Niall Vallely, Pauline Scanlon, The Chieftains, The Dubliners, Peggy Seeger, Karen Matheson, Mick Flannery, Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin, Tim O’Brien and Solas. In 2018 Karan helped found FairPlé which is an organization aimed at achieving fairness and gender balance for female performers in Irish traditional and folk musics. Karan tours with her band Niamh Dunne, Sean Óg Graham and Niall Vallely. Hieroglyphs That Tell the Tale produced by Donald Shaw, was released on the Vertical Records Label and her song “Down in the Glen” was nominated for Best Original Folk Song at the RTE Folk Awards in 2019. She achieved a PhD in music at the University of Limerick in 2019. Karan first theatre show I Walked into My Head directed by Sophie Motley was premiered at the Kilkenny Arts Festival 2021. 2022 saw Karan collaborate with composer Harry Escott on a version of the Irish ballad “Grace” for the film “Ali & Ava”. Karan’s new album “Nine Apples of Gold” was released to great critical acclaim in February 2023. It has received extensive radio play on both sides of the Atlantic reaching No 1 on the US Folk radio charts for the month of March. Karan’s new stage show about women in the Irish revolutionary period The Women We Will Rise was premiered at the Everyman Theatre in Cork in September 2023.

Gadan

Gadan is the new project created by four experienced and well-known musicians in Irish trad and European folk/rock scene, with years of touring in the major European and US festivals of traditional and contaminated folk music.

An impactful repertoire with a powerful live appeal and a sound comparable to new-trad acts such as Talisk, WeBanjo3, The East Pointers or Rura, but with a unique identity thanks to years of experience in several folk scenes, from Appalachian & Old Time to Scottish and English folk and traditional music.

Two banjos – tenor & clawhammer – fiddle, mandolin, bouzouki and guitar for a “strings-only” sound with a hint of electronics and driven by a powerful rhythmic pulse. A loop of building energy, taking audience to ecstasy with the wide spectrum of refreshing yet traditional tones. The Gadan power leaves no one unmoved. Who said you need drums to groove?

Nora Brown & Stephanie Coleman

Nora Brown started learning music at the age of 6 from the late Shlomo Pestcoe. From his studio apartment in Brooklyn, Pestcoe instilled in her the belief that music is meant to be shared. Nora plays old-time traditional music with a particular interest in eastern Kentucky and Tennessee banjo playing. Along with the banjo and guitar she also sings traditional unaccompanied ballads from southeast Appalachia and beyond.

In October 2019 Jalopy Records released Nora’s first album of 11 traditional songs and tunes called Cinnamon Tree. It was produced by the legendary Alice Gerrard and pressed by Third Man Pressing in Detroit. It’s only available on limited edition vinyl with a digital download and liner notes. Cinnamon Tree landed #7 on the Billboard Bluegrass Chartsthe 2nd week of its release.

In September 2021 Jalopy Records released Nora’s EP of 7 traditional songs and tunes called Sidetrack My Engine. It was recorded in mono in underground brick arched space in Brooklyn NY. Using an Ampex tape machine and vintage RCA ribbon mics from BigTone Records. 10” vinyl Pressed by United Record Pressing in Nashville.

Nora plays solo regularly and also as duet with fiddler Stephanie Coleman and fiddler Jackson Lynch.

Frigg

It’s February 2000. The new millennium is taking its first breaths, the fuss and excitement slowly subsides, and the world did not end after all! A group of teenage folk music enthusiasts spend a weekend shut away in Pelimannitalo, a folk music house in Kaustinen – the heart of Finnish folk music. Violins are played, musical thoughts flying about, new songs learned with gusto. A true passion for traditional Nordic music is audible, visible and aglow! The first demo tapes are recorded, and the future is being planned. This group starts calling itself Frigg.

The band’s line-up is established as an ensemble of four violins, string instruments and a double bass. In the spring of 2002, the band’s first album is published, and Frigg is becoming a popular topic of discussion amongst the Nordic folk music circles. As the Nordics become ever smaller, European folk music events quickly become familiar to the band.

Frigg’s pace only accelerates and a hunger for more grows. Their music is living and taking on new directions and nuances. Audiences are in awe of the band’s ability to transport listeners to traditional Finnish polska, bluegrass and Balkan rhythms and all the way to the dynamics of classical music, as if there were multiple groups performing on stage! The tight ensemble performance and a candid stage presence work. Frigg is able to turn their gigs into a scenic experience, giving their listeners a break from the greyness of the world.

Frigg will go on to visit the WOMAD Festival at the invitation of the BBC, visit the Rainforest World Music Festival in the rainforests of Borneo, and tour Japan and Australia. The joyful Nordic folk music laced with Bluegrass is a knockout in North America and one state after the other get their share of Frigg fever. As icing on the cake, Frigg is invited to perform at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival along with the best of the best in Roots music. In addition to their own concerts, the band performs spectacular projects together with symphony orchestras, choirs and brass bands. New music is released at a steady pace, with albums repeatedly appearing in the listings and raving album reviews of fRoots, Songlines, Rhythms.au and numerous other world music portals.

And now, after two decades, ten albums, around a thousand gigs in thirty countries and tens of thousands of kilometers travelled, that same passion still burns. The hypnotic combination of that now-famous violin sound, the irresistible forward-pushing strum of string instruments and the pulse from the double bass, all together continue to create new paths. Just like the steady flow of a mountain stream in the springtime, the origins of which are precisely known.

Hannah O’Brien & Grant Flick

Hannah O’Brien and Grant Flick play a mix of original compositions and traditional pieces from various fiddling traditions. Initially connecting at the University of Michigan, they found common ground despite coming from different backgrounds with Hannah from Classical and Irish fiddling and Grant from American improvisational idioms. In 2021 they released their first duo record, Windward, and look forward to releasing their second record Unmatched Pair in August 2024.

The duo has received multiple prizes including the Binkow Chamber Music Grant, U-M Excel Enterprise Grant, and the Club Passim Iguana Music Fund, as well as participating in the Honeywell Arts Resonance Week as Festival Artists.

While the duo feels at home on double fiddle, they also change instrumentation incorporating tenor guitar and nyckelharpa. Their musical interests are broad and as a result, their programs showcase an eclectic assemblage of repertoire.

Acoustic Nomads

At the crossroads of South American folk music and Northern Americana you will find Acoustic Nomads, a band of rising stars taking the acoustic music scene by storm. Acoustic Nomads interweaves contemporary improvisation and newgrass with folkloric traditions from North and South America, with influences spanning from Appalachia to Argentina. The band’s unique sound is a result of the players harnessing these varied musical interests and joyously exploring uncharted musical territory together.

Since forming in 2019, Acoustic Nomads has headlined performances at WBUR Cityspace in Boston, Club Passim in Cambridge, Hartford’s Baby Grand Jazz Series, Arts at the Armory in Somerville, Barnarts’ Feast & Field Series in Barnard VT, and performed at major bluegrass festivals including Freshgrass, Grey Fox, and Joe Val. Following in the footsteps of world music giants like The Silk Road Project, Acoustic Nomads seeks to change the world through musical collaboration. Acoustic Nomads goal is to highlight the diversity within and commonality between musical traditions, creating curious, compassionate fans of global music all over the world. Their performances maintain the spirit of folkloric music while delving into modern jazz improvisation and sophisticated chamber music arrangements, showing how different cultures can come together and join in the celebration of humanity through art.

Clara Rose – Violin
Karl Henry – Cello
Noah Harrington – Bass
Maurizio Fiore Salas – Guitar

Jake Xerxes Fussell

Singer, guitarist, and folk music interpreter Jake Xerxes Fussell has distinguished himself as one of his generation’s preeminent interpreters of traditional (and not so traditional) “folk” songs, a practice which he approaches with a refreshingly unfussy lack of nostalgia. By recontextualizing ancient vernacular songs and sources of the American South, he allows them to breathe and speak for themselves and for himself; he alternately inhabits them and allows them to inhabit him. In all his work, Fussell humanizes his material with his own curatorial and interpretive gifts, unmooring stories and melodies from their specific eras and origins and setting them adrift in our own waterways.

Fussell’s album Good and Green Again was released Jan 21, 2022 via Paradise of Bachelors. Produced by James Elkington, the record navigates fresh sonic and compositional landscapes and is, perhaps, his most conceptually focused to-date. Fussell and Elkington enlisted a group of formidable players hailing from Durham, North Carolina (where Fussell lives) and elsewhere, including regular bandmembers Casey Toll on upright bass, Libby Rodenbough on strings, and Nathan Golub on pedal steel. They were joined by welcome newcomers Joe Westerlund (Megafaun, Califone) on drums, Joseph Decosimo on fiddle, Anna Jacobson on brass, and Bonnie “Prince” Billy, who contributes additional vocals.

“…Fussell is the rare contemporary to approach folk in its pure form, shunning self-penned compositions about bummer relationships to concentrate on material handed down from bygone, hardened times.” – The New Yorker

Sophie Mae Wellington

Sophie Wellington is an old-time fiddler, jazz singer, and percussive dancer. Originally from Staunton, VA in the Shenandoah Valley, she grew up surrounded by a diverse and dedicated musical community. She brought a passion for traditional music and dance with her to Boston where she studied vocal jazz performance and American roots music at Berklee College of Music. She became a fixture of the New England Old Time scene by co-leading a weekly old time session with Zach Meyer, along with forming their old time fusion string band Dumpster Debbie. Whether she’s weaving her voice through lavish jazz melodies and harmonies, driving fiddle tunes with her high energy bowing, or flatfooting Southern Appalachian rhythms, Sophie invites audiences on a sophisticated and energetic musical adventure. In her upcoming debut album Roving Jewel, a diverse collection of fiddle tunes, jazz standards, traditional ballads, and percussive dances, Sophie explores her relationship with these distinct musical forms expressing novel musical ideas that challenge traditional stylistic divisions.