Shoots & Roots - Easter in Edinburgh
If Scotland's more your cup of tea - an alternative to Gosport might be the Edinburgh Folk Festival.
There have been several changes to the Edinburgh Easter Folk Festival. It is from now on held just from Thursday to Easter Sunday (9. - 13. April); therefore there is a second part of the Edinburgh Folk Festival held in autumn. An interesting concept. This Easter's 'Shoots & Roots offers plenty of great music; among the bands and musicians are Martin Hayes and Dennis Cahill, Chris Wood Trio, Loyko, Calluna, Simon Thoumire's Reel Life Ceilidh, Deaf Shepherd and more. Interesting and exciting sounds also 'The Flowers of Edinburgh' on Sunday night - a unique musical showcase featuring over 30 of Edinburgh's leading performers. As we are used to, the Edinburgh Folk Festival is held mainly in the comfortable Teviot House, and it offers besides concerts also ceilidhs, workshops, talks, theatre, children's events and of course good fun and good beer.
Information at the Edinburgh Folk Festivals' Homepage or from Dave Francis (Festival Director)
Mandolins
USA. Niles Hokkanen at Mandocrucian Publications informs that he now sends his mandolin catalogue by e-mail; just contact him at mandoman@monumental.com.
Wolfstone have gigs again!
Great Britain. Wolfstone will play Cambridge Folk Festival (1st & 2nd August) this year and two other UK dates prior to the festival, Edinburgh (Queens Hall, 30th July) and Whitehaven (Rosehill Theatre, 31st July).
Meanwhile, there has been some discussion about a 'new' Wolfstone album called 'This Strange Place', published by Wolfstones dearest friends at Green Linnet. Be careful about buying this: On the one hand you might have it already as it is a repackaging of the recently independently released 'Drever MacKenzie' album, on the other hand it is not Wolfstone - it is good, but very different (in line-up and style) to the Wolfies! It is, by the way, not really Wolfstone's fault that the Drever Mackenzie one now is called Wolfstone - but it is all too difficult to tell you!
News from the Batties
Scotland/USA/Germany. The new Battlefield Band album "Rain, Hail or Shine" - with new band members Davey Steele and Mike Katz - is now finished. It is a normal CD with a special Bonus CD-Rom element. If all goes well it will be on sale in the U.K. over
the next couple of months, in the U.S. from the 7th of April. Also new to the vast Battlefield Band catalog, is founder member Alan Reid's first ever solo album - "The Sunlit Eye.
Battlefield Band will do a some Scottish dates in February and March before assaulting
North America in March and April. For info: The Temple Site
Info by Cindy Funk - Editor of Battlefield Band Connection USA newsletter
Meanwhile, former Battlefield Band singer Alistair Russell has contributed for FolkWorld a 'Folkscene from inside' - but it is all in German (sorry Cindy and others!). Yes, if you did not know it - Alistair is a perfect German speaker. In his feature he thanks all his German friends and fans for their long time support. Alistair now does the management for Chris Sherburn & Denny Bartley; as he says, he has left the Battlefield Band as a friend... Read about it in German :-)
Dutch Celtic festival
Netherlands. The Craic Irish/Celtic Folkfestival 1998 is held again at Saturday 25 April 1998,3 pm till midnight, in Azotod, De Meern near Utrecht, Netherlands. The acts are in order of appearance: Lindisfarne, Eliza Shaen-Carter, The Irish Club Childrens Dancegroup, Brian McNeill, Boyagh (this is Bob Fox's new 3 piece band), Vin Garbutt, Shannon. There will be a CD and Celtic market, Irish music movies and sessions in the café. Info and tickets (f 35,-) from Martin and Corine Judkins, to the homepage. Special reduced entrance price for session musicians. Therefore contact Martin and Corine in advance.
Plattdeutsch online ressource - in the United States!
United States/Northern Germany. FolkHart, an online web project featuring Plattdeutsch language, culture, and Frisian/North German heritage, has a lively and lovely webpage called FolkHart's "FolkFest" that features Frisian/Plattdeutsch folk music lyrics, midi samples, and CD/tape reviews. The online address (URL) is: http://members.aol.com/folkhart/FolkFest.html.
Folk artists/producers/distributors, particularly those who perform in any of the many Plattdeutsch dialects, are invited to submit titles, music samples, suggestions, musical 'folklore' and any other relevant tidbits for inclusion in this FolkFest project (FolkWorld is interested in any informatio on Plattdeutsch stuff, too - the editors).
Stop by and say "moin"!
The end of An Era - Giancarlo Cesaroni has passed away
Italy/from Rome. On the 29th January, Giancarlo Cesaroni died here in Rome. "The Boss", as he was known to us here, was the founder of the Folk Studio, which he opened in the sixties. The Folkstudio and Gerde's Folk City both opened in the same year. Over the years it became a centre for acoustic folk, jazz, classical, avant garde and contemporary music and its importance in the history of the italian music scene cannot be exaggerated.
During the sixties and seventies Cesaroni gave a space to, then, unknown singer songwriters such as Francesco Di Gregori, and the political singers and writers like Giovanna Marini, who went on to become major figures in
the musical and cultural life of not only Rome but Italian culture. The Folk Studio was the first place to host international folk singers and songwriters in the sixties, and its first guest was Bob Dylan, who was followed by a stream of up and coming folk music stars over the years. A stubborn, rampantly anti - commercial, passionately left wing individualist, he always found a space for the musical "outsiders" and time for a glass of whiskey and a conversation, if you passed by. Salute, Gracia and Ciao, you will be missed. R.I.P. Giancarlo.
By Mike Cooper. Rome.
New band from Ireland
Ireland. Calico are a new instrumental quartet featuring Diarmuid Moynihan on Uilleann Pipes, Tola Custy on Fiddle, Donncha Moynihan on guitar and Pat Marsh on bouzouki.
Their debut album 'Celanova Square' was released in February 1998 on Ossian Records. Following a series of successful shows in Dublin the band met up with producer Declan Sinnot and began to record in late 1995. 'Celanova Square', named after a plaza in a little Galician village, showcases the bands own original material combined with Breton and Irish tunes.
Calicos music has already been recorded by top class bands such as Lúnasa and Déanta in addition to other major folk artists like Karan Tweed and Andy Cutting. New Material by a pipes/fiddle combination carried on a superb guitar/bouzouki base has seen Calico emerge as one of the most eagerly awaited acts in a long, long time.
Info by JIM MORRISH, Ireland.
Gandalf has finished
Belgium. Belgian-Flemish magazine Gandalf has finished - more info on it as well as other news from the Belgian scene at Marc's Belgium news column.
Anam - embarking for a tour to all those places around the world where FolkWorld is read...
Ireland/Scotland/World. Anam the four piece 'celtic' band based in Edinburgh, have recorded their new album in December are about to commence a backbreaking world tour that takes in four continents. In late January they have been to Switzerland for a 10 date tour, and then fly of to the U.S. in mid February, via headlining the Cheltenham Folk Festival.
In the States the band are appearing as part of the official showcases for the'Folk Alliance' and then embark on their first tour of the country. They continue on to Australia for the 'Port Fairey' Folk Festival, and then continue with dates in the South - East of the country and Tasmania.
Japan is the next stop, to do media 'bits' for the launch of their just completed fourth album(as yet untitled) and 2nd for J.V.C. Victor. Then back to Australia and on to New Zealand for the Christchurch Folk Festival. They return to the U.K. end of April, play at Holmfirth Folk Festival and then set off for Taiwan, Japan, Hong Kong, and Malaysia mid May for more gigs.
June sees a couple of U.K Festivals, including Clitheroe and then it's back to the States for the release of the new album there. July sees them in Europe or Canada.
Breakneck travelling, and plenty of hard work, but worth it to see the world and all our meet all their friends. Full list of dates and places at their website
Swedish band Plommon now with e-mail
Sweden. In issue 1 we have had an interview with the Swedish band Plommon. From them we have the news that they can be contacted now also by e-mail, at plomon@hotmail.com. They will be again on Germany tour this summer, with Music Contact. Ingeborg: "It will be lovely, it was great last time!"
Session at the other side of the pond
USA. Though based on Europe, we have hear a request of one of our readers to inform you of the following:
There is a semi-monthly Free American Country Old Time Jam Session in Manhattan, New York. Held in Thady Cons (Irish Bar) at 915 Second Avenue (between E.48 & 49St) always at the first and third Sunday of each month from 1:30pm to 4:30pm.
All Old Time Musicians and Dancers are encouraged to come.Listeners are also welcome.
Colum Sands on tour
Ireland. Colum Sands, well-known and very good singer/songwriter from Northern Ireland and part of the famous Sands Family, wants to pass you on some solo tour dates: He will be from November 3rd to 15th in Scotland and England (Contact Bob Gilchrist, and from November 20th to 29th in Germany (Contact Siegfried Maeker).
Balkan seminar
Bulgaria. The Students Co-operation Zornitsa from Sofia, Bulgaria, are the organisers of The Practical Seminar for Balkan Folklore, Balkanfolk '98. As they describe, "This great meeting of friends of the folklore, coming from all over the world, to dance, sing and play music together, is held each summer in our country." Accomodation is in a good hotel, making it attractive especially for tourists (for the Bulgarians it might be too expensive...). Still, it sounds to be good fun.
More information for Balkanfolk'98 on their web site.
The German Roots of American Folk Music
USA/Germany. Armin and Susanne, a great couple from Germany, are staying at the moment in American doing research about
this topic. There is now also a web site of them available about the German Roots of American Folk Music. Their website address is http://members.aol.com/newminst. The german version can be selected from there.
Please note also our regional news columns::
In the German news you can find as additional news:
To the (older) FolkWorld News of Nr. 2
To the (newer) FolkWorld News of Nr.4
Scotland/FolkWorld. The FolkWorld Award is a new title given to projects, people etc. that carry ideas that FolkWorld supports as well. Projects with a FolkWorld Award guarantee a high quality folk music project that is always highly recommended.