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2010 TPFF Performers
Click here to find performers from previous
festivals.
Performers are listed alphabetically by last name (if solo performer or
dance workshop instructor), group name, or the first-appearing surname of a
duo or other number of performers.
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Katherine Angier
Grassy Nook Stage 1:00pm
14-year-old Katherine Angier has 7 years of experience playing jazz,
blues, big band songs, and classical. She attends Blair High School and is
interested in insects, microbes, and music.
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Bad Sauce
Grassy Nook Stage 3:00pm
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Bad-Sauce/45397322953
The members of this hometown classic/indie rock/folk band
are brothers Puck & Julian Bregstone and friends Irene Ravitz, Pat
Clarke & Dylan Nunn on guitar, bass, drums, keys, trumpet, trombone
and vocals. They've been playing together for more than 4 years (since
6th grade). Their individual musical adventures now include a
cappella, marching band, musicals, song writing, club rock - with
instruments as varied as ukilele and tuba. This TPFF performance will
be one of their first ventures into a more acoustic un-plugged sound.
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Christylez Bacon
Grassy Nook Stage 3:00pm
http://www.christylez.com/
Christylez is a Hip-Hop artist and multi-instrumentalist from Southeast
who plays positive, and original progressive Hip-Hop music with instruments
including, djembe, guitar, dumbek, and his very own Human Beat-boxing.
Christylez' versatility, and avant-garde style has imprinted his dynamic
perspective onto to the minds of many..
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Spencer Bates
Grove Stage 12:30pm
http://www.spencerbates.com
Spencer Bates was the winner of the TPFF 2007 Emerging Artist Showcase,
and he is welcomed back after a highly successful year. A solo artist in
the most literal sense, this self-taught musician relies upon only his
voice and piano. Some might interpret his lack of formal training as a
disadvantage. But, to the contrary, it's one of his greatest assets:
Spencer's melodies are clear, direct, and indelible. His lyrics offer
satirical musings on pop culture and reflections on the complications of
finding one's place in a confusing, sometimes chaotic, world. Spencer
guides us through this world not only with his unique piano performance,
but also with exceptionally versatile vocals. Whether subdued and
introspective or soaring and forceful, Spencer's voice is a remarkable
instrument. His talent demands to be heard.
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Mary Battiata
Seventh Heaven Stage 2:00pm
http://www.littlepinktheband.com
Singer-songwriter Mary Battiata performs regularly at Arlington's IOTA
club, the Black Cat and other DC- area venues, and with her ongoing
alt-country project LITTLE PINK has shared the stage with Jim Lauderdale,
Teddy Thompson and Neko Case, to name a few. Her first CD, Cul-de-sac
Cowgirl won a WAMMIE for best debut recording, and landed Mary on Harp
magazine's annual short list of "Songwriters You Should Hear." Mary has
performed with the band and solo at Bethesda's Strathmore Hall, and tours
twice a year in Austin, Los Angeles and New York. Her most recent CD,
Gladly Would We Anchor (Night World) debuted at #21 on the Freeform
American Roots chart - 140 independent radio stations in the U.S., Europe
and Australia - in the company of Americana artists such as Robbie Fulks,
Gurf Morlix, Rosanne Cash and others.
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Blackthorn Ceili Dancers
Lenore Robinson Dance Stage 11:00am
http://mysite.verizon.net/vzeu7i8i/blackthornceilidancers
The Blackthorn Ceili Dancers have been promoting Irish dance, music and
culture in the greater Washington area for over 40 years. Our humble
beginnings were in the kitchen of Harry and Margaret Shrecengost where in
1968 a determined group of eight started learning these dances. Over the
next 25 years the group, known as the Blackthorn Stick, continued to
flourish and grow and become a 'family'. Upon their retirement in 1994,
Margaret estimated she had taught over 2500 people Irish ceili dancing.
History was made in the trips they took, the performances they did, the
ceilis and festivals they put on. And it continues today.
The Blackthorn Ceili Dancers have maintained the focus on the regular
ceilis and we still do performances, festivals and parades. And what we do
best is have fun.
Lessons are now taught by the Ring of Kerry Irish Dance Club,
http://www. ringofkerrydancers.org, and the Greater Washington Ceili
Club,
http://www.gwcc-online.org.
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Banjo Man Frank Cassel
Roaming the Festival
http://www.banjomanfc.com
Frank "The Banjo Man" Cassel has been charming children and families at
the Takoma Park Farmer's Market for 10 years, and one of his albums was
inspired by experiences as Takoma Park's unofficial troubadour. His first
album project, The Illustrated Nonsense Rag, now resides in the American
Folklife Collection of the Smithsonian Institution. Frank has made numerous
television and radio program appearances.
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Beggars Ride
Seventh Heaven Stage 12:15pm
http://www.beggarsride.com
Local performing songwriters Kate Maguire and Claudia SanSoucie recently
joined forces to form the duo Beggars Ride. Their crisp harmonies and
interlaced guitar playing provide the perfect backdrop to their straight
forward and honest original music. Claudia SanSoucie has performed
extensively in the Mid-Atlantic, including the Kennedy Center's Millennium
Stage, and throughout Europe. Her song The Enemy was selected for
inclusion on the Baltimore Songwriter's Association's juried CD Songs
from a Charmed City. Kate Maguire has also been busy performing
regionally since she moved to Baltimore in 2008. She recently won a Silver
prize in the 2010 Mid Atlantic Songwriting Competition for her song
Softer Shade of Blue from her self released EP Leaving. This
song was also included on the 2009 GoGirls MusicFest Compilation CD.
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Bluestone
Field Stage 5:00pm
http://www.myspace.com/vabluestone
Performing blues by today's best contemporary artists along
with a mix of their own funky originals, Bluestone performs with a fiery
edge, blending the blues with funk, rock and jazz into an exciting
fusion of live party music. Bluestone's music shakes, swings and rocks.
Powerful vocals, searing guitars, and funked out rhythms make Bluestone
one of the most exciting blues performances today.
Since 2005 Bluestone has been rocking clubs and events throughout
Virginia, Maryland and DC, and keeping the blues alive by bringing a
freshness and excitement to the music. Geared to keep the dance floor
packed, Bluestone lights up the stage wherever they perform.
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The Bog Band
Lenore Robinson Dance Stage 11:00am
http://www.bogband.com
The Bog Band is a talented group of young people with a passion for
Irish music. The band leader is Pete Moss (aka Mitch Fanning), a strings
teacher at the Washington Waldorf School. Most band members play fiddle
(many of them play multiple instruments), but the band also includes a
variety of instruments including flute, guitar, bodhran, tin whistle,
uilleann pipes, harp and cello.
The Bog Band was created in September, 2004 when a group of sixth grade
boys at the Washington Waldorf School (Bethesda, Maryland) and their
strings teacher, Mitch Fanning, formed a fiddle club to play traditional
Irish tunes. As their talent and success grew, other young musicians
joined. Today, the Bog Band has about 15 musicians ranging in age from ten
through teen (and beyond).
The Bog Band has performed to great reviews at events and festivals
throughout the Baltimore/Washington area including: Potomac Celtic
Festival, The Folklore Society of Greater Washington, Smithsonian's
Discovery Theatre, The DC Mayor's Awards Gala, Montgomery County Arts
Council events, ShamRock Fest, and MetroPerforms!
They have recorded two CD'S: Got Bog?, a studio album, and Own
Their On Turf/, a live session recording that captures the excitement and
enthusiasm these musicians bring to their performances.
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Calico Jack
Abbott Stage 5:00pm
http://janiemeneely.com
About 25 years ago, Janie Meneely began writing songs about the Bay, and
she hasn't stopped yet. She and Paul DiBlasi perform together as the duo
Calico Jack, bringing their songs and stories about Bay people, places and
traditions to stages throughout the Bay watershed. DiBlasi adds a dash of
color as well as a splash of comedy to the duo's routine, but he really
shines as a singer. His mellow baritone vocals add a full-throated gusto
to the mix, where he gives voice to the watermen Meneely so often writes
about. He also brings his repertoire of classic work songs to Meneely's
portfolio of originals - along with a flair for harmony. Sometimes saucy,
sometimes serious, Calico Jack offers audiences a glimpse of a rapidly
disappearing way of life and invites them to join in on the chorus.
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Charm City Labor Chorus
Abbott Stage 11:00am
http://www.laborheritage.org/?p=926
This new addition to both the Labor Chorus and Labor Heritage families
was founded by Pam Parker and is directed by Darryl! L. C. Moch, Executive
Director of the Labor Heritage Foundation. The Charm City Labor Chorus
(CCLC) is made up of union members, activists, and organizers from the D.C.
and Baltimore area. The CCLC has performed at various labor and community
events, including Labor Night at Oriole Park at Camden Yards, Baltimore's
annual Labor Day parade, in concert with Joe Jencks and with the D.C. Labor
Chorus. Members have also participated in the Great Labor Arts Exchange.
Singing traditional union-movement standards as well as contemporary songs
of the progressive movement, the CCLC represents an effort to educate,
inspire, and entertain while getting people to "Rise Up Singing!" Singers
and musicians are welcome to join the CCLC, which meets in Baltimore on the
first and third Tuesdays of every month.
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Civil War Comrades
Abbott Stage noon
Civil War Comrades re-create mid-19th Century parlor and home-front
music, featuring Douglas Jimerson, tenor vocals and guitar, Ellen Jimerson,
vocals, hammered dulcimer, and mandolin, and Bob Clayton, vocals, regular
and minstrel-style banjo, mandolin, guitar, and harmonica. The group has
presented programs of period music, in costume, from as early as
Washington's day through the War of 1812 to the Civil War.
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Jeremiah Clark
Field Stage noon
http://www.thebrokenband.com
Jeremiah Clark is a Baltimore-based folksinger and songwriter.
Jeremiah greatly enjoyed performing with Barry Cooper in a TPFF showcase
last year, and appreciating the overwhelming response from the audience and
staff.
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Karen Collins
Seventh Heaven Stage 2:00pm
http://www.karencollins.net
Country singer and coal miner's daughter, Karen Collins writes
exceptional songs that she delivers in a traditional style - Hazel Dickens
meets Loretta Lynn. Who says they don't make 'em like they used to! Karen
stays busy writing songs and playing with her honky tonk band (The
Backroads Band), her Cajun/Zydeco band (Squeeze Bayou), and the acoustic
country quartet, The Blue Moon Cowgirls, in addition to doing solo shows.
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Lea Coryell
Abbott Stage 1:30pm
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/coryell
Lea Coryell sings and plays acoustic folk music. He usually accompanies
his singing with clawhammer-style banjo, but he also sings unaccompanied
and performs old-time instrumentals. His varied repertoire includes
Appalachian music, sea songs, Americana, old and new country music,
humorous songs, and traditional hymns. Lea's CD, Cornbread and Rum,
received excellent reviews and was nominated for two Wammie awards.
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Jennifer Cutting
Abbott Stage 5:00pm
http://www.jennifercutting.com
Jennifer Cutting happily blends careers as a bandleader, composer,
instrumentalist, ethnomusicologist, and record producer. Blending the
formal training of her Bachelor's and Master's degrees in music with a
passion for both traditional and electronic musics, she is one of few women
bandleaders working in her genre. With her previous band, The New St.
George, her recent CD, Ocean: Songs for the Night Sea Journey, and her
new live band the Ocean Orchestra, Cutting has pushed the boundaries of
Celtic, Folk and Folk-Rock, creating arrangements with
sweeping orchestral sounds, shimmering ethereal electronics, authentic
traditional instruments and a hard-hitting rhythm section.
Cutting is a composer and bandleader by family tradition and a musician and
ethnomusicologist by training. Cutting's two grandfathers, one from
England and the other from Ireland, were the inspiration for her natural
synthesis of British and Irish musical traditions. Following in her
English grandfather's footsteps, she earned her Bachelor's degree in
orchestral and choral conducting. Her passion for folk music was
developed as the last and youngest protégée of British folk revival leader
A. L. Lloyd, soaking up a blend of scholarship and joy in performance.
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D.C. Labor Chorus
Abbott Stage 11:00am
http://www.laborheritage.org/?p=579
The D.C. Labor Chorus is a musical ensemble representing union members
and community activists from the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. The
D.C. Labor Chorus sings for rallies, demonstrations, and picket lines. We
welcome union members to the annual Great Labor Arts Exchange each summer,
and we hold an annual Sacred/Favorite Songs concerts every winter and a
community benefit concert every spring. Some of our members and
participants are professional musicians but most are union members and
activists who just love to sing. Join us!
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Tony Denikos
Grove Stage 11:00am
Tony Denikos (pronounced "Deny-kiss") writes, records and performs
some of the most refreshingly down-home Americana music in the
Baltimore/Washington region. A native of Laurel, MD, he has been
influenced by artists such as John Fogerty, Lowell George, John Prine,
Graham Parker and Richard Thompson. His third recording, Already
Gone, charted at #2 on the Euro Americana Chart and at #15 on the
Freeform American Roots chart. This CD is full of cutting lyrical
wit, breathtakingly personal storytelling and foot stomping backbeats.
There are stories here that everyone can relate to about love, working
class attitudes, hope, regret, forgotten patriots and unwitting
heroes.
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Paul DiBlasi
see Calico Jack
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The Echo Wall
Grassy Nook Stage 11:00am
Brothers, Tate and Teddy Corrales, ages 10 and 13, play keyboard and
saxophone, accompanied by their friend on clarinet. From blues to the
Beatles.
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emma's revolution
Grove Stage 5:00pm
http://www.emmasrevolution.com/
Dancing on the edge of folk and pop there's a revolution: emma's
revolution. "Bold, profound, moving, hilarious and transformative."
The sound of passion in "deftly-turned phrases," songs imbued with
hope, warmth and the "power and drive" to turn tears into laughter,
cynicism into action.
A motivating force in intimate concerts and mass demonstrations,
infused with inspiration from the legacy of music for social change,
Pat Humphries and Sandy O's dynamic harmonies are multiplied by
hundreds of thousands. Emma Goldman stood for everybody's right to
beautiful, radiant things. Join the revolution!
emma's revolution is the duo of award-winning, activist musicians, Pat
Humphries & Sandy O, who write songs that become traditions. Their
song, If I Give Your Name won Grand Prize in the John Lennon
Songwriting Contest and their music has been featured on NPR's "All
Things Considered" and Pacifica's "Democracy Now!". Peace, Salaam,
Shalom is sung around the world and has been called the "anthem of
the anti-war movement." Keep On Moving Forward opened the NGO Forum
at the UN Fourth World Conference on Women in Bejiing, becoming the
unofficial theme of the Conference.
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Farafina Kan Youth Ensemble
Grassy Nook Stage 11:00am
http://farafinakan.com/joomla/
Farafina Kan is a family! We are comprised of young African-American
artists who, under the tutelage of international performing arts legends,
seek to sustain the work initiated by these legends through professionalism,
artistry, continual learning and proactive intergenerational transmission of
African culture through music and movement.
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Foggy Bottom Morris Men
Lenore Robinson Dance Stage noon
Roaming the Festival
http://www.fbmm-morris.org/
The Foggy Bottom Morris Men (FBMM) perform Morris Dance at festivals, private events, street-corners, and drinking establishments. What is morris dancing, you ask? It is a lively English folk dance, invigorated by clashing sticks, flashing handkerchiefs, and jangling bells, performed to the beat of toe-tapping live music from a concertina, accordion, and sometimes a fiddle and a drum. The FBMM perform what are known as Cotswold Morris dances, as well as wild-looking Border Morris dances, sword dances, and (in the winter-holiday season) a mummer's play.
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Rick Franklin & His Delta Blues Boys
Abbott Stage 4:00pm
http://www.hokumblues.com
An audience favorite at the 2008 Takoma Park Folk Festival, Rick
Franklin & His Delta Blues Boys return with their 1920s and 1930s blues and
ragtime in the Memphis and St. Louis guitar-duet style. Since 1981, Rick
Franklin has been playing and singing the blues at local festivals and
community events, as well as various clubs and cafes, in and around the
D.C. area.
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The Galt Line
Seventh Heaven Stage 12:15pm
http://www.TheGaltLineBand.com
The Galt Line is a rootsy swing group born in Brooklyn in 2008 and
recently returned to their native DC metro area. With wide-ranging
influences that include R&B, Rockabilly, Western Swing, Jump Blues, and
Gypsy Jazz, they have forged a sound that embraces music history without
sounding antiquated. Combining classic dance styles with a wry lyrical
sensibility and wall-shaking energy, The Galt Line is less interested in
moving people and more interested in getting people moving.
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David Glaser
Grove Stage 11:00am
http://davidglaser.com
David Glaser is a relative newcomer to the acoustic songwriter scene,
but he is not a neophyte. After nearly 3 decades under the radar,
playing in bar bands and touring as a side man, award-winning
songwriter and consummate guitarist David Glaser burst onto the
Acoustic/Folk scene in 2008 with "Cars and Lovers", a genre-bending CD
that shows his range as a performer, and as a songwriter. Greeted with
praise and rewarded with nationwide airplay, C&L charted on Folk Radio
with the popular titles Picture in My Car and House in Baltimore.
A new CD, Caffeine and Nicotine is set for release in 2010. David's
songs are lush, evocative, and full of imagery - like an album of
snapshots from his rich journey. An evening with David is a
rollercoaster ride of style, emotion and genre; you can expect
everything from contemporary singer/songwriter fare to traditional
offerings, and many shades in between. David's fluent guitar and
mandolin skills have made him a sought after side man, studio
musician, and guitar teacher. He performs regularly with Dan Navarro,
Stephanie Corby, and Bob Sima, among others.
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Glen Echo Open Band
Lenore Robinson Dance Stage Stage 5:00pm
http://www.fridaynightdance.org/#About
The mighty wall-of-sound Glen Echo Open Band plays contradance music: a mix
of Irish reels, jigs, polkas, French Canadian tunes, old-time mountain
music, rags and more. The Open Band has some of the D.C. area's best
musicians, and they make new musicians feel very welcome. You can hear the
Open Band at Maryland's Glen Echo Park on the second Friday of every month
in the Spanish Ballroom.
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The Grandsons
Grove Stage 3:00pm Seventh Heaven Stage 5:00pm
http://grandsons.com/index.shtml
A fan aptly described The Grandsons exuberant sound as "American music
in a blender with the lid off." The more prominent elements in this
eclectic whirlpool are New Orleans rhythm and blues, rockabilly, swing
and country two steps. After eight years of plying their pop sound
around the country as Grandsons of the Pioneers, the group's
increasing notoriety resulted in a high-noon showdown with singing
cowboys Sons of the Pioneers, who balked at the idea of acknowledging
paternity to a low down trumpet-toting, sax-blowing rock and roll
band. Counseled by their team of cut-throat lawyers to keep on playing
rather than pause to litigate, the band shortened its name to The
Grandsons and has been going full throttle ever since.
The Grandsons bring with them a pawn shop of instruments.
Vocalist-guitarist-trumpeter Alan MacEwen charms audiences with his
sly wit and winsome original songs; DC blues veteran Matthew Sedgley
locks in the groove on drums and percussion. Saxophonist Chris Watling
puts out a sound so meaty and memorable that he is in demand all over
as a guest artist and session player. The Grandsons employ first-call
bassists to hold down the low end, including Moe Nelson.
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Hippie Citie
Grassy Nook Stage 11:00am
Hippie Citie is Kenneth Hill, Robbie Fitzpatrick, Patrick Fox, Evan
Williamson, and Sam Butler. These middle schoolers will perform a U2 cover
and an original.
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The Honey Dewdrops
Seventh Heaven Stage 3:00pm
http://www.thehoneydewdrops.com
Laura Wortman and Kagey Parrish are the Honey Dewdrops: an award
winning, nationally touring husband and wife folk duet who perform fresh,
original songs focusing on vocal harmonies and tight instrumentation.
Influenced by traditional Appalachian music as well as contemporary
singer-songwriters, the Honey Dewdrops blend old styles with new, creating
music that is powerful and heartfelt.
If the Sun Will Shine, their debut record, was released in 2009 to
critical acclaim and was #2 for two consecutive months on Folk DJ Radio in
2010. Recorded live and mixed in a 1920's barn, the record is meant to pay
homage to their live performances - full of the same energy and emotion the
Honey Dewdrops bring to the stage. The album is a collection of songs that
Laura and Kagey have written over the past two years, capturing "something
haunting, melancholic and all-together charming" (Jeff Royer, Fly
Magazine).
Their second record, These Old Roots, will be released in
August 2010. The Dewdrops are A Prairie Home Companion's 2008 talent show
winners and were finalists in the 2009 Mountain Stage NewSong competition.
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ilyAIMY
Seventh Heaven Stage 4:00pm Seventh Heaven Stage 5:00pm
http://www.ilyaimy.com/
Rob Hinkal and Heather Lloyd have been touring nationally as ilyAIMY (i
love you And I Miss You) for 7 years, playing everything from bait shops to
biker weeks to nudist resorts. Called "a welcome jolt in folk," they've
been honored by Kerrville New Folk, Mountain Stage Newsong, Eddie's Attic
Acoustic Shootout and were the inaugural winners of the Takoma Park Folk
Fest Emerging Artist Showcase. Since then, Heather backed Dar Williams'
Promised Land tour, and ilyAIMY has released several CDs of award-winning songs.
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Jeanne & Lauren Jarvis-Gibson
Grassy Nook Stage 1:00pm
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Jeanne-and-Lauren-J-G/152512088443
Twins Jeanne & Lauren Jarvis-Gibson sing originals and covers in tight
harmonies with guitar accompaniment.
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Ladle Fight
Grassy Nook Stage 3:00pm
http://ladlefight.blogspot.com/
Original music by four Takoma Park 8th graders, Ian Askew, Ben Miller,
Michael Untereiner, and Zeke Wapner. Afer writing and performing their own
songs together since third grade, Ladle Fight releases its first CD this
year. They will do a rare acoustic performance at Folk Fest, showing off
their folkier side, and incorporating bucket drums.
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Elizabeth & Sandy LaPrelle
Abbott Stage 1:30pm
http://www.old97wrecords.com/elizabeth-laprelle
Elizabeth LaPrelle has been performing Appalachian ballads and old-time
songs since she was eleven. Her magnificent voice, her respect for the
songs, and her authentic mountain sound and style brought her to the
attention of first Ginny Hawker and then Sheila Kay Adams.
Raised in Rural Retreat, Virginia, Elizabeth attended old time fiddlers'
conventions and sang harmonies with her family, who taught her traditional
singing styles and encouraged her to sing their own favorite American folk
music.
Sandy LaPrelle grew up singing the traditional songs her mother and father
sang to her at home. As a counselor at summer camp she sang and taught
others to sing folk songs around the campfire, and of course sang to her
own kids at home. In the late 1980s Sandy performed early music with the
Solstice Assembly out of Chapel Hill, NC. Now that her daughter Elizabeth
is performing regularly, Sandy provides harmony vocals for the family duets.
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Lara Family & Friends
Grassy Nook Stage 1:00pm Lenore Robinson Dance Stage 4:00pm
The Lara Family & Friends is a youth steel ensemble whose primary
mission is to share their African Caribbean culture through steel pan
music. The ensemble was born out of the exposure the kids experienced when
they traveled to South Africa to perform for school children in Soweto,
South Africa that has changed their lives completely. The Lara Family &
Friends members are all excellent students in the D.C. Metropolitan Area
and range in age from 9 to 17 years old. They also arrange their music for
performances.
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Lea
Grove Stage 4:00pm Seventh Heaven Stage 5:00pm
http://www.thisislea.com
Tracy Chapman meets India.Arie at a party for Joni Mitchell--a seamless
blend of folk, jazz, pop, gospel and soul. Lea is an award-winning
singer-songwriter with a great big voice and tasteful arrangements that
highlight the musical passion she inherited from a father who played
trumpet with the '70s soul band Black Heat and a mother who taught her to
sing from her soul by initiating her at age 8 into the Jones Family Gospel
singers. Lea recently completed a prestigious Artist in Residence program
at the Music Center at Strathmore and has performed at the Kennedy Center,
American University, and Eddie's Attic in Georgia, among many venues. She
has also had numerous appearances in Germany, the Netherlands, and England.
Her CD Something Worth Keeping was released in Europe in January
2008. Lea is co-founder of bigBEE Records, an independent label dedicated
to "making the world a little sweeter, one song at a time." For her return
to TPFF this year, she will be joined by Will Henderson on bass.
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Martin Family Band
Abbott Stage 1:30pm
http://www.themartinfamilyband.com
The Martin Family Band is a family music group from Maryland that has
been performing since 1995. The band plays a lively mix of hammered
dulcimer, banjo, mandolin, fiddle, guitar and bass. Concentrating on
Appalachian old-time fiddle tunes and ballads, they also play colonial and
Irish music. Parents Carl and Jeanean had always been involved with folk
music, and it was only natural to include the children in music jams and
events as the entire family began to take an interest in home-grown music.
The family started playing at home for enjoyment when children Lydia, Emily
and Claude were only 12, 10, and 7 years old. Since then, they have
performed at many local festivals and traveled to Ireland, Scotland,
England, Germany, and New Mexico.
The band members include:
Carl Martin, mandolin, tenor banjo
Jeanean Martin, hammered dulcimer, guitar, vocals
Lydia Martin, banjo, guitar, piano, vocals
Emily Martin, tenor banjo, mandolin, lap dulcimer, vocals
Claude Martin, fiddle and vocals
Joshua Henderson, bass, percussion (bones and spoons), vocals
Carl Martin comes from a musical family reaching back many generations in
the rural communities of southwestern Virginia. Their musical traditions
and cultural practices were passed down from Carl's grandparents to the
younger generations of the Martin Family. The Martin Family Band has been
awarded First Place for Old Time Band at Deer Creek Fiddler's Convention.
They were recently awarded a showcase and scholarship for Traditional Music
Group at the 2010 Folk Alliance conference in Memphis, Tennessee. Their
2008 CD, Nanny's Music, is available at CD Baby. Their 2010 CD, Ten
Thousand Miles, was produced by Tom Mindte of Patuxent Music and the
wonderful musician and folklorist Alan Jabbour, who also wrote the
introductory notes.
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Martinez and Guthrie
Grove Stage 1:00pm
http://www.martinezandguthrie.com/
The partnership between Joe Martinez and Gus Guthrie began in 2004
when Joe was invited to sit in on drums with a Northern VA band, in
which Gus is the singer and guitar player. After a Friday night of
music, a few beers and a lot of talk, Joe left and began imagining the
possibilities of bringing Gus's voice to his collection of original
tunes. A conversation turned into a collaboration, and the project
that became Martinez & Guthrie's Gathering Change began. Shortly
after its release, Gathering Change began receiving airplay on XM
Sattelite Radio, followed a year later by Sirius Radio.
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Bob Mathis
Lenore Robinson Dance Stage 2:00pm
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Andrew McKnight
Grove Stage 1:45pm
http://www.andrewmcknight.net
Since permanently leaving his corporate environmental engineering
career in 1996, award-winning folk and Americana artist Andrew
McKnight's musical journey has traced half a million miles of blue
highways, and earned him a wealth of critical acclaim and enthusiastic
fans for his captivating performances and five CDs. He usually tours
solo, but also performs frequently with founding Nitty Gritty Dirt
Band member Les Thompson fronting their genre-bending quartet Beyond
Borders. In addition to his music, he is an insightful essayist and
poet, a gifted workshop leader, and a warm and thoughtful interview.
The foundation of Andrew's music is his captivating storytelling and
stellar songcraft; his Good Things Matter is a past Winner of the
Great American Song Contest. Andrew's writing often encompasses his
passion for community and causes such as preserving American
landscapes and heritage. The Shenandoah Valley-based artist often
shares his talents for a variety of worthy causes, such as a community
radio station in Massachusetts, an at-risk youth mentoring program in
California, and a food bank in suburban Seattle.
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Mello-D & the Rados
Field Stage 4:00pm
http://www.LiveHipHopBand.com
Mello-D & the Rados is a four piece live hip-hop band based in the DC
area. The band has released four CDs, has been featured on MTV and BET and
has toured the U.S, England and Brazil.
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Janie Meneely
see Calico Jack
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Walt Michael
Abbott Stage 1:30pm
http://waltmichael.com
Walt Michael's various incarnations, including Bottle Hill, Michael,
McCreesh & Campbell, and Walt Michael & Co., have spanned over 37 years and
taken him from the coal camps of Appalachia to the White House to the
closing ceremonies of the 13th Olympic Winter Games.
A virtuoso of tremendous influence in the revival of the hammered dulcimer,
Walt's wide repertoire ranges from old-time Southern Appalachian to Celtic
to breathtaking original compositions. As a vocalist and
multi-instrumentalist, he has recorded 14 albums and instructional videos,
appeared at the Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, and toured extensively
throughout the U.S., Canada, Europe, and the U.K. His music has been
heard on ABC-TV, NBC's Tonight Show, Broadway, BBC, TNN, CBC, OLN, and PBS.
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David Morreale
Grove Stage 11:00am
http://www.davidmorreale.com
David has been described as the James Dean of the folk scene - if Dean
played a hard-hitting acoustic guitar and sang with soaring baritone.
David left home at 16 and hit the road for ten years of hitchhiking
and busking on European streets and in the London Underground.
Homelessness, hard luck and constant movement were ever-present for
David. Through this, his songs reveal a world view that is uplifting,
inspiring, hard-bitten and hard earned. He traveled from his home in
England, through France, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Italy, Yugoslavia,
Greece, Holland and Austria. He made a living as a bartender,
construction (and destruction) worker, waiter, chef, housepainter,
guitar teacher, musician, writer, artist, cabinet-maker, record store
clerk, street mime, and lumberjack. His music includes a cast of
characters who experience poverty, redemption, joy, and what it means
to watch ones dreams go up in smoke and try to fill the empty space
they've left behind.
David has played in some of the country's most prestigious venues
including Nashville's Bluebird Cafe, The Point in Philadelphia, and
Arlene Grocery in New York City. In 2002 David took second place
honours at The Susquehanna Music and Arts Festival songwriting
contest. He was also a Recognized Finalist in The Plowshares
Songwriting contest in 2004. And in 2005 David was a Finalist in The
Kerrville Folk Festival's New Folk song contest, and won a Maryland
State Arts Council grant in Composition.
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Anna Mwalagho & Afrofloetry
World Stage 5:00pm
http://www.sonicbids.com/annamwalagho1
Born and raised in Kenya, East Africa, Anna Mwalagho began performing
professionally at the tender age of 8. She is a true remarkable renaissance
woman, an internationally recognized actress, poet, dancer,
singer/songwriter and storyteller. She has won numerous national awards in
her native Kenya, where she performed on stage as well as on television and
radio with the Kenya broadcasting corporation.
Former vocalist of the well known Chopteeth Afrofunk Band, she
embarked on a successful solo career that led her to form a band, "The
Afro Floetry Band". Within less than a year, the band had already opened up
for international legends; The king of Afro Jazz Hugh Masekela
International acclaimed legend of Afro Pop Oliver Mtukudzi famously
known as Tuku Music with whom she collaborated doing her poem
Flavoured world. She has also performed at the Smithsonian Museum of
African Art. Her music is a unique blend of poetry, East-African music,
old school world blues, Miriam Makeba style of music and African dance.
She has become famous in the Washington DC metropolitan area. The band puts
on an exciting, engaging and passionate show, with Anna mwalagho dancing,
singing and the band injecting the African beat in each of a her songs and
poems. This is a unique band because it blends both spoken word poetry,
with African melodies, and songs. The musicians are all professionals who
have performed for famous musicians, the likes of Gladys Night, Aretha
Franklin, The Spaniards and The Flamingo.s, Angelique Kidjo, Hugh Masekela,
and Orlando Julius, just to name a few.
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Val Nebbia
Grove Stage 11:00am
http://www.nebiaband.com
Val Nebbia features soothing, balmy vocals - mixed with raw, emotive
strains reminiscent of Heart's Ann Wilson or Janis Joplin.that take
listeners on a spiritual journey replete with lyrical explorations of
love, loss, brokenness and hope. Her beautiful and powerful voice
ranges from ultra-quiet to belt-it-out bravado.
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Karyn Oliver
Grove Stage 11:00am
http://www.karynoliver.com
Karyn Oliver, an up-and-coming singer-songwriter from Baltimore, has
been turning heads on both sides of the Atlantic with her skillful
songwriting and a passionate, soulful voice that could break your heart
through a brick wall. Her musical inspiration comes primarily from the
eclectic mix of music she was exposed to while growing up in the musically
diverse culture of Washington, D.C. As a child, she was trained in both
classical voice and musical theatre. At the same time, she learned to play
rock-and-roll on her guitar and, being inspired by the likes of the
Beatles, the Everly Brothers, and Carol King, to write some of her first songs.
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Jesse Palidofsky
Grove Stage 2:30pm
http://www.jessepal.net
Jesse's original songs reflect a man who has never trod the well-beaten
path. The breadth, depth, and good humor of his compositions reflect a life
of great risk-taking and greater rewards reaped. Toward the end of the
Vietnam War, he was a non-registrant for the draft. As a teenager, Jesse
left his family of 16 brothers and sisters behind in Detroit and hitchhiked
30,000 miles around North America, searching for his place in the world. He
bought his first guitar in a pawnshop in Denver at age 19, and started
writing songs through a series of jobs.pumping gas, working for the United
Farm Workers union, supervising emotionally disturbed teens, and
newscasting on Detroit's public radio station.
Jesse's CD of original compositions, Food for the Long Haul,
reflects the rich diversity of his Detroit musical heritage. It moves
effortlessly from the harmonica-driven Crossing the Poison River, to the
Appalachian-style political broadside, Ballad of Sammie Abbott, honoring
the lifetime of Takoma Park's former mayor and founder of the Takoma Park
Folk Festival. The CD also includes the jazzy sax and hilarious verbal
juxtapositions of I Need Mercy (A Million Times a Day), to the sublime,
Sweet-Honey-in-the-Rock-style spiritual, Send Down Your Healing Water.
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The Piney Branch Uke Club
Grassy Nook Stage 11;00am
The Piney Branch Uke Club kicked off in Dec. 2009, as an after school
club at Piney Branch Elementary School. Three kids showed up at the
first meeting and stuck it out through the year. At the Takoma park
Folk Festival,, the club members will celebrate their effort with a
performance of Bill Withers' "Lean on Me," featuring Aja on vocals and
Ogden and Ryan on ukulele.
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The Polka Dots
Grassy Nook Stage 3:00pm
http://www.facebook.com/thepolkadots#!/thepolkadots?v=info
The Polka Dots are sisters Aislin and Nora Kavaldjian, and friend Olivia
Zook, from Loudoun County, VA. With fiddle, accordion, mandolin, bass, and
vocal harmonies, they offer an energetic blend of old jazz, bluegrass and
old-time, encompassing Appalachian heritage and original, peppy
compositions.
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Beth Rinaldo & Scott Holland
Field Stage 1:00pm
Beth Rinaldo (vocals, guitar) & Scott Holland (guitar, mandolin,
harmonica, vocals) have been working together for 7 years; first as members
of the Wammie award winning Beth-Allison & The Well-Strung Boys and
then with the Wammie nominated Big Sky. Among their many shared
influences are Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Buddy & Julie Miller, Emmylou
Harris, Gillian Welch, and John Hiatt. With close vocal harmonies and
outstanding instrumental prowess, they stretch the boundaries of the roots
rock genre with their skillful wanderings into alt-country, rock, blues,
jazz and bluegrass.
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Rock River Gypsies
Field Stage 11:00am
http://www.rockrivergypsies.com
If you could combine David Grisman, Levon Helm, and Steve Earle into one
person, and give that person a guitar, what would he play? Realistically,
the creature that would result from that transformation would probably be a
hideous six-armed chimera that would lumber around begging for the sweet
release of death with all three of his mouths instead of playing the guitar.
For a more pleasant experience, we recommend listening to The Rock River
Gypsies. Every member of the Gypsies contributes his or her unique voice
both in harmonies and in songwriting, and the result is a rollicking
pastiche of bluegrass, rock, and jazz that never fails to entertain. Born of
jam sessions at the College of William and Mary, the Gypsies have grown over
four years of playing together and developed a unique sound combining
soulful southern melodies with jazz sensibilities. Their performances span
the gamut from heartfelt originals to old time favorites as well as
virtuosic solos on guitar, mandolin, saxophone, and flute.
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Serendipity
Grassy Nook Stage 1:00pm
With a repertoire ranging from folk to pop to country music, Hannah
Untereiner, Katie Leep-Lazar, and Ariel Miller are three rising seniors who
love to sing together, a cappella or with guitar accompaniment.
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Perry Shafran
Lenore Robinson Dance Stage 5:00pm
http://tedcrane.com/DanceDB/DisplayIdent.com?key=PERRY_SHAFRAN
Perry Shafran has been calling contra dances since 2002. He has called
for many dances along the East Coast, specifically in the Washington, DC,
and Baltimore, MD areas. He has been an organizer of the Annapolis
Traditional Dance Society dance, and has called contra dances in
Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina, and calls for a
wide variety of crowds and dance levels. This year marks the first year
calling dances at the Takoma Park Folk Festival.
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Ralph Lee Smith
Abbott Stage 1:30pm
http://ralphleesmith.com
Ralph Lee Smith plays and sings acoustic folk music, principally playing
Appalachian dulcimer but also harmonica. Ralph plays traditional
Appalachian music in simple styles, developed through many Appalachian
field trips to meet old-time dulcimer makers and players in Virginia, North
Carolina, and Kentucky. His books include Appalachian Dulcimer
Traditions, Songs and Tunes of the Wilderness Road, and Folk
Songs of Old Kentucky. His most recent CD, Across the Blue Ridge,
played and sung with Madeline MacNeil, was released in 2006.
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George Stephens and Friends
Abbott Stage 12:45pm
Blending strong vocals and guitar accompaniment, George Stephens sings
traditional and traditionally inspired songs and ballads of the men and
women who work in the mines and the mills, the forests and the fishing
boats, the cattle herds and the car factories; all those who are "...
working life out to keep life in."
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Those Guys
Grassy Nook Stage 3:00pm
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?v=wall&gid=40787563438#!/group.php?gid=40787563438&v=info
Two guys make an ever-evolving, funky basement band thinking it will
nowhere, then they realize, people actually dig this music. Gabriel Jones
and Philip Kavuma play medley of soul-sonic funk, pitch-perfect harmony,
lyrical wizzardry.
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The New Twinbrook Tellers
Grassy Nook Stage 11:00am
The Twinbrook Tellers, formerly from the Twinbrook Community Library,
are now a part of the Dogwood Dogs 4H Community Club, Storytelling
Project. The Dogwood Dogs Club, open to children ages 8 to 18, meets
once each month during the school year, in Gaithersburg. The young
storytellers who are comfortable and competent telling tales to a
broader audience are invited to join the Twinbrook Tellers, performing
at area libraries and festivals. The Twinbrook Tellers have performed
at the Glen Echo Folk Festival, Montgomery County Harvest Festival,
and Takoma Park Midwinter MiniFest. The Twinbrook Tellers are
honorary members of Voices In The Glen (http://voicesintheglen.org/).
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Jonathan Temple
Grassy Nook Stage 11:00am
A 17-year old yearning for the spotlight, Jonathan was raised on The
Beatles, Dylan and The Doors. A first-time performer at TPFF, he is said
to "burst with emotion on stage."
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Lynn Veronneau Trio
Seventh Heaven Stage 12:15pm
http://www.myspace.com/lynnveronneautrio
The Lynn Veronneau Trio is a multi-national acoustic trio (Quebecois,
English and US) whose members have played throughout Europe and the
Americas. The trio perform in English, French, Spanish and Portugese.
Lynn's previous album, Something Cool, was voted in the top 10
Albums of the Year in Quebec. A classically trained vocalist, Lynn is often
compared to Eva Cassidy. Long-time partner Ken Avis performed for 5 years
with the UK's legendary (and WC Handy Award winning) Otis Grand blues band
before living and traveling throughout Europe and the US. David Rosenblatt
studied Brazilian acoustic music in Brazil and played extensively in the
San Francisco Bay area before moving to DC.
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Doug Alan Wilcox
Grove Stage 11:00am
http://www.dougalanwilcox.com
Doug Alan Wilcox is a seasoned singer/composer/multi-instrumentalist
equally at home performing his own songs on guitar, Irish bouzouki, strum
stick, and harmonica, or accompanying others with percussion and vocals.
With its rootsy base, his genre-busting stew has been called
"acoustic--outside of the box."
Doug has spent his entire adult life in front of a microphone and behind a
guitar. During that time, he's traveled a road from solo acoustic artist
through numerous electric bands of various stripes and back again, having
performed along the way at some of the East Coast's most notable venues as
well as countless small cafes and listening rooms.
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Janine Wilson
Seventh Heaven Stage 2:00pm Seventh Heaven Stage 5:00pm
http://janinewilsonband.com/
Janine Wilson is a singer/songwriter and front woman of her own band
which produces a brand of roots rock and roadhouse music. Think Sheryl
Crow, The Black Crowes and Lucinda Williams... The Washington Post
describes Janine as "poignant and seductive", and Richmond's Style Weekly
says, "when Wilson digs her heels in and opens up her big voice, it's best
to pay close attention." Her music will speak to fans of rock, alt country
and all sounds that resonate within the fabric of American Music. She has
been honored with six Washington Area Music Awards, national songwriting
accolades and released two critically acclaimed albums. Janine has just
released her third project at Engine Company Records in New York City with
co-writer/guitarist, Max Evans.
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Steve Winick
Abbott Stage 5:00pm
http://www.mp3.com/artist/steve-winick
Steve Winick is the writer and editor at the American Folklife Center of
the Library of Congress, home to thousands of maritime music recordings
collected by Alan Lomax, Helen Creighton, James Madison Carpenter, Helen
Hartness Flanders, Robert W. Gordon, Laura Boulton, Sandy Ives, and William
Main Doerflinger. Steve is a folklorist with academic publications on
ballads, proverbs, and modern legends, as well as Chaucer, Sir Gawain, and
Robin Hood. He has taught folklore and literature at the University of
Pennsylvania and George Mason University, and he writes for Dirty Linen:
The Magazine of Folk and World Music as well as performing with the Celtic
ensemble Jennifer Cutting's Ocean Orchestra and with Ship's Company
Chanteymen, reenacting 18th and 19th century singing sailors.
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