Concerts and Events

To hear a recording of upcoming events, call (617) 623-1806.

2008-2009 Concert Season

Sat., Sep. 20: Peggy Seeger
Thurs., Sep. 25: Moore's Melodies (Gordon Warner and Rosie O'Brien)
Sat. - Mon., Oct. 11-13: Fall Getaway Weekend, Bement Camp, Charlton, MA
Sat., Nov. 1: Cliff Haslam
Thurs., Nov. 13: Len Graham house concert
Sat., Nov. 22: Dave Webber and Anni Fentiman
Sat., Dec. 6: Sheila Kay Adams
Sun., Dec. 7: Pub Carol Sing
Sat., Feb. 7: Annual FSSGB Members' Concert
Sat., March 21, 2009: Priscilla Herdman
Sat., March 28, 2009: Brian Peters
Sat., April 18, 2009: Benefit concert - performer TBA

Please note: tickets are not sold in advance for most of our concerts (unless otherwise noted.) All the seats are good, so if you're there a half hour before the show starts, you shouldn't have a problem!

Peggy Seeger

Saturday, September 20, 2008, 8pm
St. John's United Methodist Church
80 Mt. Auburn Street, Watertown
$15.00 general admission, $10.00 FSSGB members
Children 7-15: $5, Children 6 and under free
(Members' children 15 and under free)
(See map and calculate directions on MapQuest)
For public transportation, check the MBTA web site.
This venue is handicap accessible

"The ballads . . . they are my heartsongs. To me, they are the core of our tradition. They have been created, loved, tended, pruned and trimmed by generations of singers so that they are down to their very bare bones. And because their language is so sparse, both the listener and the singer can clothe those bones with any kind of flesh they wish. Every time you sing them, they're different. Yes, the ballads give me endless pleasure. They are also the best antidote I've found for Interstate Hypnosis!" (Peggy Seeger, Prism Coffeehouse,1996)

Peggy Seeger, born in 1935 in New York City, is an American folk singer. She is also well known in Britain, where she lived for more than 30 years with her husband, songwriter Ewan MacColl. Peggy's formal music education was interwoven with her family's interest in traditional music. She began to play the piano at seven years old. By the age of eleven she was transcribing music and becoming conversant with counterpoint and harmony. Between the ages of 12 and 35 she learned to play guitar, five-string banjo, autoharp, Appalachian dulcimer and English concertina. She tried the fiddle - and failed. When her fiddle was stolen her friends discouraged her from buying another.

For two years she attended Radcliffe College in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where she began singing traditional songs professionally. She began to be a songmaker in 1958 with what she considers to be her first successful song, "The Ballad of Springhill." Peggy looks on herself chiefly as a singer. The fact that she plays six instruments (piano, guitar, banjo, English concertina occasionally, autoharp/Appalachian dulcimer at home only thanks to airline baggage restrictions) does not brand her an instrumentalist as she uses her instruments chiefly for accompaniment. She has never had voice lessons although she has had invaluable help from Penni Harvey-Piper in London and Danny Ellis in Asheville. She professes that "my voice isn't a beautiful voice. Joan Baez has a beautiful voice. Mine is a character voice and that has helped me in singing different types of songs."

Peggy is a much loved and respected icon of the folk movement as well as a fabulous performer. Don't miss this opportunity to hear her!

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Moore's Melodies house concert

featuring Gordon Warner and Rosie O'Brien
Thursday, September 25, 8pm
Location TBA
$12 for all at the door
Reservations required; email suzanne AT smrozak DOT com for
reservations and directions.

2008 marks the bi-centenary of the publication of Thomas Moore's Irish Melodies. Some of Moore's airs, such as The Last Rose of Summer, The Minstrel Boy, and Oft in the Stilly Night have remained popular since their first publication. To mark the bi-centenary, FSSGB will present a recital of Moore's Melodies with Rosie O'Brien on vocals, accompanied by Gordon Warner on mandolin, banjo and bouzouki.

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Cliff Haslam

Saturday, November 1, 2009, 8pm
First Parish of Watertown
35 Church Street, Watertown
$15.00 general admission, $10.00 FSSGB members
Children 7-15: $5, Children 6 and under free
(Members' children 15 and under free)
(See map and calculate directions on MapQuest)
For public transportation, check the MBTA web site.
This venue is handicap accessible

The banner that flies outside the Griswold Inn in Essex, Connecticut on Monday nights says "Sea Chanteys Tonight." For many years, this has meant Cliff Haslam and his collection of songs of the sea and of the English countryside, with assistance from any of a number of musically inclined friends. A native of Warrington, Lancashire -- about 16 miles up the Mersey from Liverpool -- he's as fine an exemplar of the British folk tradition as you'll find this side of the pond.

With one of the strongest voices in the folk revival, Cliff sings a group of English songs that range from powerful to tender, genteel to downright bawdy. On his recording "The Clockwinder", harmonies and additional accompaniments are provided by one of Cliff's most ardent fans, Gordon Bok, who also recorded this one at his home studio in Camden, Maine.

Cliff has been a mainstay in the folk music scene of southeastern New England for decades, and has inspired countless people to sing, learn songs and to join in the community of folk music. His songs display a fine sense of humor along with great vocal artistry. Everyone should have the opportunity to witness Cliff shake the walls of a room as his booming bass baritone brings new life to an old chantey....and in the next moment, to listen while he sings a sweet ballad that would bring tears to the eyes of an executioner.

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Len Graham house concert

Thursday, November 13, 2008, 8pm
Location TBA
$12 for all at the door
Reservations required; email suzanne AT smrozak DOT com for
reservations and directions.

Irish singer Len Graham offers traditional songs in English from the North of Ireland, with memories from a lifetime of collecting and singing. Len's extensive repertory of songs covers the gamut of themes and human experience as portrayed in the old ballads, local songs, come-all-ye's, lyric folksongs, music hall pieces; songs on politics, murder, love, emigration and more.

Len is one of Ireland's best known traditional singers who has gained an international reputation, not only for his inimitable singing style, but also for the breadth of his knowledge of Irish folk music. Since coming to the fore in 1971 when he won the All-Ireland traditional singing competition, Len has appeared at numerous Irish and international folk, literary and storytelling festivals, as well as on radio and television programmes. In 1992 he was awarded the Sean O'Boyle Cultural Traditions Award, in recognition of his work in Ireland as a song collector and singer. In 2002, he was honored as the inaugural recipient of the TG4 (Irish language and culture television channel) National Music Award for Traditional Singer of the Year. His rich recording history spans over thirty years, with more than twenty highly acclaimed albums to his credit.

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Dave Webber and Anni Fentiman

Saturday, November 22, 2008, 8pm
First Parish of Watertown
35 Church Street, Watertown
$15.00 general admission, $10.00 FSSGB members
Children 7-15: $5, Children 6 and under free
(Members' children 15 and under free)
(See map and calculate directions on MapQuest)
For public transportation, check the MBTA web site.
This venue is handicap accessible

The Folk Song Society is pleased to present a special concert with the British duo Dave Webber and Anni Fentiman. Dave and Anni are well-known in traditional music circles, and have developed a talent and firm commitment to unaccompanied singing. Both were members of the British a capella quartet Beggers Velvet during it's eight year existence and many highly successful U.S. tours. This is a powerful singing duo not to be missed.

Dave and Anni's enthusiasm sparkles in their powerful vocal performances which have developed from their involvement in traditional and traditional-style music for over 25 years. Their first love is accappella singing, both solo and in harmony, and they present a varied cross section of material from the delicate solo to the rousing chorus.

Anni's intuitive harmony adds colour and depth to the duo whilst her solo performance is clear and sensitive. From the North East of England Anni is a "Geordie" and presents an unusual repertoire featuring dialect songs earning Anni a well deserved reputation in English traditional music circles. Dave sings with a rich and powerful style. His love of this music is clear in his performance, from the gentle and plaintive traditional ballad to the stirring chorus song which inspires even the most reticent audience to join in. Dave is also a song writer of note with many of his better known songs often assumed to be traditional. Foremost among these is probably "Lady of Autumn" and many of Dave's songs have been heard as far afield as Australia. Dave has published a book of his self penned songs all of which are written in the traditional idiom.

Apart from their concert work, Dave and Anni's recordings are frequently featured on national and local radio and have been used for television. They occasionally combine their talents with other performers in musical and theatrical productions, the most widely acclaimed of which is probably 'The Widow's Uniform', a musical play in which Dave and Anni play leading roles. This show has toured provincial theatres throughout England, and has been favourably reviewed by BBC Radio 4.

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Sheila Kay Adams

Saturday, December 6, 2008, 8pm
St. John's Methodist Church
80 Mt. Auburn Street, Watertown
$15.00 general admission, $10.00 FSSGB members
Children 7-15: $5, Children 6 and under free
(Members' children 15 and under free)
(See map and calculate directions on MapQuest)
For public transportation, check the MBTA web site.
This venue is handicap accessible

Sheila Kay Adams is a versatile and talented performer. She is a traditional ballad singer, musician, Appalachian humorist, published author, and master storyteller. She has a down-home style with a professional foundation. With a warm, relaxed and genuine presence, Sheila develops an immediate rapport with her audience. Whether singing the ancient story-songs, playing the banjo, performing an original composition, or creating a window into her rich culture by sharing a story about the colorful folks of her small mountain community, she spellbinds audiences of all ages. Sheila is able to draw from a vast amount of material and can provide entertainment in a wide variety of environments. She is also an excellent teacher, providing residencies, workshops, and classes. Having taught in the North Carolina Public School System for seventeen years, as well as presenting in classrooms at hundreds of colleges and universities across the country, Sheila is exceptionally adept in engaging and holding the attention of students in an academic setting.

Sheila comes from a small mountain community in western North Carolina. For seven generations her family has maintained the tradition of passing down the English, Scottish, and Irish ballads that came over with her ancestors in the late 1700�s. Sheila learned these ballads from her relatives, primarily from her great-aunt, Dellie Chandler Norton.

She also grew up listening to great storytellers. Stories from them, and about them, and her own growing up years in the little community of Sodom have formed the nucleus of her performances and writing. A gifted and talented performer on the clawhammer banjo, Sheila captivates audiences with her playing, singing, and stories.

Sheila's latest CD is a compilation of several live concerts performed for audiences from North Carolina to Indiana. Included are her most requested stories and songs: Little Mathey Groves, The Four Nights Drunk, Inez and the Snake Handlers, The Farmer's Cursed Wife, Little Betty and Amos, What Ever Happened to John Parrish's Boy?, and Granny's Song.

As stated by Richard Thompson, a previous director for the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching, "Sheila's ability to listen and communicate via the oral or written word is superb...Her understanding of the Appalachian mountain life, people, and social fabric - the subject of her performances - has a universal appeal and touches all of us... even those not from the area."

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Pub Carol Sing

Sunday, December 7, 2008, 2-5pm
in the back room at Doyle's Café
3484 Washington St
Jamaica Plain, MA
(617) 524-2345
Free!

Sponsored by the Folk Song Society of Greater Boston and the West Gallery Quire

Carols from the Sheffield, West Gallery, and Sacred Harp traditions (as well as some standard favorites)

Free! (but we will pass the hat for the waitress). Music will be available.

Email Suzanne Mrozak (suzanne at smrozak dot com) for more information

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Annual FSSGB Members' Concert

Saturday, February 7, 2009, 8pm
First Parish of Watertown
35 Church Street, Watertown
$15.00 general admission, $10.00 FSSGB members
Children 7-15: $5, Children 6 and under free
(Members' children 15 and under free)
(See map and calculate directions on MapQuest)
For public transportation, check the MBTA web site.
This venue is handicap accessible

Wondering what to expect?
Listen to some sound clips on CDBaby.com!

The annual FSSGB members' concert is always a popular event. Our members perform songs which range from traditional ballads to original compositions, and from instrumental to a cappella pieces. Some of the instruments that have been played at this concert in the past include violin, cello, banjo, mandolin, guitar, bass, keyboard and concertina. Some FSSGB members who have performed at this event have gone on to have successful performing careers, such as Elijah Wald, Mark Ryer, Fool's Errand and Merle Roesler.

Many new musical relationships have formed as a result of the members' concert, including our hosts for the evening, Two for the Show - Ellen Schmidt and Jake Kensinger! They began playing together many years ago for a members' concert, and have since become very active performers in the local folk music scene.

Members are invited to sign up to perform - one song or a spoken word piece. You may perform alone or with others. Some performers have been participating for years; others will do so for the first time. Children are most welcome. The program will feature professional musicians as well as living room folk enthusiasts. All are welcome. The Midweek Singers are an important part of the program as are the many members who show up especially for this event. The audience is always supportive and lively.

To sign up, you may contact Ellen by email at eschmidt01742 AT yahoo DOT com by January 30th.

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Priscilla Herdman

Saturday, March 21, 2009, 8pm
First Parish of Watertown
35 Church Street, Watertown
$15.00 general admission, $10.00 FSSGB members
Children 7-15: $5, Children 6 and under free
(Members' children 15 and under free)
(See map and calculate directions on MapQuest)
For public transportation, check the MBTA web site.
This venue is handicap accessible

For many years Priscilla Herdman has been delighting Folk Song Society members with her rich voice and unerring choice of material. She is an extraordinary finder of powerful songs, as well as an eloquent performer who pulls her audience members in and encourages them to sing with her. Priscilla has an absolutely gorgeous voice with a three-octave range, fantastic clarity, and a silky smoothness. She is a singer's singer and one of the most admired interpreters of contemporary folk music. Audiences know her as an extraordinary song finder and an eloquent performer. They come to hear her sing and to sing with her. They are embraced by her warm and powerful performance.

In addition to a wide variety of American songs, Priscilla also interprets Australian and Canadian contemporary folk music. Her repertoire includes songs by Eric Bogle, Cathy Fink, Anne Hills, Connie Kaldor, Henry Lawson, John McCutcheon, David Mallet, Bruce [Utah] Phillips, Stan Rogers, Richard Shindell, Judy Small, Bill Staines, Nancy White, and many others.

From her stunning debut, "The Water Lily" (1977), through all her varied recordings over the years, Priscilla Herdman has established herself as an insightful songfinder and a singer of uncommon range, depth and clarity. Her latest album, "The Road Home", may be Priscilla's best work to date. The gentle power of her voice, the uncluttered arrangements and the timeliness of the songs themselves make the album a true pleasure to listen to. The combination of Priscilla's beautiful voice and careful choice of meaningful songs, make "The Road Home" an album of striking elegance.

For more information about Priscilla, see her web site at http://www.priscillaherdman.com.

At the March concert we will have the chance to share in her new discoveries, as well as rediscover old favorites. Come join us there!

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Brian Peters

Saturday, March 28, 2009, 8pm
First Parish of Watertown
35 Church Street, Watertown
$15.00 general admission, $10.00 FSSGB members
Children 7-15: $5, Children 6 and under free
(Members' children 15 and under free)
(See map and calculate directions on MapQuest)
Mt Auburn:(See map and calculate directions on MapQuest)
For public transportation, check the MBTA web site.
This venue is handicap accessible

The Folk Song Society is pleased to present Brian Peters in concert. Brian packs a powerful voice, a mastery of his instruments, and a wonderful mix of traditional and modern repertoire into his performances. He is acknowledged as one of England's star talents on the folk music circuit today.

As one of England's leading squeezebox players, Brian Peters is a master of the melodeon (button accordion) and Anglo-concertina. As a guitarist, he is a fine exponent of the open-tuned English folk style, and a sensitive accompanist. And every song he sings with his powerful voice has something good to offer, whether it be from the tradition, or from his varied modern repertoire.

In addition to performing in countless folk clubs around the world, Brian Peters has taught both instrumental and singing techniques workshops worldwide.

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Benefit Concert

Saturday, April 18, 2009, 8pm
First Parish of Watertown
Performer, beneficiary and admission TBD
(See map and calculate directions on MapQuest)
For public transportation, check the MBTA web site.
This venue is handicap accessible

More information (including performers and beneficiary) to come!

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