AcousticMusicScene.com
News & Commentary for the Folk, Roots & Singer-Songwriter Communities
Links
Blogs of Note
- House Concerts and 21st Century Touring features articles and tips for artists and hosts from singer-songwriter Fran Snyder and concertsinyourhome.com.
- Ron Olesko’s Folk Music Notebook Thoughts and news of the folk music scene, a NY-NJ area concerts, festivals and events guide, and ramblings from the host of WFDU-FM’s long-running folk radio show, “Traditions…” and also, “The Session.”
Organizations
- Acoustic Alley brings an array of music events to Colorado’s Rocky Mountain Foothills area — with music ranging from singer-songwriter to bluegrass, Americana, country, light rock, instrumental & just about anything with a slightly eclectic orientation.
- Arizona Irish Music Society website contains a wealth of information about Irish music in Arizona — including weekly news & notes, calendar listings & a directory of venues — plus an Irish/Celtic festival directory & lots of links.
- Blissfest Music Organization is a Michigan-based nonprofit organization that aims to preserve & promote cultural heritage & diversity with a focus on folk & roots music and dance. Sponsors an annual festival, concert & dance series, an open acoustic jam, etc.
- Broward Folk Club promotes folk & acoustic music and provides a community for people who share a love for it. The nonprofit organization presents open mics, open house song swaps, an annual picnic and the Florida Folk Festival.
budgiedome.org - wandering minstrels adopted- California Traditional Music Society Keeping folk music alive for the next generation
- Charlotte Folk Society is dedicated to promoting the ongoing enjoyment & presentation of traditional & contemporary folk music, dance, crafts & lore in the Carolinas Piedmont.
- Folk Alliance Region Midwest (FARM) is a regional chapter of The North American Folk Music and Dance Alliance (Folk Alliance) and hosts an annual gathering of folks enthusiasts who represent the diverse faces of the Midwest folk community.
- Folk Alliance Region-West (FAR-West) is a regional chapter of the North American Folk Music & Dance Alliance (Folk Alliance) & seeks to strengthen the ecology for folk music & build stronger artists, presenters & venues through education, showcases & networking.
Folk Music Society of Huntington is a Long Island (New York) volunteer-based, nonprofit concert presenter that sponsors two monthly concert series (open mics precede most concerts) and a folk jam.- Golden Link Folk Singing Society Rochester, NY-based nonprofit organization sponsors concerts, workshops, an annual weekend folk festival, free weekly Tuesday night sing-arounds, a lending library of recordings & books, and more.
- Heritage Folk Music is a nonprofit group created to collect, preserve, document, display and interpret regional and historic folk music, folklore and oral history of New York’s Catskill Mountains and Hudson Valley.
Hudson Valley Folk Guild, a nonprofit organization based in New York’s Hudson Valley, provides opportunities for members to develop performance skills and promotes folk music through various events and publications.- Madison Folk Music Society fosters traditional & contemporary folk music in the Madison, Wisconsin area through its sponsorship of concerts & a bi-annual festival, as well as education programs in conjunction with the University of Wisconsin.
- New England Folk Festival Association is a nonprofit educational & cultural organization that sponsors an annual New England Folk Festival; weekly contra dances in Concord, MA; an annual New England Dance Legacy Weekend in Durham, NH; a grants program, etc.
- New York Pinewoods Folk Music Club (The Folk Music Society of New York, Inc.) runs concerts, weekends, classes, singing parties, and get-togethers — all with an emphasis on traditional folk music of all flavors.
- Old Songs, Inc. Centered in the New York State Capital Region, this nonprofit organization is dedicated to keeping traditional music and dance alive through the presentation of festivals, concerts, dances and educational programs.
- PineCone , the Piedmont Council of Traditional Music is a private, nonprofit membership organization founded in 1984 to honor the traditional music heriatage that makes North Carolina unique and sponsor concert series in the Triangle area.
- Plank Road Folk Music Society is a Downers Grove, IL-based nonprofit organization that sponsors & promotes open mics, sing-arounds, bluegrass jams, old-time dance parties and an all-volunteer string band.
- Princeton Folk Music Society has encouraged the growth of folk music in central New Jersey for 40 years through its sponsorship of monthly house sings at the homes of members and a monthly concert series featuring visiting folksingers and songwriters.
- San Diego North County Bluegrass & Folk Club sponsors First Tuesday Music Nights in Escondido, two campouts annually, and promotes & occasionally produces concerts around San Diego County, Calfornia.
Shoreline Acoustic Music Society is a New London, Connecticut-based organization that promotes the performance & appreciation of acoustic music by offering musicians & enthusiasts information on venues, concerts, workshops, open mics and jam sess- Southeastern Bluegrass Association holds monthly jams and meetings at five locations in Geogria & Tennessee and posts other bluegrass events & festivals in the southeast on its Web site, along with online forums.
Tribes Hill is a nonprofit organization uniting musicians of the lower Hudson Valley region and their patrons in support of a music community that aspires to common goals and beliefs as they explore and celebrate human experience through song.- Xtreme Folk Scene is a Greater Delaware Valley area music organization dedicated to the promotion, dissemination and presentation of folk music, with a determined emphasis on that which is original, daring and extreme (exceeding the ordinary, usual, or expected).
Performers
- Anthony da Costa is a 17-year old singer-songwriter from Pleasantville, NY who was a 2007 Grassy Hill Kerrville New Folk winner and was voted the “Most Wanted to Return” emerging artist during the 2007 Falcon Ridge Folk Festival.
- Cheryl Prashker is a Philadelphia-based percussionist extraordinaire, member of The Strangelings and frequent accompanist for other artists.
- Denise Romas is a performer whose beautiful voice and guitar accompaniment bring a special sound to well-known songs and to her own well-written and often poignant originals.
- Eve Goldberg is a rootsy Toronto-based singer-songwriter with a clear, expressive, watercolor voice.
- Fred Gillen Jr. Prolific Hudson Valley, New York-based singer-songwriter, member of Hope Machine, and past president of Tribes Hill
- Glen Roethel is a New York singer/songwriter/guitarist with a penchant for positive and intentional songwriting.
- Jaime Michaels is a contemporary folksinger-songwriter based in Santa Fe, New Mexico and a three-time finalist in the Kerrville New Folk Contest.
- James O’Malley is a gifted and gentle-voiced singer-songwriter, guitarist, and two-time finalist in the Plowshares Songwriting Competition
- Jeff Talmadge is a Texas-bred, Georgia-based, Americana singer-songwriter, whose story songs are filled with lyrical imagery & nicely complemented by his finger-picking guitar style.
- Joe Iadanza is a New York-based folk-rock singer-songwriter and percussive fingerstyle guitarist, whose deeply personal and inspiring music explores themes of love, stepping out into the world, and learning to enjoy the ride.
- Karyn Oliver is a soulful singer-songwriter & past president of the Baltimore Songwriters Association, whose music — ballads & rockers — reflects the eclectic mix that she was exposed to while growing up.
- Lara Herscovitch is an award-winning Connecticut-based singer-songwriter, whose music blends acoustic/folk, pop and world styles.
- Marc Douglas Berardo is a gifted contemporary folk troubadour and guitarist, who makes his home in Rhode Island but tours more widely.
- Patti DeRosa is a Boston area acoustic folk singer-songwriter-guitarist, whose music is fused with rhythm & spice.
- Paul Helou is an award-winning singer-songwriter and interactive musical storyteller for children and adults.
- Phil Minissale “Long Island Blues Boy” impresses with his fingerstyle guitar playing
- Randall Williams is a conservatory-trained singer-songwriter, fingerstyle guitarist & guitar teacher who is partial to the use of partial capos in standard & alternate tunings.
- Twilight Hotel is a young Winnipeg, Alberta-based duo whose sound combines rootsy blues and European accordion-infused cabaret.
- Victoria Vox is an engaging and spirited singer-songwriter, ukelele player and guitarist with a unique acoustic pop sound that defies easy categorization.
- Walt Sargent is a Long Island, NY-based singer-songwriter.
Podcasts
- Acoustic Long Island The #1 acoustic music podcast on iTunes features talented artists from LI and beyond recorded during performances before a live audience each Wednesday night at the historic Deepwells Mansion in St. James, New York.
Presenters
Abita Springs Opry is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the presentation and preservation of Louisiana roots music. It presents six concerts a year at Abita Springs Town Hall, which is in the heart of the piney woods north of Lake Pontchartrain, near
presents concerts featuring nationally and regionally touring artists several times a month and was named the Best Live Music Venue in San Diego, California by 10News.com in 2008.- Boston Area Coffeehouse Association (BACHA) is a membership organization open to all nonprofit folk and acoustic music coffeehouses in and around Boston, Massachusetts’ I-495 circle. Listings and links appear on its website, along with a combined coffeehouse calendar.
- Circle of Friends Coffeehouse , described as “the quintessential New England coffeehouse” by Kristina Olsen, presents concerts once or twice a month at the First Universalist Society meetinghouse in Franklin. Mass.
- Me & Thee Coffeehouse Hailed by writer Scott Alarik as “folk music’s living room,” this all-volunteer, nonprofit organization hosts an acoustic music series most Friday nights during the fall, winter and spring at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Marblehead (Massachusetts)
- Notlob Acoustic Music Series presents local & touring roots, Americana, newgrass, traditional & contemporary folk artists in unique & unusual settings in the Boston, Mass. area. The Fall 2007 series takes place at Jamaica Plain’s historic Loring-Greenough House.
- Ojai Concert Series is dedicated to bringing high-quality Celtic, folk and roots musicians to perform in Ojai, California.
- Our Times Coffeehouse is a joint project of the Ethical Humanist Society of Long Island and the LI Progressive Coalition that presents concerts by regional & national touring artists on the third Friday of the month (Sept.-May).
- Richmond Folk Music Society presents a monthly series of traditional folk music concerts in a comfortable, relaxed atmosphere in Virginia’s capital city.
- Roots Music Coffeehouse is a Danbury, Connecticut presenter of almost monthly concerts (featured artists preceded by open mics) between October and June.
- Steeple Coffeehouse is a non-profit, all-volunteer concert series at Plgrim Church in Southborough, Massachusetts.
- Sundilla Acoustic Concert Series : Bringing the world’s music to Auburn, Alabama — including nationally known and budding singer-songwriters playing everything from folk, blues, country, bluegrass and jazz to fast-folk and alternative genres.
- Uptown Coffeehouse is a volunteer-run, Bronx NY-based organization that sponsors monthly cshows, October-June, featuring traditional & contemporary folk musicians & singer-songwriters.
Regional Websites & Online Calendars
Acoustic Live! provides monthly listings of contemporary acoustic and traditional folk performances in NYC, its suburbs, upstate New York and New Jersey, along with artist interviews and profiles.- AcousticMusic.net is dedicated to acoustic music in Southern California and beyond.
- AcousticOhio.com includes venue and calendar listings primarily for the Cleveland, Akron and Canton areas in northeastern Ohio.
- AZ Open Mic covers the open mic scene in the Phoenix metroplitan area — including a calendar, a list of venues with open mics, performer profiles, photo galleries, and songwriter tips and information.
Folkjam.org provides information on acoustic, roots, bluegrass, Irish & fiddle jams across the U.S. that is organized in maps and calendars with entries contributed and maintained by musicians from local communities who come together to play.- Folknotes is the monthly publication of The Sounding Board, Inc. Besides providing a monthly schedule for the West Hartford, CT coffeehouse, the site includes extensive listings of concerts, jam sessions, festivals & special events in CT, MA & RI.
- Friends of Florida Folk Hosted by an organization that has been promoting the folk arts in Florida for 25 years, this site includes calendars of folk & acoustic concerts, festivals & events throughout the state + folk & acoustic radio listings.
- MaineFolkMusic.com is Maine’s Folk Music Home Page and features news, interviews, profiles, reviews and a live music calendar that are updated monthly.
- MichiganFolkLive provides comprehensive, current information on the state’s live roots music scene — including a calendar, folk festival & radio listings, and links to venues & artists.
- NJ Open Mic Dave Lazar, a frequent participant & host of New Jersey open mic nights, maintains this site listing open mics throughout the state.
- NortheastFolk.org is a website dedicated to the local & regional indie music scene in & around Boston & the Northeast. It is intended as a resource for performers, vendors & service providers to exchange information & reach out to others.
Resources for Musicians
- Banjo Hangout contains banjo tablature in bluegrass & other styles, online lessons, a discussion forum, reviews, and lots of links.
- Coffee House Tour aims to provide a comprehensive U.S. coffee house venue resource and tour guide for musicians and “java jukers.”
- ezFolk.com - Free MP3 and video hosting for folk & acoustic musicians, plus hundreds of pages of tablature, tutorials, and more.
- Michael Kornfeld provides public relations and strategic communications services and counsel for the folk, roots and singer-songwriter communities.
- OpenMic.us is a free service for musicians that provides links to open mic listings for more than 40 cities and metropolitan areas across the U.S.
- S.B. MacDonald Custom Instruments handcrafted custom guitars, expert repair and restoration
Songwriters and Musicians Associations
Chicago Songwriters Collective is an organization promoting Chicago-area songwriters, lyricists and storytellers, at all levels, amateur to professional.
sponsors monthly programs, song critique sessions and interactive workshops around the state and also produces songwriter showcases, benefit concerts and a series of compilation recordings.- Dallas-Fort Worth NSAI Regional Workshop is a regional chapter of Nashville Songwriters Association International.
- Houston Association of Acoustic Musicians is a not-for-profit community of acoustic musicians and those who support acoustic music in the Greater Houston, Texas Area.
- Island Songwriters Showcase (ISS) Long Island (New York)’s largest songwriters association.
- Minnesota Association of Songwriters seeks to inspire, educate and strengthen the songwriting and performance skills of its members through seminars, workshops, criitique meetings, showcases and networking opportunities, while encouraging collaboration and exploration of the creative process
- Nebraska2Nashville , the Nebraska chapter of the Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI), hosts monthly meetings and day-long workshops for songwriters.
- NSAI Boone, NC Workshop provides training, encouragement & kinship among songwriters in the mountain country of North Carolina and sponsors monthly meetings & frequent member showcases.
- NY Singer/Songwriter Sessions is designed to provide aspiring singers and songwriters with opportunities to collaborate and perform at some of NYC’s best-known venues.
- Portland Songwriters Association provides educational and networking opportunities for its membership in Portland, Oregon & environs.
- Princeton Songwriters a New Jersey chapter of the Nashville Songwriters Association (NSAI) currently co-coordinated by Arlon Bennett and John Sonntag.
- Rhode Island Songwriters Association (RISA) encourages & fosters the art & craft of lyrical & musical composition; provides educational programs, critique sessions & performance opportunities; & supports collaboration within the RISA community.
- San Diego Songwriters Guild is a volunteer-run, nonprofit organization that provides networking opportunities & resources for songwriters, bands & musicians.
- Songsalive! is a nonprofit organization dedicated to nurturing, supporting, educating and promoting songwriters and composers worldwide.
- The Long Island Fingerstyle Guitar Club provides a forum for fingerstyle guitarists of all levels to network, swap and play songs, and learn more about the acoustic guitar during monthly meetings/workshops.
- The Northeast Ohio Songwriters Circle is a community of experienced and aspiring songwriters living on the North Coast of America who gather monthly to share their work.
- West Coast Songwriters , formerly the Northern California Songwriters Assn., sponsors 15+ events a month & aims to foster creativity, build community & provide opportunity for music career development through education & connection.
Venues
concerts are nonprofit productions held in a barn in northern Michigan, providing a fun and relaxing evening for friends who enjoy live music performances.- Court House Concerts Enjoy performers like Red Molly and We’re About 9 up close & personal in this friendly, intimate setting on Long Island’s south shore.
- Dawsonconcerts House Concerts , held in a Silver Spring, Maryland home, feature local & touring artists, followed by open song circles.
- East Hartford Community Cultural Center Operated by the East Hartford Parks & Recreation Department, this Connecticut venue’s concert calendar is peppered with bluegrass and Celtic artists, among others.
- First Acoustics is a new concert series organized by the First Unitarian Congregational Society in Brooklyn, New York.
Fox Run Concerts is a house concert series in Sudbury, Mass. (a quiet suburban community about 30 minutes west of Boston) that primarily features contemporary singer-songwriters. - Last Licks Cafe A monthly coffeehouse series at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Huntington (New York)
- Meeting Grace house concerts in San Diego, California, feature local and touring folk acts.
- Russ & Julie’s House Concerts Russ & Julie invite guests to enjoy live acoustic music, fellowship, food & fun in their Oak Park, California home, NW of LA, & provide a wealth of information about house concerts & links to others across the U.S. on their website.
- Shady Grove Coffeehouse is a nonprofit concert series hosted by the Unitarian Universalist Community Church in Glen Allen, Virginia, a northwest suburb of Richmond, that presents acoustic, traditionally-based music in a family-friendly, smoke-&-alcohol-free environment.
- The Good Coffeehouse Music Parlor , a program of the Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture & one of New York City’s oldest folk venues presents live acoustic roots music most Friday nights from mid-September through June.
- Urban Campfires is a monthly acoustic house concert series in San Antonio, Texas, featuring singer-songwriters from around the country.
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