The Monadnock Folklore Society regrets to announce the cancellation of the May 17 English Country Dance in Nelson, NH, due to concerns about affecting the spread of COVID-19 in our region.
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Stay At Home Music Festival March 20 – 22, 2020
What is #stayathomefestival?
During all this chaos, the Stay at Home Music Festival brings you live broadcast music from your favorite international musicians straight to the comfort of your living room. Performances will be live-streamed from the individual Instagram accounts of the artists as well as on this website. Follow on Instagram @StayAtHomeFestival for updated artist roster and performance schedule!
Several performers that MFS has presented will be performing, including April Verch and Lissa Schneckenberger.
☼ ☼ ☼ CANCELLATION: English Country Dance in Walpole, NH on Sunday, March 15
The Monadnock Folklore Society regrets to announce the cancellation of the March 15 English Country Dance in Walpole, NH, due to concerns about affecting the spread of COVID-19 in our region.
☼ ☼ ☼ CANCELLATION: Cold Chocolate’s Ethan Robbins | Nelson Town Hall
The Monadnock Folklore Society regrets to announce the cancellation of this concert, due to concerns about affecting the spread of COVID-19 in our region.
MFS welcomes Ethan Robbins, the guitarist/songwriter for Boston-based band Cold Chocolate back to the Nelson Town Hall on Friday, March 20 for an 7:30 PM concert. Admission is $15/$12(Sr/Jr).
Ethan Robbins is the guitarist/songwriter of Americana band, Cold Chocolate, a genre-bending Americana band that fuses folk, funk, and bluegrass to create unique a sound all their own. Ethan began his bluegrass career at Oberlin College where he began to explore how this hard-driving fast-paced genre could be stretched. A classical violinist from age four, Ethan fell in love with the guitar when he turned fourteen and his father bought him five quintessential albums: The Band’s “Music from Big Pink,” Bob Dylan’s “Bringing it all Back Home,” John Hartford’s “Steam Powered Aereo-plane,” Hank Williams “Live at the Grand Ole Opry,” and the Grateful Dead’s “Workingman’s Dead.” Ever since, Ethan has attempted to bring those raw, rootsy sounds into his own original material.His band, Cold Chocolate, has established itself as a force in the Americana genre. Ethan and his band have shared bills with Leftover Salmon and David Grisman, and regularly perform at venues and music festivals up and down the East Coast.
CANCELLATION ☼ ☼ ☼ Genticorum | Nelson Town Hall
Canceled due to COVID-19
We’re excited about being the first stop on Genticorum’s upcoming US tour on Friday, April 10 at 7:30 PM at the Nelson Town Hall. admission is $20/$17(seniors, students, or in advance)
Over the past 18 years the Quebec trad group Genticorum has become a fixture on the international world, trad, folk and Celtic music circuit. The band’s six albums met with critical acclaim in Canada, the United States and Europe, assuring the band a brilliant future. Known for its energy and its stage presence, Genticorum has given more than 800 concerts in more than 15 countries. Firmly rooted in the soil of their native land, the energetic and original traditional ‘power trio’ also incorporates the dynamism of today’s North American and European folk cultures in their music. They weave precise and intricate fiddle, flute and accordion work, gorgeous vocal harmonies, energetic foot percussion and guitar accompaniment into a big and jubilant musical feast. Their distinctive sound, sense of humor and stage presence makes them a supreme crowd pleaser.
Don’t miss this show!
☼ ☼ ☼ Contra Dance in Peterborough, NH on Saturday, March 7
The Monadnock Folklore Society presents the Peterborough, NH First Saturday Contra Dance on March 7, featuring Luke Donforth calling with the band Cloud Ten.
Contra dance is a fun, relaxed style of folk dance which has flourished in New England since the 1700s. Partners form lines and dance a short sequence of steps with their neighbors. Dancers are welcome to bring a partner or a group of friends, but it’s not necessary – traditionally, dancers are encouraged to change partners throughout the evening.
The dancing begins at 8:00 PM. The dance also hosts a free jam session for beginning and intermediate musicians at 6:30 PM and a workshop for new dancers at 7:30 PM.
Admission is $10 or $7 for students and seniors.
The dance takes place in the historic Town House in Peterborough, NH at 1 Grove Street. For more information call 603.762.0235 or visit www.monadnockfolk.org. The Monadnock Folklore Society has presented contra dances and concerts of traditional music since 1982.
☼ ☼ ☼ English Country Dances in 2020 — CANCELED
CANCELED April 19, 2020 – Dublin Town Hall, 1120 Main St., caller: Rich Jackson, musicians: Carol Compton, Amy Cann
CANCELED May 17, 2020 – Nelson Town Hall, 7 Nelson Common Road, caller: Mary Jones, musicians: Guillaume Sparrow-Pepin, lydia ievins
☼ ☼ ☼ Andrea Beaton & Troy MacGillivray Concert | Nelson Town Hall on Feb. 21, 2020
We are so excited to welcome back Andrea and Troy for a concert on Friday, February 21 at 7:30 PM at the Nelson Town Hall. Admission is $18/$15(Sr/Jr).
Two of the finest fiddlers from the East Coast of Canada in concert!
Andrea Beaton comes from a long line of Beaton and MacMaster musicians, which explains why her music is her own and deeply rooted in the Cape Breton tradition. Like her father and grandfather, she is a composer, adding fine new music to the island’s repertoire.
She tours internationally and is in great demand as a teacher at music camps. Her passion for Cape Breton fiddle, piano, step dancing, and comical stories are sure to delight any crowd.
Troy MacGillivray is from Lanark, a small community on the north-eastern shore of Nova Scotia. Troy’s commitment to music has spanned 30 years and includes both practical and academic accomplishments – most recently an M.A. in Ethnomusicology from the University of Limerick in Ireland. From as young as six years old, Troy was impressing audiences step dancing and soon after, fiddle and piano skills. His roots-centered approach has the power to inspire audiences and comes from a family of proud Scottish heritage where fiddle playing and Gaelic traditions runs in the bloodline. Troy is a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee medal for contributions to culture in Canada.
Separately they have strong careers that have brought them around the world playing and teaching from the North Pole to the Middle East. Solo recordings by both artists have been acknowledged with East Coast music awards over several years. Andrea and Troy share a musical ancestry – they are distant cousins where many of their relatives are excellent and prolific musicians!
Together these two accomplished solo artists offer a taste of Nova Scotia’s best traditional music. Andrea and Troy will captivate and enchant the audience with contemporary tunes fused with the music of their Highland ancestry.
☼ ☼ ☼ Peterborough First Saturday Contra February 1, 2020
The Monadnock Folklore Society presents the Peterborough, NH First Saturday Contra Dance on February 1, featuring Hannah Johlas calling with the band Kingfisher.
Contra dance is a fun, relaxed style of folk dance which has flourished in New England since the 1700s. Partners form lines and dance a short sequence of steps with their neighbors. Dancers are welcome to bring a partner or a group of friends, but it’s not necessary – traditionally, dancers are encouraged to change partners throughout the evening.
Hannah Johlas is a fresh voice in the New England contra caller rotation. Based in western Massachusetts, her concise teaching, smooth calling, and thoughtful programming provide a fun dance experience for new and experienced dancers alike.
Kingfisher is a Boston-based contra dance band consisting of Cecilia Vacanti (fiddle) and Jeff Kaufman (piano, mandolin, drums, synths).
The dancing begins at 8:00 PM. The dance also hosts a free jam session for beginning and intermediate musicians at 6:30 PM and a workshop for new dancers at 7:30 PM.
Admission is $10 or $7 for students and seniors.
The dance takes place in the historic Town House in Peterborough, NH at 1 Grove Street. For more information call 603.762.0235 or visit www.monadnockfolk.org. The Monadnock Folklore Society has presented contra dances and concerts of traditional music since 1982.
The Dublin Folk Show in Dublin NH on Friday, January 31, 2020
The Dublin Folk Show: a tribute to the American Folk Revival benefitting MATS (Monadnock Area Transition Shelter) will be held on Friday, January 31, at 7 pm at Dublin Community Church. The show is sponsored by Dublin Community Center, the DubHub Open Stage & Monadnock Ukulele Group. Tickets, at $10 each, are available at the DubHub, the Toadstool Bookshop or online at dublinfolkshow.eventbrite.com or through the event page on Facebook.
The Dublin Folk Show hosted by Volkert Volkersz and will feature top Monadnock area acoustic musicians including Decatur Creek, Kota, Mulligan Row, the Monadnock Ukulele Group, Bruce Simpson, Tom Smith, Bob Pope & Lisa Greenleaf, Amy Conley, Scott & Jeannie Butler, and Frank Jenkins. These outstanding musicians will be highlighting folk music of the 1950s and 1960s, including songs by Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, Lead Belly, The Kingston Trio, Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, Peter, Paul and Mary, Gordon Lightfoot, Joni Mitchell, John Denver and many more. This will be a fun sing-along evening benefitting a good cause on a cold winter night. Dublin Community Church is located at 1125 Main Street in Dublin. Parking is available behind the community center and church, as well as at Yankee Publishing and behind Town Hall. For more information email info@dublincommunitycenter.org or call 563-8080. Snow date will be Sunday, Feb. 2.