The Folk Forecast: April 2022
Featuring Spell Songs, Folk Weekend Oxford, Singing With Nightingales, a special gig from Ninebarrow and lots more news from across the folk scene.
Hello, and welcome back to a rather bumper edition of The Folk Forecast! Now that it’s gone monthly, there’s quite a lot to catch up on, so you might need to grab a cuppa.
There’s heaps of great stuff coming up both online and in person this month, with highlights including an online broadcast of the Spell Songs concert at Birmingham Symphony Hall, the utterly magical Singing With Nightingales events and festivals including Folk Weekend Oxford, Bristol Folk Festival and Edinburgh Tradfest.
The Folk on Foot Official Folk Albums Chart Show is also being broadcast tonight (5th April) at 7pm, and as usual I’ll be joining Matthew for a short chat about what’s coming up this month, so do tune in if you can. That’s all from me for now - thanks for reading, and see you again next time!
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This month’s playlist
Head over to this month’s playlist to hear a selection of tracks from artists featured in this issue. Listen to something new, and see which gigs you might fancy going to. Remember to support artists by buying their music and booking gigs too!
TOP PICKS: ONLINE
The Official Folk Albums Chart Show* — Tuesday 5 April, 7pm BST
Folk on Foot website, YouTube and podcast feed. Commissioned by English Folk Expo and compiled by the Official Charts Company.
See which albums have made the Official Folk Albums Chart this month, with Folk on Foot. Packed with stories, music and exclusive content, this is always a joy to watch. I’ll also be on the show to talk about the latest folk news.
Free to view, but you can support the podcast by becoming a patron.
Will Finn and Rosie Calvert* — Thursday 7 April, 8pm BST
Live to Your Living Room
Will Finn and Rosie Calvert are an up-and-coming duo from Newcastle. You might know them from their a capella harmony quartet, The Teacups. Combining piano, steel pan and ukulele with close-knit harmony singing, they bring their own unique twist to traditional music.
Tickets £10 / £16.50 / £25 - one ticket per household; choose the price that suits you best.
The Brothers Gillespie — Friday 8 April, 8pm BST
The Globe Newcastle
Described by Folk Radio UK as ‘weaving an especially compelling magic’, and ‘showing off British acoustic music in its best possible light’, Northumbrian duo The Brothers Gillespie sing songs of great lyrical power, animated by the sound of soaring sibling harmony. Their songs and performances have a rare, intimate energy that is both earthy and ethereal, romantic and radical. They’ve just released their third album The Merciful Road, and are heading out on tour - find dates here.
Hybrid gig. Livestream tickets £7.50 / £15 / £20, pay what you can.
Spell Songs, Live at Birmingham Symphony Hall — Saturday 9 April (watch any time you like for 48 hours)
Presented by Folk by the Oak
The Folk by the Oak festival team, who commissioned the incredible Spell Songs project, are excited to bring you a unique opportunity to enjoy Spell Songs at their best with this exclusive online broadcast of a full live performance. This show was filmed in January 2022 at Birmingham Symphony Hall during their Winter Tour. I’m really looking forward to this, as I was booked for their show in Gateshead but it was cancelled due to storm damage! I’ve heard such good things from everyone who did make it to a show, so I know it’s going to be amazing.
Pay as you feel: suggested price £19.
Singing With Nightingales — Homecoming: Wednesday 13 April, 11pm / Earth Day: Friday 22 April, 8pm
The Nest Collective
Join folk singer Sam Lee and an array of special guests as they welcome the nightingales back to the UK. There will be two special broadcasts, available to tune into on YouTube - Homecoming, on 13th April, and Earth Day, on 22nd April. Each broadcast will weave songs and poems in with the song of the nightingales. For the Homecoming broadcast, you’re also invited to submit recordings if you like, with a selection being chosen to be played on the night. These events were a real joy during lockdown and I’m so glad they’re taking place again this year! There are also events taking place in Sussex and London, if you fancy going along in person.
Free to view, with donations encouraged to the Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal.
Suthering — Thursday 21 April, 7.30pm BST
Rosslyn Court
Suthering combines the musical talents of Julu Irvine and Heg Brignall. A couple in life and in music, the duo have taken the folk scene by storm with their unusual and fresh approach to folk. Julu and Heg are true storytellers who champion female characters, creating new narratives for women and unearthing the female heroines of folk.
Hybrid gig. The first hour of the performance will be livestreamed free of charge (donations encouraged). The second half will be exclusively for the in-person audience.
Granny’s Attic @ Folk Weekend Oxford* — Saturday 23 April, 4pm BST
Live to Your Living Room / Folk Weekend Oxford
Described by Folk Radio as ‘one of the most exciting and accomplished English folk acts on the scene right now’, Granny’s Attic are going from strength to strength. In October 2021, they released their latest album, The Brickfields, an instrumental collection that sees them reach new heights both as performers and composers. This one-hour performance will be livestreamed from Folk Weekend Oxford, so you can enjoy a taste of the festival from wherever you are.
Hybrid gig, so you can also attend in person. Livestream tickets £7.50 / £10 / £12.50 - one ticket per household; choose the price that suits you best.
Ninebarrow: Live from the Earthouse — Saturday 23 April, 7pm BST
Ninebarrow
For this very special concert, Ninebarrow will be joining forces with cellist extraordinaire Lee MacKenzie (of The Last Inklings) and the three of them will be performing a full concert at the incredible 'Earthouse' at Cranborne's Ancient Technology Centre. With gorgeous trio arrangements of some old songs, as well as arrangements that will have never been heard before, you’re really not going to want to miss this!
Tickets £12.50 for a single viewer or £25 for a household.
The Fay Hield Trio @ Folk Weekend Oxford* — Sunday 24 April, 3.30pm BST
Live to Your Living Room / Folk Weekend Oxford
Born and raised in Yorkshire, folk artist and academic Fay Hield seemed destined to carve out a career in traditional folk music. She released her latest album, Wrackline, in September 2020. Exploring ideas of the space between, Wrackline looks to ghosts, fairies, spirits and talking animals to understand what it is about the unknown that entrances us. Working with traditional materials, and developing them with new compositions, Fay explores the feelings they evoke and how they relate to her experience in the contemporary world. Fay will be joined by Sam Sweeney on fiddle and Rob Harbron on concertina, guitar and harmonium for this special gig, streamed live from Folk Weekend Oxford.
Hybrid gig, so you can also attend in person. Tickets £10 / £16.50 / £25 - one ticket per household; choose the price that suits you best.
Melrose Quartet @ Folk Weekend Oxford* — Sunday 24 April, 7.30pm BST
Live to Your Living Room / Folk Weekend Oxford
Sheffield-based Melrose Quartet have attracted a reputation for making music that truly connects with people. The group is made up of Nancy Kerr, James Fagan and Jess and Richard Arrowsmith. From chorus songs to lively dance tunes, this is music for everyone.
Hybrid gig, so you can also attend in person. Tickets £10 / £16.50 / £25 - one ticket per household; choose the price that suits you best.
Jacob & Drinkwater* — Wednesday 27 April, 8pm BST
Live to Your Living Room
South-west based duo Jacob & Drinkwater are on tour with their latest album, More Notes from the Field. The album is an exploration of friendship and connection. It was written and developed remotely during lockdown, when the pair were based many miles apart in Poland and Gloucestershire. With their live show described as ‘intense and spellbinding’ by Folk Radio UK, this is sure to be something quite extraordinary.
Tickets £10 / £16.50 / £25 - one ticket per household; choose the price that suits you best.
Online workshops
John Dipper is running two series of fiddle workshops starting on Saturday 16th April. ‘Session Tunes on the fiddle’ will run at 10am and ‘Magnificent Melodies’ will run at 4pm. Each set of workshops runs for 5 weeks, with dates including 16th and 23rd April and 14th, 21st and 28th May. You can book workshops individually for £12 or book all five for a discounted price of £55. More details are available on John’s Facebook page.
Monday Folk Singers with Cohen Braithwaite-Kilcoyne - The English Folk Dance and Song Society (EFDSS) are set to begin a new term of their online singing course, Monday Folk Singers, on Monday 25th April. They’ve been inviting different artists along each term as tutors, and this term will be led by Cohen Braithwaite-Kilcoyne of Granny’s Attic*. The term lasts for 10 weeks and costs £100, or £60 for concessions.
Jo Freya* is running an online course teaching tunes from the Blowzabella album Two Score, starting on Thursday 28th April. All instruments are welcome, and sheet music is provided as well as the tunes being taught by ear. Jo also compiles recordings of participants playing their parts into one big mix, so everyone can hear how they’d sound together! The course lasts four weeks, and is available for a minimum donation of £40.
Also coming up online…
5 April - Covid Sings Singaround, 8pm - this month’s theme is Easter-based - think fertility, eggs, hares and rituals for this time of year.
5 April - Tuesday Folk People: The Ciderhouse Rebellion, 8pm
7 April - Tom McConville, Rosslyn Court, 7.30pm
12 April - Tuesday Folk People: Sarah McQuaid, 8pm
14 April - Geoff Lakeman and Rob Murch, Rosslyn Court, 7.30pm
17 April - Home Stage Folk Club (online singaround), 7pm
19 April - Tuesday Folk People: Katie Blount, 8pm
22 April - Bella Gaffney + Painted Sky, The Globe Newcastle, 8pm
26 April - Tuesday Folk People: Katie Grace Harris, 8pm
28 April - Lynne Heraud & Pat Turner, Rosslyn Court, 7.30pm
Regular bits to look out for:
The Folk Room on Clubhouse is on Wednesdays at 7pm, and The Ballad Room is on Thursdays at 8pm.
Tim Edey often holds online concerts on his Facebook page on Saturday nights.
Piers Cawley hosts regular Song Swaps with special guests - check out his YouTube channel for the latest additions.
All times are in BST.
TOP PICKS: IN PERSON
The Young’Uns — On tour from 16th April
The Young’Uns are off on tour from 16th April, calling at Sunderland, Leeds, Bury St Edmunds, Manchester, London, Cardiff, Milton Keynes, Pocklington and Glasgow. At each show, they’ll be recording audiences singing along to choruses, as they urge everyone to discover the joy of singing together, just as they discovered it one night as teenagers in Stockton-on-Tees.
Folk Weekend Oxford — 22-24 April
Folk Weekend Oxford have got a great weekend of gigs, workshops, dances and sessions planned. Artists include Sam Carter, Belshazzar’s Feast, Nick Hart, Angeline Morrison, Martin Carthy, Granny’s Attic*, The Fay Hield Trio* and Melrose Quartet*. As noted above, the latter three gigs are being livestreamed by Live to Your Living Room*, which originally sprung from Folk Weekend Oxford. Cat McGill, the previous Artistic Director of Folk Weekend Oxford who now runs Live to Your Living Room, will also be presented with her British Empire Medal at the festival this year.
Bristol Folk Festival — 29 April-1 May
Bristol Folk Festival has a great line-up, including Kate Rusby, O’Hooley & Tidow, Jon Boden & The Remnant Strings, Amadou Diagne, Kitty Macfarlane*, Granny’s Attic*, Medicine Creek, Rachael McShane and Gadarene.
Edinburgh Tradfest — 29 April-9 May
Edinburgh Tradfest is jam-packed with artists including Karine Polwart & Dave Milligan, Duncan Chisholm, Martin & Eliza Carthy, Shooglenifty, The Shee, Project Smok, Janice Burns & Jon Doran* and more.
Soundpost Singing Weekend* — 6-8 May
Join Soundpost in the beautiful village of Dungworth to celebrate all things folk music and singing related. These weekends are always a great opportunity to learn something new, meet likeminded people and enjoy making music together. Tutors include Nancy Kerr, Rowan Rheingans, Sean Cooney, Cath Carr, Rowan Piggott, Jess Arrowsmith and Fay Hield.
Some of the tutors have been commissioned to write brand-new songs as part of a song cycle in partnership with the Sheffield Lakeland Landscape Partnership, and those songs will be shared during the course of the weekend. Folk on Foot will also be dropping by to record an episode of the podcast, so it’s all going on!
Folk For Refugees: The Long Walk Home — 13-19 May
Folk For Refugees are organising The Long Walk Home to raise funds for the Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal. Participants will have the chance to join musicians including Eliza Carthy to walk and share tunes and stories along the way, while walking 10-15 miles each day to raise sponsorship funds. The walk will finish in Eliza’s home town of Robin Hood’s Bay. Further details are yet to be finalised, but you can register your interest on the Folk For Refugees website.
Also out on tour…
This is just a pick of what I’ve come across, but do keep an eye on your local venues and favourite artists!
OTHER NEWS
Johnny Kalsi fundraiser for Ukraine
One of my favourite artists, the incredible drummer Johnny Kalsi, has been busy helping refugees at the border between Poland and Ukraine with Khalsa Aid. If you’d like to support him in his mission, you can donate to his fundraiser to help Johnny and his fellow volunteers support people when they need it most.
The Wilderness Yet Kickstarter
The Wilderness Yet have almost finished the recording stage of their debut album, The Wilderness Yet, which will include a mix of traditional and original songs and tunes. The band were originally planning to fund the album through touring, but with Covid having scuppered their plans, they are now looking for some help with fundraising. There are lots of rewards available, including some beautiful artwork, handwritten lyric sheets, lessons, bespoke tunes and of course the album itself.
NEW RELEASES
1 April - Bella Gaffney & Sam Kelly - Fair and Tender Ladies (single)
1 April - Hannah Sanders & Ben Savage* - Ink of the Rosy Morning
22 April - Kathryn Joseph - For You Who Are The Wronged
29 April - Nick Hart* - Nick Hart Sings Ten English Folk Songs
3 May - Bryony Griffith and Alice Jones - A Year Too Late And A Month Too Soon (check out this video for a taster - I love it!)
6 May - Kate Rusby - 30: Many Happy Returns
RECORD OF THE MONTH
Record of the Month is Nick Hart Sings Ten English Folk Songs by (you guessed it) Nick Hart*, which is out on 29th April. Following on from his previous, similarly titled albums (Nick Hart Sings Eight English Folk Songs, and then Nine - they do what they say on the tin!), Nick is back with a new collection of stories told through song. The album was recorded during the first lockdown in 2020, when Nick found himself alone with plenty of instruments to tinker with, giving him the perfect conditions for musical development. The time and space afforded by this are clearly reflected in the finished album, both in terms of the care and attention to detail behind each track and the experimental approaches to elements such as the instrumentation (including a bowed banjo and a mandolin with half the strings removed!).
By way of a teaser, Nick has released a single, Dives and Lazarus, which is mesmerisingly good and guaranteed to stay in your head for several days to come. Find it in this month’s playlist, and look out for Nick on tour very soon!
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The Folk Forecast is created for artists, for audiences and for the UK folk scene. All information is correct to the best of our knowledge. If you have queries about the events listed, please contact the artists or promoters. If you have any suggestions for inclusion in future newsletters, please email TheFolkForecast@gmail.com. We may not be able to include absolutely everything, but we’re interested in UK folk events with a broad appeal, and would particularly welcome suggestions from Scotland, Wales and Ireland. The Folk Forecast is compiled by one person, so please bear with me if I can’t get back to you right away.
* Alongside The Folk Forecast, I work with other organisations including Live to Your Living Room, Soundpost, Folk on Foot, Fancourt Music (Granny’s Attic and Janice Burns & Jon Doran), and individual artists including Jo Freya and Hannah James. Events where I have some involvement with the promoter, agency or artist are marked with a star for transparency. Although I have various affiliations, I strive to be fair and inclusive and tell you about anything I think you’ll enjoy!