Akabella
Singarounds continue every Friday at Norwich Folk Club, with a special showcase on 7 October featuring local all-women acapella group ‘Akabella’ with a diverse repertoire, including songs from Georgia, Namibia, Bulgaria, Macedonia and South Africa, as well as Britain. All welcome, entry free. Bring your own refreshments. Tea and coffee available.
James Findlay
We look forward very much to welcoming James Findlay back – you may remember that James last performed at the club in November 2008, in support to Tim Laycock, after reaching the finals of New Roots earlier in the same year. Just over a year later, he went on to win the 2010 BBC Radio 2 Young Folk Award.
An accomplished guitarist and fiddler, James is influenced by all genres of music, but his love lies in traditional English folk music and particularly in ballads.
Judging the Young Folk Awards, Bellowhead’s Jon Boden exclaimed, ‘what a voice!’ 2011 sees James’ debut album released under the major folk label Fellside.
Please let us know if you would like to reserve tickets (£8 non-members), by email via the ‘About the club’ page. Bring your own refreshments. Hot drinks available.
There will be singarounds every Friday throughout the summer, with ‘Games and Pastimes’ as the theme on Friday 22 July and ‘Murder and Mayhem’ on Friday 19 August. Songs and tunes connected with the theme will be appreciated, but some leeway is allowed! Everyone is welcome to all singarounds, whether to sing, play or listen, and entry is free. Bring refreshments. Hot drinks available.
Please get in touch via the form on the ‘About the club’ page if you would like to join our Summer Sunday event, from 4-10 pm on Sunday 31 July at Weston Longville, for details of the venue.
Tonight’s performance by Dave Webber and Anni Fentiman has been postponed due to family illness. There will be a singaround with floor spots from Rosie Hood. Free entry. Bring voices, instruments and refreshments.
Dave Webber and Anni Fentiman
Dave Webber and Anni Fentiman make a welcome return to Norwich on Friday 8 July. Dave and Anni joined forces in 1985, after spending many years around the folk club scene, in which time they featured on several albums made by other performers. Anni has developed a specialist repertoire of songs originating from her native North East, and Dave has been writing songs in traditional vein since 1982, many of which are widely sung and have become part of the general song repertoire of singers all over the world. ‘If you love traditional music delivered with strength, clarity and simplicity, you certainly won’t be disappointed with this duo’ (Cornwall Folk Festival).
Rosie Hood
In support is Rosie Hood, an unaccompanied singer originally from Malmesbury and another of this year’s New Roots finalists. Rosie is fairly new to solo performance, having previously sung in bands and throughout school. Her experience of sessions and folk clubs has sparked an interest in the history of the songs she sings, particularly those of her native Wiltshire and those collected by Alfred Williams. Rosie also sings a variety of songs from around the British Isles, learned from many sources, including the sessions of Glasgow (where she studies Design) and Sidmouth Folk Week’s legendary Middle Bar.
Tickets £8 (non-members). Reservations by email on the form found on the ‘About the Club’ page. Bring your own refreshments. Hot drinks available.
Dónal Maguire
Dónal Maguire has been singing and playing in public on and off for forty years. With an exceptional repertoire of Irish traditional songs and a unique selection of English songs, Dónal is known for his outstanding unaccompanied singing, but also has significant other ‘strings to his bow’, being widely recognised as one of the finest players of Irish dance music on mandolin and tenor banjo. A recent project has centred around Michael Davitt, arguably one of the most celebrated statesmen in nineteenth-century Irish history.
Jessica and Tom
In support on 10 June, we welcome recent finalists at New Roots in St Albans, Jessica and Tom, who have been singing together for four years, performing mainly traditional English songs and ballads. They’ve performed in a variety of events and concerts; at local pubs and cafes and even with an Opera company. Inspired by the singing of Martin Carthy, the Waterson Family and Spiers and Boden, they have a laid-back style, singing in close harmony with the occasional bit of accompanying guitar.
Bring your own refreshments. Hot drinks available. Tickets are £8 (£5 members) and can be reserved by emailing via the ‘About the club’ form.
John Kirkpatrick and Chris Parkinson
John Kirkpatrick and Chris Parkinson first appeared as The Sultans of Squeeze in 2004. Together they present a huge variety of music, performed on every possible combination of their various squeeze-boxes – John on one-row and two-row melodeons, three-row button accordion, and treble and bass anglo concertinas, and Chris on various two-row melodeons, piano accordion, and bass piano accordion. As well as the traditional folk songs and tunes that you might expect to hear from these two, they also tackle military marches, French waltzes, nostalgic popular classics and signature tunes, blues, zydeco, jazz, rock & roll, and some pieces of their own making as well.
Please check that tickets are available by emailing via the link on the ‘About the Club’ page. Bring your own refreshments. Tea and coffee available.
Karen Tweed and Kevin Dempsey
On Friday 8 April we welcome Karen Tweed, a deft and dextrous piano accordion player and a leading light on both UK and international folk scenes.
With a musical approach that is informed by tradition, Karen breaks convention to take acoustic music to a new realm.
Joining Karen is guitarist, singer and songwriter Kevin Dempsey, who is renowned for his fresh and vibrant arrangements of traditional and contemporary tunes and whose vocals bring both meaning and feeling to the lyrics. Tickets £8 (non-members). Please email via the link on the ‘About the club’ page to join the list. Bring your own refreshments. Tea and coffee available.
On Friday 1 April the singaround will focus on the theme ‘All Fools’.
Pete Morton
Pete Morton has been hailed as one of England’s finest songwriters – a voice of reason in these troubled times. The songs on Pete’s brand-new album, ‘Economy’, present a typically lively, moving and often sideways look at the modern human condition, whether through the eyes of a lady gorilla, the ever-changing setting of a city café or the sweet voice of an Indian call-centre operator. ‘Disobedience’ strikes a particularly topical note in summoning the peaceful spirit of Gandhi to fight oppression. Other well-loved songs from Pete include ‘Another Train’, ‘The Shepherd’s Song’ and ‘Six Billion Eccentrics’.
In support on Friday 18 March will be up-and-coming young songwriting duo Luke Hirst and Sarah Smout. Cellist Sarah has played all over the UK alongside Rosie Doonan and has shared stages with a number of well-known performers, including Kate Rusby. An accomplished guitarist, Luke has been playing gigs since 2004, with TV coverage on BBC and airplay on a number of radio shows.
Bring your own refreshments. Tea and coffee will be available. Tickets £8. (Save seats by emailing via the ‘About the club’ page.)
PS The toast of the Edinburgh fringe this year, Pete Morton’s alter-ego, Geoffrey Chaucer Junior, will be presenting ‘The Miller’s Tale’, a medieval musical monologue of poetry, comedy and song, at the Christ Church Centre at 8 pm on Saturday 19 March. Tickets £6/£4.
David Newey and Tom McConville
Tom McConville is well known for his virtuoso fiddle-playing and interpretation of traditional and contemporary songs, and was chosen as BBC Radio 2 Folk Musician of the Year in 2009. His live performances include fast, rhythmic dance tunes, beautiful slow airs and great songs, all presented with his own inimitable sense of humour and style.
David Newey is a talented guitarist, songwriter and singer, and was a finalist in the Young Traditional Musician of the Year contest of 2003.
Reserve tickets by contacting us via the form on the ‘About the club’ page. Bring your own refreshments. Tea and coffee available.