Category Archives: Event

Bob Fox on Friday 13 September

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Bob Fox

On Friday 13 September we look forward to welcoming singer, guitarist and melodeon player Bob Fox, taking a short break before resuming the role of Songman in the touring production of Warhorse.

Described by Warhorse Songmaker John Tams as ‘most probably the last great traditional folksinger we have today’, Bob offers an eclectic mix of thought-provoking songs, including some new material from the BBC Radio Ballads and favourites from his wide repertoire of traditional and modern songs. Expect nimble guitar playing, great singing and a bit of banter – he’s from the North-East, after all! Tickets £10 (£7 for club members). Contact us to reserve seats. If you have already done this and have had no reply, please try again. (We have had problems with non-delivery of emails, which have now been solved.)

Norwich Folk Club will meet for a song session every Friday throughout the summer. All welcome, whether to listen, sing or play. Bring your own drinks – local pubs and off-licences nearby and teas and coffee available in the kitchen. Upstairs if cool and downstairs if there is another heatwave.

Vin Garbutt on 19 July

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Vin Garbutt

Vin Garbutt

On Friday 19 July we look forward to a visit from special guest, singer-songwriter Vin Garbutt, hailed as ‘the funniest and most serious man on the Folk Scene’. Vin’s unique take on the world is delivered with zany good humour and his beautifully crafted songs deal with a wide range of current issues. Not to be missed!

Tickets are SOLD OUT. Bring your own drinks – pubs and off-licences nearby. Teas and coffee in the kitchen. Arrive in good time to secure your space in the car park – and please park extra-tidily!

Tim Chipping showcase at the session on Friday 14 June

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GE DIGITAL CAMERAShowcase guest at the song session on Friday 14 June will be popular local singer, songwriter and guitarist Tim Chipping. Tim is an acoustic musician hailing from the rural depths of Norfolk’s Wensum Valley. He writes and performs his own songs, often very story based and which, whilst acknowledging traditional song forms, are influenced by a variety of contemporary music styles, encompassing themes from the modern world. He also reinterprets traditional songs and puts his own particular stamp on material by current artistes such as Bruce Springsteen, The Levellers and Steve Earle.

In the early 90s Tim co-founded folk rock band Folklaw and, latterly, was one half of acoustic duo Movers and Shakers together with fiddle player Mike Naldrett. Currently, as well as performing solo, Tim sings and plays guitar with Norfolk folk band LongShoreDrift (LSD to their friends!) as well as The Stringdogs, an Anglocana meets Americana acoustic roots collision. His new solo CD, ‘What You Hear Is What You Get’ is out now.

All welcome to this free session. Bring your own drinks, songs and tunes.

Vicki Swan & Jonny Dyer on 7 June

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Vicki Swan and Jonny Dyer

Vicki Swan and Jonny Dyer

On Friday 7 June we look forward to another enjoyable evening, with fantastic guests. Vicki Swan & Jonny Dyer have developed a strong reputation for a delivering great performances time and time again. Once known mainly for their instrumental skills with Scottish smallpipes, accordion and Swedish nyckelharpa, they are now being accepted as impressive song arrangers and writers.

Vicki & Jonny effortlessly blend traditional material with contemporary interpretations, whilst equally creating original self-penned tunes and songs that are entirely at home in the tradition. Out of this combination they have developed a sound that is both familiar and fresh. Strong believers in letting the music tradition live and breathe through sensitive interpretation, Vicki and Jonny allow the melody to sing without any constraints.

Broken Boat

Broken Boat

In support are New Roots finalists 2013, Broken Boat – a modern folk band who combine honest, heartfelt lyrics with an intricate, soulful sound and enchant live audiences with their simple but powerful songs and their eclectic instrumentation.

Originally formed in Plymouth, Broken Boat moved to Hertfordshire after being signed to Berkhamsted based label ‘Which Wolf Wins Records’. To date they have played hundreds of gigs all over the south of England and several festivals including Knee Deep Festival (Supporting Willy Mason) and Berkofest. Their debut EP ‘Peace and Quiet’ was recorded at the prestigious Yellowfish Studios with the world renowned producer Ian Caple and has been featured multiple times on radio 2 by Bob Harris, calling their music “Quite lovely”, as well as BBC Three Counties and BBC Radio Devon.  

The evening starts at 8.30 pm and tickets are £10 (members £7) and can be reserved by contacting us by email. Bring your own drinks – fine ales available nearby. Teas and coffee available in the kitchen.

On Friday 24 May the song session theme, led by Kevin Green, will be ‘Old, New, Borrowed, Blue’. Bring songs, tunes, applause and, if you have one, a kazoo!

 

Belshazzar’s Feast on 10 May

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Belshazzar's Feast (photo Alan Cole)

Belshazzar’s Feast (photo Alan Cole)

Special guests on Friday 10 May are folk duo Belshazzar’s Feast, accordionist Paul Hutchinson and singer, oboe and violin player Paul Sartin. Paul Sartin is a member of BBC 2 Award-winning big band Bellowhead and of Faustus. Paul Hutchinson is a member of the progressive folk trio Hoover the Dog.

 

Belshazzar’s Feast start with traditional folk music, add a touch of classical and jazz, throw in a bit of pop and music hall, and top it off wry humour for a unique live experience.  They received a coveted nomination for the Best Duo Award at the 2010 BBC Folk Awards. ‘One of folk’s great odd couples – The Feast’ (The Independent on Sunday).

Their latest album, titled ‘Find The Lady’ and produced by Jim Moray, was released by One Little Indian Records in November 2010. ‘It is a bona fide English classic’ (R2, formerly Rock ‘n’ Reel).

TICKETS SOLD OUT. Bring your own drinks. Fine ales can be purchased at the nearby pubs and there is also an off-licence across the road. Teas and coffee are available in the kitchen.

Folk song sessions continue every Friday between guest nights, with a themed evening of ‘Love Songs’ led by June Thaine on Friday 19 April. Free entry. All welcome, whether to listen, sing or play.

The Norwich Folk Club’s Annual General Meeting will be held from 8 pm on Friday 26 April, followed by a folk song session from about 9 pm.

 

 

Gren Bartley on 12 April

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Gren Bartley

On Friday 12 April we look forward to welcoming Gren Bartley, a talented young guitarist and a prolific and exceptional songwriter who we first noticed as one of the New Roots finalists several years ago. Since then Gren’s career has blossomed and he is constantly touring and forever writing.

Gren’s new album ‘Winter Fires’ (out in spring 2013) is set to build further upon the success of 2012’s critically acclaimed ‘Songs To Scythe Back The Overgrown’. “A quiet triumph, no less” ( fRoots).

Showcasing his phenomenal guitar playing and poetry-driven lyrics, Gren is truly the future of folk songwriting, using his influences from folk and blues traditions to bring something unique to this modern day troubadour. He is an artist not to be missed. “One to really look out for …” (BBC Radio 2).

Tickets can be reserved by contacting us via the ‘About the club’ page (£7 club members, £10 non-members). Bring your own drinks. Fine ales and off licence nearby. Teas and coffee also available.

Folk song sessions continue every Friday between guest nights, with a themed evening of ‘Chorus Songs’ led by Glynn West on Friday 29 March. Free entry. All welcome, whether to listen, sing or play.

Craig; Morgan; Robson on 15 and 16 March

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Craig; Morgan; Robson

Craig; Morgan; Robson bring a new dimension to the art of a-capella singing. Rich in repertoire and musical experience, Moira Craig, Sarah Morgan and Carolyn Robson have been singing together since the autumn of 2003, weaving beguiling harmonies around material from the British tradition and beyond with “an effortless range and variety unheard in folk music for many years” (Folk London). 

Timeless songs of love and longing rub shoulders with compelling contemporary songs, and passionate, dramatic ballads take their place alongside a lilting Shetland melody or a stirring hymn from the Ozark mountains. The occasional solo song only adds to the variety of their overall performance. Here is a trio in which three distinctively different voices melt into one another to create a sound which is all their own. “True tradition bearers” (Living Tradition).

Bring your own refreshments. Teas and coffee available. Tickets £10 (£7 club members). Reserve your seat by emailing via the ‘About the club’ page.

Craig; Morgan; Robson will be hosting a harmony workshop at the Christ Church Centre, Magdalen Road NR3 4LA from 2-4.30 pm on Saturday 16 March. They will teach some songs from their repertoire, and share valuable tips on singing technique. Great fun! All welcome – no experience necessary! Tickets £10. Registration from 1.30 pm.

 

Martyn Wyndham-Read and Iris Bishop on 15 February

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Martyn Wyndham-Read and Iris Bishop

Martyn Wyndham-Read has been involved with folk music for over forty years. As a teenager in the 1960s he set off to work on a sheep station in Australia and became part of the folk song revival there, later returning to England with a wealth of traditional songs and stories.

In the early 1970s Martyn started the ‘Maypoles to Mistletoe’ concerts which portray the seasons of the year through song, music, dance and verse and illustration. Martyn is also the instigator of the well known Song Links Project. He is accompanied by Iris Bishop, regarded by many as one of the finest players of the Duet concertina. Shining Down on Sennen

Tickets are £10 and can be reserved by emailing the club using the contact box on the ‘About the club’ page. Bring your own refreshments – teas and coffee available.

 

Annual General Meeting on 8 February

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Norwich Folk Club Annual General Meeting will take place at 8 pm on Friday 8 February. The club is run by a committee, who will report on the events of the past year. All club members are invited to attend the meeting. This will be followed by a singaround, open to all listeners, singer and players, from about 9 pm. Bring your own refreshments – teas and coffee available.

Showcase with Poacher on 1 February

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June Thaine, David Robertson and Kevin Green

Special showcase guests at the singaround on Friday 1 February are popular local trio, June Thaine, David Robertson and Kevin Green, otherwise known as Poacher. We look forward to hearing a variety of traditional and more recent songs, sung in close harmony.

Other singers and players are also welcome to take part in the singaround. Entry free. Please bring your own liquid refreshments – teas and coffee available.