Tag Archives: Melodeon

Rachael McShane and the Cartographers on Friday 9 October

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Rachael McShane is a renowned folk singer, cellist, fiddle, and viola player from the North East of England. She gained fame as an original member of the award-winning folk big band Bellowhead, recording five studio albums with them and winning a staggering eight BBC Folk Awards.

Away from Bellowhead, Rachael is the leader of The Cartographers, a band featuring traditional folk and contemporary sounds. The Cartographers have garnered a loyal following thanks to their impressive live performances and critically acclaimed debut album, When All Is Still (Topic Records, 2018). Their latest album Uncharted was released in Spring 2025. “You’re in the presence of something very special … what a voice” (BBC Music).

The evening starts at 7.30 pm. Please reserve tickets by emailing contact[@]norwichfolkclub.net. Prices are £15, and £12 for club members. Bring your own drinks – teas and coffee available in the kitchen, 50p. There is a car park, but latecomers may need to park on Constitution or St Clements Hill or on their adjoining roads.

Pete Coe on Friday 8 May

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Pete Coe has been a professional musician since 1971, playing at festivals, concerts, clubs, dances and schools throughout Britain, Europe, Asia, New Zealand and the USA . During the ‘70s he toured and recorded with Chris Coe, was a member of the legendary New Victory Band and, with Nic Jones, Tony Rose and again, Chris Coe, he was a member of Bandoggs. In the late ‘80s and early ‘90s he toured and recorded with Red Shift, but since 1985 he’s mainly worked as a soloist and earned an enviable reputation.
Pete’s strong, distinctive voice is enhanced by his instrumental versatility, the ringing strings of his bouzouki, the sweet chords of his mountain dulcimer, the plaintive frailing banjo and the pulsing reeds of his melodeon. He’s also a country dance caller, creator and band musician. He sings, plays and step dances, sometimes all at once!
Please let us know if you would like us to save tickets, using the contact details on the ‘Future events’ page. The evening starts at 7.30 pm.

Tony Hall on Friday 6 December

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Norfolk cartoonist, singer and melodeon player Tony Hall is much appreciated at festivals and folk clubs all over the country. A review in Living Tradition describes Tony as being ‘the master of playing distinctive, quintessentially English style two-row melodeon’, pointing out that he ‘has been heard on Maddy Prior and June Tabor’s Silly Sisters album, and Nic Jones’ superb Penguin Eggs‘, and concluding that he is ‘a man of rare talent’. We look forward to an evening full of entertaining music and good humour to lift our spirits.

Please email via the contact page to let us know if you would like us to save tickets (£13 non-members, £10 club members). Bring your own drinks – there will also be teas and coffee available in the kitchen for 50p. Contributions to Shirley’s donation box will be taken to the local food bank.

The Rosie Hood Band on Friday 10 November

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A folk singer/songwriter from Wiltshire, Rosie Hood is known for her strong, pure voice and captivating performances, as well as being a member of The Dovetail Trio. A BBC Performing Arts Fellow and 2016 BBC Radio 2 Folk Award nominee, Rosie has become more than purely a traditional singer. June 2017 saw the release of her first full-length solo album The Beautiful & The Actual, a collection of old and new folk songs, described by The Guardian as “a classy arrival” ****.

Rosie has toured the UK and Central Canada, both solo and as part of The Dovetail Trio, as well as collaborating and performing with a host of fellow musicians including Emily Portman, Jefferson Hamer, Cohen Braithwaite-Kilcoyne and the Andy May Trio. She is currently working with talented accompanists Nicola Beazley (fiddle/cello), Robyn Wallace (melodeon) and Rosie Butler-Hall (fiddle). Link to: A Furlong of Flight

The evening starts at 7.30 pm. Tickets (£13 non-members, £10 club members) can be reserved via the email form on our contact page. Bring your own drinks – teas and coffee available in the kitchen for 50p.

Tony Hall on Friday 13 January

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Fresh from an appearance at Camden’s Cellar Upstairs Folk Club, Norfolk cartoonist, singer and melodeon player Tony Hall is much appreciated at festivals and folk clubs all over the country. A review in Living Tradition describes Tony as being ‘the master of playing distinctive, quintessentially English style two-row melodeon’, pointing out that he ‘has been heard on Maddy Prior and June Tabor’s Silly Sisters album, and Nic Jones’ superb Penguin Eggs‘, and concluding that he is ‘a man of rare talent’. We look forward to an evening full of entertaining music and good humour to lift our spirits in this chilly season.

Please email via the contact page to let us know if you would like us to save tickets (£13 non-members, £10 club members). Bring your own drinks, as the kitchen will be closed. Contributions to Shirley’s donation box will be taken to the local food bank.

John Kirkpatrick on Friday 4 November

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On Friday 4 November we look forward to welcoming one of the most prolific figures on the English folk scene (performing solo, in duos, acoustic groups and electric bands) John Kirkpatrick MBE. John has established an enviable reputation as an instrumental virtuoso (melodeon, Anglo concertina and button accordion), as well as a leading interpreter of English folk music, a fine singer and dancer.

John’s performances of songs and tunes are brimful of life, vitality and humour, making for a great night’s entertainment. The event starts at 7.30 pm, and please email us through our contact page if you would like us to save tickets (£13 non-members, £10 club members). Bring your own drinks.

Tony Hall and The Vonn Krapp Family Band on Friday 14 February

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Legendary melodeon-player Tony Hall brings his talented band to Norwich Folk Club – an opportunity to hear these local stars in a folk club concert setting. Self-taught, Tony has a unique, ground-breaking style of playing. This stalwart of the Norfolk folk scene appeared on the Silly Sisters album and accompanied Maddy Prior and June Tabor on their tour, as well as being part of Nic Jones’ Penguin Eggs album.

Tickets £8 (£11 non-members), available on the door, can also be reserved by emailing via our contact page. Bring your own drinks. Teas and coffees available in the kitchen.

The Teacups Trio on Friday 5 July

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Returning to Norwich Folk Club on Friday 5 July we welcome The Teacups Trio, a fantastic young harmony group who we last saw in June 2015. As you may already know, The Teacups formed as a foursome while studying at Newcastle and offer unadorned, gutsy singing of traditional and contemporary material. Not to be missed!

Tickets £11 (£8 club members), can be reserved by emailing via the form on our contact page. Bring your own drinks. Teas and coffees available in the kitchen.

In the meantime, the showcase guest at the song session on Friday 21 June is the popular local singer, melodeon player and guitarist Roger Gamble. A veteran of the folk and acoustic scene for over fifty years, Roger helped set up the first Norwich Folk Clubs at the Unthank Arms and the York Tavern and still regularly performs at sessions and clubs in Norfolk and Suffolk. Over the years Roger has happily absorbed influences from Dylan to Knopfler, from the Blues to the West Coast, but Norfolk song and humour are always likely to break through. This is a free session. Bring songs and tunes as well as your own drinks.

John Conolly on Friday 8 June

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Lincolnshire singer-songwriter John Conolly is a long-established member of the folk community. John originally found his way into folk music through the skiffle route, but is best known for what many think is a traditional song, ‘Fiddler’s Green’, performed here with Dave Fletcher and Bill Whaley. John’s other well known songs include “Punch and Judy Man“.

“If there were ever a Campaign for Real Folk-Singers, John Conolly would be the sort of act it would promote – his well-crafted songs sit well with his easy-going charm and sense of humour, making him a firm favourite with both audiences and fellow-musicians.” (Topic Folk Club, Bradford)

Tickets ( £7 members, £10 non-members) can be reserved by emailing: contact [at] norwichfolkclub [dot] net. Bring your own drinks. Teas and coffee available in the kitchen.

Tony Hall on Friday 16 March

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We look forward very much to welcoming local celebrity, melodeon player and modest wit Tony Hall back to the Folk Club on Friday 16 March. Summed up by Islington Folk Club as: ‘East Anglian melodeon player with a distinctive, quintessentially English style, who played on the iconic ’80s Nic Jones release Penguin Eggs. Hall’s sets are laid-back affairs, interspersed with his dry, sometimes gently surreal humour.’

Please let us know if you would like us to save tickets £9 (£6 members), via the email on the contact page. Bring your own drinks. Teas and coffee available in the kitchen.

The Norwich Folk Club AGM, which was postponed from 23 February due to illness, will now be held on Friday 23 March at 8 pm, to be followed by a song session, open to all, from around 9 pm.