gitaar FOLK  AT  HOME
House Concerts in Tilburg
viool

Links:

Click here for Dutch version
Anthony John Clarke
Chances are you've met Anthony John Clarke at an event on the folk music circuit. He has been involved in music for many years now, having recorded twelve CD albums, three CD singles and published two songbooks. He has played in hundreds of clubs and festivals in the UK, Europe, Australasia and the USA, and his songs and career receive good coverage. There are very few places in the UK and Ireland that Anthony John has not played. His supporters are loyal and many, and the tributes he receives from his peers bear witness to the talent and hard work of one of the folk scene's nicest guys. Bookings at clubs up and down the UK and recent developments including the vocal collaboration with Elizabeth van de Waal increased his popularity and made him an established folk name. He retains his reputation as one of the top songwriters on the scene and his hard work and dedication to his craft are a credit to him. For him, songwriting is indeed a craft.

Babes in the Grass
After Babes in the Grass (unfortunately) came to an end in 2019, they started again in 2023.
Adri, Beppie and Elly, three women, each with a rich musical history, stormed as the acoustic ladies trio Babes in the Grass the Dutch stages. With their mix of folk, bluegrass, "golden oldies" and a good dose of humor, they managed to create an atmosphere where even the most inveterate pessimist would be happy. In a light-hearted way the ladies sang and discussed topics like diets, heartbreak, mothers-in-law, tight underwear and gambling addiction. It was rumored that there were plans to include their music in the health insurance package. If you were lucky, they brought their musical men with them and it became as they call 'mentime'.
Adri Richter:    guitar, mandolin, vocals.
Beppie Gasman: acoustic bass, vocals.
Elly Beurskens: guitar, banjo, vocals.

Bert Louissen
Bert Louissen writes lyrics and music, composes, arranges, sings and plays keyboards, guitar, bass and drums. In his musical career he has gained a lot of experience on stage, in the studio and for radio and TV. He released his album 'Cheerful Goodbye' in October 2015. A period of personal and financial crisis, in short, the blues, turned out to be the breeding ground for this album. For the first time in his more than 25-year musical career, Bert wrote both lyrics and music himself. On the album, Bert shows his versatility and broad musical taste. He varies seemingly effortlessly from solid pop songs to fragile songs. Themes in his songs range from pent-up anger at injustices big and small to people who have disappeared from his life for various reasons.
At the end of 2016 his most recent album 'The Steep Incline' was released. He also performs covers at parties and other occasions. On stage he plays alone or with other musicians, depending on wishes and possibilities.

Bob Fox
Bob Fox is an English folk guitarist and singer, specialising in traditional and contemporary songs of the north-east of England and in particular, the coal mining communities thereof. He is noted for his collaborations with Tom McConville, Stu Luckley, and for solo performances since 1982. In 2006 Bob, along with a range of other top UK folk artists, was involved in providing performances for the "2006 Radio Ballads" commissioned by BBC Radio, and in 2009 he performed in the part of "Songman" in the highly acclaimed West End production of War Horse which played in the West End for 18 months and was subsequently toured for another eighteen months around Britain, Ireland and South Africa. Scholar Anthony Ashbolt describes Fox as "possessing one of the best folk-singing voices in England and he evokes the world of the miners and, in general, the songs of the northeast, with power and clarity." Bob is not a singer-songwriter, he sings numbers of others and that he does magnificent. He has just completed another tour through Australia.

Bram Taylor
Bram Taylor is an entertaining artist with a distinctive voice and relaxed stage presence who gives an evening "Taylored" to suit his audience. Bram calls on a large repertoire of traditional songs, together with contemporary and humorous material, performed on acoustic guitar, duet concertina, or unaccompanied. With a wealth of experience behind him, he has established a fine reputation which has gone from strength to strength from tours in the UK and USA of Folk Clubs, festivals and concerts.
Bram has his audiences singing, laughing from his infectious sense of humor, and occasionally, shedding a tear or two from some of the poignant songs he loves to sing.

Cathryn Craig and Brian Willoughby
With a combined working history reading like a Who’s Who of household names in music… Righteous Brothers, Mary Hopkin, Chet Atkins, Strawbs and many more, now it’s their turn at the front of the stage, to sing and play their own well-crafted brand of acoustic guitar-based material.
Cathryn and Brian met in Michael Snow's recording studio in Nashville. Brian and he had written the song 'Hard Luck Café'…Michael said he knew just the person to sing it!
When Brian came to record the first album of his own songs, 'Black & White' (which includes 'Hard Luck Café'), he invited Cathryn to sing. Together they wrote 'The Fire', 'Alice's Song' and 'Black & White'.
Apart from 'Love Belongs Right Here', a Mary Hopkin/Brian composition sung by Mary, Cathryn sang on the whole album and so the duo of Cathryn Craig and Brian Willoughby was born…

Chris Parkinson
Chris Parkinson has played music since the age of five, starting with the harmonica, and moving on to piano, guitar, concertina, tin whistle, melodeon, piano accordion and keyboards, and even a little time playing the fiddle. He plays traditional folk music of UK, Europe and beyond, and is also no mean hand at blues, rock & roll, and even a bit of jazz. February 2006 saw a somewhat historic milestone, it was just 50 years since Chris first played harmonica on stage. Chris is also a founder member of the much travelled and highly acclaimed "The House Band". He is in great demand both for live performance and studio session work, and has worked with countless people from the folk scene and beyond. The discography is quite impressive too - 7 House Band albums, 2 solo albums, plus sessions on approx another 57 albums, 21compilations, a video tutor for the absolute beginner on piano accordion, a DVD tutor on Celtic Guitar Accompaniment.

Colum Sands
Colum Sands has performed in over thirty countries around the world, confirming the universal appeal for the songs and stories with which he observes the minute and often humorous details of life. A member of the internationally renowned Sands Family from County Down, Colum established his reputation as a songwriter with the release of his first solo album, 'Unapproved Road' in 1981. Songs like 'Whatever you say', 'Say Nothing', and 'Almost Every Circumstance' were soon in the repertoire of many other artists. His second album 'The March Ditch' inspired a special BBC television documentary and songs like 'The Man with the Cap' and 'Looking the loan of a Spade' confirmed his unique ability to observe locally and appeal universally. On his travels around the world he soon discovered that many of his songs had arrived before him, carried by other singers and in recordings by fellow performers like Andy Irvine, Tommy Makem and Liam Clancy, Roy Bailey, Mick Hanley, Gerard van Maasakkers, Rosemary Woods, Iain McIntosh and Enda Kenny.

Crazy Dutch Regulars
Unlike most bands and groups, that meet up at college and practice in their parent’s basements, the Crazy Dutch Regulars consists mostly of family members. Though their main aim is to perform Dutch folk songs (either in separate slots or provided as a continuous show people can enjoy while passing on their ways to other acts), because of their experiences they are also capable of providing acts that include folk dancing, fire dancing, stilt walking, balloon modelling and face painting. Thanks to a strong family connection and a huge load of enthusiasm and willingness to learn, they are still, years later, going strong and performing with great success. If you are interested in more details about the services they can provide for your event, please don’t hesitate to contact them.

Daithi Rua
Daithi Rua is an Irish musician and songwriter from County Offaly. In the early Nineties Daithi was invited to play Dublin’s premier venue The Olympia Theatre as support to The Big Geraniums... By the time he left school he had been making a living from music and had started writing songs. In the Mid Nineties Daithi had been actively involved in the Irish music scene and went on to form a successful Celtic rock outfit called Sans Souci which led to some European festivals and ultimately tours in the Middle East with Davey Arthur of Furey’s fame. Daithi has worked with many Fine performers and musical outfits as well as continuing to be a highly sought after solo artist and his songs have also been recorded by some well established acts. Daithi has shared the stage with many fine Irish and European artist. Daithi has also been stand in Guitarist for European Rockers Urban Trad and in 2009 with Moya Brennan (the voice of Clannad) on her UK Heartstrings tour.

Dan McKinnon
Dan McKinnon is a genuine troubadour - one man, one guitar, one voice - but oh, what a voice… Dan is a thoroughly engaging performer preferring a smooth, finger-style acoustic guitar accompaniment for his thoughtful compositions and lilting melodies. With six solo recordings to his credit, Dan McKinnon is a seasoned musician who has accumulated a wide-ranging ensemble of stage appearances: performing as a featured soloist with Symphony Nova Scotia; as well as performances on stages at Folk Festivals and in folk clubs, throughout Atlantic Canada, the USA, Great Britain, and Southeastern Australia. Several of Dan’s songs and performances have been used in television documentaries aired nationally on CBC TV, as well as the History and Discovery Channels. Among the scores of radio credits including being played on Folk Radio shows throughout Canada, the US, Great Britain, Belgium, Holland, Israel, Australia, and New Zealand, Dan’s fifth recording, “Fields of Dreams and Glory” charted 74 consecutive weeks of international airplay.

Flossie Malavialle
Flossie Malavialle is a French singer who started getting involved in the British folk scene in 2000-2001. She had been singing for years in France before and that’s why she found it quite natural to turn up at the Darlington folk club one night to meet the locals and sing a song...
She didn’t realise then that this was going to be the beginning of a new life in England for her.
She has released 10 albums since 2002, including "Dark Horses" (January 2010) which is a collection of songs written by Keith Donnelly and interpreted by Flossie. This album was released to coincide with the Fairport Convention Wintour for which they did the support in 2010 as their duo "Dark Horses". Her repertoire is very open as she likes all sorts of different music genres. Her songs include famous numbers and she also loves songs full of energy or, as she calls them herself, full of "vavavoum". There's also space for lovely ballads as well as jazzy tunes.

FolkLaw
FolkLaw have toured across Europe, supporting artists such as The Shires, Seth Lakeman, Mad Dog McCrae and more, at festivals, concerts and gigs winning friends and fans as they go!
Described as "Stylish passionate folk rock" by R2 magazine, FolkLaw's songs and music guarantee to get feet tapping, minds thinking and festival-feet jumping.
FolkLaw's acrobatic fiddling and earthy vocals, have reached the airwaves of radio stations around the world from the BBC to Radio Caroline, and their energized and engaging stage performance has led FolkLaw to be described as "one of the most exciting acts to grace the stage"!
Since forming in 2009, FolkLaw have played over 400 concerts at arts centres, folk clubs and festivals, including the main stages of the Great British Folk Festival, Monmouth Festival, Lichfield Festival of Folk, Banbury Folk Festival and Swanage Folk Festival, supporting artists such as Seth Lakeman, Ade Edmondson, Hayseed Dixie and the Wurzels.

Fricklesome Amsel
Jigs & Reels rousing, atmospheric Folk Songs from Scotland, Ireland and own compositions, ballads that get under your skin, impressive vocal harmonies?
Fricklesome Amsel (Rike: violin, viola, double bass, vocals / "Zimmi": violin, guitar, mandolin, cajon, bass, vocals / Hannes: bodhran, guitar, vocals / Pete: guitar, flute, bouzouki, cajon, vocals) offers all this and more.
A live experience of special class. With a unique line-up the band manages to lead the audience through all the ups and downs of feelings and take a roller coaster of emotions.
National and international concert goers are very enthusiastic. And rightly so!
A highlight was a performance for BBC radio. The live interviews and two songs played live at the largest British radio station in prime time, will not soon be forgotten.

George Papavgeris
George Papavgeris only began songwriting in 2001, but since then he has written 200+ songs and produced no less than eight CDs of his material. Additionally, more than a dozen of his songs are already covered by singers like Vin Garbutt, Andy Irvine, Roy Bailey, Jim Causley, Cloudstreet and Enda Kenny to name but a few. He has also made numerous appearances on UK and Australian radio and toured in Australia three times (2004, 2006 & 2008) including performances at the prestigious Australian National Folk Festival. As a performer, George has a unique singing style. First impressions of gentility and understatement are quickly dispelled by his trademark passion and with his introductions he draws the audience effortlessly into his emotion-rollercoaster world.
As a writer, he is driven by a love of people with all their imperfections, conveying the various issues and concerns with a healthy integrity and a deep folk sensibility.

Gerry Colvin Band
Gerry Colvin is a singer-songwriter who can't be placed in one particular genre.
A British-born musical centipede, who in lived and worked in Nashville, played with Status Quo, had all kinds of musical collaborations in all kinds of bands with different music styles. Country and Western, folk, indie, americana, jazz, you name it, he is at home in all markets. He has also done stand-up comedy in a double act with MacKenzie Crook, wrote film scores and collaborated with Alison Moyet. It is almost impossible to properly describe this artist. He is joined by two other talented musicians: Lyndon Webb on mandolin and guitar and Trish Feelan on accordion. Together they are excellent but like several times happens during the performance, each of them supports Gerry individually, creating a completely different musical experience in the process.

Green Matthews
Formerly known as Blast from the Past, Chris Green and Sophie Matthews play English traditional songs and tunes in a thoroughly 21st-century kick-ass style. Using a beguiling blend of ancient instruments such as cittern, English border bagpipes and shawm as well as modern folk instruments such as guitar, flute and piano accordion, Chris and Sophie breathe new life into material from hundreds of years ago, making it fresh, relevant and accessible for a modern audience. Also known for their popular themed touring shows, Green and Matthews have built an enviable reputation for combining incisive wit and humour with a genuine love for the English tradition. They have a passion for 18th-century ballads and dance tunes – several of which have been unearthed by Chris from various libraries around the country and which are now being performed again for the first time in two hundred years. They also perform original songs which draw on their wealth of historical research to paint a fascinating picture of individual lives and stories from England’s past.

Hicks and Goulbourn
The music that Steve and Lynn make as the duo ‘Hicks and Goulbourn’ is characterised by pure acoustic tones, reflective lyrics, well crafted arrangements and intricate, complex guitar work. Whilst the genres in their typical sets are wide ranging there is no compromise in quality and their live performances are interspersed with engaging anecdotes and humour. Steve was 13 when he started playing guitar. Motivated by his dad’s promise of a decent guitar, Steve agreed to take lessons. Early tuition was in the classical genre and then later, he studied fingerstyle jazz guitar with Duck Baker. Nowadays you could expect to hear Steve, seemingly effortlessly, play classic ragtime, swing jazz, blues, Celtic, early and modern classical pieces … all with an ease that will leave you spellbound! Whilst Lynn has had no formal training, singing has been a passion throughout her life and more recently she has enjoyed attending vocal and challenging harmony workshops in Cumbria and Shropshire, led and inspired by Maddy Prior and Abbie Lathe.

Hungrytown
After more than a decade of world-wide touring and three album releases, Rebecca Hall and Ken Anderson--otherwise known as the folk duo Hungrytown--have earned a reputation for the quality and authenticity of their songwriting: “It’s great to hear an act eschew sentimentality in favor of honesty and to prove that you don’t have to go raiding the memory of others to find the stuff that really good songs are made of,” writes Jedd Beaudoin of Popmatters.
Lyricist Rebecca Hall is credited with compositions “that sound as timeless as any traditional songs” (Northern Sky, UK) while producer/multi-instrumentalist/husband Ken Anderson is lauded for his “remarkable affinity for instrumental embellishment” (No Depression) and for crafting Hungrytown’s “gorgeous vocal harmonies” (Folk and Roots, UK). They released their first CD, 'Hungrytown', in 2008; 'Any Forgotten Thing' in 2011; and 'Further West' in 2015.

Jez Lowe
A double nomination in the 2015 BBC Folk Awards – for best singer and best new song – was a timely reminder of Jez Lowe’s standing in the UK folk and acoustic music scene. Not only he is one of the busiest live performers in the country, but his songs are among the most widely sung by other performers, whether by long-established acts like Fairport Convention, The Dubliners and Bob Fox, or by the new breed of stars like The Unthanks, The Young Uns and The Duhks. Meanwhile, his involvement in the award-winning BBC series The Radio Ballads continues, with his song 'The Wrong Bus' singled out for inclusion on Radio 4’s Pick of the Year last December. The song is also featured on his latest album, 'The Ballad Beyond', the success of which prompted a feature in fRoots magazine and glowing reviews the world over. Jez shows no sign of slowing down, with tours of America, Holland, Australia and Canada.

The Jigantics
If the Jigantics are crossing a few musical boundaries, that's just us reflecting our own influences as all bands do. There's nothing new under the sun. I'd love to claim that we're breaking new ground, but we're trying to play songs we like, have fun and make it fun for anyone we can drag along to a gig. Making people feel good was always one of our original aims so we try to keep things mostly upbeat, up tempo and play a few songs that people can throw themselves around to.
Making people smile, making people dance, was always part of the game plan because it was something I experienced in Cordoba and I thought was maybe missing at some festivals last year. You have to adapt to your audience because sending them and the promoter home happy, is the main objective.
The band consists of: Keith Thompson (Vocals, Guitar, Bass Guitar), Sarah Kelly (Vocals, Ukulele), Mark Cole (Vocals, Mandolin, Squeezeboxes, Harmonica e.a.) and Martin Fitzgibbon (Drums, Percussion, Vocals).

Jonathan Byrd & The Sentimentals
Jonathan Byrd (born 1970 in Fayetteville, North Carolina) is an American singer-songwriter based in Carrboro, North Carolina. He is best known for his narrative tales of love, life, and death in America. His song, "The Ballad of Larry" has been listed a "Top Rated Song" by Americana-UK.
He primarily performs solo and accompanies himself in a variety of traditional acoustic guitar styles. In 2014, Byrd released You Can't Outrun The Radio, a collection of songs inspired by an impromptu song circle in 2009 at the Green Room in Montreal. Now he team up with Danish trio The Sentimentals for a European tour in 2015. The sound of the American South meets the Scandinavian melancholy. It's folk noir, alternative country and bluegrass with one of America's most celebrated songwriters of the past decade and a Danish backing band whose main asset is their less is more approach to bringing out the essential parts of any song.

Kathryn Roberts & Sean Lakeman
Twice winners of the BBC Radio 2 Folk Award for Best Duo (2016 and 2013) and winners as Best Duo of the Spiral Earth Awards in 2015, the couple’s intimacy and strength of passion on stage have won them many fans and an enviable reputation as ‘Songwriters par excellence’ (froots), whose greatly varied original songs cover such subjects as wicked mermaids, Norwegian legends, and a lonely whale. Building upward from their last two highly praised albums 'Tomorrow Will Follow Today' and 'Hidden People' fans of folk and acoustic music can only wonder where this leading couple will choose to turn next.
With a story that includes over 20 years of music making with the likes of Seth Lakeman, Cara Dillon, Levellers, Kate Rusby and Show of Hands, Kathryn Roberts & Sean Lakeman have consolidated themselves as pillars of modern British folk.

Kick 'n' Rush
Kick 'n' Rush formed in 1980, but the origins of the band began to take shape much earlier under the name of 'Maun Valley Ramblers' during the 60's, followed by 'The Shambles' in the 70's.
Their music consists of Skiffle, Comedy, Folk and Rock 'n' Roll, with their influences stretching from Lonnie Donnegan and Woody Guthrie, through to the Beatles. Skiffle was developed in the mid 1950's and is a blend of folk songs with an up tempo Jazz and Rock rythm. The music is happy and spontaneous and best of all, it can be played on improvised instruments such as the wash board and tea chest bass (as used by Kick 'n' Rush). This gave the working class a chance to start their own bands and indeed, Skiffle groups were formed in every town and village across Britain.
Today, refusing to accept new musical technology, Kick 'n' Rush are still performing the greats in their own unique style, some 50 years after Skiffle's hey day.

Kieran Halpin
With great sadness we have to announce that Kieran has passed away. R.I.P 04.06.1955-05.10.2020 If the mark of a great songwriter is the number of artists singing their songs – then Kieran Halpin must be considered a great modern writer of songs. Names like Vin Garbutt, Ilse De Lange, John Wright, and countless more have recorded his songs. Whilst his albums are always something to look forward to it was live on stage where Halpin makes his mark. Powerful and passionate, intimate and intense, he was impossible to ignore. He has managed to marry his intelligent and thought provoking lyrics with great melodies and has developed over the years into a writer with a unique style. All this is underscored by an incisive wit in his introductions which helps an audience understand where the song comes from and hint at where it might be going. Halpin was equally at home playing to a small audience as to a large festival crowd. October 2012 saw the release of the long awaited Songbook 3 containing all the songs from his last 3 releases.

Lasses, The & Kathryn Claire
Two years ago we met this wonderful lady called Kathryn Claire. We loved her original songwriting and strong vocals, and what we loved even more was that Kathryn seamlessly blended her voice and fiddle in with the two-part harmonies of The Lasses. Thus, a temporary trio was born. Now, every time when Kathryn is touring in Europe, we try to get some dates together. In 2016 between 22 September and 16 October 2016. After that, Kathryn is off to another country once more. When playing together with The Lasses, Margot Limburg en Sophie ter Schure will often lend their voices to Kathryn’s original songwriting. Vice versa, when The Lasses are singing, Kathryn will inevitably pick up her fiddle for a beautiful solo, or raise her voice to create a unique blend of three-part harmonies. Margot’s husky timbre and Sophie’s sensitive soprano are perfectly matched by Kathryn’s strong and warm alto. The three women are wonderful to watch in collaboration and even lovelier to hear; acoustic folk music at its finest.

Martin Hutchinson
Martin Hutchinson was born into a musical family in county Kildare, Ireland. Martin senior played a variety of instruments. On his mother's side of the family, his uncle Michael McFadden still performs regularly, as does Martin's sister Maureen with her daughter Natasha. Martin began playing in the pubs as an accordeonist in his father's familyband. After learning a few chords from a cousin and a neighbour, Hutch began to incorporate the guitar more and more in the familyband. His father had already bought him an electric guitar, a Hofner, but after a while he and a friend bought a Fender Strat between them. After this period Hutch moved to Dublin and drifted around, jamming with local musicians. Eventually Martin joined a band formed by Marc Clinton and held down two residencies in Dublin. After that band folded, he was hired as a guitarist for a rock&roll musical in the Irish language. With the money he earned in that show he headed for the continent.

Michael Logen
Michael Logen is an internationally touring pop/folk artist, recently sharing the stage with such artists as John Legend, Jonny Lang, India.Arie, Mat Kearney and Sister Hazel, at venues including House Of Blues (New Orleans, Houston, Myrtle Beach), The Ryman, The Bitter End, Hotel Cafe, Chastrain Park Amphitheater, Classic Center Theater and many more. He has toured in 47 of the United States as well as Ireland, Germany, Spain, France, The Netherlands and Italy.
Michael released his debut album, “THINGS I FAILED TO MENTION” in June 2007. Songs from this album have been featured on MTV’s “REAL WORLD”, “THE HILLS”, ABC’s “KYLE XY”, NPR and over 200 radio stations. Songs from the album won multiple awards including international songwriting competition’s song of the year award in folk/singer-songwriter category and unisong international songwriting competition song of the year in Americana category.

The Mile Roses
Kate Bramley, Simon Haworth & Kari Macleod are three singer songwriters with eclectic and diverse roots. Born out of a musical interest in both British folk and the transatlantic connections to new country and Americana, the trio are fast gaining a reputation across the UK folk scene. Original songs and close three part harmonies, accompanied by guitars, fretless bass, cittern, mandolin and duelling fiddles, expect haunting ballads, swinging country, celtic roots and driving folk choruses. This collection of songs and stories trace the long voyages from England and Ireland to The Land of The Brave and Free from the heyday of the Great Atlantic Express liners to the present day. Emigrating families took the music and malts of their homeland to the melting pot of the new world. We celebrate this mix of culture and change through a century of crossing the great Atlantic.

Na Leanai
Growing up performing songs and tunes learned from their musical parents The Sands Family and from other renowned musicians, it is no wonder this new folk group 'Na Leanai' (pronounced Na Lah-nee) are taking the Irish music scene by storm. Na Leanai grew up as sons and daughters of the famous County Down Folk Group and after spending many of their years growing up singing with the family, they made the decision in 2014 to officially form the band. Band members include: Sorcha Turnbull (Daughter of Anne Sands), Ryanne Sands (Daughter of Ben Sands), Eimear Keane (Daughter of Anne Sands), Fra Sands (Son of Hugh Sands), Moya Sands (Daughter of Tommy Sands). With fiddles flutes guitars and percussion they play haunting airs that speak to the soul, lively jigs to set the feet tapping and enthral with close vocal harmonies that will give you goose bumps. With their first performance at Fiddlers Green Festival 2014 in Rostrevor where they opened for top Trad Band Craobh Rua, Na Leanai soon after appeared on Radio Ulster Folk Club.

Niamh Parsons
Niamh Parsons has come to be known as one of the most distinctive voices in Irish music. Her voice has drawn comparisons to such venerated singers as Dolores Keane, June Tabor and Sandy Denny. The great Scottish balladeer Archie Fisher said of Niamh, ‘a songstress like her comes along once or twice in a generation.’ It has been said that while Niamh may not be the most famous of Irish balladeer, many feel she's the best. Described in the Boston Herald as both emotionally haunting and tonally as clear as crystal, Niamh's albums are 'must-have' collector's items for any lover of songs and singing. Niamh views herself as the vehicle for the music. ‘For me the song is more important than listening to my voice,' she says. Throughout her career, Niamh has performed with a wide variety of artists and has appeared at nearly every prestigious folk festival on either side of the Atlantic.

Other Roads
Other Roads was formed in 2009 by Pete Abbott and Gregor Borland who had previously worked together in the John Wright Band until John's untimely death in 2008. With Dave Walmisley they continue to tour successfully in the UK and Europe and have built a big reputation along the way.
Pete Abbott: Songwriter, guitarist and an exceptional singer. He is the driving force behind the band, bringing to the performances his own relaxed and confident style. A musician and entertainer who enjoys every minute of the concert and that enjoyment is transmitted to the audience.
Gregor Borland: Winning as many as 8 Scottish championships as a young fiddler. A brilliant all-round musician and the principal musical arranger for Other Roads.
Dave Walmisley: A talented multi instrumentalist, singer and songwriter, he adds his own touch of class to the arrangements and has an ear for harmonies as well as taking the occasional lead vocal.

Pete Morton
Folk singer Pete Morton is a songwriter and performer with a wealth of great songs and stage presence. His shows are dynamic and intense, while remaining approachable and fun loving. He constantly tours, either solo, performing his own material as well as with other projects. Starting out as a busker on the streets of Europe, he has entertained all over the globe with his unique and involving style of song-writing and singing. Pete sings from the heart, delivering songs that tell compelling stories and speak of the human condition from a very unique perspective. With a passionate, strong voice and strident guitar style, traditional songs often rub shoulders with Pete's current writing with remarkable ease. His songs are an unruly mix of humour, politics, love and social comment, wrapping their way around the folk tradition. Pete has recorded eight solo albums of original material and a project album of traditional songs entitled 'Trespass'.

Richard Grainger
Richard Grainger is one of the most prolific and diverse artists on the Folk Scene today. Widely respected songwriter, guitarist, singer, innovator, writer and entertainer, with a clear and 'captivating' vocal style'. His songs are performed widely by several artists. He was brought up in a musical family, and sang with them from a very young age. He now resides in Whitby, North Yorkshire. From his early days,Richard toured the north east folk clubs and was invited to join the popular Teesside Fettlers Folk Group . Before long, Richard was touring throughout the UK at folk clubs and major festivals and was regularly heard ‘live’ and on record on BBC’s Folk Show on Radio 2. The musical partnership with Chris Parkinson produced some of the material heard on the Folksound album 'Thunderwood' . He has recorded 13 albums and his newest 'studio' album titled 'Hard Road To Prospect Hill' has been released in the summer of 2015.

Roger Wilson
Roger Wilson is a folk singer, musician, songwriter, producer and actor who works both solo and in collaboration with an ever growing list of the finest folk musicians and theatre practitioners in the U.K. Most recently, following a two year spell at the National Theatre in WarHorse, he has worked on a number of theatre and music projects including a national tour of Larkrise to Candleford. He has made three solo albums, The Palm of Your Hand (1988), Stark Naked (1994) and You Look Familiar (2007). One of many collaborations was the album Wood, Wilson, Carthy, a live track from which is featured on the music page of this site. New and interesting collaborations are constantly evolving. Roger Wilson's solo performances draw on a combination of his own songwriting, traditional folk songs and fiddle tunes and the work of other writers. He performs in clubs, concerts, festivals and dance events, and enjoys a busy career as a workshop leader and teacher.

Tip Jar
Tip Jar is a musical project of Bart de Win and Arianne Knegt. After having recorded a couple of duets for Bart's solo albums, the two discovered that their voices blended in a natural way. They decided to create room for a duet based collaboration and that's how 'Tip Jar' was born. They started to write songs together, and recorded them in a pure and honest manner, always letting the essence and character of the song prevail. Bart studied jazzpiano and -vocals at the conservatory, but got inspired by americana music, and his interests developed in a more rootsy direction. Bart has his very own unique and rootsy sound. Arianne started singing in bands and choirs during her school days. Later she was lead singer in 'Marylou & The Good Old Boys'. Since 2009 Arianne is one of the voices of 'The Simple Life'. Next to her vocal and songwriting contributions she takes care of the promotion of 'Bart de Win & The Simple Life' and 'Tip Jar'.

Tom Clelland
In the year since Tom Clelland took early retirement from his deputy head teacher’s post in Glasgow, as well as finally completing work on a Stevenson CD, 'From A Garden Of Songs', that he began in 2002, and singing a song about Lanarkshire’s once famous orchards to a former prominent member of the Conservative Party, the Clyde Valley-based singer-songwriter has also had one of his guitar picking patterns pinched, in the most flattering way, by Pentangle guitarist John Renbourn. With family commitments placing fewer demands on his time, he began to develop the songwriting craft, resolving to try to write songs that had something original and interesting to say. Clelland presented 'Little Stories' to the world. Well received at the time, it still attracts airplay and was followed in 2005 by a second collection, 'Life Goes On', on the label that Clelland formed with Laing and singer-songwriter-artist Peter Nardini, Whistleberry.

Vicki Swan & Jonny Dyer
Vicki Swan & Jonny Dyer effortlessly blend traditional material with contemporary sounds. Their performances showcase new interpretations of old songs alongside original self penned tunes and new contemporary 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.
Be entranced by the haunting nyckelharpa, amazed at the cow horn (one of the worlds earliest communication devices) and meet some of the bagpipes that didn’t come from Scotland. Suitable for all ages, their evenings are packed with toe tapping tunes and songs of love, death, trains and dressing up (not always at the same time) all presented with sparkling gentle humour, lots of smiles and skillful musicianship.

West of Eden
A band of 6, started by Martin and Jenny Schaub, (Martin on acoustic guitar and vocals, Jenny being the leadsinger and playing the accordeon) and completed by Lars Broman on fiddle, Henning Sernhede on mandoline and both electric and acoustic guitar, Martin Holmlunnd on bass and Olav Karlevo on drums, bodhran and percussion.
Six brilliant musicians with great love for Celtic music and culture, performing traditional songs but also their own compositions in different music styles.
Together they have released 8 CD's and they tour all over Europe receiving brilliant reviews everywhere. Their website states:
Swedish by birth they may be, but in heart and soul they are definitely Celtic!

The Whispering Tree
The Franco-American duo, which includes singer/songwriter Eleanor Kleiner and multi-instrumentalist Elie Brangbour, craft richly immersive folk-rock brimming with evocative lyrics, nature imagery, perspectives from travel, and a panoramic musicality that encompasses traditional folk, indie rock, classic rock, and 1960s pop and rock n’ roll. The twosome has garnered favorable comparisons to Cowboy Junkies, Over the Rhine and Aimee Mann. Since its 2007 inception,
The Whispering Tree has issued two albums and two EPs, and toured nationally and internationally. The duo has also earned prime critical acclaim from The Big Takeover Magazine and Keyboard Magazine, among others. Other marquee career moments include being Kerrville New Folk finalists; Philadelphia Songwriter’s Project winners; and Eleanor and Elie having the honor to lend their voices to Pete Seeger and Lorre Wyatt's album, A More Perfect Union.

Winter Wilson
Folk with a splash of blues, singing out for the underdog, beautiful songs, beautifully sung and a weird humour all of their own. Since joining forces in 1995, Lincolnshire-based Dave Wilson and
Kip Winter have built a reputation across the UK and beyond for superb songs, sublime harmonies and a style that’s very much their own. Now recognised as one of the finest song-writers currently working in the English folk idiom, Dave is best known for his haunting tales of love and war; his 'Storm around Tumbledown' is rapidly becoming a folk club standard and has been recorded by many artists, including Vin Garbutt and Anthony-John Clarke. Kip’s voice is one of the best in the business, coupling power and emotion with subtlety of harmony. And it needs to be said that Dave is no slouch in the singing department either. To appreciate the best of Winter Wilson you need to see them live.