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Branford Folk Music Society
The Branford Folk Music Society, Inc. is a not-for-profit
organization recognized as tax exempt under the Internal Revenue
Service Code section 501(c)(3). The Society sponsors the Branford
Folk Coffeehouse, a monthly folk music concert series, September
through May, at the First Congregational Church, on the green in
Branford, Connecticut.
The group also holds monthly "house hoots" at members'
homes, open to all for informal singing and playing, and produces a
monthly newsletter with schedules and information on concerts and
folk performers in Connecticut and the region. Branford Folk Music
Society members receive a copy of the newsletter in the mail, as
well as discounts in admission to our coffeehouse concerts,
and members' admission prices to the
Eisteddfod
Festival of Traditional Music on November 4-6, 2011 in New York.
Become a member of the Branford Folk Music Society.
More about the Eisteddfod:
Press release
and flyer.
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Branford Folk Coffeehouse
The Branford Folk Coffeehouse is in the auditorium of the First
Congregational Church of Branford, 1009 Main Street, Branford, CT.
Wheelchair accessible. Concerts begin at 8:00 P.M. Unless
otherwise specified, admission is $15 for nonmembers, $12 for members,
and $5 for children 12 and under.
Admission policy for this season's great folk shows: Pay at the door.
Thanks!
Directions: Take I-95 Cedar Street exit #54, go south on Cedar
Street to the end (crossing Route 1), turn left on Main Street. The
Congregational Church is the brick church on the green (on the right).
For more information, call 203-488-7715.
Email: branfordfolk@gmail.com
If parking immediately next to the Church and the Green is full, there is
additional parking nearby. Please click the following link for maps and a
detailed list of parking areas:
http://www.branfordjazz.com/directions.php
Please contact us if you are interested in helping the coffeehouse as a
volunteer. In particular, refreshment donations will be welcomed.
If you are wondering if a concert will be held on an evening when the
weather is bad, please call 203-488-7715. (There is no one at the church
who can give out concert information.) Also, cancellations will be posted
on WTNH Channel 8.
Members and folk music friends:
Brent Hall, board member, webmaster and newsletter editor suffered a
serious injury during the October snowstorm and has been rehabilitating since
that time. As a result, the monthly newsletter is on hold and the website
will be updated a little less often. When you need information about an
upcoming concert, please call the Branford Folk Phone: 203-488-7715. We know
you all wish Brent a speedy recovery. You can send a get well card to this
address:
Brent Hall
460 Wallingford Rd
Cheshire, CT 06410
April 14 2012: Dan Milner and Jeff Davis with Jeanne Freeman and Ben Gagliardi
Dan Milner is a renowned ballad singer and folk song collector. Jeff
Davis is one of America's most respected collectors and interpreters of
traditional music. This will be a program of Civil War era songs from
the sea, land and home front and you never know who else might show up
and join them on stage.
Dan Milner is a renowned ballad singer, especially of traditional Irish songs in North America, and folk song collector, while Connecticut’s Jeff Davis is one of America’s most respected collectors and interpreters of traditional folk music. Dan and Jeff teamed up last year with David Coffin to record a groundbreaking and critically-acclaimed album on Smithsonian Folkways of authentic maritime songs from the era of the American Civil War (1861-65) from the Union and Confederate Navies as well as the home front. This will be a concert and program of songs from that era culled from Northern, Southern and British sources. Dan and Jeff offer inspiring concerts and you just never know who might show up during the night to help them out! Dan Milner’s plunge into Irish music began with traditional songs his father, a fine singer, had learned from his mother and maternal grandfather. He then learned Thomas Moore songs and Irish-American lyrics from Tin Pan Alley and has continued to broaden his repertoire through the decades, learning Irish “big” ballads and maritime, Canadian and Irish-American songs from all manner of sources. Two primary influences on the music were the venerated older Irish songsters, Joe Heaney of Carna, County Galway, and celebrated Traveler Margaret Barry of Cork City. He was a founding member in the 1970s of The Flying Cloud and has since recorded with a host of musicians including Louis Killen, Mick Maloney and eight All-Ireland champions. In 2009, Smithsonian Folkways also released his “Irish Pirate Ballads and Other Songs of the Sea. He frequently writes for folk music journals and magazines. Jeff Davis, Dan’s singing partner for the evening, has traveled far to visit “source singers” — farmers and miners who remembered the old songs and tunes — and closer at hand to libraries and archives, always look for the best of the music that was once common in our towns and villages. His repertoire includes New England ballads, sea songs, African-American banjo tunes, cowboy ditties, rare Yankee fiddle tunes and more. Jeff plays fiddle, banjo, mandocello, guitar, spoons, jaw’s harps and a few instruments hand-made by folk craftsmen. He has toured extensively throughout the United States and to festivals in Canada, England, Ireland, The Netherlands, and Norway. In addition the new Civil War songs album with Dan, Jeff recently released a solo album, “Some Fabulous Yonder” and worked on an English anthology, called “song Links” of old English songs and their American variants.
May 12, 2012: Forebitter
The four members, Geoff Kaufman, David Littlefield, Craig Edwards and
Rick Spencer that make up this famed sea chantey quartet are renowned in
sea music circles for their intricate harmonies that are blended with a
host of musical instruments to make for a fun and lively evening of
music. Bring your voices and be ready to sing along.
Previous concerts at the Branford Folk Coffeehouse
Branford Folk Photo Gallery
Restaurants in Branford
Volunteers Needed!
The Branford Folk Music Society is looking for a volunteer to
manage the signs that we put up at the church for each concert.
This includes storing the signs at your home, bringing them to each
concert and setting them up. If you are interested or would like
more information, please let us know at a concert or by email at
branfordfolk@gmail.com.
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New Board Members Sought
The Board of Directors is currently accepting nominations to fill
at large positions on the Board.
- Qualifications: enjoyment of traditional folk music and desire to
see it continue in Branford. Skills in particular areas such as
finances, grant writing, small business administration, etc. are
welcome but not required. Must become a member of BFMS if not
already a member.
- Responsibilities: attend about eight board meetings a year, attend
and help at most of the nine concerts of the season (September
through May).
- Benefits: free attendance when you help out at a concert, decision
making contribution to the programming and other issues of the
society, opportunity to get to know some wonderful people who are
musicians.
Click here for the application form.
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The Branford Folk Music Society is a member of
the North American Folk Music and Dance Alliance,
and the Arts Council of Greater New Haven.
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The Branford Folk Music Society primarily books
"traditional" and/or "traditions based" acoustic
music, rooted in the Anglo-Celtic and/or American folk genres, and other
traditional forms, such as Cajun, French Canadian, Klezmer, etc. We are
also open to booking "traditions based" performers who write
their own material provided their music demonstrates a knowledge and
respect for these long established traditions.
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The Branford Folk Music Society posts monthly concert listings on the
following web sites and blogs:
Guidezilla.com at http://guidezilla.com/
americantowns.com at http://www.branford.americantowns.com/
Nonprofit Bulletin at http://www.nhbulletin.blogspot.com/
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Branford Folk Music Society T shirts for sale now
Pick up one for yourself (and a friend too!) at any of our nine concerts from September thru May.
Or you can order by email: branfordfolk@gmail.com
T shirt: Large centered color logo on ice gray background: $15
Polos and Henley styles with small color logo on left chest: $20 (by special order)
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Branford Folk CD Openers
Got CD's? Frustrated by that pesky shrink wrap that is so
difficult to remove?
Fret no more! Branford Folk Music Society has the perfect solution!
The Branford Folk 30th Anniversary CD opener!
Get one and you can be listening to the new CD's you buy at our
concerts as soon as you get in your car. Branford Folk CD openers
make the perfect Valentine's gift, housewarming present and will
come in handy during the summer folk festival season. Priced at
just $2.00 so you can get them for all your friends and place one
near every CD player in your home. Pick them up at the next
concert!
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Folk Music on the Radio
WNHU (88.7 FM, West Haven, CT):
"The Folk Show", Friday Noon to 2:00 p.m. with Chuck Vigue;
Saturday Noon to 2:00 p.m. with John Mazza.
"Echoes of Erin", Sunday Noon to 2:00 p.m.
wnhufolk@yahoo.com
http://www.wnhu.net/
WSHU (91.1 FM, Fairfield, CT) and WSUF (89.9 FM, Noyack/Greenport, NY):
"Profiles in Folk", Steve Winters, Friday 10:00 P.M.-Midnight.
"Prairie Home Companion", Saturday 6:00-8:00 P.M.
"Thistle and Shamrock", Fiona Ritchie, Saturday 8:00-9:00 P.M.
"AcoustiConnections", Walt Graham, Saturday 9:00-10:00 P.M.
http://www.wshu.org/
Branford Folk Music Society
P.O. Box 441
Branford, CT 06405
http://folknotes.org/branfordfolk/