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Folklife Cafe [clear filter]
Friday, May 25
 

4:00pm PDT

Randi Coffman
Singer/Songwriter
Friday May 25, 2012 4:00pm - 4:30pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre SS -- Singer-Songwriter
  • Biography Randi Coffman, Singer/Songwritier Born 3/16/67 - Seattle, WA Singing since age 5 Wife and mother of 2 - Boy 11, Girl 7 Love singing and songwriting, collaborating with other musicians, poetry, nature, adventure. Enjoy singing, writing songs, drawing & graphic design, being silly with my husband & kids, and watching both kid and adult movies that make me think, laugh & cry. I had the great fortune to perform with Uncle Fuzzy's Jamshack Band in 2010. I have applied as a solo performer three times, without success...going to keep trying until you let me in. Hopefully, this is my year! :)

4:35pm PDT

John Gothard
Songs of the British Isles
Friday May 25, 2012 4:35pm - 5:05pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre EMB -- British Isles-Ireland - MUSIC
  • Biography performances includes voice, guitar and English concertina, you might hear anything from sea songs and Child ballads to songs of Irish immigration

5:10pm PDT

Professor Banjo
Old-time for kids and families
Friday May 25, 2012 5:10pm - 5:40pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre ZCH -- Children's Programs
  • URL
  • Biography Paul Silveria has a passion for sharing traditional music and dance with wide range of audiences. Paul is an old-time banjo player who covers a variety of intriguing Americana with a ready wit and engaging delivery. Most notably he plays for kids and their banjo-loving parents as Professor Banjo in a show that features sing-a-longs, dancing games, and more! Paul has also been calling traditional Square Dances with live music since 2002.

5:45pm PDT

Michael Connolly and Miller McNay
The Mandolin Casefiles
Friday May 25, 2012 5:45pm - 6:15pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre MI -- Misc Instrumentals
  • URL
  • Biography The Mandolin Casefiles is a duet featuring two of the Northwest's finest pickers sharing their interpretations of traditional and original instrumental tunes on the mighty mandolin.

6:20pm PDT

Levi Fuller
We are colossal.
Friday May 25, 2012 6:20pm - 6:50pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)

7:00pm PDT

Mark Johnson (Amateur Radio Operator solo)
High Lonesome Distortion
Friday May 25, 2012 7:00pm - 7:30pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, In the Loop
  • Genre CFMA -- Contemporary Folk Music - Americana
  • URL
  • Biography Raised by wolves, then by his fine young son, Mark sings of far off places, filled with history and hope through a sepia toned microphone. He is one part of the band Amateur Radio Operator.

7:40pm PDT

Led to Sea
Viola Driven Indie-Pop
Friday May 25, 2012 7:40pm - 8:10pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, In the Loop
  • Genre CFMI -- Contemporary Folk Music - Indie
  • URL
  • Biography Led to Sea is the solo project of Seattle-based violist Alex Guy, who has toured as a string player and solo act throughout the U.S. and Europe with musicians such as Mirah, Laura Veirs, Thao and the Get Down Stay Down and Jason Webley. Alex has also composed for and collaborated with numerous theater and dance groups in Seattle, including 5 years with the Degenerate Art Ensemble. Her viola driven songs merge classical, pop and experimental worlds, and her most recent record 'Into the Darkening Sky' has been described as ' one of the records that local music critics will mention in their top lists at the end of the year.'' (Seattle Show Gal). She is honored to be joined by some of Seattle's most talented string players including Jherek Bischoff, Paris Hurley and Maria Scherer-Wilson.

8:20pm PDT

The Music of Grayface
ambient + singer-songwriter
Friday May 25, 2012 8:20pm - 9:00pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, In the Loop
  • Genre SS -- Singer-Songwriter
  • URL
  • Biography Cross-disciplinary artist and designer, Christopher Hydinger has been composing for guitar and voice since 1993. Past projects include ARKADE, Palodine, Death By Doll, Lady Krishna's Peppermint Lounge, Electric Chinese Orchestra. Current projects include The Music of Grayface, 3844, the antenna project and PB_TMOG. He also co-produces the quarterly Dance and Music improvisation-based performance series HERE/NOW and owns/operates the cross-disciplinary design and art making business, WakeCreateSleep, specializing in landscape design/gardening and graphic design. Christopher has received funding from the Seattle Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs, the Bossak/Heilbron Cheritable Foundation and various private sources, has shared the stage with such acts as Low, Woven Hand and David Bazan (Pedro the Lion), has toured regionally and nationally, was honored to be the musician-in-residence at Punk Rock Yoga from 2004-2006 and has had his music featured in film, dance and theater works.
 
Saturday, May 26
 

11:00am PDT

Paul 'Che oke ten' Wagner
Native Flutist & Storyteller
Saturday May 26, 2012 11:00am - 11:30am PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre EMN -- Native American - MUSIC
  • URL
  • Biography International performing, Award winning Native American flutist & Coast Salish Storyteller Paul "Che oke ten" Wagner weaves humor, wisdom and Native flute into traditional and contemporary stories.

11:35am PDT

Dr. Maggie Bennett
Folklorist with Irish Harp
Saturday May 26, 2012 11:35am - 12:00pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre TFM -- Traditional Folk Music
  • Biography Maggie Bennett has been a State Arts Commission "Folklorist in the Schools" for Washington and Idaho. She uses the Irish harp, autoharp, and mountain dulcimer to accompany her programs on "Lore, Legends, & Lyrics" of Winter and Spring Holidays, The Irish, Folklore of Many Lands, United States Folklore, and Follow Your Bliss. She is a respected author and holds a Ph.D. in Folklore from the University of Washington. An accomplished folksinger and storyteller, her programs are suitable for all ages, and she has performed widely for radio, television, schools, churches, clubs, festivals, senior centers, and through recordings. She is a retired teacher who has taught at all levels.

12:10pm PDT

The Marshalls
New and Old Songs and Tunes
Saturday May 26, 2012 12:10pm - 12:40pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Biography Roy and Chyrissie met at the NW Folklife Festival in 1980 when Mount St. Helen's blew! They've been playing music together ever since.

12:50pm PDT

Skolkis
Fresh Nordic Folk
Saturday May 26, 2012 12:50pm - 1:20pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre EMC -- Scandinavia-Baltic - MUSIC
  • Biography Skolkis became a performing quartet in the autumn of 2010. We play great Scandinavian dance music with a fresh sound, high energy, and unique arrangements. Our love is to play for dancing, but we enjoy all kinds of audiences as well.

1:25pm PDT

Sean Connors
Kids dig Irish Music
Saturday May 26, 2012 1:25pm - 1:50pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre EMB -- British Isles-Ireland - MUSIC
  • Biography Sean Connors is a dynamic 14 year old fiddler with a passion for Irish Folk music. Sean's roots are in Seattle where he lived for 12 years and studied under Isla Ross and Eliot Grasso. Now living in Southern Oregon, Sean regularly plays small concerts, dances and sessions.

1:55pm PDT

Carl Tosten
Singer Songwriter Guitarist
Saturday May 26, 2012 1:55pm - 2:20pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)

2:30pm PDT

Les Chattes Creole
Cajun/Creole dance music trio
Saturday May 26, 2012 2:30pm - 3:00pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre CAJ -- Cajun-Zydeco
  • URL
  • Biography Seattle gals who love the Creole sound. Learned it from visits to Louisiana, from old recordings, and from the Louisiana musicians who have visited the Pacific Northwest.

3:05pm PDT

Barbara Fankhauser
Stories for the Journey
Saturday May 26, 2012 3:05pm - 3:30pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Narrative-Storyteller, Northwest Stories
  • Genre ST -- Storytellers
  • URL
  • Biography I will be telling a combination of personal and traditional stories that highlight the gifts that come at various stages of our life.

3:35pm PDT

James the Obscure
Teller of Traditional Tales
Saturday May 26, 2012 3:35pm - 4:00pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Narrative-Storyteller, Northwest Stories
  • Genre ST -- Storytellers
  • Biography I tell ancient tales. The old tales show us the heart and mind of a long-gone people. My problem is to bring old tales to be heard with "now" ears.

4:05pm PDT

Lenore Jackson
Northwest Storyteller
Saturday May 26, 2012 4:05pm - 4:30pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Narrative-Storyteller, Northwest Stories
  • Genre ST -- Storytellers
  • URL
  • Biography Winner of the 1998 Northwest Folklife Festival Liars’ Contest with her original tall tale, Aunt Sis, Lenore Jackson tells stories that well up out of her rich Texas heritage, love of music, and continuing search for the story behind the story.

4:35pm PDT

Liz Hibbard
a refreshing raconteur
Saturday May 26, 2012 4:35pm - 5:00pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Narrative-Storyteller, Northwest Stories
  • Genre ST -- Storytellers
  • Biography Liz's stories leap to life with an invigorating passion for the craft of spoken narratives. Her unique tales range from the hilarious to the profound, and are accessible to all audiences young or old. Liz has BA in Narrative Arts from Oberlin College. She is currently living in SE Portland and is Secretary of the Board for the Portland Storytellers' Guild. She enjoys the personal exchange of storytelling and all that we can learn from it. She has performed in a range of venues from pubs to libraries and in between.

6:00pm PDT

Brian Oberlin
Solo Swing Mandolin
Saturday May 26, 2012 6:00pm - 6:30pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre BG -- Bluegrass
  • URL
  • Biography Brian Oberlin is the found/director of the Oregon Mandolin Orchestra and the River of the West Mandolin Camp.

6:40pm PDT

North of the Black Sea
Voice and Ukrainian Bandura
Saturday May 26, 2012 6:40pm - 7:10pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre EME -- Central-Eastern Europe & Balkan - MUSIC
  • Biography Multi-talented instrumentalist Roy Torley and vocalist Joan Gaustad began performing as North of the Black Sea in the San Francisco Bay Area in the 1980s. They moved to Oregon in 1989 when Roy was accepted into the graduate program in geology at the University of Oregon at Eugene, where he obtained his PhD in 1998. They currently live in Gresham, OR. Roy studied the 55-stringed Ukrainian bandura with Victor Kytasty, son of Hryhory Kytasty, renowned Ukrainian bandurist, composer, and director for many years of the musically and historically significant ensemble, Taras Shevchenko Bandurist Chorus. Roy is an outstanding exemplar of the "North American" bandura tradition, which preserved and developed playing styles, repertoire, and types of instruments that were suppressed in Ukraine under Soviet rule. Roy also performs a variety of non-Ukrainian music on the bandura, from Renaissance court dances to movie themes. Vocalist Joan Gaustad has studied classical and folk voice for many years and has performed in sixteen languages, ranging from English (Gilbert and Sullivan) and Latin (Mozart's Requiem) to Turkish and Georgian. Her specialties are Ukrainian, Russian, and Transylvanian-Hungarian folk vocal styles. Joan sang for several years with the Oakland, California-based Danica Balkan Chorus, and she performed with San Francisco's Khadra International Folk Ballet for ten years as dancer, singer, musician, and vocal director. She has taught Balkan, Hungarian, Russian, and Ukrainian folk singing workshops at the Willamette Valley Folk Festival, at the Northwest Folklife Festival, and at conventions of the Balalaika and Domra Association of America.

7:15pm PDT

Amir Beso
Balkan Flamenco From Sarajevo
Saturday May 26, 2012 7:15pm - 7:45pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre EME -- Central-Eastern Europe & Balkan - MUSIC
  • URL
  • Biography One of the most prominent guitarists in his native Bosnia. During the war, he kept performing his music in besieged Sarajevo until he was seriously wounded and airlifted out of the country.

7:55pm PDT

Karsangjamtso (Karjam) Saeji
Heartfelt Tibetan Music
Saturday May 26, 2012 7:55pm - 8:25pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre TFM -- Traditional Folk Music
  • URL
  • Biography Karsangjamtso "Karjam" Saeji is a singer from Amdo Tibet, he was raised as a nomadic herder of yak and sheep about thirty mountainous miles from the town of Machu. While still in high school he was recruited by the ground-breaking and widely-known Gannan Tibetan Performing Arts Troupe. From 1991 to 2007 he was a full-time member of their company, performing as a dancer and increasingly a singer. In 2007 he moved to America where he has been pursuing a solo career. In 2007 he released his first solo CD, Pilgrimage and in 2011 he recorded the long-awaited follow-up, Tibet in my Heart.

8:30pm PDT

Kermet Apio
Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar
Saturday May 26, 2012 8:30pm - 9:00pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre EMF -- Polynesia-Hawaii - MUSIC
  • Biography He was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii and now lives in Mountlake Terrace. He is a full time comedian but enjoys playing Hawaiian music.
 
Sunday, May 27
 

11:00am PDT

Sing with Señor
Music for learning Spanish
Sunday May 27, 2012 11:00am - 11:30am PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre ZCH -- Children's Programs
  • URL
  • Biography Sing with Señor music teaches the basics of the Spanish language through simple lyrics and infectious melodies. We have developed our songs for not only teachers and students, but for parents and children to enjoy learning or teaching the language in a fun and creative way.

11:40am PDT

Cathy Britell
International Autoharp Champ
Sunday May 27, 2012 11:40am - 12:10pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre MI -- Misc Instrumentals
  • URL
  • Biography Cathy has performed and taught all around the US and Great Britan, and has won the International Autoharp Competition in Winfield, KS as well as a number of others. She is known for her lyrical autoharp style as well as clean and fast picking on old-time fiddle tunes, traditional and popular composers. She plays and sings in a number of old-time and folk/rock groups, but right now she wants to show you what an autoharp can do by itself.

12:20pm PDT

Tyler Stenson
Award-Winning "Elegant Folk"
Sunday May 27, 2012 12:20pm - 12:50pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre SS -- Singer-Songwriter
  • URL
  • Biography Born in Lander, WY and raised in Oregon, Tyler Stenson (30) is a bold singer/songwriter that draws profound influence from his roots in the humble West. His music is tightly crafted and reminiscent of a pining Western poet; straightforward yet elegant at its core. As front man and songwriter for his former bands Lander and Rhetoric Tuesday, Stenson played the Northwest college circuit throughout the early 2000s but soon put band-oriented rock-n-roll to rest and tackled the burgeoning Portland scene as a solo artist where he was twice-named the “Songwriter of the Year” by the Portland Songwriters Association in 2007 and 2008, the “Best Male Artist” at the 2011 Portland Music Awards and has recently opened for famed rocker, Chris Isaak, at the Oregon Zoo. Stenson has learned one thing through his decade of experiences and performances at the legendary Bluebird Cafe in Nashville and The Hotel Cafe in Los Angeles: lyric is King. Stenson’s music is just that – words paired with notes that sum up the human existence and endlessly inspire his train of followers that find a piece of themselves in the sincerity of his words.

1:00pm PDT

Aaron Zig
Emerging Seattle songwriter
Sunday May 27, 2012 1:00pm - 1:50pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, Bushwick Book Club Seattle Presents: Original Music Inspired by Dr. Seuss
  • Genre SS -- Singer-Songwriter
  • URL
  • Biography Formerly of the Seattle band Weightless, Aaron Zig has rebirthed his solo career in 2011 with the release of his first E.P. in 4 years, Heaven Never Left Us. Landing slots at The Bushwick Book Club, Conor Byrne, and a monthly showcase at The Benbow Room, 2012 promises to be a bright year for an artist devoted to the craft of songwriting. Often compared to Devendra Banhart, Iron & Wine, Paul Simon and Elliot Smith, Aaron Zig carries an audience with just his voice and the guitar, weaving intricate melodies with big choruses. Most importantly, every song is honest and direct, allowing audience and performer to engage in a true musical moment.

1:00pm PDT

Led to Sea
Viola Driven Indie-Pop
Sunday May 27, 2012 1:00pm - 1:50pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, Bushwick Book Club Seattle Presents: Original Music Inspired by Dr. Seuss
  • Genre CFMI -- Contemporary Folk Music - Indie
  • URL
  • Biography Led to Sea is the solo project of Seattle-based violist Alex Guy, who has toured as a string player and solo act throughout the U.S. and Europe with musicians such as Mirah, Laura Veirs, Thao and the Get Down Stay Down and Jason Webley. Alex has also composed for and collaborated with numerous theater and dance groups in Seattle, including 5 years with the Degenerate Art Ensemble. Her viola driven songs merge classical, pop and experimental worlds, and her most recent record 'Into the Darkening Sky' has been described as ' one of the records that local music critics will mention in their top lists at the end of the year.'' (Seattle Show Gal). She is honored to be joined by some of Seattle's most talented string players including Jherek Bischoff, Paris Hurley and Maria Scherer-Wilson.

1:00pm PDT

Tai Shan
Seamstress of Melodies
Sunday May 27, 2012 1:00pm - 1:50pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, Bushwick Book Club Seattle Presents: Original Music Inspired by Dr. Seuss
  • Genre SS -- Singer-Songwriter
  • URL
  • Biography Tai’s clear, Joni Mitchell-like voice has been featured in international film series such as Tales from Patchwork Farms, TV shows like ArtZone, and has performed at regional venues such as the Triple Door, the Moore, Folklife Festival, Benaroya Hall and has toured throughout the US. Seattle City Arts magazine describes Tai Shan’s music is like “hugging a total stranger—kind of awkward and totally wonderful.” Grammy Nominee Jovino Santos-Neto calls her a “Seamstress of Melodies,” and Earshot Jazz winner Randy Halberstat states “She will ambush you with her compositions and unique guitar voicing.” Tai Shan has shared the stage with Washington’s Governor Gregoire when Tai performed her environmental song, “Tiny Planet.” The song was later featured in the HBO documentary The Search for Turtle Island. . Lately she as been working with the National Wildlife Federation to protect migrating wildlife in Yellowstone National Park by donating the proceeds of her next EP 1000 Miles to Yellowstone. Visit www.TaishanMusic.com for details.

1:00pm PDT

Vince Mtz. & The Great Blue Yonder
A Seattle-based Americana Band
Sunday May 27, 2012 1:00pm - 1:50pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, Bushwick Book Club Seattle Presents: Original Music Inspired by Dr. Seuss
  • Genre CFMA -- Contemporary Folk Music - Americana
  • URL
  • Biography Vince Martinez is a Seattle-based americana singer/songwriter originally from Santa Fe, New Mexico. Vince and his band, The Great Blue Yonder, have been performing in and around Seattle for the past two years and have increasingly been receiving recognition for their engaging live performances and honest, straightforward music. Vince and the band’s latest album, Northwest by Southwest, features original music inspired by Martinez’s New Mexican roots, as well as his recent Pacific Northwest experiences. Vince is also a member of the Seattle chapter of the Bushwick Book Club, a group of musicians that read books and perform original music based on the reading. The Bushwick Book Club has been celebrated in the Seattle Times and the Stranger. Vince has released two full length albums: the debut, self-titled Vince Mtz. & The Great Blue Yonder in 2008 and the more recent Northwest by Southwest in 2010. Both albums have received glowing reviews from the Northwest’s acoustic music society, Victory Music, calling the first album “a record to be experienced and absorbed, not just listened to.” After the latest recording Victory stated that “Martinez and his band show a lot of promise” and to “go see Vince when he passes through”.

1:00pm PDT

Wes Weddell
Singer, Songwriter, Citizen
Sunday May 27, 2012 1:00pm - 1:50pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, Bushwick Book Club Seattle Presents: Original Music Inspired by Dr. Seuss
  • Genre SS -- Singer-Songwriter
  • URL
  • Biography Seattle singer/singwriter Wes Weddell has toured the Northwest and points beyond for the last ten years. He also founded and runs Puget's Sound Productions, a 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to creating community live-music spaces. His latest release is "By the Side of the Lake."

2:00pm PDT

Charles Delahunt
Irish Fiddle Tunes on Guitar
Sunday May 27, 2012 2:00pm - 2:30pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre EMB -- British Isles-Ireland - MUSIC
  • Biography Used to play fiddle, switched to guitar in order to combine melody and chords on one instrument. Electrical engineer in neuroscience. Main musical venue is the living room, playing for our spaniel Piper who lays on the sofa.

2:40pm PDT

Sean Gaskell
Kora Music from West Africa
Sunday May 27, 2012 2:40pm - 3:10pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre EMD -- Africa - MUSIC
  • URL
  • Biography Olympia native Sean Gaskell plays the West African Kora, a 21 string harp native to the Mandinka people of The Gambia, Senegal, Mali, Guinea, and Guinea Bissau. The instrument dates back a few hundred years. Many of the songs played on the Kora come from the era of Sunjata Keita, the person who founded the Mande empire back in the mid thirteenth century. The Kora sounds similar to a harp, and with 21 strings, there is much room for personal innovation and improvisation. Gaskell studied the Kora in The Gambia in 2008, and will be returning there in January of '12. He anticipates his first CD release to take place in March of 2012. Visit myspace.com/seankora and listen to a few tracks that will be included in this recording.

3:20pm PDT

Koshanin
Balkan Minimalist World
Sunday May 27, 2012 3:20pm - 3:50pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre EME -- Central-Eastern Europe & Balkan - MUSIC
  • URL
  • Biography Koshanin - a pianist, composer and a veteran on the music scene whose career stretches well over 20 years, acquired his formal music education at the early age and had his first public performances with youth choirs at the age of 10. With the onset of the new wave of pop music in the '80s, he jumped into the Yugoslavian music scene to play and tour with several groups and finally, with all the turmoil unfolding in the Balkan region in the ‘90s, he moved to the USA to continue his musical journey. He has performed extensively on festivals and stages throughout the USA and Canada with various groups playing Pop, Rock, Blues, Funk, Reggae & Afrobeat. After focusing on more private studies Koshanin developed an interest in reed instruments and gradually shifted to new directions. He continued recording and performing with new groups playing Latin, Jazz, Afro-Cuban, Samba & Rumba Flamenca. New projects followed and by this time all the collaborations and side work amounted to over 30 albums. Meanwhile Koshanin found himself returning to his first love in music - piano, and this, coupled with a revived fascination with Balkan folk music from his childhood, laid the foundation for a new body of work. Koshanin’s new self-titled solo piano project blends musical traditions of his native Serbia and Mediterranean sensibility with contemporary western music styles. Material for this project consists of original compositions complemented with Koshanin’s unique piano adaptations of select traditional folk tunes. Instead of looking at piano exclusively as a classical instrument, Koshanin treats it predominantly as a modern-day folk instrument. This approach allowed music to flow freely, develop gradually and it yielded unrestrained, unconventional forms and song structures resembling old times' folk music. Characterized with abundance of odd time signatures, classical and jazz techniques, and a minimalist compositional approach, these delicate musical tales stand at the meeting point of the East and West, reflecting Koshanin’s own journey. Koshanin is currently based in Portland, Oregon.

4:50pm PDT

John Palmes
Go Lemmings, Alaska Folk Music
Sunday May 27, 2012 4:50pm - 5:15pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre CFM -- Contemporary Folk Music
  • URL
  • Biography "Don't call me a singer/songwriter!" John Palmes is an Alaskan folk musician who plays a mix of traditional folk music and songs he makes up from everyday experience. “I’d rather sing with people than for people. Lately, I’ve been concentrating on songs that we can sing together.” “I am a singer. Singing is the most powerful way to communicate. It makes you want to dance, it gets you at a very basic emotional level and it has an intellectual part too. I use my instruments, guitar, fiddle and mouthbow, to support my voice. I want to use my voice to say important things and to support other voices.” “I am a folk singer: My songwriting is something that happens as I think about the things around me. I write songs when I’m walking, driving or running my fishing boat. I sing along with the engine and add the thoughts that are going through my head. Otherwise, I collect and sing folk songs both ancient and modern that help me say what I feel.” John is known for his innovative playing of the mouthbow, the world’s first stringed instrument (Google “mouthbow”). His album, Mouthbow:Small Voices was featured on National Public Radio. John’s songwriting and his song “The Ballad of Ramblin’ Jack Pachelbel” was featured on All Things Considered in the “What’s in a Song?” series. John performs regularly at the Northwest Folklife Festival, the Alaska Folk Festival in Juneau, and the Fisher Poet’s Gathering in Astoria, Oregon, and is the musical director of the Tlingit Gospel Singers, singing traditional hymns in the Tlingit language. In 2003 and 2005 he played at the Australia National Folk Festival, and in 2007 John played at the Cygnet, and Georgetown Folk Festivals in Tasmania. He has been on the board of the National Jew’s Harp Festival held in Bay City Oregon. “ I am an entertainer, but I want to reach my audience in a more fundamental way. I want them to be different people when the set’s over, with new ideas and new ways of using music in their own lives.”

5:20pm PDT

Eleanor Murray
Olympia, WA Warble-Songbird
Sunday May 27, 2012 5:20pm - 5:50pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre SS -- Singer-Songwriter
  • URL
  • Biography Olympia, WA, warble-songbird Eleanor Murray weaves songs from ferns and yarn. Music that is like looking into a glittery glass terrarium; each track is a miniature world of fog and trees. Her new release, “Oh Thunder” is an album of country-folk dreams to make you swoon for a forest. It pushes the boundaries of “folk,” eager to explore new and majestic territories. Eleanor’s music teeters between the careful crafting of a folk song to full band explosions, with drums, violin, bass, and electric guitar accompanying the ride. “It throws you through loops; one moment you think you have Eleanor Murray figured out, but then she shows you that she’s not an easy catch. You cannot draw a square around her and call it good – she is undefinable.” – Fensepost

5:55pm PDT

The HeartRocks
The HeartRocks
Sunday May 27, 2012 5:55pm - 6:25pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre SS -- Singer-Songwriter
  • Biography flora and sarah became fast friends at cornish college of the arts several years ago, and just recently made the brilliant realization they need to sing their quirky serious folk/pop songs together.

6:30pm PDT

Danny Trashville
Americana
Sunday May 27, 2012 6:30pm - 7:00pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, The Acoustic Lounge
  • Genre SS -- Singer-Songwriter
  • URL
  • Biography Danny Trashville grew up in the music-rich environments of rural Oklahoma and Nashville, Tennessee where he learned to value traditional music styles amid the innovation of some of country music’s greatest legends. His performance career began as lead guitarist with various bands before deciding to focus on writing his own material as a solo performer and vocalist. Drawing on his country roots, Danny has found a solid outlet for his own guitar pickin’ vision of Americana with songs spanning barroom tales, cultural satire, and introspective journeys. He released his self-titled debut album in 2009 and spent the next year bringing his music to a growing fan base at over 250 shows. While scaling back live performances in 2011, Danny has been working on finishing material for his next album.

7:10pm PDT

Robert Meade
Soulful Americana
Sunday May 27, 2012 7:10pm - 7:40pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, The Acoustic Lounge
  • Genre SS -- Singer-Songwriter
  • URL
  • Biography Has been touring and performing original compositions for 2 years, performing in the 19 states surrounding his home base of Eugene, Oregon. He's performed last year (2011) at South By Southwest in Austin, Texas and earlier this year at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City Utah (2012). This summer he is releasing his first solo album.

7:50pm PDT

Aaron Zig
Emerging Seattle songwriter
Sunday May 27, 2012 7:50pm - 8:20pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, The Acoustic Lounge
  • Genre SS -- Singer-Songwriter
  • URL
  • Biography Formerly of the Seattle band Weightless, Aaron Zig has rebirthed his solo career in 2011 with the release of his first E.P. in 4 years, Heaven Never Left Us. Landing slots at The Bushwick Book Club, Conor Byrne, and a monthly showcase at The Benbow Room, 2012 promises to be a bright year for an artist devoted to the craft of songwriting. Often compared to Devendra Banhart, Iron & Wine, Paul Simon and Elliot Smith, Aaron Zig carries an audience with just his voice and the guitar, weaving intricate melodies with big choruses. Most importantly, every song is honest and direct, allowing audience and performer to engage in a true musical moment.

8:30pm PDT

Drew Piston
Music for a Burnt Down House
Sunday May 27, 2012 8:30pm - 9:00pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, The Acoustic Lounge
  • Genre SS -- Singer-Songwriter
  • URL
  • Biography Originating form Northern Idaho, Piston quickly learned to conceal his panache and wicked insight behind a facade of normalcy but to this day is unable to mask his inexplicable appeal to buzzards and other scavengers of the animal kingdom.
 
Monday, May 28
 

11:00am PDT

Jess Lambert
Seattle Singer/Songwriter
Monday May 28, 2012 11:00am - 11:30am PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre SS -- Singer-Songwriter
  • URL
  • Biography (I was scheduled to perform last year and had to cancel shortly before the festival due to the diagnosis of a cerebral aneurysm. I have since been treated and hope to experience Folklife 2012!) Music is in her blood. Jess Lambert may not come from a background or family of musicians, but it's in her blood just the same. Growing up in a religious family she was forbidden to listen to secular music through most of her childhood. Feeling a deep love and hunger for music she listened to anything she could get her hands on. As a teenager she longed to make music and tried piano lessons, but it didn't stick. Instead she found an outlet through poetry and wrote constantly. A strong urge to create her own music returned after moving out of her parents’ house and finding inspiration in new found music and artists like Damien Rice and Dave Matthews. She was given a guitar as a birthday gift and started learning to play. As soon as she could play a few chords she started writing songs. Lyrics came easily thanks to years of scribbling down poems in notebooks. After a few years of learning, writing, posting some songs on the internet and a hand-full of open mics, Jess played her first gig at High Dive-Seattle in October of 2009. Since then Jess has opened for indie artists Dawn Mitschele, Jeremy Messersmith and Parker Ainsworth. In November of 2010 she released Only If Love Remains, a five song EP she recorded with a friend. In April of 2011 after months of struggling with horrible headaches and facial pain, Jess was diagnosed with a large cerebral aneurysm. All upcoming shows were canceled, including her spot in the 2011 NW Folklife Festival and Jess decided to take a break from her music for the spring and summer to focus on her health and treatment of the aneurysm. In August she had surgery for the placement of a newly FDA approved stent called the Pipeline Embolization Device. She hopes to return to playing live shows sometime in the Fall of 2011 and plans to begin recording a second EP! Only If Love Remains is available at live shows and by digital download at jesslambert.bandcamp.com

11:40am PDT

Stewart Hendrickson
Irish Slow Airs & Songs
Monday May 28, 2012 11:40am - 12:10pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre EMB -- British Isles-Ireland - MUSIC
  • URL
  • Biography Stewart plays fiddle and guitar, and sings traditional songs from the British Isles and America. He plays in Irish sessions and performs at open mics and other venues, including Northwest Folklife Festival. He studied voice at Pomona College and the University of Illinois while majoring in Chemistry. He taught Chemistry at St. Olaf College (Minnesota) for 28 years and was research professor at the University of Washington before retiring to become a full-time folk musician. He studied classical violin, but gave it up in high school for guitar and singing. He was active in the Northfield (Minnesota) Arts Guild, singing lead roles in summer musicals and opera workshops. After moving to Washington he picked up the violin again to become a fiddler. With Victory Music he helped set up open mics and an acoustic music venue in north Seattle. He has produced two CDs: “Paddy Graber – The Craic Was Great” (2004), songs by an Irish traditional singer and story teller from Vancouver, B. C.; “Songs of the Pacific Northwest” (2005), original and traditional songs of the Pacific Northwest sung by various regional musicians; and his own CD, "Erin's Green Shore."

12:20pm PDT

Ben Fisher
Busker, Bellower, Songwriter
Monday May 28, 2012 12:20pm - 12:50pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre SS -- Singer-Songwriter
  • URL
  • Biography Ben Fisher was born clutching a copy of Bob Dylan’s Highway 61 Revisited on cassette. Through his middle and high school years, he was ridiculed for listening to John Prine and Joan Baez instead of Nelly and Lil’ Jon. After being hit in the face with a baseball, and consistently being picked last for recess football games, he stopped playing sports and decided that a less aerobic past time was better for him, so he picked up the guitar. On any given day, you may be able to find him busking for loose change in front of the UW bookstore or at the Ballard Farmer’s Market. Chances are, you’ll mistake him for a homeless person.

1:00pm PDT

Les Pamplemousses
Transport to Paris
Monday May 28, 2012 1:00pm - 1:30pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, Hearth Music Show
  • Genre EMH -- Western Europe - MUSIC
  • Biography Ines and Marchette have been playing music together for several years, they discovered their common passion for 20th century Parisian music and would love to share their joy with you.

1:40pm PDT

WB Reid & Bonnie Zahnow
Donate Now!
Old-time songs and tunes
Monday May 28, 2012 1:40pm - 2:10pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, Hearth Music Show
  • Genre OTM -- Old Time Music
  • URL
  • Biography WB & Bonnie play for audiences of all types and ages with music taken from old-time, blues, country, jazz, and various cultural traditions.

2:20pm PDT

Jacob Miller
Pickin' Country Blues n Rags
Monday May 28, 2012 2:20pm - 2:50pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, Hearth Music Show
  • Genre BLS -- Blues
  • URL
  • Biography Jacob Miller is a 21 year old country-blues and ragtime finger-style guitarist. He plays a Godin 5th Avenue archtop acoustic strung with Thomastik-Infeld Spectrum Bronze stings. Hailing from the Midwest, he's spent the last few years traveling around the U.S. volunteering on small farms and playing music at any opportunity. Currently located in Portland, OR, Jacob is recording new material, playing local shows, and collecting old blues tunes that aren't so easy to find.

3:00pm PDT

Liam Fitzgerald and the Rainieros
Donate Now!
Seattle's Own Honky Tonk Band!
Monday May 28, 2012 3:00pm - 3:30pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, Hearth Music Show
  • Genre CW -- Country Western
  • URL
  • Biography Liam Fitzgerald and the Rainieros play original honky tonk, western swing, and country and western songs. Liam Fitzgerald is the song writer for the band. They have played all over the Northwest and have even ventured out to Montana, Utah, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, and Northern California.

4:30pm PDT

NJUZU MBIRA
Sweet Roots Music of Zimbabwe
Monday May 28, 2012 4:30pm - 5:00pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, (if applicable)
  • Genre EMD -- Africa - MUSIC
  • Biography Njuzu Mbira was foremd in 1998 by Nathan Beck and Marian Grebanier and later joined by Mark Burdon on hosho. Subsequently, singers Melanie Lyon and Karin Tauscher joined the group. Njuzu Mbira has performed at Zimfest; in cafes, libraries, schools, hospitals, farmers markets, and street festivals. Website:

5:10pm PDT

Dharma Heart Band
Lyrical Keyboard Magic
Monday May 28, 2012 5:10pm - 5:45pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, The Wind Down Show
  • Genre MI -- Misc Instrumentals
  • URL
  • Biography Dharma Heart Band is a unique evolution of the two-piano, four-hand genre, applied to electronic keyboards. Frank and Stephanie formed the band in 2007 to explore the healing power of music through the language of melody and the beauty of sound. The music is performed live, in real time, without loops, beat or other pre-recorded techniques.

5:55pm PDT

Ancient Sounds
World Ethnic
Monday May 28, 2012 5:55pm - 6:30pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, The Wind Down Show
  • Genre FRW -- World-Intl Folk - MUSIC
  • URL
  • Biography World Ethnic Music inspired by Native American themes as well as Middle Eastern, Latin, Asian, Celtic, African, Oriental, and others. Ancient style Native American, Shakuhachi, Irish & other World Flutes, Australian didgeridoos, ethnic hand percussion and multi-lingual vocals, with modern instruments piano/keyboards, synthesizer, and acoustic guitar & bass. Original Songs, Educational & Interesting for the Entire Family, 4 Culture Member.

6:40pm PDT

& ampersand

Musical Equivalent 2 Gingerale

Monday May 28, 2012 6:40pm - 7:15pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, The Wind Down Show

7:25pm PDT

Brian Buller
Celtic-Inspired Folktronica
Monday May 28, 2012 7:25pm - 8:00pm PDT
Folklife Cafe 47.62383, -122.35084
  Music Performance, The Wind Down Show
  • Genre CFM -- Contemporary Folk Music
  • URL
  • Biography Brian Buller is an American vocalist, instrumentalist, songwriter, and arranger based in the Pacific Northwest. He is a World music enthusiast and finds much inspiration in a wide variety of sounds - both traditional and contemporary - from around the globe. An avid experimentalist, his passion for pursuing musical hybrids is displayed on his debut album The Riverbank Faerie- a collaborative effort created with producer and instrumentalist Ryan Eston Paul, and a curious convergence of styles and genres most notably Celtic, Folk, and Electronica: Celtic-Inspired Folktronica.
 
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  • Dance Performance
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    • Acoustic Stage (Shaw Room)
    Alki Court Stage
    Bagley Wright Theatre: Sponsored by Seattle Channel
    Boeing Green
    Center House Court
    Center House Theatre: Sponsored by KUOW
    EMP Learning Labs
    EMP Sky Church
    Fisher Green Stage: Sponsored by KBCS 91.3FM
    Folklife Cafe
    Fountain Lawn Stage
    Indie Roots at Broad Street: Sponsored by BECU & 103.7 The Mountain
    International Dance Stage in the Exhibition Hall
    Intiman Choral Courtyard
    McCaw Promenade
    Mural Amphitheatre
    Narrative Stage at SIFF Cinema
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    Olympic Room
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    Rhythm Tent
    Vera Project/Gallery
    Warren's Roadhouse in the Fisher Pavilion