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Laurie Lewis and Tom Rozum
Laurie Lewis and Tom Rozum are widely regarded as among the leading lights of modern bluegrass, folk, and Americana. Since 1986, Laurie and Tom have recorded 12 albums and performed around the globe. Laurie has won a Grammy and twice been named Female Vocalist of the Year by the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA). According to IBMA Executive Director Dan Hays "Laurie is one of the preeminent bluegrass and Americana artists of our time and ... one of the top five female artists of the last 30 years". In addition to her accolades as a vocalist, Laurie is an outstanding fiddler in multiple genres. Tom has been referred to as the "most valuable side musician in bluegrass." He primarily plays mandolin, but is also an accomplished fiddle, mandola, and guitar player, as well as vocalist. Laurie and Tom's shows are renowned for their musical virtuosity and front-porch friendliness. Coming to us all the way from California, we are thrilled to share these personable, generous, down-home musicians with the Folk College family.
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Simple Gifts
Folk College's host band is three women (Linda Littleton, Karen Hirshon & Rachel Hall) playing twelve instruments, with styles that range from old time to Celtic to Klezmer and beyond. Karen Hirshon plays fiddle, mandolin, guitar, 6-string banjo, bowed psaltery, doumbek, and spoons. Linda Littleton plays fiddle, hammered dulcimer, recorders, and bowed psaltery, and she's starting to learn banjo. Rachel Hall is recognized as one of the leading English concertina players in the U.S., and she also performs on piano, accordion, and tabla. Based in State College and Philadelphia PA, Simple Gifts members designed Folk College and work with the Huntingdon County Arts Council to make it a reality. They have a strong philosophy that everyone can play music, that music is best when shared, and that above all, music is about communication, not competition. |
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Scott Ainslie Scott Ainslie is a man who can speak about the Blues with the same compelling passion and authority that drives his musical performances. On stage, he brings the African and American roots, history and soul of the music alive with a mesmerizing mix of story, and what Dirty Linen magazine describes as "fiery picking and slide work and his deep passionate bluesman's growl." Scott is a recent recipient of the National Slide Guitar Festival Living Heritage Award, a paired award he shares with Robert Johnson.
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Matt and Shannon Heaton
Boston-based duo Matt and Shannon Heaton offer updated and traditional Irish music on flute, guitar, bouzouki, accordion, and bodhran. Sing Out! Magazine tells us "[Matt and Shannon's] songs are standouts" and the Boston Globe writes "Their playing is masterful and inventive, their arrangements city-smart and spacious. Still, they never forget that Irish music is, at its heart, a neighborly form meant for sharing, not showing off." |
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No Strings Attached
This award-winning quartet from Virginia features hundreds of strings playing music described as “eclectic, jazz on acoustic instruments and world beat.” On stage Pete, Bob, Wes and Randy dance the tango with their instruments, parody old rock and roll bands, clog while playing old-time tunes, and have been known to use the slinky as a percussion instrument. |
Bamboo Breeze
As American as it is Chinese, Bamboo Breeze is one of a kind, a duo of Xiao (pronounced "Chow") Xiannian on the yangqin (Chinese dulcimer) and Julie Tay on percussion. Xiao, a world-quality yangqin virtuoso from north China, and Julie (from Singapore) tell us their music "will address just about any issue, from Confucius thought to the latest street talk in Manhattan." Bamboo Breeze is based in New York's Chinatown and performs and teaches classes under the auspices of the non-profit organization, Mencius Society for the Arts. |
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Jesse Lége and Squeeze Bayou
Jesse Lége and Squeeze Bayou play traditional Cajun dance music from Southwestern Louisiana, specializing in lively two-steps and haunting waltzes, with vocals sung in Cajun French. Jesse is one of today's leading Cajun musicians. He was inducted into the Cajun Music Hall of Fame in 1998, and his honors include Vocalist of the Year, Band of the Year, and Song of the Year (for "Mémoires Dans Mon Coeur"). Jesse (on accordion and vocals) is joined by Evie Schneider (bass) and Squeeze Bayou members Karen Collins (fiddle and vocals) and Fred Feinstein (guitar). |
Henry Koretzky & Kevin Neidig
Kevin Neidig and Henry Koretzky are versatile acoustic musicians from Harrisburg. Kevin is a guitarist, singer, and songwriter, drawing on influences of bluegrass and contemporary music. He has performed for 12 years with the trio Voxology and as a solo artist, and has just released his third solo CD. Henry Koretzky is a mandolinist/guitarist who has performed and recorded in a wide range of groups and styles, including bluegrass (Cornerstone), old-time (The Contra Rebels), contemporary folk, swing, celtic, contradance music, and Klezmer. He is also a frequent staff member at Greenwood Furnace Folk Gathering as part of The Keystone Rebels. Kevin and Henry have been performing together both as a duo and in a larger band focusing on Kevin's original music.
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Clark Parry & Cindy Durkee
Clark and Cindy are gentle, patient, and encouraging teachers for beginners. They will bring dulcimers, bass, guitars, mandolin, hammered dulcimer and fiddles for you to try. Absolute beginners are welcome!
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Jerry Trusty
Jerry grew up in Mississippi where he learned and played traditional music at an early age. He has a bachelor’s degree in music education and a master’s degree in music performance (French horn). Jerry was a high school band director for several years, and he is now a professor in counselor education at Penn State. His current musical passions include playing, researching and building clawhammer and old-time banjos.
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Gordon Bonnet
Gordon Bonnet is multi-talented and multi-faceted-a collage artist inspired by Japanese art; a high school teacher of biology and environmental sciences, and a talented musician. Gordon plays flute and pipes, and can often be seen with the Ithaca area band, Alizé. His specialties include music from central France, Brittany, the Balkans, and any music with non-standard rhythms.
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Ryan Stauffer
Ryan Stauffer plays bagpipes, guitar, bouzouki, and whistle, with a special focus on Scottish and Irish music. Ryan teaches bagpipes and group-playing workshops at the Heritage School in western Pennsylvania, where he also teaches blacksmithing, knife making, and beer brewing! |
Bob Nicholson
Bob is a Folk College tradition, making our annual Saturday night contradance truly special. Bob is in demand as a contra and square dance caller who is known for his relaxed teaching style, patience, energy, and ability to make the dance fun!
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Debbie Rifkin
Debbie Rifkin is an award-winning music theory and sight-singing teacher at Ithaca College in upstate NY. She started out as a classical violinist, earning prizes and prestigious seats in regional orchestras in her youth. Now, she is an avid fiddler. Her main specialty is klezmer music, but she dabbles in French-Canadian, New England, and Scandinavian styles as well. She has played in several klezmer bands, directs the Ithaca College Klezmer Band, and occasionally performs at Scandinavian folk festivals.
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Rachel Bell (Rachabelle) grew up playing piano and exploring a wide range of folk instruments. Now focusing on accordion and wooden flute, she enjoys a busy gig schedule playing concerts and contra dances with Montage, Tunescape, and the Andrew and Noah VanNorstrand Band. She is admittedly addicted to composing and has a particular love for Quebecois, Scandinavian, and French music.
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Peggy Leiby
Peggy is a founding member and director of FiddleKicks, a dance troupe that performs Appalachian clogging and other styles of percussive dance. In addition to teaching these styles, she has offered workshops in waltzing and couple dances since 1999, and has a strong background in international folk dancing. Peggy is currently working with Simple Gifts on a collaboration where FiddleKicks will perform to Simple Gifts' music. Peggy co-founded Mostly Waltz, a popular social dance in Philadelphia. She also plays recorders in early music ensembles, English country and contra dances bands; and manages phillydance.com.
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In addition to these instructional staff, Folk College has a dedicated volunteer staff to make sure all other aspects of the weekend run smoothly.
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