The Minstrel Acoustic Concert Series ™

Gerald Ross - Sweet Georgia BrownCheck out the New Jersey Uke Fest on Augsust 23-25, located at 60C N. Jefferson Road in Whippany, NJ at the Ukrainian American Cultural Center of NJ. The fest will have - 2 Concerts, 3 music jams, 20 interactive workshops and loads of fun. Click here for details.

Friday Concert - Gerald Ross w/ Rachel Manke
Saturday Concert - Heidi Swedberg & Daniel Ward w/ Christopher Davis-Shannon

ReelsJohnnie Doyle is one of the most respected and sought-after string players in the world of Irish Music. Equally adept on guitar and bouzouki, his blazing solos and innovative rhythm work are exciting and mesmerizing. He's also a wonderful singer and a real charmer onstage. For this tour, he has teamed up with fellow Solas alumnus, Mick McAully on button accordion, melodeon, and whistle. Together, they tear up the stage, and leave the listener with only enough breath left to shout for more.

Our opener is an alumna of the late lamented Dugan's Hooligans family band that was so much a part of the Folk Project in the 2000s. Sharlys Dugan is a gifted young harper / whistle-player / singer / stepdancer heading off on her own musical career of Celtic music. She'll be playing with accompaniment from her friends, undoubtedly including some former Hooligans.

My TownThe capacity crowd who saw David Stoddard's opening set for Cheryl Wheeler overwhelmingly endorsed him for this followup headline set. He's a Minnesota-based singer-songwriter who has won the Kerrville New Folk award, as well as songwriting awards at the South Florida Folk Festival, the Tucson Folk Festival, the Minnesota Folk Festival, and others. His music gets compared to that of Randy Newman and Loudon Wainwright III. John McCutcheon said of him, “It’s not often I hear a songwriter that can write funny and write serious. David Stoddard is one of the rare ones. I love his stuff.”

Jerusalem (Yerushalayim)Sharon Goldman is a Folk Project member, and a very fine singer-songwriter. Her songs are plain, but not simple, sophisticated, but not impenetrable. She sings of family, of relationships, and of stories worth hearing.

The Folk Project OpenStage is the place where a diverse collection of acoustic musicians perform for a welcoming, supportive, and attentive audience. We’re a listening room, not a noisy bar. We've often seen previews of our regularly scheduled opening acts for the first time at our Open Stage. ( For information on how to sign up to perform at our next Open Stage, visit www.OpenStage.FolkProject.org.

The Lost OnesWith his smooth, dark baritone, his incredible range, and thoughtful, dramatic phrasing, Garnet Rogers is widely considered by fans and critics alike to be one of the finest singers anywhere. He became a touring musician right out of high school as a member of his brother Stan's band. His music is literate, passionate, highly sensitive, and deeply purposeful. As memorable as his songs, his over-the-top humor and lightning-quick wit moves his audience from tears to laughter and back again.

Pass It AlongScott Cook has been living out of a van or a backpack for the last eleven years, touring almost incessantly across Canada, the US, Europe, Asia, Australia and elsewhere, and releasing six albums along the way.  All the hard miles notwithstanding, he still believes that songs can change your life, and your life can change the world. "He sings his heart and soul, and in doing so lets light flood into your own... Truly one of Woody Guthrie's children." -RnR Magazine

The Soul Agony / The Twisting of the RopeIrish harper and storyteller Patrick Ball returns to the Troubadour with another of his musical/dramatic 1-man productions. "Come Dance With Me in Ireland" recounts the life and music of the great Irish poet, William Butler Yeats, as seen through the eyes of an elderly Irish-American couple returning to the "Auld Ground". In his enchanting brogue, and accompanying himself on the traditional wire-strung Celtic harp, Patrick spins a heartwarming tale and enchants the listener with his impeccable artistry on this rare instrument.

Did You Love John Hurt / Ramblin' BoyTom Paxton is the voice of his generation, addressing issues of injustice and inhumanity, laying bare the absurdities of modern culture and celebrating the tenderest bonds of family, friends and community. The Don Juans are Don Henry and Jon Vezner, two Grammy-winning songwriters who offer an impressive array of experience and gifted musicianship. Collectively, their songs have been covered by: Harry Belafonte, John Mellencamp, Miranda Lambert, Neil Diamond, Ray Charles, Nancy Griffith, Judy Collins, Pete Seeger, Janis Ian, Kathy Mattea, John Denver, Faith Hill, B.J. Thomas, Blake Shelton, Peter, Paul & Mary and Bob Dylan… just to name a few! Within days of writing and playing together, they knew they were onto something. Now they’re taking it on the road! And tonight, that road leads to the Troubadour.

Details to follow. Registration opens July 4.

‘t Ey BelseleFrom his teenage years in Scotland, Alasdair Fraser displayed an abiding love and precocious talent for the fiddle music of Scotland. Now 4 decades later, he is recognized around the world as one of greatest carriers of that flame. Not only does he embrace the music of the tradition, he has enlarged it with dozens of widely known compositions of his own. With his longtime musical partner, cellist Natalie Haas he has graced just about every festival and concert hall in the world with his virtuosity. From fiery reels to enchanting airs to sprightly strathspeys, the pair embody the essence of Scotland.

Paris NightsThe Free Reeds is comprised of Corey Purcell (button accordion) and Rob Curto (piano accordion). They explode all the accordion jokes, and prove that the instrument in the right hands can produce great and exciting music. Their repertoire covers the full range from Argentinian tangos to Irish reels, to French gigues, with a little song accompaniment thrown in for good measure.

Details T.B.D.

The President Sang Amazing GraceThose who saw Zoe Mulford's bravura opening set for Susan Werner in January voted overwhelmingly to give her a feature set of her own. Zoe plants one foot on either shore of the Atlantic, with homes in Pennsylvania and Manchester England. She tackles the big eternal themes - love, death, food, laundry, etc. - with wit and honesty. Backing her clear vocals with guitar or clawhammer banjo, she serves up well-told stories seasoned with everything from old-time picking to Irish ballad, plus a dash of the blues. Her song, "The President Sang Amazing Grace" has been recently recorded by Joan Baez.

Peter Fischman is a hidden gem of a songwriter who ought to be widely known and lauded. His songs of home and friends and family capture a moment or depict a place or event with the visual acuity of an Ansel Adams photograph. His wife Deb O'Hanlon adds her clear soprano voice to the mix. They will also sing some of Peter's well-written parodies as well as traditional songs.

The Folk Project OpenStage is the place where a diverse collection of acoustic musicians perform for a welcoming, supportive and attentive audience. We’re a listening room, not a noisy bar. We've often seen previews of our regular scheduled acts for the first time at our Open Stage. Admission is $5.00 at the door, but is free for Folk Project members and anyone under the age of twenty-five. (Free-will donations are encouraged.) For information on how to sign up to perform at our next Open Stage, visit www.OpenStage.FolkProject.org.

Dixie BreakdownJP Cormier is the worst-kept secret of the multi-instrumental virtuoso world. Based in Nova Scotia, he has been a member of the world's top touring bluegrass and string bands since the age of 13. After two decades of that, he stepped out of the bands, and began his solo career. His guitar work, both flatpicking and fingerstyle is lightning fast, and yet smooth as butter. So is his fiddling. His songs are brilliantly written, and delivered in a clear and soulful tenor. And the stories between songs is delightful and often hilarious.

* It's been a long time since we've had an "Agranoff Imperative" at the Troubadour. I will apply that rating once every few years to an artist appearing at the Troubadour for the first time who, though their name may not be familiar, merits my MUST SEE recommendation based on sheer virtuosity, and performance excellence. JP Cormier is one such without doubt. Put this one on your calendar now!

Mike Agranoff
Troubadour Program Chairman

The Vox Hunters demonstrate that traditional music can be enormously entertaining, even for non-trad fans. Ben Gagliardi and Armand Aromin are a pair of 20-somethings, strong tradition-bearers in their generation, with a genuine affinity for the music, as well as being fine singers and players on fiddle, banjo, tenor guitar, and concertina. While they can be funny, engaging, and yes, thoroughly entertaining, they still maintain the integrity of the tradition.

The audience this night will have the opportunity to vote to give the Vox Hunters a headline set of their own at the Troubadour in the future.

The Folk Project's monthly OpenStage has been generating a lot of buzz, and drawing some pretty high-powered local talent. So we will be choosing four outstanding acts we've seen over the past year, and giving each of them a full set of their own. And just as at the OpenStage itself, they will be backed by the fabulous Bunk Bed Band. Except on this occasion, they will be onstage with the featured acts, rather than in the "orchestra pit", so you can see them as well as hear them. The names of the acts will be announced later.

Life is GoodLivingston Taylor could be described as "equal parts Mark Twain, college professor, and musical icon". He has written top-40 hits recorded by his brother James Taylor and has appeared with Joni Mitchell, Linda Ronstadt, Fleetwood Mac, and Jimmy Buffet. He is equally at home with a range of musical genres - folk, pop, gospel, jazz - and from upbeat storytelling and touching ballads to full orchestra performances.

For further information and tickets, click here.

Rhode Island RhodesJuliana Parker Edelston is an up and coming performer, Folk Project family favorite, and friend and student of Livingston Taylor. On the piano she combines the sounds of pop and rock to connect with strangers and makes hearts move. Her major influences are Sara Bareilles, Billy Joel, Queen, and Taylor Swift. She was drawn to their emphasis on lyrics, emotion, and orchestration.

An evening of communal singing. The once common, but now rare experience of singing together with others is kept alive in this annual event at the Troubadour. Songs with choruses. Familiar songs. Songs whose structure telegraphs or implies the lyrics. If you like to sing with the radio, it's even more fun when you sing with a real person in a room full of others who like to sing. Songs will be led by:
• Bob Dupre: Wonderful acapella singer of sea songs, pub songs, etc.
• Olga (Olguita) Alvarez: A respected professional vocalist in Puerto Rico, Olga has become a fixture in the Folk Project community, and sings in Spanish as well as English.
• Ken & Pat Rolston: Well known for their harmonies, the Rolstons' repertoire runs the gamut from traditional ballads to doo-wop.
• Mike Agranoff: Program Chairman of the Troubadour, Mike is a well known songleader at festivals and song circles around the country.

The Folk Project Open Stage is the place where a diverse collection of acoustic musicians perform for a welcoming, supportive, and attentive audience. We’re a listening room, not a noisy bar. We've often seen previews of our regularly scheduled opening acts for the first time at our Open Stage. Admission is $5.00 at the door, but is free for Folk Project members and anyone under the age of twenty-five. (Free-will donations are encouraged.) For information on how to sign up to perform at our next Open Stage, visit www.OpenStage.FolkProject.org.

Details to follow

If I Had My WayIt's 4-1/2 years since Gathering Time last graced our stage. This vocal harmony-based trio from Long Island, NY has become a local favorite here in the Northeast. They put together an exciting program of songs from their own pens, those of their contemporaries in the acoustic singer-songwriter genre, and some classics from the 60's. Stuart Markus, Hillary Foxsong, and Gerry McKeveny have voices that blend exquisitely.

One By OneBoston-based but New Jersey-born, Terry Kitchen has been performing on the folk scene for the past decade,. He was called "one of New England's finest songwriters" by Dirty Linen magazine, Terry's songs are portraits of ordinary people, captured with compassion, honesty and humor. Terry has joined up with the Folk Project's own Mara Levine, whose vocal harmonies (and sometimes leads) add a whole new level of enjoyment to his songs.

The Folk Project Open Stage is the place where a diverse collection of acoustic musicians perform for a welcoming, supportive, and attentive audience. We’re a listening room, not a noisy bar. We've often seen previews of our regularly scheduled opening acts for the first time at our Open Stage. Admission is $5.00 at the door, but is free for Folk Project members and anyone under the age of twenty-five. (Free-will donations are encouraged.) For information on how to sign up to perform at our next Open Stage, visit www.OpenStage.FolkProject.org.

A Joe Jencks concert is an occasion for singing, a contagious rising up of voices, an act of joy and defiance. Joe's animating purpose runs deep, tapping into the latent, nearly mystical beauty that a roomful of people can unleash by singing together. His songs touch on social justice and community building. He has been favorably compared to songwriters such as John McCutcheon, Holly Near, Fred Small, Tracy Chapman, and James Keelaghan.

Details to follow

The Folk Project Open Stage is the place where a diverse collection of acoustic musicians perform for a welcoming, supportive, and attentive audience. We’re a listening room, not a noisy bar. We've often seen previews of our regularly scheduled opening acts for the first time at our Open Stage. Admission is $5.00 at the door, but is free for Folk Project members and anyone under the age of twenty-five. (Free-will donations are encouraged.) For information on how to sign up to perform at our next Open Stage, visit www.OpenStage.FolkProject.org.

Simple TruthsSmall Potatoes is reschheduled, after construction at the Unitarian Fellowship forced the cancellation of their show last june. This is the duo of Rich Prezioso and Jacquie Manning. They call themselves "Eclecto-Maniacs", which is pretty apt, as their musical tastes run from Celtic to cowboy with a large dose of their own writing. What helps them pull all this off is the fact that they are both monster musicians; Rich can make the guitar talk, and Jacquie is a great whistle and percussion player. They both sing and their voices blend with the smoothness of years of singing together.

Pass the BabyPoor Man's Gambit is a trio of traditional artists comprised of Corey Purcell* (button accordion, cittern, vocals, bodhran, dance), Federico Betti (guitar, fiddle), and Deirdre Lockman (fiddle, vocals, dance). They stand out by not only offering a varied array of instrumental combinations, but also by including the visual (and audial) element of dance. Building on their roots as traditional Irish musicians, the trio's repertoire is also influenced by traditional music of other cultures including France, Scotland, England, and the US.

* We saw Corey last October playing accordions as one half of The Free Reeds, opening for Alisdair Fraser.

The Folk Project Open Stage is the place where a diverse collection of acoustic musicians perform for a welcoming, supportive, and attentive audience. We’re a listening room, not a noisy bar. We've often seen previews of our regularly scheduled opening acts for the first time at our Open Stage. Admission is $5.00 at the door, but is free for Folk Project members and anyone under the age of twenty-five. (Free-will donations are encouraged.) For information on how to sign up to perform at our next Open Stage, visit www.OpenStage.FolkProject.org.

False Sir JohnChosen as Falcon Ridge Folk Festival’s “Most Wanted Band” of 2016, Low Lily plays acoustic music that is deeply rooted in tradition yet sounds refreshingly contemporary. The players are Lissa Schneckenburger (Solas, Long Time Courting) on fiddle, Flynn Cohen (John Whelan Band) on mandolin and guitar, and Liz Simmons (backing Livingston Taylor & Tom Chapin) on guitar. All three sing as well in harmonies that have drawn raves from dozens of reviewers and thousands of fans.

I'm AmazedRupert Wates is a transplanted Englishman who writes, sings, and plays witty wordy and quirky songs on unlikely subjects. A writer who makes you think while he entertains.

The Folk Project Open Stage is the place where a diverse collection of acoustic musicians perform for a welcoming, supportive, and attentive audience. We’re a listening room, not a noisy bar. We've often seen previews of our regularly scheduled opening acts for the first time at our Open Stage. Admission is $5.00 at the door, but is free for Folk Project members and anyone under the age of twenty-five. (Free-will donations are encouraged.) For information on how to sign up to perform at our next Open Stage, visit www.OpenStage.FolkProject.org.

You Show Up at the Strangest TimeTrout Fishing in America is the long-standing, and yet seemingly unlikely musical partnership of Keith Grimwood and ezra Idlet. As individuals, they are about as different as one could imagine. But together, they blend seemlessly in a way that has captured audiences of all ages for over three decades. A willingness to at once make fun of our most annoying daily habits, and then to touch our hearts with tender and passionate images of family life is what makes the connection between the Trouts and their audiences so compelling and poignant.

The Minstrel Open Stage is the place where a diverse collection of acoustic musicians perform for a welcoming, supportive, and attentive audience. We’re a listening room, not a noisy bar. We've often seen previews of our regularly scheduled opening acts for the first time at our Open Stage. Admission is $5.00 at the door, but is free for Folk Project members and anyone under the age of twenty-five. (Free-will donations are encouraged.) For information on how to sign up to perform at our next Open Stage, visit www.OpenStage.FolkProject.org.

Hickory HillDeeper Than The Skin is a very special event presented by The Folk Project. Its inclusion in our schedule was inspired by the very factors that influenced the change last year of the name of our concert series from "The Minstrel" to "The Troubadour.

This is not just a concert of songs that just entertain. This is an examination in song and story of the issue of race in America by two of our favorite artists who have lived that issue, and come to grips with it. This is an evening of singing and listening; of experiencing a connection so deep that it moves us to laugh, cry, and reconsider what we know about our history.

It is presented by two friends well known to the Folk Project community;, Reggie Harris and • Greg Greenway, born 3 days apart, one Black and one White, one from the North and one from the South, both musicians, storytellers, students of history and world travelers. Their two separate narratives are forged into one powerful presentation aimed at finding common ground and helping others to do the same. This will be an event not to be missed, and long remembered by those who experience it.