Saturday, October 29, 2011

Susie Burke & David Surette, JP, 1/21/12

"In this era of pop-driven acoustic music, notloB is keeping the folk tradition alive." ~ Jack Hardy

notloB Folk Concerts
  
presents.....

Susie Burke & David Surette



Saturday, January 21, 2012
Doors 7:30, Concert 8:00
Loring-Greenough House
12 South Street
Jamaica Plain, MA 02130

Susie Burke and David Surette have made a name for themselves as one of the finest acts on the lively New England folk scene. Together since 1988, Susie and David have built a steady following for their own blend of contemporary, traditional, and original folk and acoustic music. Burke's vocal style is at once stunning and heartfelt, and is matched by Surette's fluid fretwork. Both are well-respected within the folk music community, as is demonstrated by the fact that they have appeared as backing musicians on numerous recordings. Many of these have come out of the New Hampshire Seacoast area, where Susie and David are based, and which has a well-deserved reputation as a haven for folk and acoustic music. Susie Burke has been singing on Seacoast stages since the early 80s, as a soloist, a member of several local bands, and in several duos, including one with guitar whiz Harvey Reid. Her musical tastes and influences are varied and many, encompassing contemporary and traditional folk, swing, country, topical songs, and acapella singing, with detours along the way for Broadway showtunes and classic ballads. "She posesses one of the finest, purest ballad sopranos heard in folk music today" writes Scott Alarik in the Boston Globe, noting that "her phrasing is unerringly devoted to the lyric" and that "Burke displays a gift for pulling honest emotional chords - all too rare in these clever and cynical times." Before devoting her energies to music full-time, Burke worked as a day-care teacher, and her love of kids is evident in her wonderful participatory children's concerts.

David Surette has been performing in the Seacoast area since the mid-80s, both with Susie and with a number of other groups and musicians. He is well-known as a top-notch accompanist in New England's contra dance and Celtic music circles, and is also in demand as a studio musician. As a multi-instrumentalist, David brings a variety of stringed sounds to the duo; Folk Roots magazine notes that his "bouzouki, guitar, and mandolin playing is exemplary." In addition to performing and recording, Surette maintains an active teaching schedule, and is head of the folk department at the Concord (NH) Community Music School. He was awarded an NEA travel grant in 1994 to study the traditional music of Brittany, France, and has written a book of Celtic guitar arrangements for Mel Bay Music. Recipients of Individual Artist Fellowship awards from the NH State Council on the Arts in 1993, Susie and David are also on the Council's Touring Arts roster. They have released five albums since 1990 on the Madrina Music label, to positive response from both critics and audiences. Their latest recording, a duo effort titled Sometimes in the Evening, was released in early 2000. Together, they bring skill, taste, feeling, and pure enjoyment to their music, and are bringing their music to an ever-widening circle of listeners.

http://www.burkesurette.com/
Suggested donation $15/$12 advance reservation and JPTC members + $1 preservation fee that goes to the Loring-Greenough House.

Reservations - notlobreservations at gmail dot com

Monday, October 24, 2011

Two new Facebook open groups to share news of Celtic, old-time, bluegrass and string band concerts and events in New England

If you use Facebook, look into two new Facebook open groups to share news of Celtic, old-time, bluegrass and string band concerts and events in New England.


Celtic Music in New Englandnot even a month old, has close to 300 members, many of whom are actively posting information about Celtic events that many "in the know" had no idea were happening.

What is "Celtic Music in New England"?
By Sean Smith and Jeff Boudreau 
This is a group for people who enjoy playing and listening to Celtic music, and want to keep up to date on events and activities related to Celtic music in the New England states (Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine).

Like many such terms, "Celtic" can be ambiguous and vague. For this group's purposes, it refers to music, song and dance from the Irish, Scottish, Cape Breton and other Celtic-related traditions like Breton, Galician, Welsh, etc. The term also incorporates contemporary music rooted in Celtic, involving crossover with other traditions like Appalachian, or with other music forms (rock, jazz).
 Please post about your favorite concerts, workshops, jam sessions, festivals, camps, albums, radio, TV or other broadcasts, publications, etc., that involve Celtic music in New England.

Good housekeeping:
  1. POSTING / REDUNDANT POSTS. At the beginning of your event posts, include the artist's name(s), venue, city and state, date and time. When a reader has that info, he/she can then decide to read on or not. If you have not visited in a while, do not assume your news has not alredy been posted to the wall. Take a moment to scroll down and read wall posts. You may be surprised to find something else of interest. If you posted your news or event some time in the past and it is time for an update or reminder (not too many, please), do not create a new wall post. Instead, find your original post and add the new information. Due to the new activity it will "float" to the top.
  2. ADD FRIENDS. Simply click "add friends to group" under the member pictures top right.


Old-time/Bluegrass/Traditional Music in New Englandcreated about the same time, has about half the members and half the activity. That is usual for bluegrass and old time music, when someone figures out why those fans use social media less please let me know.


What is "Old-time/Bluegrass/Traditional Music in New England"?
By Jeff Boudreau in Old-time/Bluegrass/Traditional Music in New England 

This open group was created out of need as there had been no central repository for sharing concerts/events/news. A sister open Celtic group, started 9/28, attained >200 members within 48 hours. Feel free to add friends who would appreciate an open group to share bluegrass news.

This is a group for people who enjoy playing and listening to bluegrass music (from old time to early and traditional bluegrass, and on to modern variants, including newgrass and contemporary string band), and want to keep up to date on related events and activities in the New England states (Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine).

Please post about your favorite concerts, workshops, jam sessions, festivals, camps, albums, radio, TV or other broadcasts, publications, etc., that involve bluegrass music in New England.

Contact Jeff Boudreau offline if you would like to assist as a moderator.

Housekeeping:
1. To avoid group messages from coming into your email, go to "edit settings" at the top of the page and click off the appropriate box.
2. When a member makes a post, reply in its thread (do not reply via a new stand-alone). Likewise, please stay on topic within a thread (if your new thought does not relate, make a new wall post).

Thursday, October 13, 2011

They call script reading talent?

Before it is sent down the memory hole:

WUMB TALENT QUEST

WHO WOULD YOU LIKE TO HEAR ON WUMB RADIO?
Since the first week of classes (September 2011), nine UMass Boston students have been participating in twice-a-week training sessions about how to be a radio announcer, with the goal of being hired as one of two students who will be hired to be an on-air announcer at WUMB 91.9FM Radio on Monday through Thursday nights from 10pm-midnight. These nine finalists were selected from an original pool of 45 applicants.
Now, all UMass Boston students have a chance to vote on who they would most like to hear on the radio.
The two winners will be selected based on their creativity, entertainment ability and audience appeal (your vote counts!).
We would like to congratulate the nine finalists. They've learned a lot, and have worked very hard to compete for one of these two announcer positions.
Listen to each of the student's presentation below, then click this link to cast your vote! Only one vote is allowed per person. Voting ends on Thursday, October 13th, so don't delay!
Colin BriggsYear: SeniorMajor: MusicHome Town: Quincy, MA
”I am very grateful that I am amongst the few that the competition has been whittled down to. I’ve always enjoyed sharing music with others. I think this will be a great chance to do that and learn the ins and outs of broadcasting in general.”
You can listen to a sample of what Colin sounds like here.
Miguel FanaYear: JuniorMajor: MusicHome Town: Lynn, MA
“I look forward to learning how everything works at WUMB and how I can fit into its programming. Thanks again for the opportunity and I hope to make the most of it”
You can listen to a sample of what Miguel sounds like here.
Brittany FernandesYear: JuniorMajor: EnglishHome Town: Mattapan, MA
“I feel blessed to gain this experience. This is the beginning to my dreams of being an on air personality and hopefully hosting a talk show one day”
You can listen to a sample of what Brittany sounds like here.
Aran GilmoreYear: JuniorMajor: ArtHome Town: Jamaica Plain, MA
“I would have to say that I’m psyched to have the opportunity to be an announcer for WUMB. I’ll be honest, the idea of my voice being broadcast across Boston and being heard by so many people is very cool.”
You can listen to a sample of what Aran sounds like here.
John HuntYear: JuniorMajor: HistoryHome Town: Dorchester, MA
“I’m really excited about the opportunity that I am getting. This is something I’ve always wanted to get involved in and it’s really exciting to finally get to pursue that.”
You can listen to a sample of what John sounds like here.
Eleanor MarksYear: SeniorMajor: PsychHome Town: Somerville, MA
“I am so excited to be part of this project. I feel super cool having any connection to NPR, and I am continually star-struck when I am in the WUMB studios. We are making history.”
You can listen to a sample of what Eleanor sounds like here.
Jimmy SmithYear: SeniorMajor: Criminal Justice MajorHome Town: Roxbury, MA
“I am feeling motivated and excited. Kind of like they passed me a little yellow sheet and said ‘You’re going to Hollywood.’ Oh wait. Wrong talent search.”
You can listen to a sample of what Jimmy sounds like here.
Jared WardYear: SophomoreMajor: Psych/Social BehaviorHome Town: Holbrock, MA
“Now that I’m one of the final 9, I am both anxious and eager to learn. This is an honor, being chosen to participate in these workshops. The opportunity to experience the behind the scenes works of a radio station is very interesting but very complex.”
You can listen to a sample of what Jared sounds like here.
Felica ZhaoYear: FreshmenMajor: Music/ChineseHome Town: Newton, MA
“I’m really excited to have this opportunity offered to me. As a former DJ at GRLZ Radio in Dorchester, it will be awesome to get back in the booth again. When the final WUMB radio hosts are selected, I know that whoever is chosen will do a great job! GOOD LUCK!”
You can listen to a sample of what Felicia sounds like here.






















































































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A a tip of the hat to the source, "Fans of Former Folk Radio WUMB"




Fans of Former Folk Radio WUMB
Listen to the sound clips, these undergrads are reading from the same scripts the WUMB "on-air personalities are forced to read from. Pathetic.
www.wumb.org
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Did Charles Laquadera get his start this way? Probably not. Back in the day, Charles and his WBCN contemporaries were the essence of alternative free-form radio. These UMass Boston undergrads sound as if they are being trained at the Connecticut School of Broadcasting.  But listen to their words, Fans of Former Folk Radio WUMB is correct, they are identical to the scripts WUMB's regular "on air personalities" read.

Now THAT is pathetic.

When the two finalists are chosen it will be interesting to see how much artistic freedom and range WUMB management gives them.  If you are expecting free form free-thinkers, don't be surprised to hear more of what we now hear via the sound clips, automaton script writers doing voice overs of music director-selected pop.