LOOKING BACK AT NERFA 2009

Photo of Ron Olesko
at 2009 NERFA Formal Showcase
courtesy of Neale Eckstein

Where to begin. NERFA for 2009 has come and gone, and the music is still keeping a smile on my face. NERFA is the Northeast Regional Folk Alliance, and every November a large gathering of artists, festival and venue bookers, radio folk, and other people involved in the perpetuation of "folk" music gather to do business and to showcase talent.

There was just so much music this year, I loved it all, but there were a few artists who really impressed me.

I guess I will start with Tripping Lily (www.trippinglily.com) . I had a sampler that I’ve been playing since the summer, and it was great to see them live (and get the whole CD!). They were amazing. I love their harmonies and their interplay on stage.

I echo Barbara’s comments about Matt & Shannon Heaton (www.mattandshannonheatom.com) . Not only were they exciting and powerful on stage, but their homemade gingerbread that they were sharing was finest kind – the best I’ve ever had! They are exceptional artists and deserve to be on more playlists!

I also was blown away by Red Hen (www.redhen.net) – an old-timey band featuring Jane Rothfield and Alan Carr. Great tunes and songs, wonderful style and poise, they were an unexpected surprise and a highlight of the weekend!

Matt Brown (www.fiddler1.com)had my jaw dropping with his incredible skill on the fiddle and his haunting old-timey singing.

Michael McNevin (www.michaelmcnevin.com) was wonderful, I had not seen him previously that I can recall. A Canadian singer-songwriter named Amy Campbell (www.amycampbell.ca) was very impressive. Also “new” and noteworthy to my ears – Jude Roberts (www.judesongs.com - loved his CD that I’ve been playing, seeing him on stage was amazing!), Gypsy Dave and The Stumpjumpers (www.thegypsydave.com - a young band that shows potential), and Lisa Bigwood (www.lisabigwoodmusic.com) were a few that come to mind.

I also find it exciting to watch performers who are still relatively new continue growing. I remember first meeting Danielle Miraglia (www.daniellem.com) at NERFA several years ago, and to watch the poise and power that she brings to a stage is inspiring. Her songwriting is also a joy – check out “Moment by Moment” if you have not heard her!

Greg Klyma (www.klyma.com) keeps impressing as well. He gave me his new CD “KlymaLive” which is simply incredible. A great live performance with some new songs. Check him out!

While NERFA is always great for “discovering” new artists, it is also a great place to become reacquainted with established artists. For me, Buskin & Batteau (www.buskinandbatteau.com) was the highlight of NERFA. I had the pleasure of emceeing the formals with Rich Warren the night they performed, and as I said after they finished their showcase – I felt like I was 25 years old again and sitting back at Speakeasy in the Village. Their harmonies and wonderful presence onstage is as captivating as ever – and their new songs are so good! Personally, I think “Choose Joy” might be the song of the year! I’m presenting them at the Hurdy Gurdy Folk Music Club on December 5th, along with another standout performer from NERFA – Kelleigh McKenzie (www.kelleighmckenzie.com) It will be an incredible show.

Speaking of old favorites, what is it about Joel Mabus (www.joelmabus.com) that knocks me out every single time I see him? Since I first saw him perform, Joel is consistently at the top of his game and I’ve never seen him give a bad performance. He is the primer on what folk music is all about.

I could go on and on, but this is a quick snapshot of my impressions of this year. I’ve been attending NERFA for about 10 years now, and I have to say that this was the most productive conference I’ve attended. The quality of music was inspiring. Folk music, in all it’s shades and forms, is in great hands! Can’t wait until next year! I can’t wait to do my radio show this Sunday and share some of it!

Ron Olesko

An Urgent Letter from Pete Seeger about Sing Out!

A Very Important Message from Pete Seeger About the Future of Sing Out! November, 2009 RON OLESKO FAIRLEIGH DICKINSON UNIV WFDU-FM TEANECK, NJ 07666 email: wfdutraditions@aol.com Dear Ron, A little over 59 years ago, I help to co-found a wonderful little magazine called Sing Out! From the beginning, it's brought music, community and enrichment to tens of thousands of readers, sharing information about our best songs, and honoring the people who make the music. Hundreds of important songs, old and new, from many communities and cultures, were first introduced in the pages of Sing Out! In fact, a little song I wrote with Lee Hays 60 years ago -- "If I Had a Hammer" -- graced the cover of its very first issue and gave the magazine its name. Over the years, Sing Out! has grown, changed formats several times, and added songbooks like Rise Up Singing to its catalog. It's createda resource center collecting music, books and photos, reaching back through our community of music and its revival. We even do a weekly radio show that you might be hearing on a local radio station. Today, in these changing and challenging economic times, Sing Out! is struggling to survive. As we head toward our 60th anniversary next year, we need your support more than ever. I ask you to consider making a contribution to help Sing Out! get through this very difficult year AND to ensure another 60 years of sharing songs that we need to learn and sing. At the bottom of this message, you'll find information about how you can help ... if each of us gives even a little, Sing Out! will be able to survive and grow. Thank you for whatever you can do! I don't think I could say it any better than Pete ... Sing Out! needs your financial help to survive. As we look back over the last few years, we've seen other music magazines that have struggled, and some that have not been able to stay afloat. We're determined to be different, to carry on the best traditions and services of Sing Out! for years into the future. But this has to be a collective and shared effort. Pete's vision and leadership in past decades needs your support in the new century! The leadership at Sing Out! is truly being proactive. The board and staff have developed a three-pronged strategy to regain stable financial ground and ensure organizational stability in the future. 1. Decreasing Immediate Overhead Costs. A strategic partner is willing to trade the property equity we have accrued over the past 15 years, allowing us to move us into a new space with dramatically lower operating overhead. This will instantly provide us with free space for the next 5 years. This change, in concert with the other ongoing important programmatic changes and cost cutting we already have in place, will increase our cash flow so we can continue our work. We are actively looking at alternative ways of sharing the songs, history, news and commentary, that are so important to Sing Out!'s mission. 2. Fundraising Campaign. This is your part: We are reaching out to members, readers, current and potential supporters throughout our community who care about the things we care about. We simply must retire the debt Sing Out! has been forced to accrue. We know that an infusion of funds from friends like you will help us create the all-important stable financial platform needed, so that we can move forward into 2010 and beyond. 3. Celebration of Our 60th Anniversary. As we look towards the future of Sing Out! we must look at our past as well. We are planning a significant fundraising event to coincide with our 60th anniversary in early 2010. This will help create an endowment enhancing our ability to continue our work into the future. We will announce the details of this exciting event very soon. As Pete noted, and in order to be able to navigate through the financial crisis we are facing, we look to you -- and the rest of our community -- for help. Simply put, if we are to survive, we need your help now! Please click on the link below to make a tax-deductible contribution to ensure our survival. We can't do it without your support! Yours In Song, Mark D. Moss Executive Director / Editor Toll Free: 888-746-4688 x203 These PayPal Donation buttons will let you make your tax-deductible contribution quickly and easily using the credit card of your choice. If you'd prefer to contact us to make a contribution directly, don't hesitate to call Mark Moss at the phone number above, or you can simply mail your contribution to the address at the bottom of this e-mail. $1000 $ 500 $ 250 $ 100 $ 60 If you'd like to make a contribution of some other amount, click HERE to access our web form that will let you easily set the amount of your donation. We have a very limited number of autographed copies of Pete's new autobiography on hand. While supplies last, we would be pleased to offer copies to any donors of $250 or more as a small token of our appreciation for your support. Note, too, that if you would like your contribution to be recognized in a specific way, or have any other requests or instructions to add, you will have the option to include those notes and instructions in the final step before the contribution is processed. Just follow the prompts as they appear, and look for the "Add Special Intructions to Seller" on the final page before submitting your contribution.

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NERFA marches to a different drummer - congratulations to Cheryl Prashker, our new president!