Folk Music & Beyond

KALW’s On-Air Folk Festival Returning to 91.7 this Saturday November 9 from 3 to 8 pm

It’s Five Hours of live performance in the KALW studios by talented musicians and singers, mostly from the Bay Area hosted by JoAnn Mar, Kevin Vance, and Peter Thompson.  Here’s the line-up:

Join us for some wonderful four-part harmony singing by Windborne this Saturday at 3 pm on KALW’s Folk Music & Beyond!  Windborne is a young a cappella ensemble based on the east coast.  They specialize in close harmony singing, shifting effortlessly between drastically different styles of traditional music within the same concert.  Their songs cover folk, old-time/American roots, gospel, and Balkan.

Folk Music & Beyond welcomes back renowned singer-guitarist Bruce Cockburn to the KALW airwaves this Saturday at 3 p.m.    

We remember Woodstock on its 50th anniversary this Saturday 3 pm on KALW’s Folk Music & Beyond.  Barry Melton, member of Country Joe & The Fish, shares his remembrances of that weekend—the chaos, the rainstorms, the mud, the huge crowds, and above all, the music that brought Woodstock Nation together. 

Today 3 pm (this Saturday), Folk Music & Beyond presents Vasen in concert, recorded this past April at The Freight & Salvage in Berkeley.  Vasen is one of Sweden’s leading folk bands, celebrating its 30th anniversary this year.  For fans of Nordic folk music, this performance is not-to-be-missed! 

Join us this Saturday at 3 pm (PDT) on Folk Music & Beyond for a live performance by talented young British musician Dan Walsh, making a rare Bay Area appearance.  Dan will enthrall you with his mastery of the clawhammer banjo. Dan does it all-- Celtic and old-time, Balkan, Scandinavian, Egyptian, and Indian ragas! 

Join us today at 3 pm (PDT) on Folk Music & Beyond for a sneak peek at next week's San Francisco Free Folk Festival.  We'll feature some of the festival headliners on our show--Aki Kumar, aka "The Only Bombay Blues Man", the a Capella trio Yes M'am, and ballad singer-guitarist Kray Van Kirk. 

If you missed today's show, it's archived on KALW's Local Music Player for one week following the broadcast:  https://www.kalw.org/programs/folk-music-beyond

Folk Music & Beyond welcomes back Barbara Higbie to the KALW airwaves this Saturday March 30.

KALW On-Air Folk Festival Returns Saturday Apr. 13th

IF YOU MISSED THE FESTIVAL, YOU CAN LISTEN TO THE ENTIRE FIVE HOURS VIA KALW'S LOCAL MUSIC PLAYER FOR ONE WEEK FOLLOWING THE BROADCAST.  https://www.kalw.org/local-music-player-0

Join us on Saturday April 13th from 3:00 to 8:00 pm for five hours of continuous live music, featuring some of the Bay Area’s top talent.  The Folk Festival is presented by KALW’s music hosts JoAnn Mar, Kevin Vance, and Peter Thompson.  Here’s the line-up:

The renowned Irish fiddler makes a special guest appearance today at 3 p.m. on KALW's Folk Music & Beyond. Gavin holds the Guinness Book of World Records for fastest fiddling and will demonstrate some of his fiddle mastery for us in KALW's studio. 

Renowned Irish fiddler Frankie Gavin makes a special guest appearance this Saturday (2/16) at 3 pm on KALW’s Folk Music & Beyond.  Gavin is in the Guinness Book of World Records as the fastest fiddler in the world and he’ll demonstrate some of his fiddle mastery for us.  He was co-founder of De Dannan, one of Ireland’s leading traditional bands in the 1970s and 80s.

Live music this Saturday (2/9) 3 p.m. on KALW’s Folk Music & Beyond features two masters of the Irish uilleann pipes, Todd Denman and Tim Hill. They’ll perform some tunes and talk about the 2019 West Coast Tionól, a big gathering of pipers on February 15–17, 2019 (Presidents’ Day weekend). The weekend will be hosted by the San Francisco Pipers’ Club, celebrating its 40th anniversary with workshops and sessions.

Join us this Saturday 3 p.m. (PST) on Folk Music & Beyond for our deep dive into music from Wales, part of the United Kingdom that is often overshadowed by its Celtic cousins Ireland and Scotland. 

Join us this Saturday 3 pm on Folk Music & Beyond for our deep dive into music from Wales, part of the United Kingdom that is often overshadowed by its Celtic cousins Ireland and Scotland.  Members of the Welsh band Carreg Lafar will talk about the recent folk revival in Wales and the repression of traditional music by the church for many centuries.  We'll hear from some of the musicians leading the Welsh folk revival--Fernhill, Yr Hwntws, Martyn Joseph, and Calan.  

Tune in this Saturday at 3 pm for a special birthday tribute on Folk Music & Beyond.

Join us on Saturday, Oct. 27th at 3 pm for a special tribute show. 

Berkeley Comes To Berkeley!  Singer-Songwriter David Berkeley performs at the Berkeley City Club this Sunday October 21st at 7 pm.  David will also be our special in-studio guest on KALW's Folk Music & Beyond this Saturday the 20th at 3 pm.  

Join us this Saturday at 3 pm on KALW for a special program featuring the music of the great eclectic guitarist Ry Cooder.  We'll go way back to his earliest albums and listen to songs from his latest CD "The Prodigal Son."  We'll also be hearing songs from a fabulous new CD featuring Pacific Island musicians "Small Island Big Song."  Both CDs available for your pledges of support during the KALW Fall Membership campaign.

Join us this Saturday 3 pm on "Folk Music & Beyond" for the crème de la crème—string wizardry at its finest, starting first with members of the Shasta String Celebration.  Cellist Tristan Claridge leads the celebration, along with champion Texas-style fiddler Matthew Hartz and guitarist Sean Watkins (co-founder of Nickel Creek).  At 4 pm, renowned fingerstyle guitarist Peppino D'Agostino returns to the KALW studios, performing what he humbly calls his "minestrone" music.  

All aboard!  Chicken Train rolls into the KALW studios this Saturday 3 pm for a live performance on "Folk Music & Beyond."  Led by master banjo player John Herrmann, Chicken Train performs old time and Appalachian mountain music.  John Engle on fiddle and Meredith McIntosh on guitar round out the band.   Chicken Train specializes in the fiddling styles of North Carolina and old African-American string band music that pre-dates the blues.

Join us this Saturday (tomorrow) at 3 pm on "Folk Music & Beyond" for the lowdown on the upcoming San Francisco Free Folk Festival, now in its 41st year.  Brother Spellbinder and EllaHarp are among the festival headliners who will perform live in the KALW studios tomorrow. 

The Free Folk Festival will include three stages of music with over 30 acts, over 40 workshops and classes on singing, dancing, and instrument playing, storytelling, open mic, family activities, and jam sessions.

Legendary folk singer Joan Baez recently announced that 2018 will be her final year of touring.  When her tour ends, she will retire from the road.  This coming Saturday at 3 pm, Folk Music & Beyond will be paying tribute to Baez and celebrating her six decades in music.  Highlighting our tribute will be  songs from her latest and most likely her final CD "Whistle Down The Wind."

The KALW folk festival is back this Saturday April 28th from 3 to 8 pm.  It's five hours of continuous music in the KALW studios performed by some of the Bay Area's finest talent. 

Join us for live performance by the San Francisco Scottish Fiddlers, as they take over the KALW airwaves tomorrow (this Saturday 4/14) at 3 pm.  Leading the fiddlers will be the younger generation—talented teenagers who grew up with Scottish fiddling.  The fiddlers will start their spring tour in two weeks with master Scottish fiddler Alasdair Fraser.  Their final concert in Santa Rosa will be a benefit for the North Bay fire victims who lost their homes.  For details, visit http://www.sfscottishfiddlers.org 

Join us this Saturday (3/31) at 3 pm for a special concert recording with American roots artist Tim O'Brien and Lunasa, one of Ireland's leading traditional bands.  This concert was recorded last month in Berkeley at the Freight & Salvage.  The evening was lively, the songs were engaging, and the on-stage humor was unparalleled (in other words, cringe-worthy at times).  A good time was had by all!

American Epic is a musical journey across time to the birth of modern recording, when the voices of a diverse nation transformed the way music sounded and how it impacted our lives and the world.  These brilliantly restored recordings from the 1920s were the product of early record labels sending producers and engineers deep into rural America with the latest technology, and artists from isolated communities flocking to have their music preserved and made available to faraway audiences.  Director Bernard MacMahon, Producer Allison McGourty, and Musician Duke Erikson worked for ten years on the project.

Mr. Sun, that is—the new talented multi-generational band led by fiddle master Darol Anger.  Mr. Sun will roll into the KALW studios this Saturday at 3 pm on Folk Music & Beyond.  They'll showcase some songs from their soon-to-be released live recording.  Darol has once again rounded up some exceptional young musicians to perform with him—Grant Gordy on guitar, Joe K. Walsh on mandolin, and Aidan O'Donnell on bass.

We got some good cheer last Saturday on "Folk Music & Beyond" with Cherish The Ladies, one of the leading bands performing Irish music today.  The ladies (and gentlemen) presented their annual Celtic Christmas concert in Berkeley last week and KALW broadcast their concert.  Lots of familiar carols and traditional songs, along with Joanie Madden's great sense of humor.  This concert was highly entertaining and a great way to unwind ahead of the holiday onslaught—hope you can listen!