You’re invited to…

MONTHLY YIDDISH DANCE GROOVE with Steve Weintraub- Yiddish Dance Master!

Are you ready to party?

Be part of the ongoing cultivation of a lively Yiddish Dance scene!

Gain confidence and competence in a wide variety of dances to klezmer music as we learn and enjoy dances in groups, couples, squares, and solo in a cozy environment. Two or three dances will be taught each night, and the rest of the evening will be given over to enjoying dances led by top experts in the form. Dances will be set to live music by some the region’s best klezmer musicians with occasional surprise visiting artists.

All are welcome! Recommended for ages 12+.

***

Tuesday, February 26
Tuesday, March 26
Tuesday, April 23
Tuesday, May 28
Tuesday, June 25

7pm Doors | 7:30pm Dancing

PFS Members / Veterans / Students with valid ID: $10

Not-Yet-Members: $15

Find ride shares, Facebook events, and lively discussion in the Monthly Yiddish Dance Groove @PFS Facebook group!

***

ABOUT STEVE WEINTRAUB

Steve is a teacher, choreographer, and performer of Jewish dance, particularly Yiddish dance, the dance to klezmer music.

Born on Governor’s Island, Bar Mitzvahed in the Bronx, and living now in Philadelphia, Steven Lee Weintraub received his dance training in Manhattan with Alvin Ailey and Erick Hawkins, among others. He is in international demand as a teacher of traditional Yiddish dance at festivals and workshops including Klezkamp, Klezkanada, and festivals in Krakow, Furth, Paris and London to name a few. Steven delights in introducing people to the figures, steps and stylings of the dances that belong to Klezmer music. He has often been called the “Pied Piper of Yiddish Dance”; his years of experience leading and researching Yiddish dance allow him to quickly weave dancers and music together in astonishing ways. Young and old, from all backgrounds, find it easy to share in the joy of Yiddish dancing.

PFS Presents Honeysuckle

Friday, May 31, 2019
Doors 7:30pm | Music 8pm

$8 for Members *While Supplies Last* | $11 Not-Yet-Members | $15 Doors

Get your tickets here!

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF HONEYSUCKLE

About Honeysuckle

Honeysuckle is a progressive folk act that blends older influences and traditional instrumentation with modern effects and inspiration.

Comprised of Holly McGarry, Benjamin Burns, and Chris Bloniarz, this Boston based band can frequently be found performing across the country, playing alongside bands like Del and Dawg, The David Grisman Sextet, The Ballroom Thieves, Boy & Bear, Kitchen Dwellers, Sam Moss, The Western Den, John Craigie, Damn Tall Buildings and others.

Honeysuckle has performed an Audiotree session and at Newport Folk Festival, Lollapalooza, Mountain Jam and CMJ, was chosen as a Converse Rubber Tracks artist, and has been nominated for Best Folk Artist of the Year, and Best Americana Artist of the Year four years in a row at the annual Boston Music Awards. In 2018 they won Best Folk Artist of the Year at the Boston Music Awards. They were also put in the Top 10 bands of 2016 So Far list compiled by NPR.

Honeysuckle released their sophomore album, “Catacombs” in late 2017. They also have two previous titles: “Honeysuckle” (full length 2016) and “Arrows” (EP 2015). They’re beginning work on their 3rd full-length album early 2019.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO HONEYSUCKLE ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT HONEYSUCKLE

PMC Presents: Mara Levine and Gathering Time 

Saturday, June 2, 2019
Doors 7:30pm | Music 8:00pm

Get your tickets here!

$10 for Members Advance | $12 Not-Yet-Members Advance | $15 Doors | Kids 12 and under $5

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

About Mara Levine
Called one of the best singers of her generation by Christine Lavin, and “Golden Voiced” by David Amram, international touring artist Mara Levine is known as an exceptional song-finder, selecting and then creating beautiful interpretations of fine traditional and contemporary songs. Her new CD FACETS OF FOLK, was the #1 album, with the #1 song and #1 artist positions on the International Folk DJ Chart for January 2019. On FACETS OF FOLK, Levine presents a number of songs of social conscience with themes of taking a stand, making a difference and considering the treatment of others. Those tunes, written by popular contemporary songwriters as well as emerging talents, are all carefully set among folk favorites and lesser known songs.

Levine’s second CD, Jewels and Harmony, received stellar reviews and was the #1 album, with the #1 song and #1 artist positions on the International Folk DJ Chart for January 2013, placed #3 overall for 2013, and was named #4 Cover Album of 2013 by Cover Lay Down. She was selected for a Juried showcase at the 2014 NERFA conference, and a Folk DJ Showcase prior to that, and she tours nationally, often sharing shows with the trio Gathering Time, who appear on 5 of the songs on FACETS OF FOLK. They toured Germany and Ireland together in 2018. Mara also performs in duos with Caroline Cutroneo and Terry Kitchen. She has appeared on numerous radio programs and performed at various venues and festivals throughout the country.

“With Facets of Folk, Mara Levine solidifies her position as a folk force to be reckoned with. As on her previous CDJewels and Harmony, her signature sound shines through: Thoughtful song choice, creative harmonies, rich instrumentation, her own exuberant singing. With an emphasis on songs that make a difference, Mara has created music that is very much for today, but also for years to come.” – Si Kahn

About Gathering Time
Start with the 1960s folk tradition of Peter, Paul & Mary; add the vocal complexity and electric energy of Crosby, Stills & Nash, a dash of the Byrds and a jot of Joni Mitchell, and you have Gathering Time, a folk-rock/Americana harmony trio that has been turning heads for nearly a decade on the northeastern folk circuit and beyond. Gathering Time swept the international folk radio chart Folk DJ-List in March, 2016, as their new original CD Keepsake took the #1 album and #1 song slots which, with five other songs in the top 25, landed them as the #1 artist as well. This followed on the heels of When One Door Closes (#3 album, January 2014) and Red Apples and Gold (#5 album, September 2012).

With a vocal blend oft-described as seamless, inspired guitar playing and precise percussion, Stuart, Hillary and Gerry evince deep roots in ‘60s folk-rock, with a healthy dash of traditional folk in the mix. Their stage chemistry makes clear that they take the music (if not themselves) very seriously, yet their infectious energy wins over even fans who never considered themselves folkies. To date, Gathering Time has had a record five juried showcases at NERFA (Tricentrics in 2009 and ’10, a Formal in 2011, a mini-NERFA showcase in 2013 and a Quad in 2015); they were one of the three Emerging Artists at Falcon Ridge Folk Festival in 2012 voted “Most Wanted” to return in 2013.

Whether a tribute show of ‘60s classics or a concert of (mostly) originals, a night with Gathering Time will make evident why they were voted one of “Long Island’s Best” by the Long Island Press.

“Gathering Time has harmonies that can charm the birds out of the trees, strong original songs, and a savvy repertoire of cover songs, ranging from traditional folk to classic rock. They appeal to audiences of all ages.” – John Platt, WFUV (NYC)

Join us for open mic at our venue at 6156 Ridge Ave, Philly with Philadelphia Music Co-op member, Avi Wisnia, as our host and featured performer!

Doors open at 7:00pm
Performances at 7:30pm
Guests will perform 2 songs
Featured Artists/Host will perform 4 songs
Sound will be provided.
We ask for a donation of $3 for members and $5 for non-members in order to continue our programming.
PFS Venue events are BYOB. BYO wristbands are $2 and require proof of ID.

Open mics will be held on first and third Wednesdays and will feature different hosts and different artists. If you would like to host an open mic or have your act considered as a featured act, please email dhaney@pfs.org (featured acts perform 4 songs around mid-evening).

PFS Presents Son of Town Hall

Friday, June 7, 2019
Doors 7:30pm | Music 8pm

Get your tickets here!

$12 for Members *While Supplies Last* | $15 Not-Yet-Members | $18 Doors

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF SON OF TOWN HALL

Join us for an evening of harmony, history, and hilarity as international duo Son of Town Hall sails into the port of Philadelphia to serenade us. Philly Folk Festival veterans and returning to the fest this summer, Son of Town Hall is unlike anything you’ve ever seen before. Expect angelic singing and a stage show that will leave you transformed with laughter and tears, drunk on adventure and a renewed faith in the human spirit.

The band was born when songwriters Ben Parker (London, England) and David Berkeley (Santa Fe, New Mexico) found themselves side by side aboard a junk raft (“The Son of Town Hall”) crossing the mighty Atlantic in search of new lands, new inspiration, and to recover squandered fortune. The two wrote songs upon the seas that are at once haunting and uplifting. They have sailed their ship back a century or so in their shabby Victorian duds, and their song and story cycle follows the pair across the open waters and from town to town as they travel the frontier bouncing from one failed endeavor to another. Though they fall for temptation and countless false promises, their belief in humanity and each other never flags. The performance is three parts concert, one part theater. You will sing and sway along.

Trust us. Get your tickets now.

“Purposely timeless yet anachronistic, a sort of aural steampunk” – Santa Fe New Mexican

“It’s part balladry, part performance art, and totally cool. … Think Simon & Garfunkel lost at sea, and you get a sense of the mythic world at play here.” – Philadelphia Inquirer

“Sensational!” – John Platt, WFUV

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO SON OF TOWN HALL ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT SON OF TOWN HALL

PFS Presents The Singing Out Tour 2019 with Crys Matthews and Heather Mae featuring JJ Jones and Joe Stevens

Saturday, June 8, 2019
Doors 7:30pm | Music 8pm

Get your tickets here!

$12 for Members *While Supplies Last* | $15 Not-Yet-Members | $18 Doors

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A HEATHER MAE MUSIC VIDEO

CLICK HERE TO WATCH CRYS MATTHEWS PERFORM AT THE KENNEDY CENTER

Ask any one about the new generation of social justice music-makers and they’ll mention either Heather Mae or Crys Matthews. Mae, a powerhouse performer and earthshaking vocalist, has turned her personal struggle with mental health and body image into an empowering message of self-love, a universal light force that shines for every audience member. Matthews is a powerful lyricist whose songs of compassionate dissent reflect her lived experience as what she lightheartedly calls “the poster-child for intersectionality”. These two singer-songwriters have joined forces with JJ Jones (Girlyman) and Joe Stevens (Coyote Grace) for The Singing OUT Tour. With Jones’s “kinetically charged” percussion and Stevens’s multi-instrumentalist brilliance, the music will be a powerful as their collective message — stand up and sing out.

HEATHER MAE

Heather Mae writes music for the light seekers and the good-troublemakers. Delivered via explosive vocals over high energy rhythm-heavy piano, her performances are an empowering, on-fire, musical experience that bursts in the chest of every audience member, moved to their core by her passion and message of self-love and social justice. Her 2016 debut album, I AM ENOUGH, reached #58 on iTunes Pop Album charts without the help of a record label and was an announcement to the world: Mae is the next generation of social justice music.

In September 2019 she is adding another title to her resume: mental health advocate. Mae has taken her personal struggle with Bipolar Disorder 2 and Depression and turned it into a record, entitled GLIMMER. With this new record and live show, Mae is a magnetic light force and every audience member is transformed with her anthemic message of hope.

CRYS MATTHEWS

2017 NewSong Music and Performance Competition grand prize winner Crys Matthews blends Americana, folk, jazz, blues, bluegrass and funk into a bold, complex performance steeped in traditional melodies and punctuated by honest, original lyrics. Her two newest releases, The Imagineers and an EP, Battle Hymn for an Army of Lovers showcase two sides of Matthews’ dynamic songwriting: The Imagineers is a selection of thoughtful songs about love and life; Battle Hymn for an Army of Lovers tackles social justice themes. Songs from both projects have already won her recognition and awards including: the opportunity to perform twice at Sundance Film Festival’s ASCAP Music Cafe in Park City, UT; the People Music Network’s Social Justice Songs contest at the 2017 Northeast Regional Folk Alliance; and an official showcase at Folk Alliance International 2018 to name a few.

Equally at home in an acoustic listening room as she is on stage at large music festivals, as well as a prolific lyricist and composer, Matthews has found inspiration in her surroundings; from driving through the Blue Ridge Mountains to the compelling and heart-breaking love story of Richard and Mildred Loving. Thoughtful, realistic and emotional, Matthews’ songs speak to the voice of our generation and remind us why music indeed soothes the soul.

JJ JONES

Sensitive and musical, dynamic and fluid, JJ often seems to be dancing on the drum set. Her constant comment from fans is: “I love to watch you play.” The Americana Gazette says: “JJ mesmerized us that night as she flew deftly across the spectrum of bass, snare and cymbals with impeccable skill. She’s simply one of the best drummers I’ve ever seen, one of the few who uses every percussive surface to maximum advantage.” JJ joined her first band while attending high school at the Seattle Academy of Arts. After graduating college with a neuroscience degree, her long-standing love of acoustic music eventually lead her to play with singer/songwriters and it was then that she started to be known for her signature style.

In 2010, she joined folk-pop band Girlyman and found true love. “When JJ joined the group,” Girlyman told their fans, “Our sound got bigger and closer to what we had all imagined it to be for years.” And in 2015, JJ graduated from Berklee College of Music’s drum performance program. She says, “In over 30 years of playing drums, I had never taken lessons or studied with a teacher. It was a whole piece I’d been missing as a musician, and I wanted to step-up my dedication to the instrument.” In addition to touring and recording, JJ gives private drum lessons via Skype to students all over the country, and volunteers at girls and ladies rock camps across the US, teaching, coaching, and facilitating workshops. She is also the Tech and Gear Review Editor for Tom Tom Magazine, the only magazine in the world dedicated to female drummers. She has written multiple articles on drumming technique, as well as reviews of drum gear and educational tools.

JOE STEVENS

California-born singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Joe Stevens is a third-generation professional musician in a long line of restless westward moving souls. He caught the songwriting bug at 15 and has been at it ever since. After starting out as a self-taught guitar player and songwriter, he received a Bachelor of Music from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, WA, and has been traveling with his music across the US and abroad. Between 2006 and 2012 Joe’s first band Coyote Grace released five well-loved albums and toured with the Indigo Girls, Melissa Ferrick, and Girlyman; sharing stages with Chris Pureka, Greensky Bluegrass, Reverend Payton’s Big Damn Band, and legends such as Cris Williamson and Lowen and Navarro.

Joe released his first solo album Last Man Standing in 2014, recorded in Seattle at Empty Sea Studios, co-produced with everything-man Michael Connolly. A dark past and keen insight gives weight to Joe’s words, sung in his signature smokey voice, telling the stories that make us who we are. Joe’s music rides the edge of the first wave of transgender performers to break through into the public consciousness. The social media explosion combined with shifting public opinion created the conditions that enabled trans and queer artists, a highly marginalized and isolated subculture, to connect and gain visibility. There is now a thriving community of trans and queer musicians, with new comers and folks who have been playing music all along, that is visible and growing in every corner of the world.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO HEATHER MAE ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT HEATHER MAE

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO CRYS MATTHEWS ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT CRYS MATTHEWS

PFS June Monthly Concert with Sarah MacDougall and Ben Kunder

Sunday, June 9, 2019
Doors 2:30pm | Music 3pm

Get your tickets here!

FREE for Members *While Supplies Last* | $10 Not-Yet-Members | $15 Doors

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

About Sarah MacDougall

Sarah MacDougall grew up in southern Sweden, surrounded by ocean, forest and farmland. She started playing the organ at 7, before picking up her mum’s old guitar from the attic at 11. Now Sarah splits her time between the Yukon and Ontario. With her strong songs, powerful guitar chops and a captivating voice she’s become a rising star on the Canadian folk music scene, collected multiple awards and played major Canadian and International festivals and shared the stage with artists like Cat Empire, Tallest Man on Earth and Passenger. She is known for her honest and poetic songs, passionate performances, and unique voice. 24 hrs Vancouver called her “one of the most promising exports out of Sweden since ABBA.” Her most recent release, ‘All The Hours I Have Left To Tell You Anything’, is a record about strength, identity, death, the breakdown of relationships, birth, and the ghosts we honor and carry throughout. It is Sarah’s fourth record. It was written in the midst of the death of her grandparents, the birth of her niece, and a break-up. The nine songs are influenced by the vastness of the Yukon landscape and the dark beauty of Scandinavia.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF SARAH MACDOUGALL

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO SARAH MACDOUGALL ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT SARAH MACDOUGALL

About Ben Kunder

Expertly navigating that rarefied space between elegiac folk and accessible pop, Toronto-based singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Ben Kunder has emerged as one of the most electrifying musicians on the indie scene and a sought-after live performer. Kunder’s dazzling sophomore album “Better Human”, released in 2018, is poised to dominate this next year. His third full length album is already in motion with studio days logged and plans to release new recordings in 2019.

Real life anchors most of “Better Human”, the record exploring compelling themes like the birth of a child, the struggle for life balance, the workday reality propping up our outward façade, largely illuminating the human struggle to navigate through the world while sharing darkness in order to see the light.

Produced alongside Aaron Goldstein at Baldwin Street Sound, guests include Oh Susanna, Jim Guthrie, Paper Bird/Bahamas singer Carleigh Aikins, Sarah MacDougall, Ladies of the Canyon’s Maia Davies and Anna Ruddick, Arkells drummer Tim Oxford, keyboardist Anthony Carone, violinist Drew Jurecka, and Wintersleep drummer Loel Campbell, among others. Propelled variously by strings, pedal steel, keyboards, percussion, guitar, bass, and those spectacular before-mentioned voices renders small moments in precise detail, making his songs both accessible and, occasionally, downright palpable.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF BEN KUNDER

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO BEN KUNDER ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT BEN KUNDER

**Ticketing Policy**

The Philadelphia Folksong Society is proud to offer its’ members one or two free tickets (depending on membership level) to our selected Monthly Member Concert and Monthly House Concert every month. Due to the large number of members and limited seating, we ask that members reserve tickets when they know they can attend. If a member has reserved a ticket and cannot make it to the member concert of their choosing, they must contact the PFS office by phone or email prior to the event to cancel. Failure to do so will result in an inability to reserve your free member ticket to the following member concert.

If you arrive at a PFS member concert and have not reserved a ticket, you will only be seated ten minutes before show time if seats are still available.

If a member concert is listed as “sold out,” please contact Katie Kresz at kkresz@pfs.org to secure your spot atop the waitlist. You will be notified prior to the concert if seats become available.

PFS asks that all members show respect to their fellow members and the Society through following this policy.

PMC Presents: Stevie and the Bluescasters  and Norman Taylor

Friday, June 14, 2019
Doors 7:00pm | Music 7:30pm

Get your tickets here!

$10 for Members Advance | $12 Not-Yet-Members Advance | $15 Doors | Kids 12 and under $5

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

About Stevie and the Bluescasters
Stevie and the Bluescasters is an acoustic three-piece blues band from Philadelphia specializing in unique arrangements of Chicago, Delta, Piedmont, Texas, pre-war and country blues as well as old Gospel, old Country and a half-pint of R&B.

PMC Presents: Jackson Pines and Mike Frazier

Friday, June 21, 2019
Doors 7:30pm | Music 8:00pm

Get your tickets here!

$10 for Members Advance | $12 Not-Yet-Members Advance | $15 Doors | Kids 12 and under $5

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

About Jackson Pines

“[A] duo from Jersey — Jackson, to be specific, nestled in the pine barrens — core members Joe Makoviecki (vocals, guitar) and James Black (bass) teamed up with some heavy-hitting friends for their debut LP Purgatory Road, which came out on February 8th. Simone Felice produced the record in his Sugar Mountain Studio in Palenville, NY and played drums; James Felice contributed piano and organ throughout the set as well. As such, the record is an expert set of indie folk, drawing on the melodies and arrangements of bluegrass and mountain music but incorporating it tastefully into Makoviecki’s songs, which are very much of the now.” – John Vettese, WXPN, The Key

About Mike Frazier

Mike Frazier is a lyric-spinning Virginian who blends Americana, folk and rock n roll music to tell tales of life in the Shenandoah Valley. He released his debut LP “Elegy” on AF Records and is slated to release his sophomore LP on Geneva Records in May of 2019. He’s spent the last few years touring relentlessly across the US and has supported artists like Amigo The Devil and Gallows Bound.

PFS Presents Oshima Brothers and Rainbow Girls

Sunday, June 23, 2019
Doors 7pm | Music 7:30pm

Get your tickets here!

$8 for Members *While Supplies Last* | $11 Not-Yet-Members | $15 Doors

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

About Oshima Brothers

Oshima Brothers’ magnetic sibling sound and contagious joy result from a lifetime of making music together. Raised in a musical family in rural Maine, the brothers have honed a harmony-rich blend of contemporary folk and acoustic pop. On stage, Sean and Jamie create a surprisingly full sound with dynamic vocals, electric and acoustic guitars, octave bass, loops, and percussion. Their debut album, “Oshima Brothers,” released in 2016, is a collection of 11 original songs written by Sean, and arranged and recorded by Jamie. The brothers live in Maine but are often on the road performing, producing music videos, and dancing.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF OSHIMA BROTHERS

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO OSHIMA BROTHERS ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT OSHIMA BROTHERS

About Rainbow Girls

Rainbow Girls are an eclectic folk trio hailing from the golden countryside just north of California’s Bay Area. Comprised of three unique musical talents – Vanessa May, Erin Chapin, and Caitlin Gowdey – they seamlessly combine soul-touching harmonies, vari-textured instrumentals, and poignant lyrical content into an unusually beautiful sonic tapestry. Pairing their voices with an ever-changing amalgamation of acoustic and slide guitar, keys, upright bass, voice, harmonica, and an array of more unexpected vocal techniques like beat-boxing and mouth trumpet, they create engaging and emotionally moving live performances.

Their music delves deeply into themes of the human experience: hopeful love, honest self-reflection, and pursuits of social justice. Their latest album, “American Dream,” crystallizes these ideas in acoustic amber, encapsulating a beautiful new direction for their evolving sound.

Originally formed in Santa Barbara, CA in 2010, the Rainbow Girls have spread their musical wings both internationally and domestically, from busking on the streets of Europe to playing pubs and theaters in the UK, to house concerts, festivals, and shows in the US. Rainbow Girls have also gained recognition on NPR’s Tiny Desk concert series and KQED’s “The California Report.”

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF RAINBOW GIRLS

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO RAINBOW GIRLS ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT RAINBOW GIRLS

You’re invited to…

MONTHLY YIDDISH DANCE GROOVE with Steve Weintraub- Yiddish Dance Master!

Are you ready to party?

Be part of the ongoing cultivation of a lively Yiddish Dance scene!

Gain confidence and competence in a wide variety of dances to klezmer music as we learn and enjoy dances in groups, couples, squares, and solo in a cozy environment. Two or three dances will be taught each night, and the rest of the evening will be given over to enjoying dances led by top experts in the form. Dances will be set to live music by some the region’s best klezmer musicians with occasional surprise visiting artists.

All are welcome! Recommended for ages 12+.

***

Tuesday, February 26
Tuesday, March 26
Tuesday, April 23
Tuesday, May 28
Tuesday, June 25

7pm Doors | 7:30pm Dancing

PFS Members / Veterans / Students with valid ID: $10

Not-Yet-Members: $15

Find ride shares, Facebook events, and lively discussion in the Monthly Yiddish Dance Groove @PFS Facebook group!

***

ABOUT STEVE WEINTRAUB

Steve is a teacher, choreographer, and performer of Jewish dance, particularly Yiddish dance, the dance to klezmer music.

Born on Governor’s Island, Bar Mitzvahed in the Bronx, and living now in Philadelphia, Steven Lee Weintraub received his dance training in Manhattan with Alvin Ailey and Erick Hawkins, among others. He is in international demand as a teacher of traditional Yiddish dance at festivals and workshops including Klezkamp, Klezkanada, and festivals in Krakow, Furth, Paris and London to name a few. Steven delights in introducing people to the figures, steps and stylings of the dances that belong to Klezmer music. He has often been called the “Pied Piper of Yiddish Dance”; his years of experience leading and researching Yiddish dance allow him to quickly weave dancers and music together in astonishing ways. Young and old, from all backgrounds, find it easy to share in the joy of Yiddish dancing.

PFS Presents The Kennedys

Friday, June 28, 2019
Doors 7:30pm | Music 8pm

Get your tickets here!

$12 for Members *While Supplies Last* | $15 Not-Yet-Members | $18 Doors

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

About The Kennedys

At well over a million miles of roadwork, including two stints as members of Nanci Griffith’s Blue Moon Orchestra, Pete and Maura Kennedy show no signs of slowing down either on tour or in the creative realm.

Originally based in Austin, Texas, they spent a few years in the Washington DC area before moving to the East Village in New York City, where they have been based for most of the last two decades. The Kennedys are known nationwide as the hosts of the late lamented Dharma Café program on Sirius Satellite Radio, and on Broadway, they are regular cast members of Theatre Within’s annual tribute to John Lennon — working in that capacity with Patti Smith, Debbie Harry, Jackson Browne, Cyndi Lauper and a host of others.

Life on the road and time spent in the creative ecosystem of the Village have informed their songwriting over the course of 14 duo albums and half a dozen side projects, and Safe Until Tomorrow is true to that tradition. What sets the album apart is the inclusion of several anthemic, rocking songs of social consciousness that convey a strong message best summed up in one of the song titles: “Be Silent No More.” The Kennedys’ music has been described as uplifting, empowering and encouraging. In these turbulent times, they rise to the occasion with Safe Until Tomorrow.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF THE KENNEDYS

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THE KENNEDYS ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE KENNEDYS

PMC Presents: The Cornerstones CD Release and Kicking Down Doors

Saturday, June 29, 2019
Doors 7:00pm | Music 7:30pm

Get your tickets here!

$10 for Members Advance | $12 Not-Yet-Members Advance | $15 Doors | Kids 12 and under $5

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

The Cornerstones are a trio of musicians local to the Philadelphia, PA region, each different musical artists in their own way, but together create a new sound of acoustic roots music. Will Paynter and Jay Popky are the founding members of Sonoma Sound, but also play with many other bands and musicians. Stacy Weathers plays in multiple bands and is a well-known banjo player in the Philly area. Both Jay and Stacy are familiar to the Philadelphia Folksong Society and Philadelphia Folk Festival. The band released their debut CD, “Three By Three” in August 2018!

Kicking Down Doors (KDD) hails from Philadelphia and is a multicultural roots/rocker, soul and folk group and its sound is influenced by the diversity of its members and their musical backgrounds. Together with the group’s instrumentation and arrangements led by Ernie Tokay and the vocal stylings of lyricist Autumn Walden, KDD has been leaving patrons in venues wanting more at every listen. The band’s songbook of original tunes range from rock to easy listening, to energetic dance/groove to blues, country and folk and is ripe with simple introspective, memorable and relatable poetic lyrics penned by Walden, that are poignant, captivating, and in the moment reflective. Kicking Down Doors has recently released a collection of 10 original songs on its new CD – NOW, a mélange of music that takes you with them on their evolutionary ride that defines the Kicking Down Doors sound.

PMC Presents: Marion Halliday & Trickster Sister CD Release with Meghan Cary & Analog Gypsies

Saturday, July 13, 2019
Doors 7:00pm | Music 7:30pm

$10 for Members Advance | $12 Not-Yet-Members Advance | $15 Doors | Kids 12 and under $5

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

MARION HALLIDAY, a native Kentuckian, moved to Philadelphia full-time in 2013. Along with her band, Trickster Sister, Marion is proud purveyor of her own special blend of bluegrass and bourbon-infused Americana. She has found great inspiration in her new home-town, writing a range of songs that touch on Philly’s rich history. She has also written on more universal topics such as domestic abuse, gun violence, suicide, and the scourge of addiction ravaging our country. Much to the dismay of her young adult children, too, Marion’s music includes amusing reflections on relationships, as well as an abiding love of bourbon. A seasoned veteran singer-performer with a background in Celtic music (Marion was lead singer in Kentucky-based Celtic band My Darling Asleep as well as a member of Philly -based Molly Blooms), in late 2017 Marion released her debut EP of original music with her band Trickster Sister, ‘Walking in Tall Grass’, Several tracks from this debut album received airplay on a number of folk radio channels across the Northeast. Building on this EP release in 2017, in January 2018 Marion was named “One of the Ones to Watch” by NSAI for her songwriting; then in November, she appeared in the highly regarded NERFA Folk DJ Radio Showcase (nominated by WFDU host Ron Olesko). Most recently, in December, she was named runner-up for 2018 Best of Philly Live Performer (Folk/Country Category). Marion’s newest full-length CD exemplifies the range of her songwriting and will draw in the listener through her insightful story-telling, lush lyrics, and instrumentation.

Meghan Cary and Analog Gypsies
Winning over audiences from the fields of Philly Folk Fest to NYC’s infamous Bleecker Street, Meghan Cary with Analog Gypsies is equal parts folk, rock, gypsy jazz and jam band playing award-winning original tunes ranging from lean-in-and-listen ballads to get-up-and-shake-your-booty jams. At the core of the band are Meghan Cary and Peter Farrell. The Keyboard and guitar duo lays down a big musical footprint with cool grooves and tight vocal harmonies. Add to that the unique bass musings of Jocko MacNelly, the rhythmic melodies of drummer Quint Lange, the not-your-typical-bluegrass banjo playing and vocal harmony of Stacy Weathers, and the soulful and rhythmic harp and flute lines of Bob Beach, and you have the Meghan Cary with Analog Gypsies experience: an evening of great tunes, fun stories, singing in your seat, and dancing in the aisles. As one critic exclaims: “You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll beg for more!” (Critic’s Pick – The News and Observer)

PFS Presents Low Down Brass Band

Sunday, July 14, 2019
Doors 7pm | Music 7:30pm

Get your tickets here!

$10 for Members *While Supplies Last* | $12 Not-Yet-Members | $15 Doors

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF LOW DOWN BRASS BAND

About Low Down Brass Band

LowDown Brass Band (LDB), deftly synthesizes the gritty sounds of Chicago with the high energy street beat of the Crescent City. LDB brandishes a powerful brass frontline of trumpets, trombones, saxophones, with a funky backline of drums and sousaphone. Combining the poetic ferocity of Billa Camp with stellar vocal harmonies, adventurous improvisation, movement, and grooves, LDB creates an infectious and diverse sound that has something for every listener.​

Fresh off their headlining set at The 2018 Montreal Jazz Festival, LowDown maintains a constant performing and touring schedule throughout North America. Recent performances include the Lagunitas Beer Circus, Chicago Jazz Fest, Frendly Gathering, Alaska’s Salmon Fest, Chicago’s Do-Division Fest, Wakarusa, Cotai Jazz Fest, and a annual residency at Shoe Fest.

​Following an ambitious project titled LowDown Sounds, that included a critically acclaimed cameo by Roy Ayers on the track Everybody Loves The Sunshine, LowDown Brass Band is now touring their 2018 hip hop release titled LowDown Breaks featuring MC Billa Camp. This new record steps deeper into refining their unique sound, combining hip hop breaks with live soul samples and deep cut grooves.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO LOW DOWN BRASS BAND ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT LOW DOWN BRASS BAND

PFS Presents Melanie Brulée

Saturday, July 20, 2019
Doors 7:30pm | Music 8pm

Get your tickets here!

$10 for Members *While Supplies Last* | $12 Not-Yet-Members | $15 Doors

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF MELANIE BRULEE

About Melanie Brulée

Born in Cornwall Ontario to bilingual parents, Toronto-based Melanie Brulée interweaves her native language into her art like she crisscrosses musical genres: with ease. From the first listen, you can hear how her years living in Australia and France have influenced her style and sound. The first offering rich surf-style guitar tones and catchy hooks and the latter blurring the lines between audience and performer, like a speakeasy cabaret. What most might call Americana, folk-rock or country music, Melanie colours with her own distinctive essence, bringing a vintage respect to a modern sound. Seeing her ease onstage, it’s clear that’s where she feels most at home, quickly winning over audiences with her charisma.

Melanie’s striking stage presence, unique vocal stylings and expressive confidence have opened several doors for her since the release of her French album Débridée (2015), giving her the chance to build a solid team including management, booking, distribution and publishing. Critically acclaimed by media in Québec as well as across Canada, the album earned Melanie a Stingray Music Rising Star Award as well as three Trille Or nominations at Canada’s largest recognition of excellence in the arts outside of Québec. Melanie was featured on the official Ontario 150 anthem ‘A Place to Stand’ which was highly distributed across the province during 2017.

Her singles have been on regular rotation on CBC, Radio-Canada as well as Sirius XM satellite in Canada and the USA, allowing her to build a following and tour the continent playing near 100 shows per year. Most recent highlights include opening for Kathleen Edwards, Whitehorse and Amanda Marshall as well as performances at renowned festivals such as Mariposa Folk Fest, Luminato, Francofolies, Montreal Folk on the Canal and multiple performances at Yonge-Dundas Square. Most recently, Melanie has been spending significant time honing her craft as a songwriter in Nashville with some of Music City’s finest in preparation for her upcoming 2018 release.

The success of Débridée opened another unexpected door, allowing her to begin a conversation about mental health with her audience. She began running workshops on self-confidence with students across North America, encouraging young people to talk about their fears and anxieties, offering tips and tricks on dealing with depression, and sharing her story as a suicide loss survivor. “After my father’s passing, I remember being so angry. The truth is that without being able to express myself through songwriting, I’d be an absolute mess. Sharing my story with others has helped me get through the pain and loss and I hope that I can offer the same refuge to others through music and open conversation.” Melanie’s third full-length album Fires, Floods & Things We Leave Behind further explores themes of family, loss and addiction and was released October 2018.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO MELANIE BRULEE ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT MELANIE BRULEE

PFS July Monthly Concert with Amanda Rheaume

Saturday, July 27, 2019
Doors 7:30pm | Music 8pm

Get your tickets here!

FREE for Members *While Supplies Last* | $10 Not-Yet-Members | $15 Doors

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF AMANDA RHEAUME

About Amanda Rheaume

The fifth album from Ottawa-raised, Toronto-based singer/songwriter Amanda Rheaume, The Skin I’m In presents a compellingly portrait of an artist fully comfortable in her own skin, personally and musically.

Produced by Colin Cripps (Blue Rodeo, Junkhouse) at The Tragically Hip’s famed Bathouse Studio, it sports a full-blooded band sound, thanks to the contributions of an A-list musical supporting cast.

Rheaume’s supple and expressive vocals fit neatly in the centre of the sonic landscape, while her eloquent and well-crafted songs were written with such noted collaborators as Jason Blaine, Melanie Brulée, Jim Bryson, Justin Glasco, and Tim Bovaconti.

One of Rheaume’s great gifts as a songwriter is her ability to take the personal and make it universal, drawing upon her own experience to deliver messages with a wide resonance. She digs deep on The Skin I’m In, reflecting upon her Metis heritage, as on the profoundly moving title track and “Return To The Water,” and addressing issues of identity and mental health.

Her earlier albums met with widespread critical acclaim. 2013’s Keep A Fireearned her a 2014 Canadian Folk Music Award for Aboriginal Songwriter of The Year as well as a Juno Award nomination for Aboriginal Album of the Year, while 2016’s Holding Patterns received a Canadian Folk Music Awards nomination.

An engaging performer, Rheaume has developed a following across Canada and in Europe, where she tours regularly.

She has long employed her music as a force for good, as shown by three trips to Afghanistan to perform for Canadian military personnel, plus visits to the Alert base in Canada’s far north and the troubled Indigenous community of Attawapiskat.

Rheaume co-founded Babes4Breasts, an initiative that, through concerts and recording projects, raised money for breast cancer charities across Canada over a 10-year period.

This is an artist with a heart as big as her talent.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO AMANDA RHEAUME ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT AMANDA RHEAUME

**Ticketing Policy**

The Philadelphia Folksong Society is proud to offer its’ members one or two free tickets (depending on membership level) to our selected Monthly Member Concert and Monthly House Concert every month. Due to the large number of members and limited seating, we ask that members reserve tickets when they know they can attend. If a member has reserved a ticket and cannot make it to the member concert of their choosing, they must contact the PFS office by phone or email prior to the event to cancel. Failure to do so will result in an inability to reserve your free member ticket to the following member concert.

If you arrive at a PFS member concert and have not reserved a ticket, you will only be seated ten minutes before show time if seats are still available.

If a member concert is listed as “sold out,” please contact Katie Kresz at kkresz@pfs.org to secure your spot atop the waitlist. You will be notified prior to the concert if seats become available.

PFS asks that all members show respect to their fellow members and the Society through following this policy.

PFS Presents Gina Chavez

Saturday, September 21, 2019
Doors 7:30pm | Music 8pm

$14 for Members *While Supplies Last* | $17 Not-Yet-Members | $20 Doors

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

About Gina Chavez

Austin musician Gina Chavez never thought she’d see the day when two women could marry in Texas. Then again, she never thought she would marry a woman.

“Heaven Knows,” the first single off her upcoming five-song EP, Lightbeam, is the musical journey of twelve years in love; a love Chavez never thought she would experience.

“I was 24, staunchly Catholic and I’d had great, healthy relationships. But I’d never been in love,” Chavez said. “Then I met this girl with a smile that made me question everything I thought I knew.”

Lightbeam, set to release on Friday, September 14, 2018, is a sonic departure for Chavez who is known for her signature style of bilingual Latin folk-pop that topped the iTunes and Amazon Latin charts with her award-winning album, Up.Rooted. The 2015 Austin Musician of the Year traded her acoustic guitar for the smooth tones of a Gibson hollow body, and called upon producer Dwight A. Baker (MISSIO, Alpha Rev, The Wind and The Wave, Josh Abbott Band) to lay down five soulful and diverse songs, that expand upon her previous work with same lively and sophisticated spirit that her fans have grown to love.

Lightbeam boasts intensely personal lyrics — heaven knows our souls, our story / the shape of your heart when you hold me / wouldn’t tear us apart or disown me” — strong melodic hooks and a pop aesthetic that showcase Chavez’s versatility as an artist.

“These are songs my heart has been wanting to sing for so long,” Chavez said. “To shout from the rooftops that I am in love! To tell the world about this incredible woman who lights me up and calls me to my best self, and show that our love is more than tolerable. It’s the kind of love we’re made for.”

Recorded in eight days at Matchbox Studios in Austin, Texas, the EP features some of Austin’s finest — Dave Boyle (keys), Conrad Choucroun (drums), and Steve Terebecki (bass) — on five unapologetically personal tracks that explore longing, faith, beauty, and sacrifice.

“I took some time to allow myself to write,” Chavez said. “No boundaries, no genres, just me and my guitar, and I was pretty surprised when these soul-tinged songs bubbled up. But this is the story my heart wanted to tell; the story what it means to be a Catholic Latina and fall in love with a woman; the story of what it means to live your heart no matter what the world says.”

Chavez and her wife, Jodi Granado, met at the University Catholic Center at UT Austin. The next decade would see the couple through the ups and downs of a long-distance relationship, coming out to friends and family, hiding their love while volunteering in El Salvador, and building a life together in Austin. Last year, Chavez and Granado, still practicing Catholics, tied the knot at Tiny T Ranch just east of Austin — two years after marriage equality became legal in Texas.

With 10 Austin Music Awards, an NPR Tiny Desk with more than half a million views, frequent tours as a cultural ambassador with the U.S. State Department, being named an official 2018 SXSW artist for the fifth year in a row with her six-piece band and a trip to Kyrgyzstan in April 2018, Chavez and her wife, Jodi, have embarked on a European mini-tour that kicks off the couple’s honeymoon and the release of “Lightbeam.”

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF GINA CHAVEZ

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO GINA CHAVEZ ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT GINA CHAVEZ

PFS Presents Irish Mythen with Andrea Nardello

Saturday, November 16, 2019
Doors 7:30pm | Music 8pm

Get your tickets here!

$14 for Members *While Supplies Last* | $17 Not-Yet-Members | $20 Doors

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

About Irish Mythen

Irish Mythen was born in Ireland and now resides in Charlottetown Prince Edward Island Canada.

“This Island creates music and musicians, art and artists. I found a shift to take things more seriously when I moved here.” And she did just that. Her latest release, the self titled Irish Mythen, gained her recognition around the globe with nominations and wins coming from Music PEI, East Coast Music Association, Folk Alliance International and Socan. Write-ups in Australian Guitar Magazine, the Rolling Stone, and a plethora of online publications world wide have helped plant Irish firmly on the map of ‘Must See Artists’.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF IRISH MYTHEN

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO IRISH MYTHEN ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT IRISH MYTHEN

OPENING ACT: ANDREA NARDELLO

Philly’s Andrea Nardello has garnered favorable comparisons to Melissa Etheridge and Shawn Colvin for melding pop songwriting smarts with a confessional and literate songwriting style, exploring relationships, romance, and her out family life. Nardello’s refined accessibility draws from folk, pop, rock, and even the swagger of hip-hop. She can tug at your heartstrings with her softer tunes and get you dancing on your feet with her upbeat songs and powerful voice. Fans ride an unforgettable emotional roller coaster during her live shows.

Nardello has been busy touring and has opened for well known artists like Colbie Caillat, Brandi Carlile, Tony Lucca, Gabe Dixon, Ron Pope, Emerson Hart of Tonic Fame, and Tim Reynolds of The Dave Matthews Band. After releasing ECHO, Nardello won the prestigious Philadelphia Songwriter’s Project Contest and won Tri-State Indie’s “Acoustic Artist Of The Year.” Her songs, “Leave The Light On” and “Home To Me” each won WSTW’s Award for Folk Song Of The Year.

Nardello also spends time fundraising for important causes like The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and The MILE (Music Is Love Exchange). Nardello completed two service trips to Guatemala in support of the MILE. The MILE is a network of artists, musicians, and music lovers that bring positivity and change to the lives of disadvantaged and underserved children, strengthening families and communities both in the U.S. and abroad. Nardello is always willing to help, offer her time and believes that music is a universal language that helps heal and connects us all.

Nardello teamed up with long time friend and collaborator, Matt Duke, to produce her new EP, Human, which was released on Noble Steed Music, last year. This beautifully haunting EP was recorded in Nardello’s home. She is excited to share it with her fans and expects to tour in the fall.

“For me, “Human” is a collection of songs that explores vulnerable topics. Loving someone when they are broken. Striving to challenge yourself when you are stuck. The final stages of life and all that is unknown. It is truly a soundtrack of my life and the people in it. I always get nervous before releasing new music and my only hope is that anyone who listens can connect to these songs in some special way.”

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF ANDREA NARDELLO

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO ANDREA NARDELLO ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT ANDREA NARDELLO

You’re invited to…

MONTHLY YIDDISH DANCE GROOVE with Steve Weintraub- Yiddish Dance Master!

Are you ready to party?

Be part of the ongoing cultivation of a lively Yiddish Dance scene!

Gain confidence and competence in a wide variety of dances to klezmer music as we learn and enjoy dances in groups, couples, squares, and solo in a cozy environment. Two or three dances will be taught each night, and the rest of the evening will be given over to enjoying dances led by top experts in the form. Dances will be set to live music by some the region’s best klezmer musicians with occasional surprise visiting artists.

All are welcome! Recommended for ages 12+.

***

Tuesday, February 26
Tuesday, March 26
Tuesday, April 23
Tuesday, May 28
Tuesday, June 25

7pm Doors | 7:30pm Dancing

PFS Members / Veterans / Students with valid ID: $10

Not-Yet-Members: $15

Find ride shares, Facebook events, and lively discussion in the Monthly Yiddish Dance Groove @PFS Facebook group!

***

ABOUT STEVE WEINTRAUB

Steve is a teacher, choreographer, and performer of Jewish dance, particularly Yiddish dance, the dance to klezmer music.

Born on Governor’s Island, Bar Mitzvahed in the Bronx, and living now in Philadelphia, Steven Lee Weintraub received his dance training in Manhattan with Alvin Ailey and Erick Hawkins, among others. He is in international demand as a teacher of traditional Yiddish dance at festivals and workshops including Klezkamp, Klezkanada, and festivals in Krakow, Furth, Paris and London to name a few. Steven delights in introducing people to the figures, steps and stylings of the dances that belong to Klezmer music. He has often been called the “Pied Piper of Yiddish Dance”; his years of experience leading and researching Yiddish dance allow him to quickly weave dancers and music together in astonishing ways. Young and old, from all backgrounds, find it easy to share in the joy of Yiddish dancing.

PMC Presents: Mara Levine and Gathering Time 

Saturday, June 2, 2019
Doors 7:30pm | Music 8:00pm

Get your tickets here!

$10 for Members Advance | $12 Not-Yet-Members Advance | $15 Doors | Kids 12 and under $5

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

About Mara Levine
Called one of the best singers of her generation by Christine Lavin, and “Golden Voiced” by David Amram, international touring artist Mara Levine is known as an exceptional song-finder, selecting and then creating beautiful interpretations of fine traditional and contemporary songs. Her new CD FACETS OF FOLK, was the #1 album, with the #1 song and #1 artist positions on the International Folk DJ Chart for January 2019. On FACETS OF FOLK, Levine presents a number of songs of social conscience with themes of taking a stand, making a difference and considering the treatment of others. Those tunes, written by popular contemporary songwriters as well as emerging talents, are all carefully set among folk favorites and lesser known songs.

Levine’s second CD, Jewels and Harmony, received stellar reviews and was the #1 album, with the #1 song and #1 artist positions on the International Folk DJ Chart for January 2013, placed #3 overall for 2013, and was named #4 Cover Album of 2013 by Cover Lay Down. She was selected for a Juried showcase at the 2014 NERFA conference, and a Folk DJ Showcase prior to that, and she tours nationally, often sharing shows with the trio Gathering Time, who appear on 5 of the songs on FACETS OF FOLK. They toured Germany and Ireland together in 2018. Mara also performs in duos with Caroline Cutroneo and Terry Kitchen. She has appeared on numerous radio programs and performed at various venues and festivals throughout the country.

“With Facets of Folk, Mara Levine solidifies her position as a folk force to be reckoned with. As on her previous CDJewels and Harmony, her signature sound shines through: Thoughtful song choice, creative harmonies, rich instrumentation, her own exuberant singing. With an emphasis on songs that make a difference, Mara has created music that is very much for today, but also for years to come.” – Si Kahn

About Gathering Time
Start with the 1960s folk tradition of Peter, Paul & Mary; add the vocal complexity and electric energy of Crosby, Stills & Nash, a dash of the Byrds and a jot of Joni Mitchell, and you have Gathering Time, a folk-rock/Americana harmony trio that has been turning heads for nearly a decade on the northeastern folk circuit and beyond. Gathering Time swept the international folk radio chart Folk DJ-List in March, 2016, as their new original CD Keepsake took the #1 album and #1 song slots which, with five other songs in the top 25, landed them as the #1 artist as well. This followed on the heels of When One Door Closes (#3 album, January 2014) and Red Apples and Gold (#5 album, September 2012).

With a vocal blend oft-described as seamless, inspired guitar playing and precise percussion, Stuart, Hillary and Gerry evince deep roots in ‘60s folk-rock, with a healthy dash of traditional folk in the mix. Their stage chemistry makes clear that they take the music (if not themselves) very seriously, yet their infectious energy wins over even fans who never considered themselves folkies. To date, Gathering Time has had a record five juried showcases at NERFA (Tricentrics in 2009 and ’10, a Formal in 2011, a mini-NERFA showcase in 2013 and a Quad in 2015); they were one of the three Emerging Artists at Falcon Ridge Folk Festival in 2012 voted “Most Wanted” to return in 2013.

Whether a tribute show of ‘60s classics or a concert of (mostly) originals, a night with Gathering Time will make evident why they were voted one of “Long Island’s Best” by the Long Island Press.

“Gathering Time has harmonies that can charm the birds out of the trees, strong original songs, and a savvy repertoire of cover songs, ranging from traditional folk to classic rock. They appeal to audiences of all ages.” – John Platt, WFUV (NYC)

Event Details:  Gathering Sparks is the graceful collision of Eve Goldberg and Jane Lewis—musical friends who blend tight harmonies, finely crafted songs, and a love of participatory singing to create an intimate and uplifting experience.  Their inclusive approach embraces folk, pop, blues and gospel influences tastefully played on acoustic guitar, piano, accordion, and ukulele.  Find out more at http://gatheringsparks.com.

Show Time:  June 6, Doors 7:00 pm, Music 7:30 pm EST

Tickets: $17 with advance ticket purchase or reservation and $20 without an advance reservation

Location: Lansdowne Folk Club, 84 S. Lansdowne Avenue, Lansdowne, PA

Website: www.folkclub.org

PFS Presents Son of Town Hall

Friday, June 7, 2019
Doors 7:30pm | Music 8pm

Get your tickets here!

$12 for Members *While Supplies Last* | $15 Not-Yet-Members | $18 Doors

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF SON OF TOWN HALL

Join us for an evening of harmony, history, and hilarity as international duo Son of Town Hall sails into the port of Philadelphia to serenade us. Philly Folk Festival veterans and returning to the fest this summer, Son of Town Hall is unlike anything you’ve ever seen before. Expect angelic singing and a stage show that will leave you transformed with laughter and tears, drunk on adventure and a renewed faith in the human spirit.

The band was born when songwriters Ben Parker (London, England) and David Berkeley (Santa Fe, New Mexico) found themselves side by side aboard a junk raft (“The Son of Town Hall”) crossing the mighty Atlantic in search of new lands, new inspiration, and to recover squandered fortune. The two wrote songs upon the seas that are at once haunting and uplifting. They have sailed their ship back a century or so in their shabby Victorian duds, and their song and story cycle follows the pair across the open waters and from town to town as they travel the frontier bouncing from one failed endeavor to another. Though they fall for temptation and countless false promises, their belief in humanity and each other never flags. The performance is three parts concert, one part theater. You will sing and sway along.

Trust us. Get your tickets now.

“Purposely timeless yet anachronistic, a sort of aural steampunk” – Santa Fe New Mexican

“It’s part balladry, part performance art, and totally cool. … Think Simon & Garfunkel lost at sea, and you get a sense of the mythic world at play here.” – Philadelphia Inquirer

“Sensational!” – John Platt, WFUV

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO SON OF TOWN HALL ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT SON OF TOWN HALL

PFS Presents The Singing Out Tour 2019 with Crys Matthews and Heather Mae featuring JJ Jones and Joe Stevens

Saturday, June 8, 2019
Doors 7:30pm | Music 8pm

Get your tickets here!

$12 for Members *While Supplies Last* | $15 Not-Yet-Members | $18 Doors

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A HEATHER MAE MUSIC VIDEO

CLICK HERE TO WATCH CRYS MATTHEWS PERFORM AT THE KENNEDY CENTER

Ask any one about the new generation of social justice music-makers and they’ll mention either Heather Mae or Crys Matthews. Mae, a powerhouse performer and earthshaking vocalist, has turned her personal struggle with mental health and body image into an empowering message of self-love, a universal light force that shines for every audience member. Matthews is a powerful lyricist whose songs of compassionate dissent reflect her lived experience as what she lightheartedly calls “the poster-child for intersectionality”. These two singer-songwriters have joined forces with JJ Jones (Girlyman) and Joe Stevens (Coyote Grace) for The Singing OUT Tour. With Jones’s “kinetically charged” percussion and Stevens’s multi-instrumentalist brilliance, the music will be a powerful as their collective message — stand up and sing out.

HEATHER MAE

Heather Mae writes music for the light seekers and the good-troublemakers. Delivered via explosive vocals over high energy rhythm-heavy piano, her performances are an empowering, on-fire, musical experience that bursts in the chest of every audience member, moved to their core by her passion and message of self-love and social justice. Her 2016 debut album, I AM ENOUGH, reached #58 on iTunes Pop Album charts without the help of a record label and was an announcement to the world: Mae is the next generation of social justice music.

In September 2019 she is adding another title to her resume: mental health advocate. Mae has taken her personal struggle with Bipolar Disorder 2 and Depression and turned it into a record, entitled GLIMMER. With this new record and live show, Mae is a magnetic light force and every audience member is transformed with her anthemic message of hope.

CRYS MATTHEWS

2017 NewSong Music and Performance Competition grand prize winner Crys Matthews blends Americana, folk, jazz, blues, bluegrass and funk into a bold, complex performance steeped in traditional melodies and punctuated by honest, original lyrics. Her two newest releases, The Imagineers and an EP, Battle Hymn for an Army of Lovers showcase two sides of Matthews’ dynamic songwriting: The Imagineers is a selection of thoughtful songs about love and life; Battle Hymn for an Army of Lovers tackles social justice themes. Songs from both projects have already won her recognition and awards including: the opportunity to perform twice at Sundance Film Festival’s ASCAP Music Cafe in Park City, UT; the People Music Network’s Social Justice Songs contest at the 2017 Northeast Regional Folk Alliance; and an official showcase at Folk Alliance International 2018 to name a few.

Equally at home in an acoustic listening room as she is on stage at large music festivals, as well as a prolific lyricist and composer, Matthews has found inspiration in her surroundings; from driving through the Blue Ridge Mountains to the compelling and heart-breaking love story of Richard and Mildred Loving. Thoughtful, realistic and emotional, Matthews’ songs speak to the voice of our generation and remind us why music indeed soothes the soul.

JJ JONES

Sensitive and musical, dynamic and fluid, JJ often seems to be dancing on the drum set. Her constant comment from fans is: “I love to watch you play.” The Americana Gazette says: “JJ mesmerized us that night as she flew deftly across the spectrum of bass, snare and cymbals with impeccable skill. She’s simply one of the best drummers I’ve ever seen, one of the few who uses every percussive surface to maximum advantage.” JJ joined her first band while attending high school at the Seattle Academy of Arts. After graduating college with a neuroscience degree, her long-standing love of acoustic music eventually lead her to play with singer/songwriters and it was then that she started to be known for her signature style.

In 2010, she joined folk-pop band Girlyman and found true love. “When JJ joined the group,” Girlyman told their fans, “Our sound got bigger and closer to what we had all imagined it to be for years.” And in 2015, JJ graduated from Berklee College of Music’s drum performance program. She says, “In over 30 years of playing drums, I had never taken lessons or studied with a teacher. It was a whole piece I’d been missing as a musician, and I wanted to step-up my dedication to the instrument.” In addition to touring and recording, JJ gives private drum lessons via Skype to students all over the country, and volunteers at girls and ladies rock camps across the US, teaching, coaching, and facilitating workshops. She is also the Tech and Gear Review Editor for Tom Tom Magazine, the only magazine in the world dedicated to female drummers. She has written multiple articles on drumming technique, as well as reviews of drum gear and educational tools.

JOE STEVENS

California-born singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Joe Stevens is a third-generation professional musician in a long line of restless westward moving souls. He caught the songwriting bug at 15 and has been at it ever since. After starting out as a self-taught guitar player and songwriter, he received a Bachelor of Music from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, WA, and has been traveling with his music across the US and abroad. Between 2006 and 2012 Joe’s first band Coyote Grace released five well-loved albums and toured with the Indigo Girls, Melissa Ferrick, and Girlyman; sharing stages with Chris Pureka, Greensky Bluegrass, Reverend Payton’s Big Damn Band, and legends such as Cris Williamson and Lowen and Navarro.

Joe released his first solo album Last Man Standing in 2014, recorded in Seattle at Empty Sea Studios, co-produced with everything-man Michael Connolly. A dark past and keen insight gives weight to Joe’s words, sung in his signature smokey voice, telling the stories that make us who we are. Joe’s music rides the edge of the first wave of transgender performers to break through into the public consciousness. The social media explosion combined with shifting public opinion created the conditions that enabled trans and queer artists, a highly marginalized and isolated subculture, to connect and gain visibility. There is now a thriving community of trans and queer musicians, with new comers and folks who have been playing music all along, that is visible and growing in every corner of the world.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO HEATHER MAE ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT HEATHER MAE

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO CRYS MATTHEWS ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT CRYS MATTHEWS

PFS June Monthly Concert with Sarah MacDougall and Ben Kunder

Sunday, June 9, 2019
Doors 2:30pm | Music 3pm

Get your tickets here!

FREE for Members *While Supplies Last* | $10 Not-Yet-Members | $15 Doors

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

About Sarah MacDougall

Sarah MacDougall grew up in southern Sweden, surrounded by ocean, forest and farmland. She started playing the organ at 7, before picking up her mum’s old guitar from the attic at 11. Now Sarah splits her time between the Yukon and Ontario. With her strong songs, powerful guitar chops and a captivating voice she’s become a rising star on the Canadian folk music scene, collected multiple awards and played major Canadian and International festivals and shared the stage with artists like Cat Empire, Tallest Man on Earth and Passenger. She is known for her honest and poetic songs, passionate performances, and unique voice. 24 hrs Vancouver called her “one of the most promising exports out of Sweden since ABBA.” Her most recent release, ‘All The Hours I Have Left To Tell You Anything’, is a record about strength, identity, death, the breakdown of relationships, birth, and the ghosts we honor and carry throughout. It is Sarah’s fourth record. It was written in the midst of the death of her grandparents, the birth of her niece, and a break-up. The nine songs are influenced by the vastness of the Yukon landscape and the dark beauty of Scandinavia.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF SARAH MACDOUGALL

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO SARAH MACDOUGALL ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT SARAH MACDOUGALL

About Ben Kunder

Expertly navigating that rarefied space between elegiac folk and accessible pop, Toronto-based singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Ben Kunder has emerged as one of the most electrifying musicians on the indie scene and a sought-after live performer. Kunder’s dazzling sophomore album “Better Human”, released in 2018, is poised to dominate this next year. His third full length album is already in motion with studio days logged and plans to release new recordings in 2019.

Real life anchors most of “Better Human”, the record exploring compelling themes like the birth of a child, the struggle for life balance, the workday reality propping up our outward façade, largely illuminating the human struggle to navigate through the world while sharing darkness in order to see the light.

Produced alongside Aaron Goldstein at Baldwin Street Sound, guests include Oh Susanna, Jim Guthrie, Paper Bird/Bahamas singer Carleigh Aikins, Sarah MacDougall, Ladies of the Canyon’s Maia Davies and Anna Ruddick, Arkells drummer Tim Oxford, keyboardist Anthony Carone, violinist Drew Jurecka, and Wintersleep drummer Loel Campbell, among others. Propelled variously by strings, pedal steel, keyboards, percussion, guitar, bass, and those spectacular before-mentioned voices renders small moments in precise detail, making his songs both accessible and, occasionally, downright palpable.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF BEN KUNDER

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO BEN KUNDER ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT BEN KUNDER

**Ticketing Policy**

The Philadelphia Folksong Society is proud to offer its’ members one or two free tickets (depending on membership level) to our selected Monthly Member Concert and Monthly House Concert every month. Due to the large number of members and limited seating, we ask that members reserve tickets when they know they can attend. If a member has reserved a ticket and cannot make it to the member concert of their choosing, they must contact the PFS office by phone or email prior to the event to cancel. Failure to do so will result in an inability to reserve your free member ticket to the following member concert.

If you arrive at a PFS member concert and have not reserved a ticket, you will only be seated ten minutes before show time if seats are still available.

If a member concert is listed as “sold out,” please contact Katie Kresz at kkresz@pfs.org to secure your spot atop the waitlist. You will be notified prior to the concert if seats become available.

PFS asks that all members show respect to their fellow members and the Society through following this policy.

PMC Presents: Stevie and the Bluescasters  and Norman Taylor

Friday, June 14, 2019
Doors 7:00pm | Music 7:30pm

Get your tickets here!

$10 for Members Advance | $12 Not-Yet-Members Advance | $15 Doors | Kids 12 and under $5

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

About Stevie and the Bluescasters
Stevie and the Bluescasters is an acoustic three-piece blues band from Philadelphia specializing in unique arrangements of Chicago, Delta, Piedmont, Texas, pre-war and country blues as well as old Gospel, old Country and a half-pint of R&B.

PMC Presents: Jackson Pines and Mike Frazier

Friday, June 21, 2019
Doors 7:30pm | Music 8:00pm

Get your tickets here!

$10 for Members Advance | $12 Not-Yet-Members Advance | $15 Doors | Kids 12 and under $5

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

About Jackson Pines

“[A] duo from Jersey — Jackson, to be specific, nestled in the pine barrens — core members Joe Makoviecki (vocals, guitar) and James Black (bass) teamed up with some heavy-hitting friends for their debut LP Purgatory Road, which came out on February 8th. Simone Felice produced the record in his Sugar Mountain Studio in Palenville, NY and played drums; James Felice contributed piano and organ throughout the set as well. As such, the record is an expert set of indie folk, drawing on the melodies and arrangements of bluegrass and mountain music but incorporating it tastefully into Makoviecki’s songs, which are very much of the now.” – John Vettese, WXPN, The Key

About Mike Frazier

Mike Frazier is a lyric-spinning Virginian who blends Americana, folk and rock n roll music to tell tales of life in the Shenandoah Valley. He released his debut LP “Elegy” on AF Records and is slated to release his sophomore LP on Geneva Records in May of 2019. He’s spent the last few years touring relentlessly across the US and has supported artists like Amigo The Devil and Gallows Bound.

PFS Presents Oshima Brothers and Rainbow Girls

Sunday, June 23, 2019
Doors 7pm | Music 7:30pm

Get your tickets here!

$8 for Members *While Supplies Last* | $11 Not-Yet-Members | $15 Doors

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

About Oshima Brothers

Oshima Brothers’ magnetic sibling sound and contagious joy result from a lifetime of making music together. Raised in a musical family in rural Maine, the brothers have honed a harmony-rich blend of contemporary folk and acoustic pop. On stage, Sean and Jamie create a surprisingly full sound with dynamic vocals, electric and acoustic guitars, octave bass, loops, and percussion. Their debut album, “Oshima Brothers,” released in 2016, is a collection of 11 original songs written by Sean, and arranged and recorded by Jamie. The brothers live in Maine but are often on the road performing, producing music videos, and dancing.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF OSHIMA BROTHERS

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO OSHIMA BROTHERS ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT OSHIMA BROTHERS

About Rainbow Girls

Rainbow Girls are an eclectic folk trio hailing from the golden countryside just north of California’s Bay Area. Comprised of three unique musical talents – Vanessa May, Erin Chapin, and Caitlin Gowdey – they seamlessly combine soul-touching harmonies, vari-textured instrumentals, and poignant lyrical content into an unusually beautiful sonic tapestry. Pairing their voices with an ever-changing amalgamation of acoustic and slide guitar, keys, upright bass, voice, harmonica, and an array of more unexpected vocal techniques like beat-boxing and mouth trumpet, they create engaging and emotionally moving live performances.

Their music delves deeply into themes of the human experience: hopeful love, honest self-reflection, and pursuits of social justice. Their latest album, “American Dream,” crystallizes these ideas in acoustic amber, encapsulating a beautiful new direction for their evolving sound.

Originally formed in Santa Barbara, CA in 2010, the Rainbow Girls have spread their musical wings both internationally and domestically, from busking on the streets of Europe to playing pubs and theaters in the UK, to house concerts, festivals, and shows in the US. Rainbow Girls have also gained recognition on NPR’s Tiny Desk concert series and KQED’s “The California Report.”

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF RAINBOW GIRLS

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO RAINBOW GIRLS ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT RAINBOW GIRLS

You’re invited to…

MONTHLY YIDDISH DANCE GROOVE with Steve Weintraub- Yiddish Dance Master!

Are you ready to party?

Be part of the ongoing cultivation of a lively Yiddish Dance scene!

Gain confidence and competence in a wide variety of dances to klezmer music as we learn and enjoy dances in groups, couples, squares, and solo in a cozy environment. Two or three dances will be taught each night, and the rest of the evening will be given over to enjoying dances led by top experts in the form. Dances will be set to live music by some the region’s best klezmer musicians with occasional surprise visiting artists.

All are welcome! Recommended for ages 12+.

***

Tuesday, February 26
Tuesday, March 26
Tuesday, April 23
Tuesday, May 28
Tuesday, June 25

7pm Doors | 7:30pm Dancing

PFS Members / Veterans / Students with valid ID: $10

Not-Yet-Members: $15

Find ride shares, Facebook events, and lively discussion in the Monthly Yiddish Dance Groove @PFS Facebook group!

***

ABOUT STEVE WEINTRAUB

Steve is a teacher, choreographer, and performer of Jewish dance, particularly Yiddish dance, the dance to klezmer music.

Born on Governor’s Island, Bar Mitzvahed in the Bronx, and living now in Philadelphia, Steven Lee Weintraub received his dance training in Manhattan with Alvin Ailey and Erick Hawkins, among others. He is in international demand as a teacher of traditional Yiddish dance at festivals and workshops including Klezkamp, Klezkanada, and festivals in Krakow, Furth, Paris and London to name a few. Steven delights in introducing people to the figures, steps and stylings of the dances that belong to Klezmer music. He has often been called the “Pied Piper of Yiddish Dance”; his years of experience leading and researching Yiddish dance allow him to quickly weave dancers and music together in astonishing ways. Young and old, from all backgrounds, find it easy to share in the joy of Yiddish dancing.

PMC Presents: The Cornerstones CD Release and Kicking Down Doors

Saturday, June 29, 2019
Doors 7:00pm | Music 7:30pm

Get your tickets here!

$10 for Members Advance | $12 Not-Yet-Members Advance | $15 Doors | Kids 12 and under $5

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

The Cornerstones are a trio of musicians local to the Philadelphia, PA region, each different musical artists in their own way, but together create a new sound of acoustic roots music. Will Paynter and Jay Popky are the founding members of Sonoma Sound, but also play with many other bands and musicians. Stacy Weathers plays in multiple bands and is a well-known banjo player in the Philly area. Both Jay and Stacy are familiar to the Philadelphia Folksong Society and Philadelphia Folk Festival. The band released their debut CD, “Three By Three” in August 2018!

Kicking Down Doors (KDD) hails from Philadelphia and is a multicultural roots/rocker, soul and folk group and its sound is influenced by the diversity of its members and their musical backgrounds. Together with the group’s instrumentation and arrangements led by Ernie Tokay and the vocal stylings of lyricist Autumn Walden, KDD has been leaving patrons in venues wanting more at every listen. The band’s songbook of original tunes range from rock to easy listening, to energetic dance/groove to blues, country and folk and is ripe with simple introspective, memorable and relatable poetic lyrics penned by Walden, that are poignant, captivating, and in the moment reflective. Kicking Down Doors has recently released a collection of 10 original songs on its new CD – NOW, a mélange of music that takes you with them on their evolutionary ride that defines the Kicking Down Doors sound.

PMC Presents: Marion Halliday & Trickster Sister CD Release with Meghan Cary & Analog Gypsies

Saturday, July 13, 2019
Doors 7:00pm | Music 7:30pm

$10 for Members Advance | $12 Not-Yet-Members Advance | $15 Doors | Kids 12 and under $5

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

MARION HALLIDAY, a native Kentuckian, moved to Philadelphia full-time in 2013. Along with her band, Trickster Sister, Marion is proud purveyor of her own special blend of bluegrass and bourbon-infused Americana. She has found great inspiration in her new home-town, writing a range of songs that touch on Philly’s rich history. She has also written on more universal topics such as domestic abuse, gun violence, suicide, and the scourge of addiction ravaging our country. Much to the dismay of her young adult children, too, Marion’s music includes amusing reflections on relationships, as well as an abiding love of bourbon. A seasoned veteran singer-performer with a background in Celtic music (Marion was lead singer in Kentucky-based Celtic band My Darling Asleep as well as a member of Philly -based Molly Blooms), in late 2017 Marion released her debut EP of original music with her band Trickster Sister, ‘Walking in Tall Grass’, Several tracks from this debut album received airplay on a number of folk radio channels across the Northeast. Building on this EP release in 2017, in January 2018 Marion was named “One of the Ones to Watch” by NSAI for her songwriting; then in November, she appeared in the highly regarded NERFA Folk DJ Radio Showcase (nominated by WFDU host Ron Olesko). Most recently, in December, she was named runner-up for 2018 Best of Philly Live Performer (Folk/Country Category). Marion’s newest full-length CD exemplifies the range of her songwriting and will draw in the listener through her insightful story-telling, lush lyrics, and instrumentation.

Meghan Cary and Analog Gypsies
Winning over audiences from the fields of Philly Folk Fest to NYC’s infamous Bleecker Street, Meghan Cary with Analog Gypsies is equal parts folk, rock, gypsy jazz and jam band playing award-winning original tunes ranging from lean-in-and-listen ballads to get-up-and-shake-your-booty jams. At the core of the band are Meghan Cary and Peter Farrell. The Keyboard and guitar duo lays down a big musical footprint with cool grooves and tight vocal harmonies. Add to that the unique bass musings of Jocko MacNelly, the rhythmic melodies of drummer Quint Lange, the not-your-typical-bluegrass banjo playing and vocal harmony of Stacy Weathers, and the soulful and rhythmic harp and flute lines of Bob Beach, and you have the Meghan Cary with Analog Gypsies experience: an evening of great tunes, fun stories, singing in your seat, and dancing in the aisles. As one critic exclaims: “You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll beg for more!” (Critic’s Pick – The News and Observer)

PFS Presents Low Down Brass Band

Sunday, July 14, 2019
Doors 7pm | Music 7:30pm

Get your tickets here!

$10 for Members *While Supplies Last* | $12 Not-Yet-Members | $15 Doors

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF LOW DOWN BRASS BAND

About Low Down Brass Band

LowDown Brass Band (LDB), deftly synthesizes the gritty sounds of Chicago with the high energy street beat of the Crescent City. LDB brandishes a powerful brass frontline of trumpets, trombones, saxophones, with a funky backline of drums and sousaphone. Combining the poetic ferocity of Billa Camp with stellar vocal harmonies, adventurous improvisation, movement, and grooves, LDB creates an infectious and diverse sound that has something for every listener.​

Fresh off their headlining set at The 2018 Montreal Jazz Festival, LowDown maintains a constant performing and touring schedule throughout North America. Recent performances include the Lagunitas Beer Circus, Chicago Jazz Fest, Frendly Gathering, Alaska’s Salmon Fest, Chicago’s Do-Division Fest, Wakarusa, Cotai Jazz Fest, and a annual residency at Shoe Fest.

​Following an ambitious project titled LowDown Sounds, that included a critically acclaimed cameo by Roy Ayers on the track Everybody Loves The Sunshine, LowDown Brass Band is now touring their 2018 hip hop release titled LowDown Breaks featuring MC Billa Camp. This new record steps deeper into refining their unique sound, combining hip hop breaks with live soul samples and deep cut grooves.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO LOW DOWN BRASS BAND ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT LOW DOWN BRASS BAND

PFS Presents Melanie Brulée

Saturday, July 20, 2019
Doors 7:30pm | Music 8pm

Get your tickets here!

$10 for Members *While Supplies Last* | $12 Not-Yet-Members | $15 Doors

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF MELANIE BRULEE

About Melanie Brulée

Born in Cornwall Ontario to bilingual parents, Toronto-based Melanie Brulée interweaves her native language into her art like she crisscrosses musical genres: with ease. From the first listen, you can hear how her years living in Australia and France have influenced her style and sound. The first offering rich surf-style guitar tones and catchy hooks and the latter blurring the lines between audience and performer, like a speakeasy cabaret. What most might call Americana, folk-rock or country music, Melanie colours with her own distinctive essence, bringing a vintage respect to a modern sound. Seeing her ease onstage, it’s clear that’s where she feels most at home, quickly winning over audiences with her charisma.

Melanie’s striking stage presence, unique vocal stylings and expressive confidence have opened several doors for her since the release of her French album Débridée (2015), giving her the chance to build a solid team including management, booking, distribution and publishing. Critically acclaimed by media in Québec as well as across Canada, the album earned Melanie a Stingray Music Rising Star Award as well as three Trille Or nominations at Canada’s largest recognition of excellence in the arts outside of Québec. Melanie was featured on the official Ontario 150 anthem ‘A Place to Stand’ which was highly distributed across the province during 2017.

Her singles have been on regular rotation on CBC, Radio-Canada as well as Sirius XM satellite in Canada and the USA, allowing her to build a following and tour the continent playing near 100 shows per year. Most recent highlights include opening for Kathleen Edwards, Whitehorse and Amanda Marshall as well as performances at renowned festivals such as Mariposa Folk Fest, Luminato, Francofolies, Montreal Folk on the Canal and multiple performances at Yonge-Dundas Square. Most recently, Melanie has been spending significant time honing her craft as a songwriter in Nashville with some of Music City’s finest in preparation for her upcoming 2018 release.

The success of Débridée opened another unexpected door, allowing her to begin a conversation about mental health with her audience. She began running workshops on self-confidence with students across North America, encouraging young people to talk about their fears and anxieties, offering tips and tricks on dealing with depression, and sharing her story as a suicide loss survivor. “After my father’s passing, I remember being so angry. The truth is that without being able to express myself through songwriting, I’d be an absolute mess. Sharing my story with others has helped me get through the pain and loss and I hope that I can offer the same refuge to others through music and open conversation.” Melanie’s third full-length album Fires, Floods & Things We Leave Behind further explores themes of family, loss and addiction and was released October 2018.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO MELANIE BRULEE ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT MELANIE BRULEE

PFS July Monthly Concert with Amanda Rheaume

Saturday, July 27, 2019
Doors 7:30pm | Music 8pm

Get your tickets here!

FREE for Members *While Supplies Last* | $10 Not-Yet-Members | $15 Doors

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

CLICK HERE TO WATCH A VIDEO OF AMANDA RHEAUME

About Amanda Rheaume

The fifth album from Ottawa-raised, Toronto-based singer/songwriter Amanda Rheaume, The Skin I’m In presents a compellingly portrait of an artist fully comfortable in her own skin, personally and musically.

Produced by Colin Cripps (Blue Rodeo, Junkhouse) at The Tragically Hip’s famed Bathouse Studio, it sports a full-blooded band sound, thanks to the contributions of an A-list musical supporting cast.

Rheaume’s supple and expressive vocals fit neatly in the centre of the sonic landscape, while her eloquent and well-crafted songs were written with such noted collaborators as Jason Blaine, Melanie Brulée, Jim Bryson, Justin Glasco, and Tim Bovaconti.

One of Rheaume’s great gifts as a songwriter is her ability to take the personal and make it universal, drawing upon her own experience to deliver messages with a wide resonance. She digs deep on The Skin I’m In, reflecting upon her Metis heritage, as on the profoundly moving title track and “Return To The Water,” and addressing issues of identity and mental health.

Her earlier albums met with widespread critical acclaim. 2013’s Keep A Fireearned her a 2014 Canadian Folk Music Award for Aboriginal Songwriter of The Year as well as a Juno Award nomination for Aboriginal Album of the Year, while 2016’s Holding Patterns received a Canadian Folk Music Awards nomination.

An engaging performer, Rheaume has developed a following across Canada and in Europe, where she tours regularly.

She has long employed her music as a force for good, as shown by three trips to Afghanistan to perform for Canadian military personnel, plus visits to the Alert base in Canada’s far north and the troubled Indigenous community of Attawapiskat.

Rheaume co-founded Babes4Breasts, an initiative that, through concerts and recording projects, raised money for breast cancer charities across Canada over a 10-year period.

This is an artist with a heart as big as her talent.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO AMANDA RHEAUME ON SPOTIFY

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT AMANDA RHEAUME

**Ticketing Policy**

The Philadelphia Folksong Society is proud to offer its’ members one or two free tickets (depending on membership level) to our selected Monthly Member Concert and Monthly House Concert every month. Due to the large number of members and limited seating, we ask that members reserve tickets when they know they can attend. If a member has reserved a ticket and cannot make it to the member concert of their choosing, they must contact the PFS office by phone or email prior to the event to cancel. Failure to do so will result in an inability to reserve your free member ticket to the following member concert.

If you arrive at a PFS member concert and have not reserved a ticket, you will only be seated ten minutes before show time if seats are still available.

If a member concert is listed as “sold out,” please contact Katie Kresz at kkresz@pfs.org to secure your spot atop the waitlist. You will be notified prior to the concert if seats become available.

PFS asks that all members show respect to their fellow members and the Society through following this policy.