Singer-Songwriter Toby Tobias — who co- hosts the NorthShore Original Open Mic (NOOM) in Huntington, NY three Wednesdays each month — will host an open mic, while his co-host Richard Parr handles sound. Terry Seidl, also a Long Island-based artist, leads a song circle.

Among the short breakout sessions during the Acoustic Music Community Gathering will be Getting the Word Out: A Primer (presented by Michael Kornfeld), a Partial Capo Workshop for Guitarists (led by Hank Stone), a Performance Skills Workshop (presented by Carolann Solebello), and a Sea Chantey Sing (led by Stuart Markus).

Although refreshments will be provided as part of the price of admission ($15 in advance via PayPal; $20 at the door — cash and checks only), meals are intentionally not included so as to keep costs low. Folks are welcome to bring their own lunch if so desired, while many attendees are apt to go out for dinner afterwards.

To save money and provide organizers with an idea of how many people to prepare for, please consider purchasing your ticket in advance online via PayPal by taking a photo/scan of the QR code in the graphic image that accompanies this article. You can also purchase tickets via the link below:

https://www.paypal.com/ncp/payment/8B3PQTPRV4UDA

Getting There: The Ethical Humanist Society of Long Island is easily accessible by car and train. There’s a free, paved parking lot on-site, while the Long Island Rail Road’s Mineola station is about half a mile away.

Here is the afternoon’s schedule (subject to change):

1 p.m.- Welcoming remarks (MK), Introductions of key participants (that’s you), meet & greets

1:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.- Open Mic hosted by Toby Tobias

2:00 p.m.- Sea Chantey Sing (Stuart Markus)

2:45 p.m.- Partial Capo Workshop (Hank Stone)

3:45 p.m – 5:45 p.m. – Song Circle hosted by Terry Seidl

3:30 p.m.- Personalized Performance Skills Workshop (Carolann Solebello)

4:15 p.m – Getting the Word Out: A Primer (Michael Kornfeld)

5:00 p.m.- Possible repeat of one of the above

5:45 p.m. -Closing Remarks + Participatory Song

About the Co-Presenters:

AcousticMusicScene.com is an online publication that has been providing news and information for the folk, roots and singer-songwriter communities since January 2007. Michael Kornfeld, a PR and communications strategist who founded AcousticMusicScene.com as a labor of love, also has hosted artist showcases and song swaps at music conferences and festivals under its banner.

Folk Music Society of Huntington (FMSH.org) is a volunteer-led nonprofit organization that was founded in the late 1960s. It co-presents the monthly Hard Luck Cafe concert series and the thrice-monthly North Shore Original Open Mic (NOOM) with the Cinema Arts Centre in Huntington, NY on Wednesday nights in its Sky Room, as well as a folk jam & sing-along one Sunday a month at the South Huntington Public Library.

The Our Times Coffeehouse (ourtimescoffeehouse.org) was established by the Ethical Humanist Society of Long Island in March 1990 as a venue for live folk music. Following a three- year hiatus, the volunteer-run monthly concert series resumed in May and continues on the first Friday of each month featuring local, regional and nationally touring artists preceded by an open mic.

Hailed as “the songwriter laureate of modern city folk,” (The Boston Globe), Lucy Kaplansky is a New York City-based contemporary folk singer-songwriter with a luminous voice whose recordings have frequently topped the folk and Americana radio charts. Among the most respected and covered touring songwriters on the folk scene, Massachusetts-based Cliff Eberhardt, like Kaplansky, cut his musical teeth playing NYC clubs centered around Greenwich Village during the folk/songwriter renaissance of the 1980s. When not doing their own thing, Kaplansky and Eberhardt have been part of an On a Winter’s Night tour that also features John Gorka and Patty Larkin.

Prior to the evening concert on the park’s [Harry] Chapin Rainbow Stage, Michael Kornfeld, president of the Folk Music Society of Huntington and editor & publisher of AcousticMusicScene.com, conducts an on-stage conversational interview with the evening’s featured artists at 7:15 p.m. He also emcees a series of amplified song swaps from 1:30-4 p.m. near a canopy tent on the upper lawn area overlooking the stage and from 4-6 p.m. on-stage. These will be preceded by an hour-long open mic hosted by singer-songwriter Toby Tobias, who co-hosts the NorthShore Original Open Mic (NOOM) that is co-presented by FMSH and the Cinema Arts Centre in the Cinema’s Sky Room on three Wednesday nights each month, while FMSH’s monthly Hard Luck Café concert series takes place on the third Wednesday.

Artists slated to showcase their talents during the afternoon include (in alphabetical order by last name): Josie Bello, Suzanne Ernst, Roger Street Friedman, Rorie Kelly, Ray Lambiase, Bill Lauter, Mara Levine, The Levins, Annie Mark, Stuart Markus, Catherine Miles & Jay Mafale, Louise Mosrie, Mark Newman, Nico Padden, Carolann Solebello, Hank Stone, Christine Sweeney, and Toby Tobias.

The complete schedule for the Huntington Folk Festival appears below:

1:30 Huntington’s Own: Josie Bello, Suzanne Ernst, Ray Lambiase

2:00 LI Guys: Hank Stone and Bob Westcott

2:30 LI Gals: Rorie Kelly, Nico Padden, Christine Sweeney

3:00 Huntington’s Own II: Bill Lauter, Annie Mark, Mark Newman

4:00 A Pair of Duos: The Levins and Catherine Miles & Jay Mafale

4:30 Let’s Hear It for the Guys: Roger Street Friedman and Toby Tobias

5:00 Classic Folk Covers: Mara Levine and Stuart Markus

5:30 Women of Note: Louise Mosrie Coombe and Carolann Solebello

6:00 Dinner Break

7:15 A Conversation with Cliff Eberhardt and Lucy Kaplansky

8:00 Evening Concert: Cliff Eberhardt and Lucy Kaplansky

Festivalgoers are advised to bring lawn chairs and blankets and a picnic supper (or they can walk into Huntington Village and enjoy a meal at one of its many restaurants).

The Huntington Summer Arts Festival is produced by the Town of Huntington and presented by the Huntington Arts Council. Additional support is provided by Presenting Sponsor Canon U.S.A., with partial funding from the New York State Council on the Arts and the Suffolk County Department of Economic Development and Planning.

Prior to the evening concert on the park’s [Harry] Chapin Rainbow Stage, Michael Kornfeld, president of the Folk Music Society of Huntington and editor & publisher of AcousticMusicScene.com , conducts an on-stage conversational interview with the evening’s featured artists at 7:15 p.m. He also hosts a series of amplified showcases and song swaps from 2-5 p.m. near a canopy tent on the upper lawn area overlooking the stage. These will be preceded by an hour-long open mic hosted by singer-songwriter Toby Tobias, who runs the NorthShore Original Open Mic (NOOM), an Acoustic Ally of FMSH, from 12-1 p.m. and Remembering Lois Morton: A Musical Tribute from 1-2 p.m.

From 1-2 p.m, a number of artists will perform and share their reflections on Lois Morton, the late Huntington-based singer-songwriter who delighted audiences throughout the New York metropolitan area and beyond for years with her abundant charm and humorous songs of social commentary on such subjects as cell phones, clutter, diets, psychotherapy, and road rage. Participants in this tribute will include Josie Bello, Kirsten Maxwell, Larry Moser, Richard Parr, Glen Roethel, Dave Anthony Setteducati, Linda Sussman, and others. Here’s a link to a remembrance piece about Lois Morton: https://acousticmusicscene.com/2020/12/20/lois-morton-a-witty-singer-songwriter-1933-2020/.

The complete schedule for the Huntington Folk Festival appears below:

12:00 Open Mic
1:00 Remembering Lois Morton: A Musical Tribute (performances and reflections by Josie Bello, Kirsten Maxwell, Larry Moser, Richard Parr, Glen Roethel, Dave Anthony Setteducati, Linda Sussman, and others)
2:00 Song Swap: Hank Stone and Bob Westcott
2:30 Us!
2:45 Drew Velting
3:00 Christine Sweeney
3:15 Brett Altman
3:30 Allison Leah
3:45 Sea Chanteys: The Royal Yard and Alan Short
4:15 Catherine Miles & Jay Mafale
4:30 The Levins
4:45 Scott Wolfson & Other Heroes
5:00 Dinner Break
7:15 On-Stage Conversation with Paula Cole and Sophie B. Hawkins
8:00 Evening Concert on the Chapin Rainbow Stage: Paula Cole & Sophie B. Hawkins

Festivalgoers are advised to bring lawn chairs and blankets and a picnic supper (or they can walk into Huntington Village and enjoy a meal at one of its many restaurants).

Although the Huntington Folk Festival is free, attendees are asked to bring donations of nonperishable food to support Long Island Cares, Inc., the regional food bank founded by Harry Chapin. July 16 marks the 41st anniversary of the late Huntington-based singer-songwriter, social activist and humanitarian’s tragic death on the Long Island Expressway, while this year is the 50th anniversary of the release of Chapin’s breakout hit, “Taxi.”

The Huntington Summer Arts Festival is produced by the Town of Huntington and presented by the Huntington Arts Council. Additional support is provided by Presenting Sponsor Canon U.S.A., with partial funding from the New York State Council on the Arts and the Suffolk County Department of Economic Development and Planning.

The show can be viewed online at Harbortown Music’s Facebook page or YouTube channel. It may also be shared via the AcousticMusicScene.com group on Facebook. Although there is no set fee to view the livestream, tips for the artists would be most appreciated (suggested donation: $20) and may be made via paypalme.com/harbortownmusic.

About the Artists:

One of the most acclaimed voices in contemporary folk music, Amy Speace was discovered in 2006 by Judy Collins and signed to her record label. The Americana Music Association UK named the title track of her album Me and the Ghost of Charlemagne was named International Song of the Year in 2020. Speace’s latest release, 2021’s There Used To Be Horses Here. chronicles the year between the birth of her son and the death of her father. A new album, Tucson, is set for release this year. Collins, Red Molly, and Blues Hall of Famer Sid Selvidge among others, have also recorded her songs. Speace founded the East Nashville Song Salon in 2010 and teaches songwriting and performance at conferences, institutions, and privately. For more information, visit amyspeace.com.

Accompanying herself on piano, Kate Klim, whose songs mix her folk and pop sensibilities, was a winner of the prestigious Kerrville New Folk Competition in 2010, has been part of the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival Emerging Artist Showcase, and has been a finalist in the Mountain Stage Newsong Contest, the Mid-Atlantic Song Contest and the Telluride Troubadour Competition, among others. After a hiatus of a few years surrounding the birth of her two sons, she returned to the studio in early spring 2020 to begin recording her fourth album. Released earlier this month, Something Green is an album about hope, love, change, and new growth. For more information and to listen to some of her songs, visit kateklim.com.

Both artists also have YouTube channels. Here’s a link to view an official video of Amy Speace performing the title track of There Used To Be Horses There. And here’s a link to view the official lyric video for “Something Green,” the title track of Kate Klim’s new release.

About Your Hosts:

Michael Kornfeld, a veteran strategic communications and public relations professional – whose clients have included a number of independent recording artists and labels – launched AcousticMusicScene.com in 2007 to provide news, information and commentary for the folk, roots and singer-songwriter communities. The longtime president of the Folk Music Society of Huntington, a nonprofit presenting organization on Long Island, NY, Kornfeld also serves on the boards of Folk Alliance International and NERFA, curates the annual Huntington Folk Festival, emcees concerts, and hosts showcases and mentors artists at various music conferences and festivals.

Kathy Sands-Boehmer is an enthusiastic and tireless presenter, promoter and supporter of independent musicians. For years, she booked and promoted artists, new and old, at a well-respected 225-seat venue north of Boston, Massachusetts; was an active leader of the Boston Area Coffeehouse Association (BACHA); and has also mentored and managed artists. She blogs about all kinds of great music for Everything Sundry and recently launched Harbortown Music as a resource for musicians and venues — building community, while promoting and presenting high-quality music. Sands-Boehmer works with Stephen Bach of The Digital Docs, who engineers all of Harbortown Music’s virtual shows and lends his technical expertise to the participating artists as well.

About the Artists:

Hailing from the countryside of rural Ontario, Benjamin Dakota Rogers is a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist channels his penchant for starry nights and nostalgia into a stylized, hard-driving and powerful Americana sound full of heartbreak and grit featuring guitar, banjo, upright bass, and fiddle. He has released three full-length solo recordings, showcased his talents at the Philadelphia Folk Festival, among others, and has been a four-time international songwriting competition winner and a two-time Canadian Folk Music Awards nominee.

Here’s a link to view a few of Benjamin’s videos: benjamindakotarogers.com/videos.

Angela Saini is a Canadian prairie-raised, Toronto- based folk-pop Americana artist with a positive and uplifting outlook on life. She is all about second chances and empowering others. A 2020 Independent Music Award Nominee and 2017 Toronto Independent Music Award winner, she uplifts and inspires audiences with sing-alongs and storytelling about courage and finding joy in surprising places. Angela has five Canadian tours under her belt, as well as several treks across Germany, The Netherlands and the UK. Best known for her sunshine-soaked song “Living on the Bright Side,” she has showcased her talents at the Philadelphia Folk Festival and at a number of Canadian music festivals. Her ability to combine humanistic and honest themes laden with catchy hooks and memorable melodies make her entertaining as well as relatable.

Here’s a link to view a few of Angela’s videos: angelasaini.com/videos.

The Young Novelists create contemporary folk songs that marry effortless harmonies with darkly poetic lyrics, exquisitely crafted hooks, and the unique sound of bowed glockenspiel. The award-winning Toronto-based husband-and-wife folk-roots duo of Graydon James and Laura Spink share a passion for confessional storytelling and sing songs about small towns, redemption, love and loss. The duo has toured across Canada, the U.S. and Europe and has released three studio albums and a live recording. In 2015, The Young Novelists were named New/Emerging Artist of the Year in the Canadian Folk Music Awards and took first place in the Grassy Hill-CT Folk Songwriting Competition during the 10th annual Connecticut Folk Festival, while James won the Ontario Arts Council’s Colleen Peterson Songwriting Award for “Couldn’t Be Any Worse.” The duo has also played coveted juried official showcases during the Folk Alliance International conference and those of its northeast and southeast regional affiliates (NERFA and SERFA).

To view a few videos, visit youngnovelists.com/videos.

About Your Hosts:

The livestream marks a renewed partnership of sorts for Michael Kornfeld and Kathy Sands-Boehmer, who served as president and vice president, respectively, of the Northeast Regional Folk Alliance (NERFA) for several years and also co-coordinated one-day conferences and a series of showcases. Kornfeld, a veteran strategic communications and public relations professional – whose clients have included a number of independent recording artists and labels – launched AcousticMusicScene.com in 2007 to provide news, information and commentary for the folk, roots and singer-songwriter communities. The longtime president of the Folk Music Society of Huntington, a nonprofit presenting organization on Long Island, NY, Kornfeld also serves on the board of Folk Alliance International, curates the annual Huntington Folk Festival, and hosts showcases at various music conferences and festivals. Sands-Boehmer, who served as the booking and publicity manager for Me & Thee Coffeehouse in Marblehead, MA for many years, was an active leader in the Boston Area Coffeehouse Association (BACHA), and has also served as an artist manager, recently launched Harbortown Music as a resource for musicians and venues — building community, while promoting and presenting high-quality music. She works with Stephen Bach of The Digital Docs, who engineers all of Harbortown Music’s virtual shows and lends his technical expertise to the participating artists as well.

Quarter Horse is a six-member ensemble that was voted the Most Wanted to Return Emerging Artists at the 2018 Falcon Ridge Folk Festival. Elements of folk, rock, alternative, country, blues, and jazz are all part of its Americana sound.

Prior to the evening concert, Michael Kornfeld, president of the Folk Music Society of Huntington and editor & publisher of AcousticMusicScene.com, will conduct an on-stage conversational interview with the evening’s featured & opening artists at 7:30 p.m. He also hosts a series of amplified showcases and a harmony workshop (presented by The Honey Dewdrops) from 1-6 p.m. These will take place near a canopy tent on the upper lawn area overlooking the stage and will feature artists from throughout LI and the New York metropolitan area.

Artists slated to showcase their talents during the afternoon include Josie Bello, Roger Street Friedman, Loretta Hagen, Ray Lambiase, The Levins, Catherine Miles & Jay Mafale, Kate Mills, Dave Murphy, Open Book, Nico Padden, Queler/Farber Family Band, The Royal Yard, Rachael Sage, South Country String Band, Christine Sweeney, and Toby Tobias.

The complete schedule for the Huntington Folk Festival appears below:

1:00 Ray Lambiase
1:15: Song Swap: Rorie Kelly, Nico Padden & Christine Sweeney
2:00 South Country String Band
2:15 Josie Bello
2:30 Roger Street Friedman
2:45 The Royal Yard (sea shanty duo)
3:00 Dave Murphy
3:15 Loretta Hagen
3:30 Kate Mills
3:45 Open Book
4:00 Harmony Workshop with The Honey Dewdrops
4:45 Catherine Miles & Jay Mafale
5:00 The Levins
5:15 Queler/Farber Family Band
5:30 Toby Tobias
5:45 Rachael Sage
6:00 Dinner Break
7:30 On-Stage Conversation with Quarter Horse and The Honey Dewdrops
8:00 Evening Concert on the Chapin Rainbow Stage

Festivalgoers are advised to bring lawn chairs and blankets and a picnic supper (or they can walk into Huntington Village and enjoy a meal at one of its many restaurants). The festival’s evening concert will also be livestreamed via the Huntington Arts Council’s Facebook page and its website (huntingtonarts.org).

The Huntington Summer Arts Festival is produced by the Town of Huntington and presented by the Huntington Arts Council. Additional support is provided by Presenting Sponsor Canon U.S.A., with partial funding from the New York State Council on the Arts, Suffolk County, and Darin. W. Reed – Allstate Insurance Agent. The Honey Dewdrops’ performance is sponsored in part by a grant from the Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation.

Editor’s Note: This is my 13th year curating and emceeing artist showcases during the Huntington Folk Festival.

This year’s concert will be a special one since that week will mark the 40th anniversary of Chapin’s tragic death on the Long Island Expressway in 1981 — on the day that he was supposed to perform on that very stage, since renamed for him. Several tribute show regulars were among the crowd in 1981 when what was supposed to be a joyous event turned into a vigil, Markus said.

“Harry is still so lovingly regarded in Long Island songwriter circles, both for his songwriting and anti-hunger activism,” Markus said. “Each year, the community comes together to, in effect, present the concert that he might have given, each putting their own interpretation on his songs. We’ve had some amazing arrangements, from folky to country, torch-song style to hard rock.”


The concert will also be a benefit for Long Island Cares, the Harry Chapin Food Bank. “The annual Harry Chapin tribute concert in Eisenhower Park is always a very special event for all of us at Long Island Cares because so many of Harry’s fans attend and are extremely supportive of Long Island Cares and the work we do to assist the more than 316,000 Long Islanders struggling with domestic hunger and high food insecurity,” said Paule Pachter, the nonprofit organization’s chief executive officer.

The concert is being co-promoted by the Folk Music Society of Huntington, of which Markus is a board member. This year’s show will be the 16th at the park and the 18th overall. Last year’s tribute streamed online only due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Besides Markus and Gathering Time, this year’s roster of performers includes newcomers ThemAgain, Roger Street Friedman, and Richard Parr, along with returning performers Patricia Shih, Robinson Treacher, Debra Lynne, Media Crime, Ed Ryan, Sid Cherry & Helen Schrier Pandal, Toby Tobias, Mike Barry, Folk Goddesses, Robin Greenstein, and Christine Solimeno, plus assorted side musicians.
The concert, for which attendees are advised to bring lawn chairs, will be held rain or shine, precluded only by thunderstorms. For more information, visit https://www.nassaucountyny.gov/1767/Parks-Recreation-Museums.

Editor’s Note: I am president of the Folk Music Society of Huntington and have been helping to promote the annual “Just Wild About Harry” tribute concerts for many years.

I first met Harry Chapin some 50 years ago at a Long island rally for the United Farm Workers during the lettuce and grape boycott of the early 1970s. I was 12-years old at the time and somewhere, amid all my papers, is a newspaper photo of Harry clasping my hand and that of Richard Chavez, brother of the late UFW leader Cesar Chavez, that day. Over the course of the next decade, I saw Harry many times in concert, at various events, and around town with his wife, Sandy. While spending a college semester abroad in London, England during the winter and spring of 1981, I was Harry’s guest at what turned out to be his last concerts in England. I still have fond memories of Harry’s concerts. Yet as much as I appreciated Harry Chapin as a singer-songwriter who helped to forge my love of folk and folk-rock music, I so respected him for his activism, his community involvement and his commitment to making this “A Better Place to Be.” Harry’s story songs, social consciousness and concern for ordinary people were very much in keeping with the longstanding traditions of folk music and the spirit of the folk community.

As the credits roll at the end of the recent documentary Harry Chapin: When In Doubt Do Something, I can be seen briefly singing Harry’s song “Circle” — along with others, including Harry’s brother Tom and daughter Jen — near the stage that bears his name at Eisenhower Park.

Years ago, I encouraged Lois to attend the annual Northeast Regional Folk Alliance (NERFA) conference and to apply for showcases at it. Accompanying herself on a mini-piano during the Suzi Wollenberg Folk DJ Showcase at the 2011 NERFA Conference, she drew a standing ovation from an audience that was captivated by her and thoroughly enchanted with her funny songs. Selected for an official juried showcase in 2012, Lois repeated that feat (a rarity at NERFA conferences). At my urging, she applied for and secured another official juried showcase a few years later.

Lois earned the praise of noted folk DJs like John Platt and Rich Warren. “Don’t be deceived. Underneath Lois Morton’s sweet grandmotherly demeanor lurks a wickedly clever songwriter,” Platt, host of Sunday Supper on New York’s WFUV, once commented. “The legacy of Tom Lehrer lives on in Lois.” Warren, the recently retired host of the long-running, nationally syndicated The Midnight Special, played her songs frequently and also invited her to perform live in Chicago on his WFMT radio program and concert series, Folkstage. Her song “The Diet is Cast” received an Imprint Radio Award from the late upstate New York folk DJ Terry Doyle for Best Live Performance and also was nominated for a 2012 MAC Award by the Manhattan Association of Cabarets and Clubs. She received a 2014 MAC Award for a New York City cabaret revue, 20th Century Girl (featuring songs from her 2013 album of the same name), that was performed at Don’t Tell Mama and The Duplex.

[Here’s a link to a video of Lois Morton performing “The Diet is Cast:”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZb30xZjUZc.]

Lois was also the subject of a cover feature in Acoustic Live! in New York City & Beyond. Richard Cuccaro, its editor & publisher, opined: “For any concertgoer who loves intricate wordplay, Lois is a lodestone discovery. Truly a gem.” Singer-Songwriter Jimmie Dale Gilmore, with whom she took courses at the Omega Institute, described her songs as “a beautiful blend of biting wit, constant surprises and poignant, human stories. They alternately provoke us to laughter at our modern foibles and touch our hearts with timeless, tender, heartfelt sharing.” Lois was also a frequent attendee of the Summersongs and Wintersongs songwriting camps in upstate New York.

She released three CDs of original songs – As I See It, Doorways In Time and 20th Century Girl – and, in November 2019, a six-song EP entitled Thinking It Through. In addition to her own topical songs, which she began writing in the late 1960s, and several of which were published in Broadside Magazine, Lois brought to life the legendary Edith Piaf in a lecture-cabaret program featuring songs and stories and also performed a show called “Raisins and Almonds: Jewish Songs for the Heart.”

Lois leaves behind a daughter (Amy), a son (Philip), three grandchildren, and a trove of songs that I hope will be discovered and enjoyed by people for years to come. Below are links to just a few of the many videos of her performing them that appear on YouTube:

“Twentieth Century Girl”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQaY9R2aBtk

“The Cell Phone Song”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f84Kg2n-cTI

“Confessions of a Clutterholic”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5kbjYkFR58

“The Diet Is Cast” (performed live at the 2016 NERFA Conference)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1PemwZlKZzA

Prior to the evening concert, Michael Kornfeld, president of the Folk Music Society of Huntington and editor & publisher of AcousticMusicScene.com, will host a series of song swaps from 12-6 p.m. These will take place near a canopy tent on the upper lawn area overlooking the stage and will feature more than 30 artists/acts from half-a-dozen states and a Canadian province. Unlike the unplugged showcases of previous years, these will be amplified. The day’s musical festivities begin with an open mic-song circle at 11 a.m.

Among the artists who will showcase their talents during the afternoon are Lisa Bastoni, Belle of the Fall, Melanie Brulée, Christian Diana, Roger Street Friedman, Genevieve, Sharon Goldman, Loretta Hagen, Marion Halliday, Joe Iadanza, Susan Kane, Judy Kass, Terry Kitchen, Scott Krokoff, Mara Levine, The Levins, Lipkin & Hitt, Annie Mark, Catherine Miles & Jay Mafale, Kate Mills, Lois Morton, Grace Morrison, Claudia Nygaard, Siobhan O’Brien, Anne O’Rourke, Nico Padden, D.B. Rielly, Eugene Ruffolo, Hank Stone, Jonathan Tea, and Toby Tobias.

Here’s the complete schedule for the Huntington Folk Festival:

11:00 Open Mic – Song Circle

12:00 LI Guys of Note: Roger Street Friedman, Scott Krokoff, Toby Tobias

12:30 Emerging Talents: Genevieve, Marion Halliday, Kate Mills, Anne O’Rourke

1:30 A Musical Mix: Christian Diana, Annie Mark, Lois Morton

2:00 NJ Songsters: Sharon Goldman, Loretta Hagen, Jonathan Tea

2:30 Musical Potpourri: Terry Kitchen, Mara Levine, Eugene Ruffolo

3:00 Kerrville New Folk Winners 2019: Lisa Bastoni, D.B. Rielly

3:30 Tribes Hill – Hudson Valley Songsters: Susan Kane, Judy Kass, Lipkin & Hitt

4:00 A Trio of Duos: Belle of the Fall, The Levins, Catherine Miles & Jay Mafale

4:30 Women of Note: Melanie Brulée, Grace Morrison, Claudia Nygaard, Siobhan O’Brien

5:30 FMSH Members Song Swap: Joe Iadanza, Nico Padden, Hank Stone

6:00 Dinner Break

8:00 Lucy Wainwright Roche

8:30 Loudon Wainwright III

Festivalgoers are advised to bring lawn chairs and blankets and a picnic supper (or they can walk into Huntington Village and enjoy a meal at one of its many restaurants).

The Huntington Folk Festival is part of an extended folk and Americana weekend at Heckscher Park. Long Island talent will be spotlighted on Thursday night, July 25, with a shared bill featuring folk-harmony trio Gathering Time and singer-songwriter Christine Sweeney. On Friday night, July 26, the Crys Mathews Trio will grace the stage. Although both concerts are set for 8 p.m., Kornfeld will conduct a 7:15 p.m. special on-stage interview-conversation with Matthews, the grand-prize winner in the 2017 NewSong Music Performance & Songwriting Competition. Crystal Bowersox – a rising star whose influences span across folk-pop, classic rock, soul, blues and country – closes out the weekend on Sunday night.

The Huntington Summer Arts Festival is produced by the Town of Huntington, presented by the Huntington Arts Council, and sponsored in part by the New York State Council on the Arts, the County of Suffolk and Canon U.S.A.

Kornfeld is also president of the Folk Music Society of Huntington, a nonprofit presenting organization on suburban Log Island, New York, and forged a locally heralded partnership between FMSH and LI’s Cinema Arts Centre. He also coordinates the annual Huntington Folk Festival that is presented each summer in partnership with the Huntington Arts Council. An award-winning strategic communications and public relations professional, Kornfeld launched AcousticMusicScene.com, an online publication for the folk, roots and singer-songwriter communities, in January 2007. He arranges and hosts artist showcases and song swaps under its banner during various music conferences and festivals.

For the 12th consecutive year at the NERFA Conference that drew some 730 people, Kornfeld hosted a popular AcousticMusicScene.com Midnight Hoot featuring several singing folk DJs and 40 independent recording artists/acts from throughout the U.S. and Canada, as well as an O Canada celebration featuring nearly 20 Canadian artists/acts. He also moderated a panel discussion on online presence for artists and offered some one-on-one mentoring during the conference.

Led by Kornfeld, current and past board members paid tribute to Dianne Tankle, NERFA’s founder and conference director since its inception, who stepped down from her leadership role following 24 years at the helm of the conference. “My board colleagues and I are grateful to Dianne for all of her efforts on behalf of our organization and community over the years,” wrote Kornfeld in a letter published in the printed conference program & directory. “She and her team have devoted countless hours and put considerable thought into conscientiously designing our conference to help [attendees] forge connections and build community, while also providing learning opportunities that can help enhance [their] professional and personal lives.”

Named as interim conference director for 2019 is Courtney Rodland, who has been assisting NERFA with social media, served as associate director for the 2018 NERFA Conference and coordinated its mentoring program. A new NERFA logo was also unveiled during the conference.

Re-elected as NERFA board officers, along with Kornfeld, were secretary Ethan Baird of Pesky J. Nixon and Tribal Mischief Productions and treasurer Justin Nordell, executive director of the Philadelphia Folksong Society. The board’s new vice president is Barbara Shiller, co-president of CT Folk, who succeeds Kathy Sands-Boehmer of the Me & Thee Coffeehouse in Marblehead, MA, who opted not to seek re-election to the nine-member board.

NERFA’s volunteer board of directors has been engaged in efforts to make it more of a year-round organization in order to best meet the needs and serve the interests of Folk Alliance International members in its region. The Mid-Winter FolkFest at Club Passim in Cambridge, MA that was also streamed online via Concert Window in late January is an examples of this. So, too, are the NERFA Presents Young Folk showcases that have bee presented over the past several summers in partnership with a few music festivals in the U.S. and Canada, as well as several NERFA Showcase concerts co-presented with several venues and presenting organizations in the region. A Spring FolkFest, another one-day online music festival emanating from Club Passim; is slated for Saturday, March 23, from 12-4 p.m. EST. Coordinated by Sands-Boehmer, it will feature a number of artists who had official juried showcases during the recent NERFA conference and who have never played the famed Harvard Square folk club.