The October 2025 top albums, songs and artists charts are based on 10,245 airplays reported on 349 playlists submitted by 99 different folk DJs. The number of reported spins is shown below in parentheses.

Folk Alliance International (folk.org) is a nonprofit organization that aims to serve, strengthen, and engage the global folk music community through preservation, presentation and promotion.

Top Albums of October 2025

[Here’s a link to view a video for “Par-dessus le pont,” the first single from Voisonages, Le Vent Du Nord’s #1 album on folk radio in October 2025: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCueZgiKkHyrcWYwWHEJuS3A]

1. Voisinages by Le Vent Du Nord (80)
2. Bones of Better Days by The Whispering Tree (72)
3. Long Journey Home: A Century After the 1925 Mountain City
Fiddlers by Various Artists (64)
4. Unentitled by John Gorka (61)
5. Safe, Sensible and Sane by Alison Brown & Steve Martin (57)
6. The Breathing Room by Cosy Sheridan (53)
7. Every Town by Anne Hills (52)
8. The Agonist by Leslie Jordan (43)
8. Wide Open Spaces by Connie Kaldor (43)
10. Further From the Country by William Prince (42)
11. Shelter From the Storms by Lennie Gallant (38)
12. Look to the Moon by Patty and Craig (34)
12. Stay Put by Elexa Dawson (34)
14. Avec Elodie by Eloise & Co (32)
15. Fiction by Megan Bee (30)
16. From Here to the Sea by Meredith Moon (29)
16. Reverse the Flow by Alice Di Micele (29)
16. You Climb the Mountain by The Onlies (29)
19. Tidy Memorial by Josh Fortenbery (27)
20. The Road Taken by Reggie Garrett and Christine Gunn (25)
20. Hummingbird Highway by Dar Williams (25)
22. The Other Evening in Chicago by Bob Franke (24)
22. Now Then by Robbie Fulks (24)
22. The Last Bough by Kyle Carey (24)
25. Ghosts of the Old West by George Mann and Mick Coates (22)
25. Sweet Resilience by Jane Fallon (22)
25. Lost and Found by Becki Davis (22)
25. Saving Grace by Robert Plant (22)
29. Blue Tapestry by Veronneau (21)
30. The Ghost of Sis Draper by Shawn Camp (20)
30. Featherbed by Sarah Kate Morgan and Lee Shannon (20)
30. The Light Still Shines on the Main by Jory Nash (20)
30. Stone by Stone by Friction Farm (20)
34. Bones of Trees by Tim Grimm (19)
34. So Long Little Miss Sunshine by Molly Tuttle (19)
36. Heavy on the Blues by Rory Block (18)
36. The Winds by Selken (18)
36. Nobody’s Girl by Amanda Shires (18)
36. Big Wing by The Lonesome Ace Stringband (18)
40. Mother Mind by Tekla Waterfield and Jeff Fielder (17)
40. Crown of Roses by Patty Griffin (17)
40. The Raven and the Moon by Sherie Davis (17)
40. Gallowglass by Ann Ramsey (17)
44. Songbird by Waylon Jennings (16)
44. Songs That Sing Me by Becky Buller (16)
46. We’ll Be Fine by Doug Kolmar (15)
46. Drift by Wes Corbett (15)
46. Fallen Angel by The Unfaithful Servants (15)
46. In the West by The Horsenecks (15)
50. Kentucky Queen by Carla Gover (14)
50. Sidereal Days by Bill Scorzari (14)
50. Don’t You Ever Give Up on Love by Brennen Leigh (14)

Top Songs of October 2025

[Here’s a link to view a lyric video for “Bones of Better Days” by The Whispering Tree:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6vgD7WYz2s]

1. “Bones of Better Days” by The Whispering Tree (22)
2. “Particle & Wave (Goodness in the World)” by John Gorka (19)
3. “Par-Dessus Le Pont” by Le Vent Du Nord (15)
3. “The Breathing Room” by Cosy Sheridan (15)
3. “Speed of the Sound of Loneliness” by Jesse Lynn Madera (15)
6. “Dear Time” by Alison Brown & Steve Martin (13)
6. “No Kings Here” by Tom Paxton (13)
8. “Born Again” by The Whispering Tree (12)
8. “By My Side” by The Whispering Tree (12)
10. “Le Pari De Jeanne” by Le Vent Du Nord (11)
10. “Spoon River” by Anne Hills (11)
12. “Broken Truth” by Tim Grimm (10)
12. “I’ve Always Been a Rambler” by Molly Tuttle (10)
12. “For the First Time” by William Prince (10)
12. “900 Miles” by Tim O’Brien (10)
16. “Where Have All the Flowers Gone” by Elexa Dawson (9)
16. “Hello in There” by The Real Sarahs and Alex De Grassi (9)
16. “Counting on Angels” by Lennie Gallant (9)
16. “Sweeter Things” by Megan Bee (9)
16. “Claude’s Cookies” by Cosy Sheridan (9)
16. “Love, Surround Me” by Patty and Craig (9)
16. “House Carpenter” by Jake Blount (9)
16. “Falling Through the Cracks” by Alice Di Micele (9)
16. “Find a Man” by The Whispering Tree (9)
25. “I Talk to Ghosts” by Nicole Mish (8)
25. “The Invention of Tv” by Megan Bee (8)
25. “Open All the Doors and Windows” by Billy Jonas (8)
25. “Fleur Radieuse” by Le Vent Du Nord (8)
25. “Old Friends” by Lennie Gallant (8)
25. “Girl, Have Money When You’re Old” by Alison Brown & Steve Martin (8)
25. “Ballad of Elizabeth Dark” by Anne Hills (8)
25. “Resilience” by Jane Fallon (8)

Top Artists of October 2025

[Here’s a link to view an Oct. 29, 2025 concert by Le Vent duu Nord that was livestreamed and recorded at The Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage in Washington, DC:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACuHGl2Gxyw]

1. Le Vent Du Nord (83)
2. John Gorka (76)
2. The Whispering Tree (76)
4. Cosy Sheridan (62)
5. Anne Hills (61)
6. Alison Brown & Steve Martin (58)
7. Connie Kaldor (50)
8. Bob Franke (48)
9. Leslie Jordan (44)
10. William Prince (43)
11. Lennie Gallant (38)
12. Elexa Dawson (35)
12. John Prine (35)
14. Patty and Craig (34)
14. Bob Dylan (34)
16. Eloise & Co (33)
16. Dar Williams (33)
16. Molly Tuttle (33)
19. Meredith Moon (30)
19. Megan Bee (30)
21. Alice Di Micele (29)
21. Tim Grimm (29)
21. The Onlies (29)
24. Josh Fortenbery (27)
24. Becky Buller (27)
26. John McCutcheon (26)
27. Robert Plant (25)
27. Reggie Garrett and Christine Gunn (25)
29. Kyle Carey (24)
29. Joan Baez (24)
29. Robbie Fulks (24)
32. George Mann and Mick Coates (23)
32. Jane Fallon (23)
32. Patty Griffin (23)
35. Becki Davis (22)
35. Friction Farm (22)
35. Nanci Griffith (22)
38. Veronneau (21)
39. Jory Nash (20)
39. Sarah Kate Morgan and Lee Shannon (20)
39. Cheryl Wheeler (20)
39. Crowes Pasture (20)
39. Waylon Jennings (20)
39. Shawn Camp (20)

Song of the Year honors went to Dan Navarro and Janiva Magness’ recording of “$20 Bill (for George Floyd) by the late singer-songwriter Tom Prasada-Rao. In accepting the award, Navarro (a singer-songwriter and voice actor perhaps best known for co-writing the hit song “We Belong”) noted that more than 100 artists recorded a version of Prasada-Rao’s song in 2020 “but because of the impact and the challenges of the pandemic, it never really had a proper release and we decided we would do something about that.“ Dedicating the award to Prasado-Rao, who died last year, Navarro said: “This is not just the song of the year; it’s the song of the century and the song of a lifetime.”

Here’s a link to view a video of Dan Navarro and Janiva Magness performing “$20 Bill (for George Floyd)”:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SeHdq817B7Y

Susan Werner’s Halfway to Houston was named Album of the Year. A prolific and versatile singer-songwriter who accompanies herself on both guitar and piano and is known for her sassy wit and classy Midwest charm, Werner was unable to be in Montreal to accept the award and sent a short video, while fellow singer-songwriter Dar Williams picked up the award on her behalf.

In addition to these FAI member-voted awards – which were open to recordings released between October 1, 2023 and September 30, 2024 – a number of special awards and honors were presented.

The People’s Voice Award recognizing an artist who embraces social and political commentary in his/her songs was presented to Gina Chavez, an Austin, Texas-based singer-songwriter who has helped to amplify the voices of the marginalized.

The River Roads Festival received The Clearwater Award, honoring a festival that — like its Pete Seeger-founded namesake –- exhibits sound leadership in environmental stewardship and sustainable event production. A one-day event presented by Dar Williams and held in Easthampton, Massachusetts for the past two years, the next River Roads Festival is set for July 5 at Heuser Park in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. Williams said that she was “so excited” to accept the award. She noted that, like Seeger was, she is a resident of New York’s Hudson Valley and recalled being on Conan O’Brien’s late-night TV talk show with him in 1998. Said Williams: “Music is an incredible force … The culture around the music can be a powerful vehicle for justice.”

The Rising tide Award, which is bestowed on an emerging artist/act of an age, went to OKAN, a female-led, Afro-Cuban roots and jazz duo.

Spirit of Folk Awards recognizing people and organizations actively engaged in the promotion and preservation of folk music were presented to Annie Capps, Innu Nikamu festival, Tom Power, and Alice Randall. Capps is a Michigan-based singer-songwriter and a longtime leader with Folk Alliance Region Midwest (FARM), who has served as both its board president and conference director. Innu Nikamu is a Quebec-based festival of Indigenous music and culture that has taken place for more than 30 years. Power, best known as the host of CBC Radio One’s Q program, is also a musician who performs and records with The Dardanelles, a Canadian folk band. Randall is a hit-making country music songwriter who has been a trailblazer in folk and country music. She’s also a college lecturer and the author of My Black Country, which she describes as both a memoir and a history.

“I owe my sanity to folk music,” said Randall in accepting the award. “In My Black Country, I tell the story of climbing out of the hell of being raped by holding on to the sound of John Prine singing “Angel From Montgomery.” Prine’s label, Oh Boy! Records, also released a collection of songs entitled My Black Country. Randall noted that her book “is about the Black folk, including Black folk musicians, who made country country.”

2025 Lifetime Achievement Award recipients included the folk-rock duo Indigo Girls (whose eponymous debut album won a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Recording 35 years ago), the late Black Appalachian musician Lesley Riddle, and the global roots magazine Songlines. During the awards show, singer-songwriters Rose Cousins and Mary Bragg performed “Galileo,” one of the Indigo Girls’ hit songs, in tribute to the duo, while Black indigenous Canadian singer-songwriter Julian Taylor performed “Red River Blues” in tribute to Riddle.

Accepting the Legacy Lifetime Achievement Award on behalf of Riddle, who died in 1980 at age 75, Randall referred to him as a founder of country music and a practitioner of folk who collected and taught the Carter Family a lot of songs. “Tonight, Folk Alliance corrects an almost 100 year-old wrong” by recognizing him.

“We need folk music now more than ever,” said the Indigo Girls’ Emily Saliers in a pre-recorded video. “This Folk Alliance is a group that honors diversity, equity, inclusion, and access for all. Folk music is the music of truth telling. Amy [Ray] and I are, especially in this time, particularly honored to accept this award.” Echoing her sentiments, Ray urged folks to “Please stand up with us and make your voices heard in these times … Day by day, song by song, we can make this world a better place.”

Accepting a Lifetime Achievement Award on behalf of Songlines, James Anderson-Hanney, its publisher, said: “I think we’re the last world music magazine on the planet.” The UK-based, glossy bimonthly that comes with CD is currently celebrating its 25th anniversary.Leading Quebecois folk ensemble Le Vent Du Nord, a 2023 Songlines award recipient, performed in honor of the magazine.

Five Inducted Into Folk Radio Hall of Fame

Eight years ago, Folk Alliance International established a Folk Radio Hall of Fame in order to recognize folk DJs and music directors for the vital role that they play by sharing the music with their listeners. Wanda Fischer, Longtime host of The Hudson River Sampler on WAMC Radio in Albany, New York and herself an inductee in the Hall of Fame, recognized this year’s inductees, while a video featuring visuals and information about them was also screened. The 2025 inductees include Taylor Caffery, Matthew Finch, Archie Fisher, MarySue Twohy, and Chuck Wentworth.

Taylor Caffery, a native of New Orleans, Louisiana, has been the host Hootenanny Power of WRKF Public Radio in Baton Rouge, LA since it began airing in 1981. He’s also been recognized with WRKF’s Founder’s Award (2022) and with the Kari Estrin Founding President’s Award during the 2024 Southeast Regional Folk Alliance (SERFA) Conference.

Matthew Finch, who left our world unexpectedly in July 2024, was a beloved figure in New Mexico’s music scene, who devoted more than 20 years to KUNM in Albuquerque as its music director, and as a tireless advocate for local musicians. Through the programs Ear to the Ground and Studio 55, he created platforms for regional artists to share their music, showcasing live performances and celebrating the diversity of the state’s music community.

Archie Fisher hosted BBC Radio Scotland’s award-winning Traveling Folk program for 27 years – promoting artists and musicians of the folksong revival throughout the British Isles. A talented artist in his own right, he also hosted studio sessions and interviews with such notable American and Canadian artists as Joan Baez, Judy Collins, David Francey, and James Keelaghan. Queen Elizabeth II presented him with a MBE in 2006 for his services to music.

MarySue Twohy is a program director at SiriusXM, who currently manages The Village, its folk channel, among others. She conducts artist interviews and produces a wide array of radio programs. Formerly an artist herself, she moved into broadcasting by hosting a two-hour program 20 years ago and quickly rose to PD. She also served on the FAI board of directors for seven years and continues to serve on national music committees, and to participate in conference panels and as a songwriting contest judge.

Chuck Wentworth, who passed away last year, was a revered figure on the New England music scene – best known for his long-standing contributions as both a radio show host and a festival producer. He began hosting a folk radio show on WRIU-FM, the college radio station at the University of Rhode Island, while he was a student and Traditions aired for 38 years. He also served as the station’s folk and roots music director and expanded its folk programming from one show to five nights a week. Wentworth was also the founder and producer of the Rhythm & Roots Festival, a three-day music and dance festival in Rhode Island.

[Here’s a link to view the International Folk Music Awards Show, which also was livestreamed via YouTube and was available for viewing via Folk Alley and NPR Music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVE29BZ6fBg

The International Folk Music Awards was just one part, albeit an important one, of the 37th annual Folk Alliance International Conference that extended from February 19-23 and drew nearly 2,500 attendees. In addition to more than 2,700 showcases featuring more than 700 acts (including 183 juried official showcases plus many more showcases extending into the early morning hours), the conference included a keynote conversation with Allison Russell and Ann Powers [see below], Black American Music and International Indigenous Music Summits, a one-day legal summit, 45 panel discussions and workshops, a number of affinity and peer group sessions, six film screenings and discussions, lobby jams, meetings of FAI’s regional affiliates, a town hall meeting on P2 Visas – Working Through Parity at the Canada/US Border, a popular Meet the Folk DJs session, morning yoga, an exhibit hall, agent-presenter speed networking sessions, and lots of other networking opportunities.

Artist & Activist Allison Russell Engages in Keynote Conversation with Music Journalist Anne Powers

Allison Russell — a widely acclaimed singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer and activist –- returned to her hometown to engage in an hour-long keynote conversation with Anne Powers, a critic and correspondent for NPR Music. A soulful, Nashville, Tennessee-based, Montreal-born Scottish Grenadian Canadian, Russell is the recipient of more than a dozen awards. These include a Grammy Award for Best American Roots Music Performance for Eve Was Black,” a single off of her sophomore solo recording, Returner released in September 2023), Juno Awards for Contemporary Album of the Year (for her solo debut, Outside Child – 2022) and Music Video of the Year (for “Demons,” 2024), six UK Americana Music Awards, four Canadian Folk Music Awards, and two Americana Music Honors & Awards. In 2022, Folk Alliance International members voted Russell’s solo debut as Album of the Year and her as Artist of the Year. Outside Child was also named Contemporary album of the Year in the 2022 Canadian Folk Music Awards, while she was named Songwriter of the Year and New/Emerging Artist of the Year in recognition of the emotion-laden album featuring 11 original songs “about resilience and survival, transcendence and the redemptive power of art, community, connection, and chosen family.”

Russell has previously spoken of the abuse and trauma that she faced in her youth and the major role that music has played in helping her to overcome it .In her conversation with Powers, she recalled how, at age 15, while unhoused, she slept in the pews at a church just a few blocks from Le Sheraton Centre.

Asked about her latest album, 2023’s The Returner, she noted how she had been a challenged, broken yet brave girl. “”We come from long, broken lines of survivors. We’re all miracles. We’re all returners. We are all overcoming things.”

Much of her on-stage conversation with Powers focused on her recent portrayal of Persephone in Anais Mitchell’s award-winning Broadway musical, Hadestown. Russell noted that it was her first professional acting role and that she had not acted since performing in a Shakespearean play while in high school.

Sharing her reflections on Hadestown just days after she concluded her 50-week run as Persephone and in keeping with the “Illuminate” theme of the conference, she said: Persephone is Hades’ only source of light, of illumination in the underworld. She was the light in his life.”

Playing a mythic goddess in this time took on new connotations, she acknowledged, citing “the current fear-mongering administration in Washington” and “the bigotry and bias that can really harm communities.”

Referring to herself as “a geriatric millennial,” Russell said: “When I came up 24 years ago, there weren’t too many others who looked liked me.” Acknowledging that “our [folk] community is growing more diverse,” she spoke of being a curator during the 2021 Newport Folk Festival tasked with featuring Black and Black & queer women and their allies in the center of a 90-minute set focused on roots and revolution. ”What could be more beautiful than to be conscious, to be mindful [woke],” said Russell, noting that she’s “a queer woman who somehow married a white man with a guitar.”

Prior to embarking on her solo career, Russell was a co-founder of Our Native Daughters and Birds of Chicago and was part of Po’ Girl.

[Here’s a link to view a video recording of the keynote conversation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_ne2-baY8g.]

Folk Alliance International (folk.org) is a nonprofit organization that aims to serve, strengthen, and engage the global folk music community through preservation, presentation and promotion.

Launched in Traverse City, Michigan 10 years ago and fronted by singer-songwriters and multi-instrumentalists (including violin, cello, acoustic and electric guitars, bass, and mandolin) Sav Buist and Katie Larson, The Accidentals also feature Michael Dause on percussion.

Prior to the pandemic, the trio had been playing upwards of 200 shows a year. Its repertoire features an eclectic blend of indie folk, pop, bluegrass, rock, and classical music. The Accidentals also host and lead workshops across the U.S. as part of an effort to inspire other young musicians. Buist and Larson have also provided strings accompaniment for other artists’ recordings, while Buist was a winner in last year’s Kerrville New Folk Competition and is a semifinalist in this year’s Songwriter Serenade competition.

Time Out Session #2 is the follow-up to the band’s Time Out EP, which was released last May and whose first single, “Wildfire,” was the #1 song on the FAI Folk Charts for 2021. More information on the band may be found on its website, while here’s a link to view the official video for “Eastern Standard Time,” which was co-written with singer-songwriter Peter Mulvey.

The March 2022 Top Albums, Songs and Artists charts are based on 14,047 airplays reported on 467 playlists submitted by 123 different folk DJs. The number of reported spins is shown below in parentheses.

Folk Alliance International (folk.org) is a nonprofit organization that aims to serve, strengthen, and engage the global folk music community through preservation, presentation and promotion.

Top Albums of March 2022

1. Time Out Session #2 by The Accidentals (93)
2. 20 Printemps by Le Vent Du Nord (91)
3. Songs From the River Wind by Eliza Gilkyson (70)
3. Backroads by Johnsmith (70)
3. Songs From the Beginning by Greg Greenway (70)
6. Southern Currency by Jefferson Ross (65)
6. The Light at the End of the Line by Janis Ian (65)
8. Fazz: Now and Then by Noel Paul Stookey (50)
9. Every Seed We Plant by Alice DiMicele (46)
10. The Way the River Goes by Dan Weber (43)
10. Lost Love Songs by The Pine Hearts (43)
10. Something Green by Kate Klim (43)
13. Hurricane Clarice by Allison de Groot and Tatiana Hargreaves (42)
13. I Can Face the Truth by Dana Cooper (42)
15. For the People by Rupert Wates (38)
16. You Reap What You Sow by The Weeping Willows (37)
17. Twang by Carla Ulbrich (35)
18. Age of Apathy by Aoife O’Donovan (34)
18. Folk Hero by House of Hamill (34)
18. Good to Be by Keb’ Mo’ (34)
21. Corner of the World by Scott Martin (33)
21. We’ll Dance Again by Folkapotamus (33)
21. Anais Mitchell by Anais Mitchell (33)
24. Satchel of Songs by Diane Patterson (29)
24. 8-String Sketches by Mike Mullins (29)
26. Resilience by Josie Bello (28)
26. New Road by Wally Barnick (28)
28. Chris Haddox by Chris Haddox (27)
29. The Love in You by Jordi Baizan (26)
29. The Canvas Before Us by Joy Zimmerman (26)
31. Head Above Water by Heather Sarona (25)
31. Long Haul by John Wort Hannam (25)
33. Hell on Church Street by Punch Brothers (24)
33. Until Now by Carrie Newcomer (24)
35. Wachtraum by Michael Veitch (23)
35. The Worst Kind of New by The Lied To’s (23)
37. Gone, Long Gone by Steve Dawson (21)
38. Good Luck, Take Care by Terry Klein (20)
38. Now and the Evermore by Colin Hay (20)
38. Raise the Roof by Robert Plant and Alison Krauss (20)
41. The Flowers That Bloom in Spring by Kieran Kane and Rayna Gellert (19)
41. Harley Kimbro Lewis by Harley Kimbro Lewis (19)
43. Narrow Line by Mama’s Broke (18)
43. Violet Light by Maya De Vitry (18)
43. Bullet in the Cabin Wall by Cheryl Cawood (18)
46. Tonight There Might Be Stars by Karen Turner (17)
46. Long Time Coming by Sierra Ferrell (17)
48. Bucket List by John McCutcheon (16)
48. Saving the Republic by Ernest Troost (16)
48. Anthems of Home by Hudost (16)
48. Twelvemonth and a Day by Wolf and Clover (16)
48. Odes – Codes by Max Allard (16)

Top Songs of March 2022

1. “Eastern Standard Time” by The Accidentals (33)
2. “Wide Open” by The Accidentals (18)
3. “Women Who Walked on Water” by Joy Zimmerman (17)
3. “Every Seed” by Alice DiMicele (17)
5. “Let It Roll” by Greg Greenway (16)
6. “Baptize the Gumbo” by Jefferson Ross (15)
6. “Something Green” by Kate Klim (15)
6. “Remain the Same” by The Accidentals (15)
9. “La Centauree” by Le Vent Du Nord (14)
9. “When the Big Bad Books Go Boo” by Tom Paxton, Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer
(14)
11. “Mary the Night’s on Fire” by The Pine Hearts (13)
11. “Dangerous Women” by Colleen Kattau (13)
11. “Backroads” by Johnsmith (13)
11. “Tour Du Monde” by Le Vent Du Nord (13)
11. “I’m Still Standing” by Janis Ian (13)
16. “Peace Song” by Sue Horowitz (12)
16. “House of Sin” by The Weeping Willows (12)
16. “Lonely” by Irene Kelley (12)
16. “Leave It in the Dust” by The Accidentals (12)
16. “Deep Down in Your Bones” by Cheryl Cawood (12)
21. “Rattle My Bones” by Johnsmith (11)
21. “My Name Is America” by Johnsmith (11)
21. “Dans l’Eau De Vie De l’Arbre” by Le Vent Du Nord (11)
21. “Peace Call” by Eliza Gilkyson (11)
25. “For the People” by Rupert Wates (10)
25. “Each Season Changes You” by Allison de Groot and Tatiana Hargreaves
(10)
25. “At the Foot of the Mountain” by Eliza Gilkyson (10)
25. “We Were There” by Bev Grant (10)
25. “Ever Since Columbine” by Dan Weber (10)
25. “Better Times Will Come” by Janis Ian (10)
25. “The Man Was Burning” by Jake Blount (10)

Top Artists of March 2022

1. The Accidentals (96)
2. Le Vent Du Nord (95)
3. Eliza Gilkyson (89)
4. Janis Ian (76)
5. Johnsmith (75)
6. Greg Greenway (71)
7. Jefferson Ross (68)
8. Noel Paul Stookey (55)
9. John McCutcheon (51)
10. Bob Dylan (50)
11. Alice DiMicele (48)
12. Allison de Groot and Tatiana Hargreaves (44)
12. Dan Weber (44)
12. Keb’ Mo’ (44)
15. The Pine Hearts (43)
15. Kate Klim (43)
17. Dana Cooper (42)
17. Carrie Newcomer (42)
19. Rupert Wates (40)
19. Aoife O’Donovan (40)
21. Judy Collins (39)
22. Joy Zimmerman (38)
23. Anais Mitchell (37)
23. The Weeping Willows (37)
25. House of Hamill (36)
25. Carla Ulbrich (36)
27. Pete Seeger (33)
27. Scott Martin (33)
27. Folkapotamus (33)
30. Josie Bello (30)
31. Peter Ostroushko (29)
31. Diane Patterson (29)
31. Mike Mullins (29)
34. Wally Barnick (28)
34. Nanci Griffith (28)
36. Jordi Baizan (27)
36. Sue Horowitz (27)
36. Chris Haddox (27)
36. Christy Moore (27)
36. Joni Mitchell (27)

Russell was named English Songwriter of the Year and New/Emerging Artist of the Year in recognition of her debut solo album, Outside Child, which was chosen as Contemporary Album of the Year. A soulful Nashville-based, Montreal-born Scottish Grenadian Canadian singer-songwriter, poet, multi-instrumentalist, producer, and activist, she is also a co-founder of Our Native Daughters and Birds of Chicago and was part of Po’ Girl.

Wrought with emotion, Outside Child features 11 original songs “about resilience and survival, transcendence and the redemptive power of art, community, connection, and chosen family,” says Russell, who faced abuse and trauma during her youth that music has helped her to overcome. She showcased her talents and also served as the weekend closing curator at the 63rd annual Newport Folk Festival.

Here’s a link to view Russell’s short 2021 highlights video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QzDTi2GWjI and one to view the official video for her song “Nightflyer,” the first single off Outside Child.

Dind-Lavoie is a Quebecois multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer. As its name suggests, his album Archives is an anthology of archival recordings – in this case field recordings of French-Canadian traditional songs of the 1940s and 1950s, which he accompanies and embellishes with an array of acoustic instruments and sound effects. Recorded last April, Archives also received the 2021 aux prix GAMIQ for Traditional Album of the Year and du prix Aldor creation 2021 du Festival Trad de Montreal.

With Archives, Dind-Lavoie sought to “highlight [and pay tribute to] the quality of these performers, as well as the work of the folklorists who, in a time when there was almost nothing archived, went out into the field to collect these songs, which had to represent a colossal amount of work. In a Facebook post, he referred to his wins as “pretty surreal” and noted that the Oliver Schroer Award recognizing musical innovation especially warms his heart. “What a great idea of a category and a great tribute to this great musician, wrote Dind-Lavoie who, himself, expressed thanks to Corne de brume, Louis Morneau and Marie Pierre Lecault “and to all those shadow singers/musicians who find themselves unknowingly on this album and have to wonder what’s going on from the stars: Benoit Benoit, Joseph Larade, Alphonse Morneau, the Brideau family, Jeanne Savoie, Madeleine Lemieux, Azade Benoit, Eddy Arsenault, Edouard Sanschagran, Henry Poitras.”

Here’s a video link to see Dind-Lavoie accompany a 1957 archival recording of singer Joseph Larade on piano.

The Canadian Folk Music Awards were established in 2005 to bring greater exposure to the breadth and depth of Canadian folk music, celebrating and promoting it in all its forms. More than 100 jurors, located across Canada and representing all of its official provinces, territories and languages determine the recipients in each category. While the awards were presented virtually in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Canada’s leading folk music event – including awards concerts and nominee showcases – adopted a hybrid model this year featuring both live and pre-recorded performances that were presented both to an audience at The Guild, a 160-seat venue in Charlottetown, PEI, and via livestream. Chelsey June of the husband-and-wife duo Twin Flames and Benoit Bourque co-hosted the event. While some honorees accepted their awards in-person, others did so via video.

A complete list of 2022 Canadian Folk Music Awards winners follows, while more information may be found online at folkawards.ca.

Children’s Album of the Year / Album jeunesse de l’année

• Heart Parade by/par Splash ‘N Boots (Ontario)

Contemporary Album of the Year / Album contemporain de l’année

• Outside Child by/par Allison Russell (Quebec)

Contemporary Singer of the Year / Chanteur contemporain de l’année

• Rob Lutes for/pour Come Around (Quebec)

English Songwriter(s) / Auteur compositeur(s) Anglophone

• Allison Russell for/pour Outside Child (Quebec)

Ensemble of the Year / Groupe de l’année

• Elliott Brood for/pour Keeper (Ontario)

French Songwriter(s) of the Year / Auteur-compositeur(s) francophone de l’année

• Reney Ray for/pour À l’ouest du réel (Quebec)

Global Roots Album of the year/ Album traditions du monde de l’année
(Note: This replaces the World Album of the Year.)

• Wutiko by/par Elage Diouf (Quebec)

Indigenous Songwriter(s) of the Year / Auteur compositeur(s) autochtone de l’année

• Chelsey June & Jaaji for/pour Omen (Quebec)

Instrumental Group of the Year / Groupe instrumental de l’année

• Frank Evans & Ben Plotnick for/pour Madison Archives (Ontario)

Instrumental Solo artist of the Year / Instrumentiste solo de l’année

• Cédric Dind-Lavoie for/pour Archives (Quebec)

New/Emerging Artist(s) of the Year / Artiste(s) de la relève de l’année

• Allison Russell for/pour Outside Child (Quebec)

Oliver Schroer Pushing the Boundaries Award / Prix Innovation musicale Oliver Schroer

• Cédric Dind-Lavoie for/pour Archives (Quebec)

Producer(s) of the Year / Réalisateur(s) de l’année

• Cédric Dind-Lavoie, Corne de brume for/pour Archives (Quebec)

Single of the Year / Monoplage de l’année

• “Gospel First Nation” by/par William Prince (Manitoba)

Solo Artist of the Year / Artiste solo de l’année

• Alicia Toner for/pour Joan (Prince Edward Island)

Traditional Album of the Year / Album traditionnel de l’année

• Kitchen Days by/par Braden Gates (Alberta)

Traditional Singer of the Year / Chanteur traditionnel de l’année

• Ewelina Ferenc (of Polky) for/pour Songs From Home (Ontario)

Vocal Group of the Year / Groupe vocal de l’année

• Twin Flames for/pour Omen (Quebec)

Young Performer(s) of the Year / Jeune artiste(s) de l’année

• Isabella Samson for/pour If It’s Not Forever (Nova Scotia)

As previously reported on AcousticMusicScene.com, the Slaight Music Unsung Hero Award was presented to Genevieve Nadeau. A leading figure in Quebec’s trad music and song scene, Nadeau manages the Quebecois folk group Le Vent du Nord, co-founded and runs La Compagnie due Nord – producing hundreds of concerts annually around the world, and produces CDs and music videos, helped launch the Festival Chants de Vielles, serves on the board of Folquebec, and has been a cultural ambassador for Quebecois music.

The Canadian Folk Music Awards also paid tribute to Grit and Judith Laskin, stalwarts of the Canadian folk music scene and founding board members of the CFMAs.

Through its online showcases, Folquebec – an active participant at APAP conferences for the past nine years — aims to offer conference attendees an introduction to Quebec’s traditional, folk and world music scene, according to Gilles Garand, president and artistic director of the nonprofit organization that is now celebrating its 20th anniversary.

Quebecois traditional music, built around dancing, represents a melding of musical influences. It’s inspired by traditions brought to Quebec by early French settlers and later, by Celtic traditions brought to Anglo-Canada by Irish and, particularly, Scottish settlers.

By the early 20th century, a distinctly Quebecois version of traditional music had developed. It drew from such diverse influences as Scottish step dancing, Irish instrumental tunes, European dance forms, old French songs and 78 rpm records from the U.S. and Canada. The fiddle became Quebec’s primary instrument at the time, closely followed by the accordion. Other instruments have since been added to the mix as some contemporary artists have sought to reinterpret and keep Trad music alive.

As emcee of the Folquebec TradFest, Garand introduced five of the Canadian province’s premier folk and roots groups – Bon DeBarras, De Temps Antan, Grosse Isle, Les Grands Hurleurs, and Le Vent du Nord. Each group showcased its talents live from Montreal’s Cabaret du Lion d’Or for 25 minutes.

Bon Débarras, which in English translates to good riddance, is a trio of multi-instrumentalists (Dominic Desrochers, Jean-Francois Dumas and Veronique Plasse) whose original roots repertoire is steeped in in poetry and rhythmic sounds, and blends traditional French-Canadian, Irish, Scottish and English musical influences with those of contemporary, multicultural Montreal. Besides accordion, banjo, guitars, harmonica and vocals, Bon DeBarras’ music features the infectious beat of podorhythmie (foot percussion) –- a staple of Quebecois traditional music.

De Temps Antan is a high-energy trio that is helping to bring Quebecois traditional folk music into the 21st century while adding original music stylings, a contemporary flair and joie de vivre. Since banding together nearly 17 years ago, Andre Brunet (a champion fiddler, who has also performed with Celtic Fiddle Festival), Eric Beaudry (rhythm guitar, mandolin, bouzouki and clogging) and Pierre Luc-DuPuis (accordion) have brought their rousing performances of songs jigs and reels to stages worldwide.

All three members previously were members of La Bottine Souriante, the band most closely associated with the 1970s folk revival in Quebec. With its instrumentation, a vast repertoire of call-and-response songs, and the French-Canadian seated clogging or step-dancing that often accompanies these proto-typical songs, La Bottine Souriante (The Smiling Boot) became a seminal Quebecois folk band that set the standard for De Temps Antan and others to follow.

Grosse Isle is a trio featuring Irish uileann piper Fiochra O’Regan, Quebec fiddler-pianist and singer Sophie Lavoie and noted guitarist Andre Marchand, who blend traditional Irish and Quebecois traditional music with Lavoie’s own compositions. The trio takes its name from an island in the St. Lawrence River where many Irish immigrants to Canada lived,

Les Grands Hurleurs is a trio fronted by Nicolas Pellerin. While rooted in Quebecois traditional music, the trio also fuses elements of classical, gypsy, folk music and electronica and adds its own arrangements to the mix. Currently working on another album for release this year, Les Grands Hurleurs have won three Felix Awards, Francophone Canada’s Juno equivalent.

Le Vent du Nord is a lively, soulful and prolific group of talented singers and multi-instrumentalists that has been expanding the bounds of Quebecois traditional music for nearly 20 years. The globetrotting ensemble has been the well-deserved recipient of multiple Junos, Felix and Canadian Folk Music Awards. Its repertoire includes both traditional folk and original tunes that are performed on button accordion, fiddle guitar and hurdy-gurdy.

Noting that the formation of Folquebec stemmed from conversations at a Folk Alliance conference in 2000, Garand views conferences as “opportunities to share our knowledge and contribute to the concept of cultural reciprocity among artists.” Through its participation, Folquebec looks forward “to developing an ongoing partnership with leaders of North American cultural organizations to bring together our strengths, our resources, our complementarities in the advancement of the performing arts sector, and music in particular, of the broad cultural diversity of human expression through the arts,” he said.

“In this most unusual year of the COVID-19 pandemic, for music professionals, APAP was once again a inspiring meeting place and unique opportunity to meet people, to share and exchange together, discover new talent, new music and explore how to achieve in a virtual way our cultural objectives for the future.”

A Booking Agent and Traditional Music and Dance Aficionado Shares Her Thoughts

In addition to the Folquebec TradFest, two Quebec-based musical acts –- MAZ and Melisande (electrotrad] – were represented during the virtual conference in a pre-recorded showcase presented by the booking agency Canis Major Music. Both acts have previously showcased their talents at APAP under the banner of Folquebec.

Fusing trad, jazz and electric sounds, MAZ is a genre-bending band that is putting a modern spin on Quebec’s traditional music. The quartet, fronted by Marc Maziade, incorporates keyboards, electric guitar and electro beats, along with fiddle, banjo, double bass, vocals and Quebecois foot percussion.

The two bands were featured in a Future Folk and All That Jazz showcase, along with several non- Quebec-based clients of the booking agency that was launched about a year ago by Danielle Devlin, an aficionado of Celtic and French-rooted forms of traditional music and dance, who is also a competitive Scottish highland dancer and hosts house concerts and workshops.

“As a new agency, it was vitally important to me to stay ahead of the curve and double down on marketing, promotion, and bringing my artists to the fore in this unique time when the playing field was completely leveled,” Devlin told AcousticMusicScene.com. “What many saw as a crisis, I aimed to see as a beautiful opportunity, Very early on – before attending my first [of several] virtual conferences – I laid plans to host a themed series of virtual showcases for the artists on my roster, sort of a Canis Major Music festival of artists.” Noting that 18 of the 21 artists on her roster took part in one of four online showcase events for presenters last November that she produced, Devlin said: “Their work and commitment to make these happen made me feel so humbled, honored, and proud to be working with them.”

Future Folk and All That Jazz was among those virtual showcases which she called collectively Extraordinary Times and Artists and which she re-streamed on the APAP conference platform in January –- drawing what she called “a surprisingly good number of new views.” Each of the participating artists and acts also now has a promo reel that Devlin can continue to use in pitching virtual and in-person shows, while the showcases have resulted in real work being booked – both new virtual cultural programming and in-person performance offers, she said.

Devlin is also grateful to organizations like APAP that have recognized the importance of the performing arts in these challenging times and have adapted accordingly by pivoting to hold virtual conferences.

Noting that the platforms used for hosting these conferences have varied widely – in their ease of use as an exhibitor, as well as ease of interaction and access as an attendee,” Devlin said: “If you come with the right attitude, accepting that this is all a very new tech field and that there will be some difficulties, none of the small annoyances or hurdles are really that much of a challenge… Knowing that everyone is in the same boat, and most are not available to book new in-person work, the environment during these events has remained far more low-key and less of a hustle than would be if they were in-person.”

Apparently, however, virtual conferences are no less productive. Since the pandemic forced the closure of venues and cancellation of tours last March, Devlin said she has had “the amazing opportunity to be a part of producing and selling virtual programs” for about half of the artists on my roster – and in good number.” Among them have been concerts, interviews, workshops, and master classes in cooperation with festivals, performing arts centers, and presenting organizations across North America. “These are presenters who have also embraced the possibilities in this moment and who recognize the importance of continuing to support the arts during this crucial and difficult time for all,” she added.

Lisa Richards Toney, APAP’s new president and CEO, expressed similar sentiments during the virtual APAP Conference On its opening day, she noted that the virtual programming was designed to set the agenda for the year ahead and the recovery of the live performing arts. During the conference’s closing plenary session, she told attendees: “This time together has been invigorating, it has been igniting. This is not the end. We are not returning to business as usual… This is the beginning to engaging more equitably, to advancing the field as the richly diverse ecosystem that we are, to building forward with anti-racism as our lens, to addressing the climate crisis, to centering the voices of Black, Indigenous, and all people of color, to better visa and immigration policies, to outdoor programming, to resilience and mental health, to recovering in an altered touring landscape, to public health and re-opening, and to the art of going virtual.” Richards Toney continued: “We’ve got work to do. But we have imagination to uncover and promises to uphold. We are just getting started. We are stronger together, and we are worth it.”

About the Association of Performing Arts Professionals (APAP)

In addition to hundreds of performance showcases, APAP’s first all-online conference in its 64 years featured an array of professional development programming and networking events, a virtual exhibit hall, and pitch sessions.

The Association of Performing Arts Professionals (APAP) is a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit national service, advocacy and membership organization dedicated to developing and supporting a robust, performing arts presenting field and the professionals who work within it. APAP works to effect change through advocacy, professional development, resource sharing and civic engagement. More information may be found on its website, www.APAP365.org.

Editor’s Note: With the exception of Grosse Isle, who were new to me, I had seen all of the bands highlighted in this article showcase their talents at conferences and/or perform in concert/festival settings previously –- Le Vent du Nord and Melisande [Electrotrad] multiple times. It was also my pleasure to conduct an on-stage, pre-concert interview with De Temps Antan on Long Island in the summer of 2015. I have been attending and reporting on the APAP Conference annually since launching AcousticMusicScene.com in January 2007.

Gunning, Grant and The Small Glories are among the eight artists/acts in the running for Contemporary Album of the Year for Up Against The Sky, Love, Inevitable and Assiniboine & the Red, respectively. Gunning and Grant also received nominations for both Contemporary and Solo Artist of the Year, while Gunning also is among those vying for English Songwriter of the Year. The Small Glories also are nominated in the Ensemble and traditional Group of the Year categories, while Vishten received nominations for Traditional Album and Ensemble of the Year, as well as the Oliver Schroer Pushing the Boundaries Award.

A two-stage jury process featuring 100 jurors based across Canada and representing all official provinces, territories and languages determine the official recipients in each category. In an effort to recognize more outstanding albums and performers in higher-subscribed categories, the number of nominees in the Contemporary Album of the Year, New/Emerging Artist of the Year, Solo Artist of the Year, and English Songwriter(s) of the Year categories have been expanded.

The Canadian Folk Music Awards were established in 2005 to bring greater exposure to the breadth and depth of Canadian folk music, celebrating and promoting it in all its forms.

A complete list of 2020 Canadian Folk Music Awards nominees follows, while more information may be found online at www.folkawards.ca.

————————————————————

Traditional Album of the Year

Easy Money by Old Man Luedecke
Horizons by Vishtèn
Queen City Jubilee by The Slocan Ramblers
Territoires by Le Vent du Nord
Watchmaker by Shannon Quinn

Contemporary Album of the Year

Assiniboine & the Red by The Small Glories
Citizen Alien by Leaf Rapids
Getaway by Abigail Lapell
Love, Inevitable by Jenn Grant
The Al Purdy Songbook by Various Artists
The Maze by Ariana Gillis
Time Travel by Lennie Gallant
Up Against The Sky by Dave Gunning

Children’s Album of the Year

It Takes a Village by Ginalina
Lullabies For Big Eyes by The Kerplunks
Magical Lullabies by Amos J & Jérôme Fortin
Rocks and Roots by Will’s Jams
You, Me and the Sea by Splash’N Boots

Traditional Singer of the Year

Rachel Davis for Ashlar (Còig)
Joshua Haulli for AQQUT
Sophie Lavoie for Portraits (Sophie & Fiachra)
Old Man Luedecke for Easy Money
Allison Lupton for Words of Love

Contemporary Singer of the Year

Matt Andersen for Halfway Home By Morning
Jenn Grant for Love, Inevitable
Dave Gunning for Up Against The Sky
Lydia Persaud for Let Me Show You
Andrea Ramolo for Homage

Instrumental Solo Artist of the Year

Itamar Erez for Mi Alegria
Sabin Jacques for Grandes Rencontres (Sabin Jacques & Rachel Aucoin)
Graham Lindsey for TradHead
Jon Pilatzke for Amongst Friends
Richard Wood for Unbroken

Instrumental Group of the Year

Emilyn Stam & Filippo Gambetta for Shorelines
Mairi Rankin & Eric Wright for The Cabin Sessions
Pierre Schryer & Adam Dobres for Mandorla
The Fitzgeralds for The Fitzgeralds
Toronto Tabla Ensemble for Bhumika

Vocal Group of the Year

Fortunate Ones for Hold Fast
Geneviève et Alain for De la rivière à la mer
Musique à bouches for L’habit de plumes
The Small Glories for Assiniboine & The Red
The Sweet Lowdown for Low Clouds in the Morning

Ensemble of the Year

Haley Richardson & Quinn Bachand for When The Wind Blows High and Clear
Oliver the Crow for Oliver the Crow
The Slocan Ramblers for Queen City Jubilee
The Small Glories for Assiniboine & The Red
Vishtèn for Horizons

Solo Artist of the Year

Michael Jerome Browne for That’s Where It’s At
Jenn Grant for Love, Inevitable
Dave Gunning for Up Against The Sky
Sarah MacDougall for All The Hours I Have Left To Tell You Anything
Danny Michel for White & Gold
Irish Mythen for Little Bones

English Songwriter(s) of the Year

Ben Caplan, Christian Barry for Old Stock (Ben Caplan)
Lennie Gallant for Time Travel
Dave Gunning for Up Against The Sky
Kaia Kater for Grenades
Abigail Lapell for Getaway
Cara Luft, JD Edwards, Neil Osborne, Catherine MacLellan for Assiniboine & The Red (The Small Glories)
Madeleine Roger for Cottonwood
Justin Rutledge for Passages

French Songwriter(s) of the Year

Bernard Adamus for C’qui nous reste du Texas
Jordane Labrie, Clement Desjardins for 12 jours (Jordane)
Jean Leloup for L’étrange pays
Safia Nolin for Dans le noir
Caroline Savoie for Pourchasser l’aube

Indigenous Songwriter(s) of the Year

Sugar Plum Croxen, Shelley Hamilton, George Elliott Clarke for Constitution (The Afro-Métis Nation)
Jenelle Duval, Danielle Benoit, Stacey Howse for Qama’si (Eastern Owl)
Joshua Haulli for AQQUT
Diyet van Lieshout for Diyet & the Love Soldiers
Mike Paul for Origine

World Solo Artist of the Year

Ben Caplan for Old Stock
Cristian De La Luna for SABES
Quique Escamilla for Encomienda
Roberto López for Kaleido Strópico
Wesli for Rapadou Kreyol

World Group of the Year

Al Qahwa for Cairo Moon
Ayrad for Zoubida
Emilyn Stam & Filippo Gambetta for Shorelines
Pierre Schryer & Adam Dobres for Mandorla
Toronto Tabla Ensemble for Bhumika

New/Emerging Artist(s) of the Year

Birds Of Bellwoods for Victoria
Geneviève Racette for No Water, No Flowers
Gordie MacKeeman and His Rhythm Boys for Dreamland
Hook & Nail for Ghosts of Taylorton
Lydia Persaud for Let Me Show You
T. Buckley for Miles We Put Behind
The Lumber Jills for The Lumber Jills
The Unfaithful Servants for The Unfaithful Servants

Producer(s) of the Year

Erin Costelo for Grenades (Kaia Kater)
Steve Dawson for Halfway Home By Morning (Matt Andersen)
Luke Doucet for The Northern South Vol. 2 (Whitehorse)
Daniel Ledwell for Time Travel (Lennie Gallant)
Jory Nash, Chris Stringer for Wilderness Years (Jory Nash)

Oliver Schroer Pushing the Boundaries Award

Ben Caplan for Old Stock
Elisapie for The Ballad of the Runaway Girl
Samson Wrote for Pigeon
Tri-Continental for Dust Dance
Vishtèn for Horizons

Young Performer(s) of the Year

Conway for Conway
Nick Earle for Breaking New Ground
Joshua Haulli for AQQUT
Keltie for Expect Inhibition
Jacques Surette for Marche, marche, marche

The National Folk Festival will feature more than 300 traditional musicians, dancers and craftspeople in performances, workshops and demonstrations, in addition to hand-on activities for children and youth, participatory dance, storytelling, parades and more. Music and dance traditions from every part of the nation will be represented.

Among the many artists slated to perform on the festival’s seven stages are Alberti Flea Circus, Balsam Range (an award-winning NC-based bluegrass group), Jeffery Broussard and the Creole Cowboys from Lafayette, Louisiana (zydeco), Bill Kirchen (Austin, TX-based master of the Telecaster), Quebecois group Le Vent du Nord, Quebe Sisters (Texas fiddling and western swing), Super Chikan & the Fighting Cocks (Delta blues from Clarksdale, MS) and Youth Rising: Tomorrow’s Masters of Appalachian Music.

A North Carolina Folklife Area – including the North Carolina Traditions Stage and the North Carolina Folklife Demonstration Area – will celebrate the state’s rich, living traditions – from the southern Appalachians to the Piedmont to the coastal plains. Traditional and modern arts and crafts that express the cultural identity of the artists and their communities will be showcased in The Masters and Makers Area within the Folklife Area, while the North Carolina Arts Marketplace will feature juried, handmade creations by artists and craftspeople from the North Carolina region.

A wide array of regional and ethnic food, as well as traditional festival fare, will be available for purchase at seven food courts.

America’s longest-running event of its kind, the National Folk Festival, founded in 1934, generally rotates to a new home every three years and hopes to lay the groundwork for sustainable, locally-produced festivals and events that continue at each host city after it moves on. More than two-dozen cities have played host to the festival to date, and musicians and craftspeople from every state and most U.S. territories have participated. 2016 marks its second year in Greensboro, where it drew more than 100,000 people of all ages and backgrounds in 2015. An even larger crowd is anticipated to descend on the small southern city this year.

For more information, visit www.nationalfolkfestival.com.

This year’s nominees were announced Sept. 9 during a first-ever National Strum at Edmonton City Hall. The city’s folk community gathered together there to perform East Coast singer-songwriter Dave Gunning’s “These Hands,” a song of celebration and of recognition that everyone can be a hero of the human kind.

The Canadian Folk Music Awards were established 12 years ago to bring greater exposure to the breadth and depth of Canadian folk music, celebrating and promoting it in all its forms. Outstanding achievements will be recognized in 19 categories, while Unsung Hero and Folk Music Canada’s Innovator Award recipients will also be honored. 73 artists and groups from nine provinces and three territories in Canada received nominations.

Musicians Benoit Bourque and Connie Kaldor host the bilingual gala awards presentation that marks the culmination of a CFMA weekend that begins on Nov. 6 and will feature two nights of showcase events prior to the Nov. 8 gala. Tickets for the gala show are $48, while the showcase events are $25 each evening. Links to purchase tickets, along with more information on the awards and showcases, may be found online at www.folkawards.ca.

A complete list of 2015 Canadian Folk Music Awards nominees follows.

Young Performer of the Year:

Robbie Bankes – Through February Snow
Coastline – Coastline
Rebecca Lappa – Tattered Rose
Mira Meikle – MIRA
Benjamin Dakota Rogers – Strong Man’s Address to the Circus Crowd

New/Emerging Artist of the Year:

Crooked Brothers – Thank You I’m Sorry
Fortunate Ones – The Bliss
The Harpoonist & the Axe Murderer – A Real Fine Mess
The River and the Road – Headlights
The Young Novelists – made us strangers

Oliver Schroer Pushing the Boundaries Award:

Kevin Breit – Ernesto and Delilah
The Jerry Cans- Aakuluk
The Shoeless – The Shoeless
Dana Sipos – Roll Up the Night Sky
Whitehorse – Leave No Bridge Unburned

English Songwriter of the Year:

Catherine Allan and Andrew James O’Brien – The Bliss (Fortunate Ones)
Jon Brooks – The Smiling and Beautiful Countryside (Jon Brooks)
Amelia Curran – They Promised You Mercy (Amelia Curran)
Luke Doucet and Melissa McClelland – Leave No Bridge Unburned (Whitehorse)
Jenn Grant – Compostela (Jenn Grant)

French Songwriter of the Year:

Jocelyne Baribeau – Entre toi et moi (Jocelyne Baribeau)
Louis-Jean Cormier – Les grandes artères (Louis-Jean Cormier)
Benoit Pinette – Panorama (Tire le Coyote)
Dany Placard – Santa Maria (Dany Placard)
Geneviève Toupin – Willows (Willows)

The Aboriginal Songwriter of the Year:

Miranda Currie – Up in the Air (Miranda Currie)
The Jerry Cans – Aakuluk (The Jerry Cans)
Raven Kanatakta and ShoShona Kish – For the Light (Digging Roots)
Buffy Sainte-Marie – Power in the Blood (Buffy Sainte-Marie)
Laura Vinson and Free Spirit – Warrior (Laura Vinson and Free Spirit)

World Group of the Year:

Ayrad – Ayrad
Alex Cuba – Healer
Lemon Bucket Orkestra – Moorka
Monsoon – Mandala
Ventanas- Arrelumbre

World Solo Artist of the Year:

Kiran Ahluwalia – Sanata: Stillness
Jean-François Bélanger – Les vents orfèvres
Elage – Diame
Emmanuel Jal – The Key
Wagner Petrilli – Confissão

Traditional Album of the Year:

Matthew Byrne – Hearts & Heroes
Le Vent du Nord – Têtu
Natalie MacMaster & Donnell Leahy – ONE
Pharis & Jason Romero – A Wanderer I’ll Stay
Jayme Stone – Jayme Stone’s Lomax Project

Traditional Singer of the Year:

Michael Jerome Browne – Sliding Delta
Matthew Byrne – Hearts & Heroes
Tamar Ilana – Arrelumbre by Ventanas
Annie Lou – Tried and True
Pharis Romero – A Wanderer I’ll Stay (Pharis and Jason Romero)

Contemporary Album of the Year:

Jon Brooks – The Smiling and Beautiful Countryside
Jenn Grant – Compostela
Catherine MacLellan – The Raven’s Sun
The Once – Departures
Gabrielle Papillon – The Tempest of Old

Contemporary Singer of the Year:

Amelia Curran – They Promised You Mercy
Peter Katz – We Are the Reckoning
Sarah MacDougall – Grand Canyon
Catherine MacLellan – The Raven’s Sun
Jory Nash – The Many Hats of Jory Nash

Instrumental Group of the Year:

Coastline – Coastline
Shane Cook and Jake Charron – Head to Head
Lemon Bucket Orkestra – Moorka
Natalie MacMaster & Donnell Leahy – ONE
Monsoon – Mandala

Instrumental Solo Artist of the Year:

Jean-François Bélanger – Les vents orfèvres
Adrianna Ciccone – The Back of Winter
Nick Hornbuckle – 12×2(+/-1)
Patti Kusturok – Milestone
Wendy MacIsaac – Off the Floor

Vocal Group of the Year:

Fortunate Ones – The Bliss
Good Lovelies – Burn The Plan
The Lucky Sisters – So Lucky
Pharis & Jason Romero – A Wanderer I’ll Stay
The Young Novelists – made us strangers

Ensemble of the Year:

Big Little Lions – A Little Frayed, a Little Torn
The Once – Departures
Jayme Stone – Jayme Stone’s Lomax Project
The Sweet Lowdown – Chasing the Sun
Whitehorse – Leave No Bridge Unburned

Solo Artist of the Year:

Michael Jerome Browne – Sliding Delta
Amelia Curran – They Promised You Mercy
Lizzy Hoyt – New Lady on the Prairie
Catherine MacLellan – The Raven’s Sun
Oh Susanna – Namedropper

Children’s Album of the Year:

Ginalina – Forest Friends’ Nature Club Album
Henri Godon – La vie rêvée!
Hilary Grist – Tomorrow is a Chance to Start Over
Stella Swanson – I’m Not a Bunny
The Swinging Belles – More Sheep, Less Sleep

Producer of the Year:

Daniel Ledwell – Compostela (Jenn Grant)
Jory Nash, Chris Stringer – The Many Hats of Jory Nash (Jory Nash)
Les Cooper – Burn The Plan (Good Lovelies)
Murray Pulver, Dave Zeglinski, Steve Bell – Pilgrimage (Steve Bell)
Pharis & Jason Romero, David Travers-Smith – A Wanderer I’ll Stay (Pharis & Jason Romero)

Called Ice Storm 2014 and presented by Folquebec, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the promotion and dissemination of folk music made in the province, the Friday evening series of showcases took place at the Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater at Manhattan’s West Side YMCA.

“Our project is bringing Quebec music and Scandinavian music together, and the showcase was just an extension of that for us,” said Montreal’s David Boulanger of the duo Maja and David. “And we got a chance to meet some amazing bands with whom we’ve been collaborating this weekend.” His duo partner, Maja Kjaer Jacobsen, from Silkeborg, Denmark, noted that “these bands are so different that it makes for a nice collaboration.

The duo, playing together for 18 months and currently working on a second CD, met in Quebec in 2009 when David – also a member of La Bottine Souriante, the most well-known Quebec trad music band in the world – taught fiddle to Maja’s Danish trad music class which was there on a field trip. A couple of years later, David played a festival there with the band. After he returned to Denmark about six months later to teach at a folk music camp, the two decided to form a duo.

“The traditional music of Denmark and Quebec has so many things in common that we couldn’t let it pass by,” said Maja, noting that their music knows no geographic boundaries. She grew up going to Celtic music festivals and listening to her father play guitar and sing popular folk songs from the British Isles and Ireland. Although the guitar was her first instrument, she took up the fiddle at age 14 and considers Danish traditional music her forte.

David began playing the fiddle at age 8 and was learning to play traditional music on his own by 15. Asked about the geographical challenges facing the musical pair, he said: “People tend to see it as a tough thing to do, but I like to see it as we’re conquering the world from both sides of the Atlantic at the same time.” Of the APAP Conference, he opined: “It’s been great meeting so many new people – presenters and musicians – and making great contacts.”

Gilles Garand, founder and president of Folquebec, echoed those sentiments. “It was an incredible experience this year to work with Cinars and to create something new with the Scandinavians through Ice Storm,” he said.

Folquebec has previously presented an annual showcase and reception in the lobby bar of the conference’s host hotel. In 2013, these featured noted Quebecois folk groups Le Vent du Nord and De Temps Antan, as well as D’Harmo (featuring four of Quebec’s top harmonica players), klezmer group Kleztory, Trio Yves Lambert, and Maz (a quartet whose sound is a mix of electric jazz and traditional music). “We put Quebec music on the map and already have had great success with really talented artists,” said Garand. At last year’s conference, he also conducted a 90-minute session on “The State of Trad: Traditional Folk and Dance Music.”

Noting that the formation of Folquebec stemmed from conversations at a Folk Alliance conference in 2000, Garand, who also serves as president of Society for Preservation of Traditional Dance of Quebec and was artistic director of festivals for more than 20 years, said he views APAP and other conferences as “opportunities to share our knowledge and contribute to the concept of cultural reciprocity among artists.” Garand, who also is engaged in organizing a concurrent traditional music and dance festival called La Grande Rencontre and an international rendez-vous known as the Montreal Trad Conference slated for May 8-11, said he enjoys working on cultural exchange and bringing Quebec artists to the world.

The Ice Storm showcases were just a small part of this year’s APAP Conference that attracted several thousand people. In addition to more than 1,000 showcases, the global performing arts marketplace and multidisciplinary arts business event featured daily plenary sessions, keynote speakers, and professional development workshops and forums. As in years past, exhibition halls teemed with booking agents, representatives of regional and national cultural arts organizations, and presenters eager to speak with them.

A Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit, APAP is a national service and advocacy organization dedicated to developing and supporting a robust performing arts presenters field and the professionals who work within it.

Maintaining and strengthening the strong connections between Ireland and the U.S. is vital to Culture Ireland, which creates and supports opportunities for Irish artists to present their work at strategic international festivals, venues, showcases and arts markets. During the APAP Conference, Culture Ireland presented its fifth showcase of performing arts in New York – highlighting some of the emerging artists on the Irish music scene who are bringing new life to old traditions and pushing the boundaries of traditional music. Its New Music Showcase at the New York Hilton featured short performances by Realta, The Young Folk, I Draw Slow and The Spook of the Thirteenth Lock, while Culture Ireland also lent support for showcases by noted Irish groups Dervish and the Alan Kelly Gang.

Realta, a young Belfast-based trio featuring dual uillean pipes, whistles, bouzouki, guitar, bodhran and vocals, kicked off the showcase with a set of Irish traditional tunes. A song about a guy who proposes to a girl he doesn’t know followed, and the group closed out with another driving set of tunes.

Here’s a link to an official video of The Young Folk performing “Way Down South.”

Highlighting the Culture Ireland New Music Showcase was I Draw Slow, a Dublin-based five-piece string band (with vocals by Louise Holden) whose joyous and rootsy original music fuses Appalachian old-time and Irish traditional styles with a dash of Americana. Signed last year to Pinecastle, the North Carolina-based roots record label, I Draw Slow cracked the Top Ten on the Roots Music Report folk radio chart in December with Redhills, its second album.

Here’s a link to a YouTube video of I Draw Slow performing “Goldmine,” a song about a bordello girl who falls in love with a fiddler.

Rounding out the Culture Ireland Showcase was The Spook of the Thirteenth Lock. Named after a poem about a haunted canal lock, this five-piece outfit has a sound that mixes Irish folk with experimental/progressive rock, somewhat reminiscent of the Irish band Horslips.

Immediately preceding the Culture Ireland New Music Showcase, Irish folk mainstays Dervish, an innovative internationally touring band launched in Sligo more than two decades ago, performed a solid set of instrumental tunes and songs – including a couple that will be on a new album due this month.

The Alan Kelly Gang, an Irish quartet fronted by a master piano accordionist, delivered a strong set of instrumental tunes and songs that included jigs from the Celtic regions of France and Spain, as well as Ireland.

Solas and Cherish The Ladies Impress with Extended Showcases

Recalling the “No Irish Need Apply” signs that dotted storefronts and factories in many American locales at the time, Egan noted that those who settled in Butte (Shamrock City), a place once called “the Richest Hill on Earth,” included his great, great uncle, Michael Conway, about whom Solas performed a beautiful ballad.

Prior to Solas, McAuley Horan O’Caiomh performed a set of traditional and original reels, waltzes, jigs and airs — mostly from its 2012 release, Sailing Back to You. The trio features Solas members Winifred Horan (fiddle) and Mick McAuley (accordion), along with guitarist Colm O’Caoimh. Also sharing the bill was Maria Doyle-Kennedy, best known to U.S. television audiences for her role as Mrs. Bates on “Downton Abbey.” Doyle Kennedy is a soulful, Dublin-based singer who performs a mix of folk, pop and torch songs. She closed out her set with a rendition of the title track of her fifth album, Sing. The Duhks, a Juno award-winning Canadian roots outfit whose original music fuses such musical styles as Irish dance, American folk, Brazilian samba, zydeco, and old-time string band closed out the evening.

Another highlight of the APAP Conference was an hour-long showcase by Cherish the Ladies, the all-female Irish-American instrumental ensemble that was launched in New York City 28 years ago with flutist and tin whistle player Joannie Madden at the helm. Madden and guitarist Mary Coogan remain with the group today. Through the years, Cherish the Ladies also has featured several talented female vocalists who have gone on to pursue solo careers. As a special treat, Cathie Ryan, its original lead singer, who has released five solo albums and been twice-named Irish Female Vocalist of the Decade by Irish American News, reunited with the group for this showcase; she also performed solo during the conference. The ensemble was also joined on several numbers by four talented Irish step dancers — helping to make for a rollicking good time.

Along with Irish singer Maura O’Connell, Cherish the Ladies will be part of An Irish Homecoming, a new PBS television special of a performance filmed live at Bucknell University that begins airing in March.

Aoife Clancy, another former vocalist with Cherish the Ladies, also was at the conference showcasing with her group, The Jammin’ Divas, whose music is a blend of traditional and original folk music from several cultures. Also showcasing their talents during the APAP Conference were Irish American jig-rockers The Prodigals, led by accordionist and singer Gregory Grene, who also fronts Acoustic Mix; American roots and Celtic soul duo Switchback; and Colcannon, an ensemble that performs traditional and original Celtic music and has eight albums and an Emmy Award-winning PBS concert video to its credit. In addition, Padraig Allen’s McLean Avenue Band was accompanied Joanna Barry Connolly’s Irish dance group, Emerald Fire, in an extended showcase at an Irish pub and restaurant on Manhattan’s East Side.

Other Showcases, Workshops and Forums Abound

These showcases were just a small part of this year’s APAP Conference. The global performing arts marketplace and multidisciplinary arts business event attracted several thousand people who chose from a wide array of showcases, professional development workshops and forums primarily focused on the theme “Imagination,” which asked both speakers and attendees to reflect upon the innovation and entrepreneurship that make the performing arts integral to community engagement. As in years past, exhibition halls teemed with booking agents, representatives of regional and national cultural arts organizations, and presenters eager to speak with them. And much networking took place during the conference.

Folquebec presented its annual showcase featuring noted Quebecois folk groups Le Vent du Nord and De Temps Antan, as well as D’Harmo (featuring four of the Canadian province’s top harmonica players), klezmer group Kleztory, Trio Yves Lambert, and Maz (a quartet whose sound is a mix of electric jazz and Quebec’s traditional music). Folquebec’s founder and president, Gilles Garand, also conducted a 90-minute session on “The State of Trad: Traditional Folk and Dance Music,” during which he provided an informative history lesson on Quebec’s traditional folk and dance music, before inviting attendees to join him in exploring what can be done to preserve and promote traditional folk music of various cultures. He also promoted a Montreal Trad Conference, an international rendez-vous slated for May 9-12.

Rosanne Cash Delivers Closing Keynote

In keeping with the conference’s theme of “Imagine,” Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Rosanne Cash acknowledged in her closing keynote that “Re-imagining myself as a performer has been among the most enriching and transformative experiences of my life.”

While writing her memoirs, Composed (2010), Cash spent considerably more time delving into performance than she had initially anticipated. “I came to realize that my life as a performer was so central,” she said. Cash acknowledged that her first experiences performing were with her father [the late Johnny Cash] and that she was initially terrified and clueless about her abilities. “I enjoyed these little guest spots on my dad’s tour, but I had no illusions of the life,” she said, noting that when she later embarked on her own career as a touring artist, “the performing experience was initially torturous. “She had stage fright and preferred being a songwriter. “Now,” says Cash, “I approach every show with a deep sense of community.’

“The impulse to people-please is death to an artist,” she said. “What you think you’re showing the audience is actually just a fraction of what they’re really seeing…The emphemeral nature of performing is the part I like most. Sometimes the only thing you have is a powerful instinct; you’ve refined your skills such that you can trust your instincts.” She observed that “Some career risks are like chess, while artistic risks infuse my soul [and] make me what I am.”

Maintains Cash, “We need art and music like we need blood and oxygen… Art in the larger sense is the lifeline I cling to in a confusing and sometimes unfair world… There is light in this world and it is always available – much of it through music.”