Folk Music at Caltech

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Friday, June 22, 2012
8:00 pm
Beckman Institute auditorium

Aaron and Claire record and perform in various combinations in Scotland, including as solos, as a duo and in their new group, Litha.

Aaron has also been a long-time member of the immensely popular Scottish group, Old Blind Dogs. Born in Poole, England, Aaron lives in Edinburgh, Scotland. He has toured the world with Old Blind Dogs, and now does most of their vocals. He is a fine singer and musician on bouzouki, bass and cittern.

Saturday, July 7, 2012
8:00 pm
Beckman Institute auditorium

Legends of the Celtic Harp is a beautiful musical and dramatic journey covering the history of the Celtic harp. It features Patrick Ball (Celtic harp), Lisa Lynne (Irish bouzouki, Celtic harp and mandolin) and Aryeh Frankfurter (Swedish nyckelharpa, cittern and Celtic harp). 

Saturday, August 11, 2012
8:00 pm
Beckman Institute auditorium

The great singer and songwriter Tom Russell will make his debut show at Caltech. He has written and performed many classic songs, including "Blue Wng" and "Navajo Rug," just to name a couple. He'll be accompanied by guitarist Thad Beckman.

Friday, September 7, 2012
8:00 pm
Beckman Institute auditorium

Laurie Lewis is one of the finest bluegrass singers and songwriters around. She is one of those few people who not only embodies the highest talents of bluegrass and folk greats like Bill Monroe, but she forges ahead and continues to shape the bluegrass world and achieve new heights.

The Right Hands features Tom Rozum (vocals,mandolin and guitar), Chad Manning on fiddle, Patrick Sauber on banjo, mandolin and guitar, and Andrew Conklin on Bass.

Saturday, October 13, 2012
8:00 pm
Beckman Institute auditorium

Jez Lowe s a great singer and songwriter from North England, who we have been trying to get to Caltech for years. He tours the world, and we're glad to finally have Caltech on his itinerary. His songs have been recorded by Fairport Convention, The Dubliners, The Tannahill Weavers, Cherish The Ladies, Gordon Bok, The McCalmans, The Black Brothers, Liam Clancy, Bob Fox and others.

Saturday, October 27, 2012
8:00 pm
Beckman Institute auditorium

Cathy Barton and Dave Para return to the delight of many. This pair, from Booneville, Missouri, do so much to keep alive the music and traditions of Missouri and the Ozarks. They are master musicians, playing hammered and fretted dulcimers, banjo, guitar and Autoharp, as well as "found" instruments like bones, spoons, mouthbow and leaf. They're both fine singers, both solo and in harmony, and their instrumentals run the gamut from lively to sad.

Saturday, November 10, 2012
8:00 pm
Beckman Institute auditorium

Kristina Olsen is a wonderful singer, songwriter and multi-talented musician (acoustic guitar, steel-body slide guitar, saxophone, concertina, mandolin and piano). She still calls Santa Monica home, but she spends most of her time out on the road, particularly in Australia these days. Though she won't be bringing a piano, and we're not sure about the mandolin, Kristina will not only dazzle you with the other instruments, but her songs will make you wonder why she isn't better known.

Saturday, December 8, 2012
8:00 pm
Beckman Institute auditorium

Brocelïande plays Celtic music from the British Isles, and Medieval and Renaissance music of the European courts and countrysides. They place a special emphasis on music inspired by or traditionally performed during each of the four seasons.

Saturday, February 9, 2013
8:00 pm
Beckman Institute auditorium

This concert celebrates 30 years of Caltech Folk Music Society concerts by presenting the very first performer who appeared on the series. Joanna Cazden's music was an inspiration to series founders Brian Toby and Simon Davies, and she returns to Caltech after a long absence (her last show was in 1998) for a generous set of her best originals, and a few folk and Yiddish classics. In the intervening years, she's been busy as a nationally-known speech and voice therapist.

Saturday, March 9, 2013
8:00 pm
Beckman Institute auditorium

David Mallett is best known as the composer of The Garden Song, a song so well known that it is often thought of as a traditional song. David has written many other fine songs that haven't received the attention that this one has, but he is a great songwriter, indeed. He has appeared on the Caltech Folk Music Society series twice before. David hails from a small town in northern Maine, and in a career that spans four decades, his music has traveled to all corners of the world.

Saturday, March 23, 2013
8:00 pm
Beckman Institute auditorium

This event is sold out.

Janis Ian is making her first Caltech appearance and we are very excited to welcome her! She has won one Grammy award and had 8 more nominations. In the 1960's, she shared the stage at New York's Village Gate with Tom Paxton, Judy Collins, and Phil Ochs as a teenage singer and songwriter at a time where songwriters were pushing in new directions.

Saturday, May 11, 2013
8:00 pm
Beckman Institute auditorium

Susie Glaze and The Hilonesome Band are coming back for a second appearance at Caltech. They are currently working on a new recording, so they have plenty of new songs and many great ones from before. Folkworks Magazine voted them #3 in "Folkworks' Top Ten Live Acoustic Bands in Southern California for 2008," writing "Susie is justifiably endorsed by Appalachian music legend Jean Ritchie, and the band has a fine repertoire of beyond-bluegrass originals from its chief songwriter, Rob Carlson.