THIS year?s Baring-Gould Folk Festival will be held over the weekend of Friday to Sunday October 29-31 in the spectacular setting of the two villages most linked to Baring-Gould: Bratton Clovelly and Lewdown where he was both squire and parson.
The festival, run by Okehampton-based folk and community arts development organisation, Wren Music, presents a wide variety of concerts, workshops and events, and features leading artists in folk and world music.
Martin Carthy, Chris Coe, and Pandit Vishwa Prakash and Shashi Pandit are the headline artists this year, reflecting the festival?s passion for song and voice work, and its desire to explore traditions from various cultures.
Guitarist, singer and composer Martin Carthy is a legend in his own lifetime, and is widely regarded as the most important English folk artist of his generation.
He has the ability to take a traditional song, adapt it, often with either a new tune or additional words, and say something contemporary and relevant whilst retaining the work?s traditional roots.
It was Martin Carthy who wrote the delightful arrangement of ?Scarborough Fair? which was borrowed by Simon and Garfunkel, and became an international hit in the 1960s. Since the 1970s, he has played with England?s most influential folk and folk-rock groups: Steeleye Span, The Albion Band, The Watersons, and Brass Monkey, as well as maintaining a busy solo schedule of national and international touring.
Chris Coe started singing seriously in 1967 and, in 1971 turned professional. Ballads were always Chris?s first love, and she has recorded a number of albums of English songs. Chris is always busy during the summer at festivals, and has been running successful voice workshops at Sidmouth International Folk Festival for many years.
Paul Wilson and Marilyn Tucker combine striking harmonies and an expansive repertoire, to make compelling and accessible performances with wide appeal, firmly rooted in Westcountry tradition, with old and new songs punctuated by tunes, stories and anecdotes. They have been instrumental in establishing the Baring-Gould Heritage Project, and recorded the live CD ?Songs Of The West? with Martin Graebe. Their CD of Baring-Gould songs ?Dead Maid?s Land? is due for reissue in the near future. They founded Wren Music in 1983, and it is now Devon?s leading folk and community arts development organisation.
The Baring-Gould Folk Festival includes many performances by other singers and musicians from around the country, as well as local community groups, schools and choirs, a craft fair, and a conker competition. The Folk Festival also includes workshops for singers and instrumentalists on the Saturday and Sunday mornings.
Further details on the festival from Wren Music tel 01837 53754, or email [email protected]">[email protected]