THIS EVENT HAS BEEN CANCELED

7:30 Dave Plaehn and Jeff Hino

8:30 The Lucky In Love String Band

Pete Kozak, Jeff Hino, Ron Green, and Mark Weiss

Bluegrass with a twist. Well, maybe a few twists. Hot instrumental work and three part harmony.

The best Cellar is a once-a-month evening of acoustic music. Admission is “pay what you will,” and kids are free. Cookies and coffee are available. Located in the cellar of the Methodist Church on 11th and Monroe, in Corvallis. For more information, or to join the volunteer team, contact Mark Weiss at mjweiss@cmug.com

The Nettles

The Nettles are well-known on the West Coast for their original approach to contra dance music. Playing traditional music from all over the world, The Nettles create a strong rhythmic groove under soaring improvisations. Rhythmic drive and melodic fluidity allow The Nettles to propel contra dances into the stratosphere.

Kelsey Hartman

Since I am a “contraholic,” I can often be found any given weekend dancing or calling a contra dance. My inspiration for calling comes from Nils Fredland, whose callers’ workshop at American Week (BACDS) in 2012 spurred me down the caller’s path.  
When calling, I consider myself a conduit between the dancers and the band, helping to channel the  joy of the musicians’ music through flowing, interesting dances.

Beginners lesson starts at 7:00pm (experienced dancers welcome) dance starts at 7:30pm

Each dance is taught.  No partner necessary (it’s traditional to dance each dance with a different partner)

First and Third Saturdays of the month except July, August. Occasional special dances.

Penk, Pinney & Lindsay

George Penk is a well-known fiddle player across the USA, especially in the Pacific Northwest. He lives in Portland where he currently plays with the bands Joyride and Jigsaw. George collaborates with many musicians in various musical adventures, including being part of the Portland Collection project through his playing on the Portland Selection CD’s. His spirited and rich fiddle style is a delight to listen to. George is widely appreciated as a consummate dance fiddler working with callers to make sure the music is in-tune with the spirit of the dances. The Penk, Pinney, Lindsay trio, which includes Heather Pinney on piano and fiddle (also a member of Jigsaw) and Deborah Lindsay (from Corvallis) on percussion, works most often with the caller Erik Weberg, who also lends his expertise on wind instruments to the tune medleys.

Erik Weberg

I danced my first contra dance in Moscow Idaho in the Fall of 1986.  Several excursions to the dance hall were necessary for me to find the courage to actually dance, but once I, tried it caught hold quickly and I became a regular dancer. Christian Petrich encouraged me to try calling for the first time in 1990 and soon after that I started regularly attending the first Wednesday open mic in Spokane Washington. I called dances around Eastern Washington and Northern Idaho for a few years before moving west of the Cascades in 1993. I was soon asked to call dances in Portland and up the Willamette Valley. Since then I’ve been calling dances, festivals and weekends around the country from Seattle to Boston, from Fairbanks to Tuscon and most places between. I am able to enjoy this craft because of the good folks who encouraged and taught me to call dances years ago, the booking agents and local dance committees who have given me wonderful opportunities to practice in their communities, and the thousands of dancers and musicians who forgive me my mistakes and make it all worthwhile. If you’re reading this you’re probably one of them; so, thank you!

Beginners lesson starts at 7:00pm (experienced dancers welcome) dance starts at 7:30pm

Each dance is taught.  No partner necessary (it’s traditional to dance each dance with a different partner)

First and Third Saturdays of the month except July, August. Occasional special dances.

Jimmie Vaughan

Jimmie Vaughan performing in Florida. By Gage Skidmore.

A founding member of the Fabulous Thunderbirds and the older brother of Texas blues legend Stevie Ray, Jimmie Vaughan brought renewed attention to Texas blues in the 1980s, ultimately leading to Austin, Texas becoming a major American blues center. A multi-GRAMMY Award winner, Vaughan’s “Baby, Please Come Home” was a 2020 GRAMMY nominee in the Best Traditional Blues Album category. He also won a Blues Music Award for Best Male Blues Artist this year.

Hosted by Bob Santelli, Oregon State University’s director of popular music and performing arts, the American Strings series offers a unique opportunity to learn about a variety of genres from across the American music tradition.

If you have any questions or require special accommodations, please contact Isabelle Nissen at 541-231-5820 or OSUFEvents@osufoundation.org.

This annual folk festival will be conducted online over 2 consecutive Sundays, Sept. 13 and Sept 20.   Takoma Park, Maryland, is adjacent to Washington DC and has been presenting its festival since 1978.  It is now available to people all over the world, including Corvallis.  Click here or on the logo for more information and to access the festival.

Rosanne Cash

One of the country’s pre-eminent singer/songwriters, Rosanne Cash has released 15 albums of extraordinary songs that have earned four GRAMMY Awards and nominations for 11 more. She is also an author whose four books include the best-selling memoir Composed, which the Chicago Tribune called “one of the best accounts of an American life you’ll likely ever read.” Her essays have appeared in The New York Times, Rolling Stone, the Oxford-American, the Nation and many more publications. In addition to continual worldwide touring, Cash has partnered in programming or served as artist in residence at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, San Francisco Jazz, the Minnesota Orchestra and The Library of Congress.

Hosted by Bob Santelli, Oregon State University’s director of popular music and performing arts, the American Strings series offers a unique opportunity to learn about a variety of genres from across the American music tradition.

If you have any questions or require special accommodations, please contact Isabelle Nissen at 541-231-5820 or OSUFEvents@osufoundation.org.

This annual folk festival will be conducted online over 2 consecutive Sundays, Sept. 13 and Sept 20.   Takoma Park, Maryland, is adjacent to Washington DC and has been presenting its festival since 1978.  It is now available to people all over the world, including Corvallis.  Click here or on the logo for more information and to access the festival.

This event has been CANCELLED

John has been doing online concerts each Sunday
see https://www.folkmusic.com/ for details

Multiple Grammy-nominee John McCutcheon charms audiences with “story telling that has the richness of fine literature” (Washington Post) and his mastery of a stage full of folk instruments is simply amazing. He plays guitar, fiddle, autoharp, banjo, jaw harp, (hambone if we are lucky) and is best known for his hammered dulcimer playing. A John McCutcheon concert is always energizing, fun, uplifting, community building, and his audiences leave with a renewed sense of hope for humanity. “This notion of telling stories of ordinary people who have done great things, and carrying those stories from one place to another, of telling people ‘this is where I’ve been, these are the stories I can bring you,’ is the heart of what I do,” McCutcheon sums up. “That’s my goal. If you can recognize yourself in my songs, then I’ve done my job.” He lives in Georgia but keeps moving, toward wherever he senses there’s still a story yet to be told.

His 30 recordings have gathered many honors including 7 Grammy nominations, but it is in live performance that John feels most at home. It is what has brought his music into the lives and homes of one of the broadest audiences any folk musician has ever enjoyed. People of every generation and background seem to feel at home

in a concert hall when John McCutcheon takes the stage, with what critics describe as breathtaking in their ease and grace…, like a conversation with an illuminating old friend.
So if you want to laugh, cry, be inspired, and feel like you are a part of a big community, then don’t miss this concert.

For info or to volunteer, call Chere Pereira 541-753-9224.

Whether in print, on record, or on stage, few people communicate with the versatility, charm, wit or pure talent of John McCutcheon.

Sarah Jarosz

With her captivating voice and richly detailed songwriting, three-time GRAMMY award winner Sarah Jarosz is one of the most compelling musicians of her generation.

In a break from a life of touring since she was 16 years old, Jarosz recorded her new album, “World On the Ground,” while at home during quarantine. Collaborating with producer/songwriter John Leventhal, a five-time GRAMMY award winner known for his work with Elvis Costello, Shawn Colvin and his wife, Rosanne Cash, Jarosz crafted a subtle tapestry of sound perfectly suited to her lyrical storytelling.

Sarah will talk about her creative process and perform some songs from this new album — a collection of stories from her hometown of Wimberly, Texas — revealing her remarkable gift for slipping into the inner lives of others and patiently uncovering indelible insight.

Get comfy at home, turn up your speakers and join host Bob Santelli as we get to know better this contemporary Bluegrass/Folk/Americana superstar through an intimate evening of music and conversation.

Hosted by Bob Santelli, Oregon State University’s director of popular music and performing arts, the American Strings series offers a unique opportunity to learn about a variety of genres from across the American music tradition.

If you have any questions or require special accommodations, please contact Isabelle Nissen at 541-231-5820 or OSUFEvents@osufoundation.org.

Shemekia Copeland

Providing a soundtrack for our time, Copeland sings about the world around her, blending blues, R&B and Americana into a sound that is all her own. Her riveting new album, “Uncivil War” was recently nominated for five Blues Music Awards, including Song of the Year. It builds on the musically and lyrically adventurous territory that Copeland’s been exploring for over a decade — tackling the problems of contemporary American life head on with nuance, understanding, and a demand for change. It also brings Copeland’s fiercely independent, sultry R&B fire to songs more personal than political.

The Chicago Tribune’s famed jazz critic Howard Reich says, “Shemekia Copeland is the greatest female blues vocalist working today. She pushes the genre forward, confronting racism, hate, xenophobia and other perils of our time. Regardless of subject matter, though, there’s no mistaking the majesty of Copeland’s instrument, nor the ferocity of her delivery. In effect, Copeland reaffirms the relevance of the blues.”

NPR Music calls Copeland “authoritative” and “confrontational” with “punchy defiance and potent conviction,” and says “It’s hard to imagine anyone staking a more convincing claim to the territory she’s staked out—a true hybrid of simmering, real-talking spirit and emphatic, folkie- and soul-style statement-making.”

The Philadelphia Inquirer succinctly states, “Shemekia Copeland is an antidote to artifice. She is a commanding presence, a powerhouse vocalist delivering the truth.”

The American Strings series is free and open to all via Zoom. Register below.

Register Here

Portland FolkMusic Society presents

Singtime Frolics Online

a spring weekend of singing, jamming, learning, sharing and good food (you provide) at Portland FolkMusic Society’s annual retreat.

To register click here

Guest artists

Gordon Bok & Carol Rohl

Gordon and Carol need no introduction to lovers of traditional music. Gordon says “I’m drawn to songs that show me how others have lived their lives and sorted through their problems… They’ve shown me how to live, and if others learn something from my passing them on, that’s another pleasure.” Carol plays Celtic harp and has a special love for Paraguayan music . Washington Post said “The shimmering weave of harp tones and supple guitar rhythms cast a spell unlike anything else the duo performed.”

Stephanie Anne Johnson

Stephanie Anne learned to sing and started to teach herself guitar in grade school, soaking up folk, blues and gospel singers. Building on that base, she went on to study music in college, and has sung opera and musical comedy. She is equally at home with her band, the Hidogs, or accompanying herself on acoustic guitar. Her music is “rooted in all that’s American,” and reflects her daily practice of cultivating joy. Her concert and workshop will leave you joyful!

Beth Wood

Beth has been writing and performing full-time for twenty-three years — delighting and inspiring audiences with her exceptional musicianship and her songs that pull you into her world, all presented in the warmest most inviting way. She is well known to the Portland folk community, and if you have never spent time with Beth, you are in for a treat!

Lauren Sheehan

Lauren launched her recording and performing career in 2002 and has been sailing on to critical acclaim, national and international radio charts and lots of encores at venues across the US and Canada ever since. This vivacious singer delights audiences with the breadth of her material, evocative artistry and musicianship.

Jermaine Malone

Jermaine writes songs that tell stories from his life, moving easily among genres from R&B to hip hop. He draws his energy from interacting with the people who come to be with him when he is performing. Jermaine says his main joy is “to bring a smile to your face, and a shake to your hips”!

Los Lobos

The Oregon State University College of Liberal Arts (CLA) presents a conversation and some music with Los Lobos front men David Hidalgo and Louie Pérez on Wednesday, March 31 at 5 p.m.

The webcast event is part of CLA’s American String Series. Hosted by OSU Director of Popular Music and Performing Arts Bob Santelli, each segment of American Strings is comprised of a conversation and music by successful artists from a variety of genres, making for a one of a kind opportunity to appreciate and know better the great American music tradition.

Los Lobos (“The Wolves”) is an American rock band from East Los Angeles. Their music is influenced by rock and roll, Tex-Mex and traditional Mexican music. The band gained international stardom in 1987, when their cover version of Ritchie Valens’ “La Bamba” topped the charts in the U.S., the UK and several other countries. Hidalgo (vocals, guitar, accordion, fiddle, requinto jarocho) and Pérez, Jr. (vocals, drums, guitar, jarana huasteca) are two of the founding members of the band and wrote most of their songs together.

Hidalgo he has been featured on albums by T-Bone Burnett, Ry Cooder, Roy Orbison, Dolly Parton, Bonnie Raitt, Paul Simon, Bob Dylan and Tom Waits. He is also a member of the group Los Super Seven, and of the Latin Playboys, a side project with other members of Los Lobos. Pérez, the band’s primary lyricist, started out with Los Lobos playing the jarana, a small Mexican guitar, and singing. As the band ventured more into Norteño music and rock he became the drummer, first playing with just a snare drum. Eventually he moved to the front of the stage and started playing guitar again. Pérez has also been a member of the Latin Playboys. Additionally he paints and has been the art director and artistic supervisor on many of Los Lobos’ albums.

Hidalgo and Pérez will talk with Bob about their longtime collaboration and unique experience in fusing cultures and crossing genres, and play some of their music.

The American Strings series is free and open to all via Zoom. Register below.

Register Here

Andrew Bird and Jimbo Mathus

Oregon State University presents Andrew Bird and Jimbo Mathus on the next installment of the College of Liberal Arts’ American Strings series on Tuesday, May 12 at 5 p.m.

The webcast event is hosted by OSU Director of Popular Music and Performing Arts Bob Santelli. Each segment of American Strings is comprised of a conversation and music by successful artists from a variety of genres, making for a one of a kind opportunity to appreciate and know better the great American music tradition.

Andrew Bird is an internationally acclaimed musician, songwriter and composer who has released sixteen records. He has performed around the world at festivals and at renowned venues including Carnegie Hall, Sydney Opera House and Walt Disney Concert Hall. A TED Talks presenter, a New Yorker Festival guest, and an op-ed contributor for the New York Times, Bird also made his professional acting debut in the cast of Fargo’s fourth installment, which premiered on FX in the fall of 2020. Bird’s 2019 album, My Finest Work Yet, was nominated for Best Folk Album at the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards.

Jimbo Mathus is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist, best known for his work with the gold and platinum-certified swing revival band, Squirrel Nut Zippers. The group toured extensively throughout the 1990s, including performances for the 1996 Summer Olympics, The Tonight Show, Late Night with David Letterman, Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve and more. Since the early 2000’s, Mathus’ career has included work for Buddy Guy and Elvis Costello, and a vast collection of solo projects that have led to his music being heard on Shameless, Ray Donovan and more.

In many ways, Mathus and Bird are the yin and yang of contemporary roots music. Mathus hails from Mississippi and Bird grew up in Chicago. Mathus was self-schooled by an inquisitive nature and being around other musicians. Bird formally studied music at Northwestern University. Music brought them together 25 years ago, and an equal devotion to their craft and mutual respect for each other as musicians has nourished their long friendship, resulting in numerous collaborations. Now, after a near 20-year hiatus from working together, the Mathus and Bird duo have been at it again with the March release of a new album, “These 13.”

Written and produced from 2018 through 2020, These 13 captures “the warm first-take feel of two old friends having a fine old time” (MOJO). Mathus and Bird co-wrote every song through an exchange of voice memos, verses and ideas. Working with producer Mike Viola they recorded the LP live to tape, playing and singing from opposite sides of a single microphone.

Join us for a live, intimate conversation where Santelli talks to the duo about their friendship, the fun they had together in the making of this album, and the poignant story behind its opening track, “Poor Lost Souls.” Bird and Mathus will also share some of their music in a pre-recorded video they made just for American Strings.

Free and open to all. Register for link to view on Zoom

Register Here

Repairing the Breach – Northwest
a fund-raiser for Project Voice

Folksingers Annie Patterson & Peter Blood, creators of the popular songbooks Rise Up Singing (the Blue Book) and Rise Again, are doing a “tour” of virtual singalong concerts inspired by the Poor People’s Campaign. Project Voice, the Oregon/Washington immigrant rights program of the American Friends Service Committee, will be the beneficiary of this event. All are invited to join in song and spirit via Zoom while supporting the work for immigrant rights.

During this time of COVID, Pedro Sosa, director of Project Voice, has continued to build leadership and resiliency in rural immigrant communities through virtual education and training. Many immigrants fill roles as essential workers. Many have also suffered the devastating loss of jobs and homes due to the pandemic and the summer wildfires. Pedro has helped organize crucial mutual aid and COVID education outreach to these communities.

Please visit the website to purchase tickets, and learn more about the musicians and Project Voice. Ticket sales will be shared between the musicians and Project Voice. There is also a link to donate directly to Project Voice.