Clovelly on Song for its first Folk Festival

The picturesque village of Clovelly in North Devon will stage its first folk festival over the weekend of 5th and 6th May. Folk music in Devon has undergone a massive revival recently. Live music invites participation; it binds communities and brings new sound and colour to people's lives in a time of austerity. The Clovelly Folk Festival aims to do just that. The village harbour stage will be the setting for many talented Devonian singers and musicians with an eclectic mix of styles and voices, from blues and samba to the songs of the West Country and beyond.Wren music of Okehampton has the Baring-Gould archive of traditional music and together with the appearences of  both Jim Causley, Jackie Oates the festival will have a genuine West Country base. There are also many gifted musicians appearing who are local to Clovelly including Jim Crawford, Nick Wyke, Beckie Driscoll, Tina Bennett, Chloe Bix and Mario Lee. The parish church will be hosting two concerts by local musicians; its location and interior beauty forming a unique venue. During the weekend, workshops for both children and adults wil be held in the village and parish hall. This is a festival which locates traditional music in a traditional village, little changed in hundreds of years and will provide a Spring time spectacle for all. 

Clovelly Folk Festival Saturday 5 May-Sunday 6 May - Tickets available from The Plough Arts Centre Box Office on 01805 624624 Adults £15; Families (2A+2C) £35. 

For programme details, visit http://www.clovelly.co.uk/events.php - or check out the line-up and see some you-tube footage at www.clovellyfolkfestival.co.uk

 North Devon Focus Blogspot Clovelly Highlights - Clovelly Lobster and Crab Festival 2011 - Clovelly Herring Festival 2011

Protect our Waves. Ben Howard "The Wolves" Video and Happy Feet

Great to hear Ben Howard's The Wolves on New Balance TV Campaign "Happy Feet" 30. Ben Howard released the single, ‘The Wolves’ on the 27th February 2012 through Island Records. It was taken from Ben’s top 10 debut album, ‘Every Kingdom’. 2011 was a hugely successful introduction to the music of Ben Howard. The young Devonshire singer-songwriter wrote his own story based on twelve months of relentless European and British touring, a string of radio-friendly, folk-informed singles, and an acclaimed debut album. Where his peers have become very British successes, Ben has been building a solid, fanatical fanbase across Europe, appearing on France’s hugely respected Taratata television programme alongside Coldplay, and selling out every show announced (including venue upgrades). In 2012 Ben will launch his music in America with ‘Every Kingdom’ finding a release in the Spring through Communion Records, with appearances at SXSW in Texas and a US tour already confirmed. Regularly compared to the likes of John Martyn, Donovan, and Bon Iver, Every Kingdom (produced by the band’s bassist and drummer Chris Bond), captures the rawness and intimacy of Ben’s live performance. The deftness of touch, the spellbinding nature of those six strings carefully finger-plucked, and Ben’s otherworldly vocal cries are spun and woven sublimely. ‘The Wolves’ was one of the songs that introduced Ben to the British public. Prior to Ben’s US live dates, he headlined a sold-out European & UK tour in February, which included two nights at London’s Shepherds Bush Empire. Another UK tour is expected later in the year. Ben Howard will be headlining the Goldcoast Ocean Fest in Croyde, North Devon June 2012.

www.benhowardmusic.co.uk
VIEW VIDEO

Click here to read all Ben Howard posts on Focus Music blogspot
WHAT THE PAPERS SAY
“A debut album of beauty and vigour.”—Sunday Times
“Full of hard-won wisdom that belie his age…He’ll make listening to acoustic folk-tinged music feel like the first time.” —The Guardian
“Extraordinary”—The Independent
 "An unusually poetic songwriter revelling in his proximity to nature" - Uncut
"Howard is a YouTube phenomenon with a modern voice, an acoustic guitar and an original way of blending the two...Properly new music" - Word Magazine
"Every Kingdom has been one of the surprise hits of the year. A showcase for his earthy vocal grain and tingling guitar picking." - The Mirror
"Howard's effortless vocal sets him apart from everyone else taking a whack at the folk genre" - The Sun

Circle of Life. End note for the Severn Sands

The sun was out in Bideford last week so took the opportunity to take some photos of the Quay and Victoria Park. Had a coffee on Bideford’s first floating venue, the new Café on the Barge down Bank End. The ex-military seamanship training barge has now been restored and the top deck, with views over the Torridge Estuary, is adorned with colourful flags and bunting. Amongst the host of maritime memorabilia I was delighted to see an old lifebuoy from the ship“Severn Sands”. We photographed this massive dredger when it made its first appearance at Fremington Quay in 2007, when it broke it's moorings in 2009 and again when it was eventually dismantled at Yelland in 2010. So for me the lifebouy picture really is an end note for the old ship's "Circle of Life". Article Pat Adams 11April 2012

Click here for North Devon Coast and Country Chronicle Post "Severn Sands - last passage through the Marshes"
Click here for North Devon Focus on Fremington Quay.

Circle of Life

For information about Café on the Barge visit http://www.thisisdevon.co.uk/Welcome-aboard-coffee/story-15589030-detail/story.html