THREE village halls in Dorset, Wiltshire and Devon host gigs by the multi-talented Americana duo Hungrytown – Tolpuddle village hall on Friday 11th October, Semley on Friday 18th and Upottery on Saturday 19th. Based in “the green hills of Vermont,” Rebecca Hall and Ken Anderson have been touring the world for years, exploring many different…
MOST people who know the name of William Barnes will think of him as the poet of the old Dorset dialect, the writer of Linden Lea, and a near-contemporary of a more famous Dorset literary star, Thomas Hardy. But who was at the real Barnes? Historian, musician and actor Tim Laycock is performing his play,…
SONGLINES, the magazine that celebrates folk and indigenous music around the world, described the Welsh folk band VRi as making “a primal roar of Welshness” – celebrating the music and language of their homeland, the trio are coming to Dorset for a short tour with Artsreach, starting at Corfe Castle village hall on Friday 11th…
KAREN Wimhurst and Helen Porter first met in the late 1990s, working together on Common Ground’s Confluence project, mapping the river stour from its source to its meeting the sea. Clarinetist Karen, who lives in Shaftesbury, was Composer in Residence for the project, and singer and teacher Helen was the animateur. Their musical relationship grew…
FANS of global music have had a treat at the Marine Theatre in Lyme Regis during September, and the final event comes on Sunday 29th. The focus moves to South America, when Jazz by the Sea welcomes in Alvorada, a Brazilian instrumental quintet introducing their latest album, Faz Tempo. It is a bold and rich…
CORNWALL-based singer and songwriter Sarah McQuaid comes to the Ustinov Studio at Bath Theatre Royal on Monday 30th September. Sarah’s been mentioned in a quiz question on BBC Radio 4’s Counterpoint, featured on the O2 Music Map, supported by the Arts Council, presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award for her guitar work, and earned critical…
DORSET’s much-loved folk duo Ninebarrow – James LaBouchardiere and Jon Whitley – are almost as well known for their love of walking as they are for their beautiful harmonies and charming original songs. For some years they have been leading walks and writing books to introduce their fans and fellow-walkers to different areas of their…
DURING the 1960s and 70s, if you were a music fan living in Bournemouth or Poole, or could get there easily, there was one shop that you would always make for, Jon’s Bus Stop Records, next to the Grand Cinema in Westbourne. Here you could not only find the latest chart hit you were looking…
THE hard life of the North Sea herring fishermen was memorably captured in a 1929 documentary film which has been reissued with a new live score by the sound artist, nature beatboxer and composer Jason Singh. The film, Drifters, with Singh’s soundtrack and a new film is being shown at two Dorset venues on 15th…
THE Mowlem Theatre at Swanage, close to some of Purbeck’s ancient quarries, was the setting for a film and recording of a new song, Drop The Hammer, described as a “captivating ode to quarrying in Dorset,” written and performed by the West Country folk and shanty band, The Longest Johns. The song was commissioned by…