The Seldovia Arts Council has a new website and I'll be posting over there now, instead of here. It has an RSS feed and instructions on how you can subscribe to new posts by email, so you'll still be able to keep up with all of our activities.
The new site is at http://seldoviaartscouncil.wordpress.com/. Hope you'll join us there!
Seldovia Summer Solstice Music Festival will be held on June 20 and 21. Headlining the festival will be veteran performers Joe Craven and Ralston Bowles. Joe Craven hailing from San Francisco, California is a multi-instrumentalist with a twinke in his eye and a contageous love for music of all types. Music is not limited to the guitar, the piano, the drum set or the voice. It is a rhythmic, pulsating, pattern of sound that can sooth or excite the soul. Joe will be showing us that music can be created in unusual ways and that the the physics of music connects the emotions and the theory and can and should be accomplished by anyone. Joe was last heard in Seldovia when traveling with Allison Brown. It was then he won the hearts of Seldovians and Seldovia in turn became one of Joe's favorite places. That is saying alot because Joe has traveled the world with the David Grisman Quintet. Welcome home back Joe!
Ralson Bowles, songwriter and guitarist accompanied by Drew Howard (Captain Midnight) on steel guitar will bring the songs of the heart to the festival. Ralson and Drew are from the Mid -west, They each have had long careers in the music business, sometimes a venue host, sometimes a performer, but always into the heart of music. Their style is a blend of folk/rock with a little bit of country. Ralson's new CD sCarwreck Conversations and Rally at the Texas Hotel on Wildflower Records is a lesson in communications and gets right to the heart of some of the hard issues facing humanity with songs such as "What kind of friend am I?", "Fragile", "What Do You Want From Me Now?", "Velvet Elvis" and more.....
Seafaring Strangers is a group from Homer, Alaska that has been playing together in various configurations for years. Sally Wills, Brian Court, Dave Gerard and Knute Tonga and Tim Quinn play an assortment of acoustic music ranging from original songs and a cross-blend bluegrass and contemporary music.
Marion Walsh is a singer songwriter from Vancouver BC. She sings of her transplanting from the Boston area where she played for years in coffee houses and radio to the west coast, in her CD HOUSE TO HOUSE. Her finest instrument is her voice. She accompanies herself on the guitar, mandolin and piano.
Esther Golton is from Talkeetna, Alaska. She has just returned from a national tour debuting her new CD, UNFINISHED HOUSES . Esther’s whimsical songs feature her golden voice accompanied by unique styling on the mountain dulcimer and flute.
Relatively Famous is a group from Homer, Alaska . Russian songs and original music will be played by Sunrise Sjoeberg, Marjolean, Cardon, Brian Court, Mike Shellman and Tim Quinn.
Sarahnidipity is a family group from Girdwood, Alaska featuring Sarah Bartholmew, Steve Bartholmew, Matt Spence, and Dustin Rider. Traditional bluegrass is featured.
Myspace.com/sarahndipity2006
Wes Wedell, guitarist and songwriter, travels to us from Seattle Washington where he has spent time gathering stories from the folks along the way and putting them into song. His debut CD is called, Songs to Get You from Here to There. www.wesweddel.com
The Momma Tonga Band is a Homer Family Band featuring Mike Tonga, Heather, Tonga, Kristen Tonga, and Burl Tonga.
Exotic songstress, Shawn Zuke and mega-cool base player Milo Matthews sing a combination of new-age jazz. Original songs with a rockin’ base sounds feature, the flute, the diggery doo guitar, drums and more. Myspace.com/llm333 and lovelifemusic.com
The Seldovia fiddlers are just that. This is a group of young people including Serina Turner, Olivia Turner and their teacher Mary Glover. Their songs include traditional melodies and Irish tunes.
Billy Goat feature tight bluegrass music by Seldovians Jeff Snedgen, Chris Lelo, Kerry Hendricks and Kirby Corwin.
Faolan is a young Irish band from Anchorage featuring the talents of Ahnna Sutherlin, William Sutherlin, Dane Walker, and Willow Feighery.
Susan Mumma, is a Seldovia songwriter and performer . She will play some of her own compositions. www.myspace.com/susanmumma
Rob Rurka, guitarist, is a diamond in the rough. He has been “instrumental” in the phoenix-like development of the local Seldovia music scene and he is a darned good guitar teacher.
Tom Begich is a veteran Alaskan performer with three CDs under his belt and a national touring schedule. Tom’s newest CD, Cool Blue Light is receiving national recognition and taking him to far away places on a regular basis. Tom’s work reflect’s mastery of a classical guitar gone folk , excellent songwriting and lots of heart. ( He even writes sonnets) www.tombegich.com
The Dan MAC jazz band features Dan McElwraith on piano, Katie Strock on vocals and Lucius Oliver on drums. This band features original jazz pieces, songs of the 30-40 and more..
Seek Bob is one of Anchorage Alaska hottest bluegrass/gospel style groups following in the tradition of Barefoot and the Emeralds. Kalia Yeagle, Emily Mc Laughlin, Garren Volper and Forrest Allen (son of Mary Shallert, famous fiddle teacher extrodinare) will be a pleasure to host in Seldovia. www.myspace.com/seekbobak
Radoslav Lorkovic returns to Seldovia from his recent travels around the world with Odetta, Jimmy Lafave, Andy White ,Joel Rafael and many more greats. His solo piano styles range from boogie woogie, stride piano, classical to soulful from his own heart. His cajun accordian playing adds even more spice to an already spicy performance. Welcome back Rad!!
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This year Seldovia Arts Council's Summer Solstice Music Festival was represented at the National Folk Alliance in Memphis February 19-25. Susan Mumma was asked to coordinate/host a guerrilla showcase at National for the FARWest Region. This was the first time that our Western Region has hosted an artists' showcase and involved three evenings room management, decorating and food preparation for artists and visitors to the room that lasted from 10:30 PM to 3 AM. STARS OVER THE WEST was one of the prettiest showcases at the event.
Susan also represented Alaska by performing.(This was the first time ever at a national event. ) Emily Kurn from Anchorage also performed. Emily was chosen for a Performance Alley showcase as well.
I went back to Anchorage again at the end of the month to see the Anchorage Folk Festival. It is here that I meet up with lots of the folks we having coming down for the Seldovia Summer Solstice Musice Festival. Old and new friends gather for two weeks of music and workshops. This year the headliners were The Stairstep Sisters, and the Savoy Family.. Wow. what great acts and the workshops they gave were wonderful. On the second weekend, I was joined by Randall Williams, the "capo guy" and outstanding performer from the world at large. I helped Randall on his quest for fame and fortune in Alaska by going to various radio interviews with him and helping him see a bit of Anchorage. He later drove on down to Homer and then to Seldovia where he did a house concert and also a workshop for the Boys and Girls Club and the Community.
January 10 and 11, I attended "Leadership: Are You Ready?, a training for non-profit community organizations created by the Forakergroup and sponsored by Conoco Phillips, The emphasis of the conference was to ponder the ways inwhich non-profit organizations statawide can network for the better good of all. A few of the speakers included: Peter Brinkerhoff, award-winning author and expert in non-profit management. Mr. Brinkerhoff expounded on the notion that a non-profit is a mission-based business in the business of doing its mission. He emphasised the importance of creating a clear mission statement a clear guiding force for an orgainzation. Gary Ostrokske, President of the United Way for the Greater New Orleans Area told of his experiences in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina. He told of the many ways the community pulled together during this disaster and how non-profits such at United Way, religious organizations and other roots-based local organizations have been the back-bone of recovery. Katarine DeShaw told of her organization, United States Artists, whose mission is to nurture support and strengthen the work of America's finest living artists. Katherine Gottlieb, (former Seldovian) was awarded the 2004 McArhur Genius Award as did Sven Haakanson, Jr. of Kodiak Island. Together they were interviewed about their background experiences and thier inpirations for leadership. Many more speakers taught workshops on financial management, board development, communications, and other challenges to non-profit organizations..
