The Front Porch teams with Appalachian State University professor and folklorist Cece Conway to explore West African influences and instruments through the folk akonting and the griot ngoni, which can be traced to the modern banjo. The Black and Global Roots Music Project will also feature Piedmont blues performed by Jeffrey Scott, whose mastery is […]
The Front Porch teams with Appalachian State University professor and folklorist Cece Conway to explore West African influences and instruments through the folk akonting and the griot ngoni, which can be traced to the modern banjo. The Black and Global Roots Music Project will also feature Piedmont blues performed by Jeffrey Scott, whose mastery is […]
Legendary duo Robin and Linda Williams (below, left) have played Americana music for longer than the genre has existed. Their musical beginnings trace to North Carolina, where Linda was a school teacher and Robin played full-time on the coffeehouse scene. Connecting through “a robust blend of bluegrass, folk, old-time and acoustic country,” the husband-and-wife musicians […]
After leaving the popular Celtic folk band Solas, John Doyle was in high demand on the music scene. Brought up in a musical family, Doyle gained prominence through his signature sound on guitar as well as his heartfelt vocals and commanding performances. His Irish heritage is evident in his writing, which focuses on the stories […]
Ben Arthur is so taken by the creative process that it informs his art in a literal sense. Whether he’s responding to Kurt Andersen’s story of Puritan settler Anne Hutchinson with a modern answer in song, or co-writing with notable author George Saunders, Arthur stays busy crafting his own subgenre through collaborations. He hosts the Emmy-nominated […]
Southeastern Pennsylvania’s Orpheus Supertones mash up with Charlottesville’s Uncle Henry’s Favorites for a Fiddler’s Convention on Duck Mountain. The collective brings more than 50 years of experience to a showcase of fiddle, banjo, guitar and bass playing, blended with vocal harmonies, for a rousing evening steeped in tradition. Friday, June 30. $15-18, 7:30pm. The Front […]
While singer-songwriter Devon Sproule’s sound has evolved over time, she continues to write thoughtful and compelling lyrics. This month her eighth album, The Gold String, will be released. The record is themed on the idea of an invisible string connecting all things, and the possibility of finding “spiritual togetherness in everyday life,” Sproule says. For […]
The Front Porch’s Emily Morrison wants artists of all backgrounds to find peace at the roots music school she founded in 2015. With help from friends, Morrison began the school in a back room in her home and soon moved into a space at Mountaintop Montessori. Last June the nonprofit moved into the old Michie […]