Still reeling …
Wow! Still reeling from a fantastic night of jigs and reels at folk at the Froize. I think that it was my favourite yet! ( And we’ve had some crackers! ) I know that you might say I’m biased because I’m a banjo fanatic and all that, but seriously, I don’t think there was a single person in the room that night who wasn’t tapping their feet and in total awe of Dan Walsh’s banjo skills!
From the second he started playing I thought ‘ we’re in for a treat here’ . Such a class way to start; an utterly beautiful melody, gradually creeping up in pace to a dramatic finger picking frenzy. He managed to intersperse so many different world influences and styles into his set, that even though he played the majority on banjo, with only a couple on guitar, every song sounded unique and the hour seemed to whip by in a flash.
Dan was such a natural entertainer and held the audience in the palm of his hand. It was a pleasure to hear his stories of inspiration, interspersed with amusing little anecdotes. He did it all in such a casual manner … Obviously a man who is very comfortable on the stage. We wish him to best of luck with his NZ your this February and hope that he will come back to visit us one day soon … Who knows … Maybe he’ll bring the urban folk quartet … Now that would be a treat! (Saw them at folk east in 2015 … A-MAY-ZING!)
Our wonderful support act for the evening who were Celtic folk fusion band Aartwork, who have gradually expanded over the years from a duo to a quintet! Made up of fiddler Art, jazzy guitarist Claire, bass rocking Oli, finger tapping Merlin and sweet whistling Pheobe, they offered up something a little different for the audience of Folk at the Froize… A fusion of musical styles! Thanks so much for coming and entertaining us guys. Is lovely to have such talented folks on our doorstep (they hail from Woodbridge … just 10 mins down the road)
I had the rare treat of being able to sit right in the thick of it, in poll position right up the front, next to the lovely Tony Bell ofgrapevine magazine ! Tony was snapping away all evening and recording little snippets and he has written a wonderful little review of the night too … ( Click this link to read it ) thanks for taking the time Tony … And thanks for the class pics ( i need a photography lesson ).
Was great to see so many new faces this month. Hope to see some of you at our next event which will be on the 28th February and feature Sam Carter who is a renowned British folk musician. We feel very honoured to be hosting such a talent. There is a little video at the bottom of this blog from when he performed on Jools Holland a few years back.
Support on Sunday 28th will be from a local family band made up of Ross, Ali and Eliza. Jon and Me had the pleasure of seeing them play a floor spot at a local folk club and we’re just bowled over by how talented 14 year old Eliza was on the violin! A girl who certainly has a sparkling bright future ahead of her. Very much looking forward to hearing them perform together again.
Tickets will be available to buy from the 13th of this month , as our hosts, David and the lovely Louise, are away on holiday (it’s all right for some eh) We very much hope they are having a lovely time. So call 01394 450282 for tickets on the 13th! (and apparently our venue is having a little makeover whilst they are away)
See you on the 28th in a sparkly new-look Froize!
