– Event participants may download the photos and use then for personal non-commercial purposes. If event participants want to print any of the photos for personal non-commercial purposes, I am happy to provide high resolution versions with watermark removed. If you wish to use any of the photos for commercial or non-personal purposes, then please e-mail me as the copyright owner in the first instance. Please include your name, phone number, file name & details of how the high-resolution photo will be used.
– I have enabled comments so feel free to comment on any of the photographs.
Events: concert of old-time music, ballads and dancing, presentation on the history of old-time dancing and music, flatfooting workshop, traditional old-time square dances, dance callers’ workshop, old-time fiddle workshop and old-time music session. Weekend ticket covers all events, or you can buy tickets for individual events.
Most events will be held at St James Hall, 462 Elizabeth St, New Town TAS 7000, but the concert and presentation will be at Mathers House, and check the programme for the location of the dance callers’ workshop.
Phil Jamison is nationally-known within the USA as a dance caller, old-time musician, and flatfoot dancer. He has called dances, performed, and taught at music festivals and dance events throughout the U.S. and overseas since the early 1970s, including over forty years as a member of the Green Grass Cloggers. His flatfoot dancing was featured in the film, Songcatcher, for which he also served as Traditional Dance consultant. From 1982 through 2004, he toured and played guitar with Ralph Blizard and the New Southern Ramblers. He also plays old-time fiddle and banjo. Over the last thirty years, Phil has done extensive research in the area of Appalachian dance, and his book Hoedowns, Reels, and Frolics: Roots and Branches of Southern Appalachian Dance (University of Illinois Press, 2015) tells the story behind the square dances, step dances, reels, and other forms of dance practiced in southern Appalachia. A 2017 inductee to the Blue Ridge Music Hall of Fame and a 2022 inductee to America’s Clogging Hall of Fame, Phil taught traditional music and dance at Warren Wilson College in Asheville, North Carolina for close to thirty years, where he also served as coordinator of the Old-Time Music and Dance Week at the Swannanoa Gathering.
Now he’s coming to Lutruwita/Tasmania for a weekend of dancing, music and history. He’ll give a presentation on the roots and development of Appalachian music and dancing, a concert of old-time music, ballads and dancing, run dance workshops in flatfooting and southern square dancing, run a dance callers’ workshop, call for several square dances, lead an old-time music workshop and an old-time session. He likes to be busy!
Phil’s dances are always great fun, accessible, family friendly and there’s plenty to learn if you wish.
He’ll be joined by experienced local dance callers Sarah “Twinkletoes” Lewis and David “Oddsocks” Wanless, and plus veteran local old-time musicians Ross Smithard and Up Jumped Trouble and the Rusticators.
Phil’s the real deal when it comes to Appalachian music and dance. He’s done extensive research in the area of Appalachian dance, and his book Hoedowns, Reels, and Frolics: Roots and Branches of Southern Appalachian Dance tells the story behind the square dances, step dances, reels, and other forms of dance practiced in southern Appalachia. Experiencing a Southern US dance and music aficionado like this really is an immensely special opportunity that doesn’t come round often so don’t miss it!
The Folk Federation Committee has chosen to award 2025 FolkTas Grants to
Wynyard Folk and Roots Club to support the club in hiring venues, building its audience base and assisting artists to travel to North West Tasmania to perform.
Dave Elliston and Susannah Clark to purchase sound equipment, enabling the delivery of a high standard of sound quality in venues which lack these resources to the benefit of audiences, musicians and dancers.
We are delighted to offer support to both these groups and to encourage the participation in, and enjoyment of, folk music across Tasmania.
We would like to thank all the applicants and you, our Folk Federation members, who enable us to provide these awards.
At its August meeting the Folk Federation Committee assessed the applications for the 2024 FolkTas Grant. It was decided that for 2024 grants would be awarded to two strong applicants.
Flinders Singers, a community choir on Flinders Island, to enable them to offer a Youth Scholarship for the Flinders Island Singing Camp in November/December 2024. It is envisaged that the scholarship will be offered to an aspiring singing leader, aged between 13 and 30 and living in Tasmania, to attend the ‘Singing Leading’ arm of the camp facilitated by Fay White, a highly acclaimed Australian singer, songwriter and community singing facilitator.
The committee is delighted to support the transmission of skills, knowledge and passion for community music from one generation to the next and look forward to hearing about the choice of recipient.
Kentish Harp Combo, a group running children’s Harp and Ukulele ensemble activities in Sheffield, to support them running a children’s workshop in March 2025 with harpist Heather Downie, Principal Scottish Harp tutor at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and an internationally renowned music/harp educator, to inspire and further encourage their young players.
The committee is extremely pleased to support this opportunity for young people to participate in such a learning opportunity with a world renowned and highly qualified harp teacher.
Best wishes to both groups for their very worthwhile community folk projects and we look forward to hearing about their progress and fulfillment.
We would like to give a huge thanks to all the applicants and to you, our Folk Federation members, who enabled this to happen.
The Folk Federation Committee has decided to award the 2023 Folk Tas Grant to Kate Fraser and The Kentish Harp Combo. Kate is a folk musician who plays celtic harp, fiddle, whistle, ukulele and djembe. The grant money will assist the Kentish Harp Combo run children’s Harp and Ukulele Holiday and term time ensemble activities, adult beginner harp classes, weekend workshops and care home activities. The first workshops for children will be held from 15th – 19th January 2024 at the Sheffield Town Hall with the intention of having the children’s group perform at the adult harp weekend’s Sunday afternoon concert. From February 2024 the group intend to run ongoing children’s ensemble classes, beginner adult classes and weekend workshops in Kentish and use harps and ukuleles in local care homes.
The committee look forward to hearing about the progress of all these activities and are very happy to support folk music development in the Kentish municipality.
We would like to give a huge thanks to all the applicants and to you, our Folk Federation members, who enabled this to happen.
The Folk Federation Committee is happy to announce that the 2022 FolkTas Grant has been awarded to The Unknown, a band made-up of teenagers Fergus and Reuben Page-Brown, Callum Waller and Charlie Wilkinson. The Unknown wish to use the grant to record and mix their original song “Open Your Eyes”, which was written for the 2019 School Strike for Climate rally and first performed at that rally.
The Unknown also plan to create a music video using their own funds, which they want to use to gain publicity for the song’s message that action must be taken on climate change. The Folk Federation Committee felt that this fitted in well with our signing of the Music Declares Emergency declaration and felt it is a message we also want to promote. We were also pleased to be able to support some very young musicians.
The Committee also decided to award a smaller supplementary grant to another worthy applicant, Isabel Rumble. She has just recorded her debut album and will put the supplementary grant money towards printing the CDs.
We wish best of luck to The Unknown and Isabel Rumble!
We would like to give a huge thanks to all the applicants and to you, our Folk Federation members, who enabled this to happen.
It’s a happy time for the Folk Federation and three lucky Folk Grant recipients.
At its August meeting, the Folk Federation Committee assessed the applications we had received for the 2021 Folk Grant. We found three strong applications that we really liked.
Our Treasurer reports that the Folk Federation’s finances are doing well at the moment due to more people taking out memberships than did last financial year. Therefore, since we could afford to this year, we decided to award the $500 grant to multiple applicants.
We are therefore happy to report that the Folk Grant 2021 has been awarded three times!
● Louise Conroy, who is running a bush dance at Deloraine Little Theatre at 7:30pm on 2nd October 2021 and three workshops that afternoon in dance calling, dance tunes and Ceili band accompaniment and rhythm. Lou wants to encourage the development of folk events and folk skills in the north of the state, and workshop participants will get the chance to try the skills they learned in the afternoon at the bush dance in the evening.
The Stranded Wailers, a sea shanty singing group who will perform at the Verandah Music Festival in Evandale on 27th and 28th November 2021. They will use the grant to fund songbooks to get the crowd singing and to subsidise accommodation so that as many of their members as possible can attend.
Ross Smithard, who is recording a dual CD album: one CD of original tunes he has written, and one of old time blues songs and tunes. Ross will use the grant to help pay for recording, CD production and to pay local musicians who will play with Ross on the recording.
We would like to give a huge thanks to all the applicants and to you, our Folk Federation members, who enabled this to happen.
The 2020 FolkTas grant was awarded John Hickey to develop a themed concert, “Recalling Young Irelanders”, that will entertain and inform audiences about the Young Irelanders who were exiled in Van Diemen’s Land.
The key elements to the proposal are:
Development of a script that includes relevant music (mainly tunes and songs from the 19th century) and an entertaining, and historically accurate, narrative. This will include pertinent quotes from documented writings of the exiles. The concert will have a length of about one hour.
Rehearsals with selected performers and revision of the script, and music, as needed.
Completion of the script, and of a double-sided A4 handout that summarises the story of the Young Irelanders in Tasmania, and of musical items from the concert. Two forms of the themed concert are envisaged:
A larger form that would include multiple performers (up to 6) who could deliver the concert at potential locations like the Cygnet Folk Festival and Westbury’s St Patrick’s Day Festival.
A compact form with 2-3 performers, that could travel more easily and deliver the concert at events such as the National Folk Festival and the National Celtic Festival, and perhaps to non-conventional venues such as at the Port Arthur Historic Site.
Tassie Composers Hit the Right Notes at Awards Night
(Article from the Folk Federation’s Drumbeat magazine, December 2019)
Saturday November 2nd saw the Kunanyi Folk Club host the FFT’s Song & Tune Writing Awards Concert. The deadline for the Awards had been a month previous and the judges had been busily listening and cogitating. A last minute flurry of entrants from the Youth Songmaking Sessions meant that the Under 19s category was better represented than it had been in some years. All entrants to the Awards (as is always the case) were invited to perform at the concert. It was great to see the Under 19s performing in such an intimate venue. David Beniuk, a previous winner, current judge and also co-organiser of the Kunanyi Folk Club tells us more: “Huon Valley singer/songwriter Anne Toner has taken out the prestigious Mike Silverwood Award at the Folk Federation of Tasmania’s 2019 Song and Tune Writing Awards. Anne took out the top prize for her piano-driven, gospel-inspired composition Someday Soon. Performed with vocalist/guitarist Tiffany Eckhardt, the song of the year winner was among a host of highlights at this year’s awards. The tune-writing award went to duo Yyan and Emily for their sophisticated and beautiful composition Brown Mountain. But perhaps the most hotly contested category in 2019 was the under-19s award. With a record number of entries in the youth category, the two prizes on offer were won by Alex Buktenica for Higher Ground, and Molly and Isaac for Falling. To cap off a great night for the future of Tasmanian folk, the People’s Choice Award was won by another under-19 entry, Eve and Amelia for their astronomy-inspired song Kepler. It was a fitting end to a night kicked off with the folk-rock rhythms and urgent lyrics of future stars The Unknown. And after a host of stirring performances from this year’s entrants, the night was closed out with a set from internationally renowned North West blueswoman Chris O. Prizemoney totalling $1000 was awarded across the four categories. The songwriter of the year is each year awarded the prestigious Mike Silverwood Award, named after the legendary Deloraine accordionist when the competition was revived in 1996. The awards night was hosted by the Kunanyi Folk Club, established in June this year in partnership with the FFT, for the first time.” — David Beniuk
The committee are very grateful to the organisers of the KFC for hosting the concert. We congratulate and thank all entrants for the time and talent they spent creating their entries. Once again the Peoples’ Choice category proved that the evening provided something for everyone with the voting being nicely spread across all entrants and categories. The Song & Tune Writing Awards are an annual event open to all Tasmanian composers of original tunes or songs in a folk style. The spirit is one of encouragement rather than competition, so be brave in 2020 when the event comes around again!!
The 2018 FolkTas grant was awarded to Wolfe and Thorn for their project on recording and promotion of maritime and other traditional Tasmanian music in collaboration with the Maritime Museum.
The project aims to
a) Create a recording of traditional Tasmanian music of various periods in the history of Hobart. These would include a large selection of sea shanties and songs that would have been heard & sung by those who came to Hobart by sea. We would also include songs written by residents of Hobart and Tasmania, including Alexander Laing and various indigenous groups that contributed to the body of heritage music we now enjoy.
b) Perform a concert in the stunning acoustics of the upstairs gallery of the Maritime Museum.
