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Presenting fine traditional arts in Central Pennsylvania since 1985

UPCOMING EVENTS:

Sat, November 7 - Fall Coffee House

Fall Coffee House Fall Coffee House Fall Coffee House Harrisburg
Susquehanna Folk Coffeehouses are intimate evenings showcasing Central Pennsylvania’s fine amateur acoustic musicians, who play a wide variety of material for an attentive, music-loving audience. This edition of the Coffeehouse features harpist Louis Lynch, original songs from Great Northeast, more songs and fiddle from Rebecca Lang, and fun covers from Rayzen Kane. FREE Coffeehouse concert Saturday, November 7 at Fort Hunter. MORE

Sun, November 8 - November Jam & Song Swap

November Jam & Song Swap Harrisburg
Honor our veterans this month! Our jam sessions are enjoyable afternoons of hands-on, homemade music. Everyone is welcome: instrumentalists and singers, musicians and listeners, all ages and levels, all acoustic folk styles. It's friendly and free. Jam on Sunday afternoon, November 8 at Fort Hunter. MORE

Sat, November 21 - LaPrelle & Dolphin

LaPrelle & Dolphin Harrisburg
The married duo of Elizabeth LaPrelle and Brian Dolphin share a love of bright vocal harmonies, eerie traditional songs, and heartfelt originals. They will host an afternoon banjo workshop in addition to their evening concert on Saturday, November 21 at Unitarian Church of Harrisburg MORE

Sat, December 12 - December Jam & Song Swap

December Jam & Song Swap Harrisburg
NOTE DATE!   Our annual wrap-up-the-calendar jam, featuring both regular and seasonal music. Our jam sessions are enjoyable afternoons of hands-on, homemade music. Everyone is welcome: instrumentalists and singers, musicians and listeners, all ages and levels, all acoustic folk styles. It's friendly and free. Jam on Saturday afternoon, December 12 at Fort Hunter. MORE

Sun, January 10 - January Jam & Song Swap

January Jam & Song Swap Harrisburg
Happy New Year! Start it off with some new (or old!) songs and tunes. Our jam sessions are enjoyable afternoons of hands-on, homemade music. Everyone is welcome: instrumentalists and singers, musicians and listeners, all ages and levels, all acoustic folk styles. It's friendly and free. Jam on Sunday afternoon, January 10 at Fort Hunter. MORE

Sun, January 17 - Open Mic Night

Open Mic Night New Cumberland
Spend the evening at the lovely West Shore Theatre in New Cumberland, enjoying some fine local music and maybe taking center stage yourself. Be there at 5:15 to sign up to play! Open Mic on Sunday, January 17 at West Shore Theatre. MORE
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Hot off the Presses!

A new show just announced... along with a FREE banjo workshop!

Elizabeth LaPrelle & Brian Dolphin
LaPrelle & Dolphin Banjo Workshop & Concert November 21 in Harrisburg

Elizabeth LaPrelle has been performing Appalachian ballads and old-time songs since she was eleven. Raised in rural Virginia, she sang American folk music with her family, soaked up mountain music at old time fiddlers’ conventions, and got noticed by master performers Ginny Hawker and Sheila Kay Adams.

Brian Dolphin is an ethnomusicologist who has studied and performed all over the world. Through his Patreon, he releases his own music and that of other under-heard singer-songwriters. He co-founded Ukrainian Village Voices in NYC, leads Philly Folk Choir, and stewards the World Around Songs songbook company.

Together this married duo enjoy performing, teaching, and singing in their car and kitchen. Grab your tickets before your holiday calendar fills up!

LaPrelle & Dolphin TICKETS & workshop RSVP

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Youth are the Future of Culture

In this Folk Artist spotlight, folklorist Amy Skillman is inspired to see young people experiencing and loving traditional music and dance.

Biplab Khatiwada sits cross-legged on the floor behind two drums, playing them with his hands. Each drum is about a foot high, one narrower and higher pitched than the other. Three larger, taller drums are off to the side.

I recently had a day that filled me with hope: seeing two teenagers pouring their hearts into traditional arts. I felt so lucky to be a folklorist working with SFMS! There are many ways for young people to engage with traditional arts in Central Pennsylvania, from Chinese calligraphy to Balkan music to Irish dance.

A young woman performs a classical Indian dance.She is crouching with her arms out in front of her as if she holds a box, and she looks worried. At left are four musicians sitting cross-legged on a low platform. The dancer's dress is magenta and orange, with a pleated skirt, and decorations on her head.

In the top photo, 16-year-old Biplab Khatiwada plays tablas, a pair of hand drums common in Nepali music. In the bottom photo, 14-year-old Nitya Nandakesan performs Bharatanatyam dance at her arangetram (debut recital). At a time of life when there’s strong pressure to conform, these two local teens are fine with being a little different: embracing their cultural heritage and making it part of their identity.

The full article explores other ways creative young people are both preserving and shaping traditional arts.

Continue reading...
See more Folk Artist Spotlights
The board and staff of the Susquehanna Folk Music Society are committed to celebrating and affirming diverse cultures through programming which explores the music, dance, craft and stories of many people. We stand in complete solidarity with the Black community and all marginalized communities to speak out against injustice, bigotry and racial violence.
A head-and-shoulders shot of Raye Zaragoza, a young multi-racial woman with long straight hair, dusky skin and full lips. She is wearing a black hat (only the underside of the brim is seen) and black T-shirt. Her expression is serious and a little sad.
Two Hispanic men with dark skin pose with large Puerto Rican drums in front of a Puerto Rican flag. They wear white shirts and trousers, and white hats with black bands. They are also holding other percussion instruments, including maracas and a basketball-sized shaker covered with colorful fishnet.
Three boys gesture dramatically, radiating excited happiness. They have their arms linked, and the boys on the outside are pointing upward with their free arms. They are wearing traditional garments of India: silk tunics and trousers, turbans, and silk slippers. The youngest boy is wearing pale blue, the eldest is wearing dark blue, and the middle boy is wearing bright medium blue. Their skin is light to dark brown.
Two Black men sit across from one another at a table, studying Bibles. The elderly man is Reverend Moses Jackson and the younger man (though old enough to have a gray beard) is his son Anthony.
A head-and-shoulders portrait of Sug Daniels. She is a young black woman with a strong, direct gaze. She has thick arched eyebrows, a broad nose with a stud on one side, very full lips, and medium-brown skin. She is wearing a black hat with a broad brim, tilted up, so all we see is a wide black disc behind her head. The photo is cropped so the edge of the hat almost doesn’t show. She also has a red bandanna wrapped around her head, with an inch or so showing beneath the hat brim.
Black Opry member Sug Daniels is a singer-songwriter, story teller, and producer whose work is as colorful, vulnerable, and charismatic as her personality. She thoughtfully combines elements of folk, R&B, and soul alternatives to create personal and tender music interlaced with messages of truth and positive change. [2023-2024 Concert Series]