Si Genaro & Katy Hooper - Thursday 14.00 - 15.00

Si Genaro
Random raconteur and singer of songs, Si Genaro is a songwriter and acoustic performer who plays uptempo songs and ballads, tells the odd joke and has occasionally been known to break out a little harmonica or beatbox. He found notoriety on BBC’s The Voice two years running, has toured with David Essex and played with some notable UK number one artists... He’s even worked for the Dalai Lama! He’s the nutty, lovable idiot you can enjoy between or during meals without ruining your appetite...

From Wikapedia:
Si Genaro is a British musician who is known for his prolific work in developing younger artists and supporting musicians in their ambitions, more than his appearances on BBC's The Voice UK in 2014 and 2015.

Genaro grew up on the Isle of Wight, attending Cowes High School. He began his musical career as a harmonica player, busking in Ryde and Cowes. In his 20s he moved to Bournemouth and studied at music college, before going on to front regional bands such as Shapeshifter, Dubheart and The Genaro Project.

In 2009, Genaro supported the UK number one charting pop singer David Essex on a UK tour and in 2012 he joined fellow Bournemouth musician and Voice contestant Ant Henson as vocalist and guitarist of the psychedelic post-rock band, Ever The Animal.

In January 2014, Si Genaro appeared on BBC 1 singing Men at Work's "Down Under" as part of the reality television show The Voice UK. Despite being a real crowd pleaser he did not convince any of the judges to turn their chairs and thus put him through. They did all love him though and Will.i.am even let him sit in his chair.

In February 2015, Genaro appeared again in series 4 of The Voice singing "Falling Slowly". As in 2014, none of the judges selected him for their teams but the did let him perform a rendition of his own song, "When the Last Bird Flies".

In June 2016 his typical energetic and magnetic self supported Luke Concannon at one of his house concert Uk tour dates.

Si Genaros song "Down Under" is known as one of the most harmonic acts but, he is not acoustic because he has other instruments in his songs.

In 2015 Genaro backed a track called "Burn the Fire" by local artists Simon Harder and Matt Black (Piano Man) with his Harmonica and Guitar by Chris Payne later released by Hangover Hill Recording Studio

Katy Hooper

Katy Hooper is a singer–songwriter of Australian/British origin but with roots in many places between the countries she has lived & travelled.

Self taught, Katy uses delicate vocals and finger picking guitar to create her own  Folk/World style influenced by a transient life. Her songs relate to speak of the natural world and her personal encounters with the different people and countries through which she travels.

Katy has performed at music venues and festivals in the UK, Latin America, Scandinavia, Spain and Portugal and her discography comprises of three independently produced records.

At the age of 18 Katy took her guitar and hitchhiked alone from Guatemala up the west coast of America to Alaska before recording her first EP ‘Freedom From The Known´ in Brixton, London (2006). Her second EP ‘Pelican’, recorded in Bristol, UK 2015, explores themes of love and travel and ‘captures the sense of transience of life on the road´, Folk Radio UK, 2015.  Her latest album ‘Handmade Journey’ recorded in The Canary Islands (2020), is her first full length album and based upon four years living and travelling in Spain and Latin America.

Katy is also an artist of fine pen and colour style.  Katy produces the artwork for all her songs and album covers for other musicians.  She is a painter of murals, usually birds. Many of her designs can be found within the family’s hand-printed clothing business Nick Hooper Design. If you have an inspiring project you would like to realise, Katy is open for comissions.  Equally if you are an artist looking to collaborate please make contact.

The Voice 2014: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Og7_O8AEY4E

The Voice 2015: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9oe0jpD9bzI

Katie’s Website: https://katyhooper.co.uk/

Matt Black - Thursday 21.30 - 23.00

Matt is a local legend from Dorset and delights crowds wherever he plays, be it one of his many comedy nights or playing classical piano at a garden party.

In the 20 years, and more, that Matt Black has been earning a living in the entertainment world, he has consistently altered his stage persona to meet the requirements of his audience, be they guests at a society wedding, delegates at a business conference or corporate dinner, or bikers attending a rally.

Some of the organisations Matt Black has entertained: –Vodaphone, Rover Cars, Eli Lilly, Vauxhall, Nissan, The Mars Group, British Telecom, Sony, Price Waterhouse Cooper, Mothercare, Disney, Donside, Unisys and many more!

Some of the stars Matt Black has appeared with: –

Richard Digance, Tom O’Connor, Boy George, Barry Upton, Brian Connolly, Gerrard Kenny, Dave Lee, The Supremes, Bjorn Again, The Bootleg Beatles, Bernie Clifton, Mud and many more!

MATT BLACK’S STAGE PERSONA CHANGES TO SUIT THE SITUATION!
On Thursday Night at the Fringe many will have enjoyed Matt for his The Comedy Act:
Matt’s comedy nights always have the audience roaring with laughter and he certainly knows how to play the audience just as well as he plays the piano.

Here is one review from many….
“This was billed as a night you won’t forget, and lived up to its promise. Matt treated us to an evening of hilarious and sometimes irreverent anecdotes to piano accompaniment, interspersed with some contemporary pieces. I have to say that Matt’s piano-playing was very accomplished and truly amazing. This was a racy, pacy evening and we romped through pieces such as War Horse and Black Beauty, Titanic (with sound effects), Bohemian Rhapsody à la Mick Jagger(!), Tommy and 1940s trench songs at a breakneck and thrilling speed. I particularly enjoyed his one-liner questions, his British regional jokes, and his Elton John harmonies. I admire a man who can multi-task, in this case playing the piano whilst simultaneously knocking back a Budweiser. And as he said, the piano is a good choice of instrument as you can balance your beer on it. That set the tone for the evening. A good many glasses of wine were downed in very convivial and relaxed, candlelit surroundings. And there was lots of audience participation with ‘Show Me the Way to Go Home’ with funny voices (I won’t say more, but it was fun) – and some good-natured heckling, which Matt responded with lightning-quick wit. We certainly couldn’t let him go without a couple of encores. We all agreed that it was a fantastic evening.”

By Annette Payne

Website: https://matt-black.org/

Devils Damned String Band - Thursday 20.15 - 21.30

“Bluegrass of epic proportions played how it should be”

 The Devil’s Damned String Band are a bluegrass band from the South Coast of England. The boys offer a performance full of the energy and warmth of traditional mountain bluegrass with a mixture of both traditional, contemporary and original songs. The Devil’s Damned have cut their teeth on a number of festivals, including performances at Boomtown, The New Forest Folk Festival and Once Upon a Time in the West Festival. A band that is sure to get hearts pumping and feet stomping…

They play a mix of original, covers and traditional bluegrass and American folk music. All acoustic, just strings, wood and a bundle of Southampton hillbillies. Members are Ben Munday: vocals and guitar, Bryan Andrews double bass, Nigel Clelland banjo,  Ben 'Fluff' Johnson Violin / Vocals, Ryan Stevens, mandolin vocals guitar

Website: https://www.facebook.com/Devilsdamnedstringband/

Mary Jane - Thursday 19.15 - 20.15

MARY JANE are a folk rock band from the South Coast of the United Kingdom. We play an original blend of acoustic & electric folk-rock.

The music is a combination of original songs and & traditional tunes, arranged for an electric five piece band.

Our last electric studio album "Solstice" is currently available from Talking Elephant records.

We have been together since 1995 and are still going strong. We have a fluid line-up as members past and present regularly join us for live gigs and studio work. We get all sorts of gigs coming in from pubs and clubs,  to festivals and private parties. The best place to check for latest gig news and updates from the band is on our FaceBook and Twitter pages where we share gig information, videos taken at live events, gossip and much more.

Mary Jane are always available for hire either as the full elctric 5 piece or as acoustic trio and we can supply our own full PA rig if required. If you want to join the mailing list (or wish to discuss booking the band then email maryjanelist@hotmail.com or message us via Facbook. Mary Jane.

Website: http://www.mary-jane.info/

Jack Boyd - Thursday 18.15 - 19.15

JACK BOYD is a singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist from South-East England who has played at some of the biggest festivals in the world. He plays guitar, banjo, piano, and sings, and has taken his music across the world to Italy, China and beyond.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Jack-Boyd/100078578387768/?paipv=0&eav=AfYru-1OcqpjZ0_8Dc-yF4lmUqGEgdHjxyzi_D_zuTs-8qFx5RQajChelTNSt6vL5ck&_rdr

Plaitford Common - Thursday 17.15 - 18.15

Plaitford Common have become an integral, and hugely popular part of the New Forest Folk Festival.  
As ever they will entertain you with their own brand of  'folk' music.  In their own words, "Its not so much folk music as music with folk instruments".  

Their range of songs is truly vast and you are likely to get bluegrass, rock, blues, Swedish disco and pop mixed in with the jigs, reels and the occasional traditional folk song.  Always fun and enjoyable as well as having a close connection with the festival playing various roles both up front and behind the scenes.

Website: http://www.plaitfordcommon.co.uk/

The Courtiers - Thursday 15.00 - 16.00

The Courtiers are a Portsmouth based four piece Celtic folk band. They draw on traditional music influences from both sides of the Atlantic to create a lively and eclectic mix of foot-stomping sounds.

Regulars within their local folk scene and various festivals, they are known for their energy, musicianship and entertaining banter (not to mention their secret weapon, the foot-based percussive wizardry that leaves audiences both tapping their feet and scratching their heads!)

Deborah Gatland – Fiddle

Tim Gay – Flute, whistles

Simon Cattermole – Bouzouki, 5-string banjo, vocals

Chris Gatland – Guitar, percussion, vocals.  

Website: https://www.thecourtiers.co.uk/

Ribble - Thursday 13.00 - 14.00

Ribble are a fiddle and guitar duo playing unique versions of traditional and contemporary acoustic tunes. Some will move you with their beauty, some will move you with their driving beats!

Ribble are Adam and Pete, both now based in Salisbury but born and raised in Lancashire, hence the band is named after the River Ribble that flows between their childhood home towns.

Expect instrumental music from around the world which includes lots of traditional Irish Jigs and Reels. Get your dancing shoes on.

Website: http://www.ribblemusic.co.uk/

Ian W Brown - Thursday 12.00 - 13.00

Daniel Mays plays a better-looking version of him in the Fisherman’s Friends film and Gregor Fisher’s downtrodden manager character in 2003’s Love Actually may have been based on how he transported an ex-prog rocker to the top of the Christmas charts in real life in 2001.

It’s 20 years since Ian gave up the muddy life of a farmer having decided he stood a better chance of being happy and making a living by swimming against the tide in the shark-infested waters of the music business while trying to save the world with a song.

In those two decades he has managed artists, co-produced films, released records, co-written a number one single and the lead song in a West End hit, written many songs for film and TV, toured the UK.

Last year  saw the incredible true story of how he signed and managed the Fisherman’s Friends to a ‘£1 million major label record deal’ and into the top ten album chart in 2010 turned into a heart warming film that was the feel good hit of the year. What’s more, he still manages and is very much friends with the fishermen.

The film featured several of his songs.

He co  - wrote some songs that  feature in  Wild Rose, an acclaimed British musical drama starring Jessie Buckley and Julie Waters about a singer from Glasgow who dreams of country music stardom.

September will see the release of Blithe Spirit a film staring Dame Judi Dench, Leslie Mann, Isla Fisher and Dan Stevens which again features many of his songs.

He occasionally takes to the stage  to play some of his songs that have graced the charts and so many more that haven’t. His finely-honed everyman tales and self-deprecating musical outings are interspersed with tall tales from the music business, life, love and the universe, some of which will grace the pages of his eagerly awaited musical memoir/manual on how to survive in the music business.

Let’s face it, there’s plenty of material to draw on. As well as co-writing Sandi Thom’s number one single ‘I Wish I Was A Punk Rocker’ and the lead song in the long running West End musical ‘Dreamboats and Petticoats’, Ian has written songs for many other artists, from folk acts such as the Fisherman’s Friends and Show Of Hands and Thea Gilmore, to pop stars like D-Side, Simon Webbe, Michael Ball, Shawn Escoffery, Cassidy Jansen  and Pixie Lott, he even had dance cuts with Drumsound & Bassline Smith, Junge Junge and Don Diablo.

In the last year Ian's songs have played on BBC Radio 1, 2, 4 and 5. He is working on something for BBC Radio 3, once he has mastered the nose flute.

His proudest moment, however, is performing ‘The Five Foot Two Inch Giant’, an anthem to his wife, on the Model Village Stage at Wimborne Minster Folk Festival… he could make this stuff up, but he doesn’t have to!

Ian W Brown is the only known pig farmer to be nominated for an Ivor Novello Award.

Website: https://www.ianwbrown.com/

Mitchell & Vincent - Thursday 11.00 - 12.00

Based in Somerset, Mitchell and Vincent bring traditional and contemporary styles on fiddle and guitar to folk tunes and songs from around the British Isles, as well as original material drawing on the folk traditions, using varied arrangements to create stories with their tune sets as well as songs. Both Graham and David are also trained luthiers and play instruments hand-crafted by themselves.

After first meeting in a ceilidh band, they decided to form a duo and since then have gone on to perform concerts around the UK (including festivals such as Glastonbury, Broadstairs, Oxford, Lyme Regis and Beverley) as well as supported renowned musicians including Tim Edey, Archie Fisher MBE, Jackie Oates, Damien O’Kane and Kate Rusby as well as Ralph McTell and Wizz Jones.

Acoustic magazine praised their playing as, “Stunning”; FATEA said, “Music that is beautifully played”; while Bright Young Folk described their performance as, " Their sound is much deeper and richer than you would expect from an acoustic duo. Intricate instrumentalism and pulsing rhythms abound ... providing skilled arrangements and expert delivery of tunes and songs which showcase the vibrancy, and variety, of folk music across Britain. A thoroughly engaging and enjoyable experience.”

Their third album 'The Preservation of Fire' was released at the end of August 2019 and has been played on various radio shows around the world including BBC programmes 'The Drift' with Emma Sweeney and The Johnny Coppin Show. - Folk Radio review: "Sitting still to these might suggest that something is very wrong with you."..."Timeless; exquisite production; great selection of tunes; social commentary. What’s not to like? Nothing." - FATEA review: "Delivering traditional and not-so-traditional music in a fresh and entertaining style"..." Very entertaining, varied and skilfully played collection of tunes and songs."

A few comments on live performances: - J. Hayes, Festival Director, Lyme Folk Weekend: "Highlight of the festival ... Bringing the crowd to tears one moment and to their feet the next." - C. Deacon, Bridport Folk Festival Director: “Without doubt an extremely accomplished and entertaining duo. Definitely a must see!” - K. King at Readifolk Club: “Mitchell and Vincent were completely amazing. Such expression and dynamics in their playing whilst still staying tight as a duo and the songs were so deftly and beautifully delivered.
I was spellbound.” - Dreamers Folk Club (Cornwall), “Excellent night with Mitchell and Vincent on classical guitar, fiddle and voice. Not just technically brilliant but played with warmth and feeling.”

Website: www.mitchellandvincent.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/mitchellandvincent
Twitter: @mitchellandvin plus @mitchellandvinc
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/MitchellandVincent

Bandcamp: https://mitchellandvincent.bandcamp.com