2006 THE MUSCIANS, THE BANDS, AND THE ARTIST

The Great American Gypsies

The Great American Gypsies take the traditional folk melodies of the world and weave, bend, and transform them into a unique performance experience. Although not ethnic Gypsies themselves, the members of the band draw deeply on their European ancestry to keep the legacy of the old country alive.

The band consists of Charley Rappaport on mandolin and Joseph Kovach on guitar. Charley Rappaport was born in Brooklyn, NY and now resides in western Pennsylvania. He has appeared as a soloist at New York's Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center and Town Hall, in Washington's Kennedy Center as well as many other important venues in North America and Europe. He has founded many music organizations, including mandolin orchestras, and in 2004 Charley was named Master Folk Artist by the Pennsylvania Council for the Arts.

Joe Kovach was born in Erie, PA, and as a blind guitar player, Joe has used music as a key to open the door to the world. He has played and traveled in more than 30 countries, he has appeared in concerts in more than 50 churches of all denominations, and has taught English to immigrants by teaching them American folksongs. The Great American Gypsies most recent recording is called Before I Had a Red Tomato on Caravan Recordings. Check out http://greatamericangypsies.com for more information.

Great Lakes Session

Great Lakes Session features some of the best musicians in Cleveland playing traditional Irish music. The band consists of a rotating lineup of musicians who have spent years mastering traditional Irish music. The group was born out of the Irish “session” where players would jam together on Monday nights at the Great Lakes Brewery in Cleveland. For the Raccoon County Music Festival, Great Lakes Session will feature Francis Quinn on fiddle playing traditional jigs, reels, and hornpipes. He will be joined by some of the rotating session members on guitar, mandolin, bodhran, and more.

Francis has been playing traditional Irish music since age seven, learning from a handful of older Irish musicians in the Cleveland area. Last summer, Francis had a rare opportunity to share the stage with The Chieftains at Cleveland's Scene Pavilion in the Flats. Francis currently runs an Irish session from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on the first Monday of every month at the Great Lakes Brewery in Cleveland. He can be heard on the Folkways Records album Irish Music from Cleveland, Vol. 3: The Continuing Tradition.

Doris and the Twinkies

Doris and the Twinkies is a group focused on singing beautiful harmonies and beautiful old-time songs. The band consists of Sue Goehring, Beth Braden, and Lynn Frederik. The trio has been making music together since the 1980s, and with Rick Goehring and the late Jeff Goehring (Rick’s brother and Sue’s husband) they were the Red Mules. This string band performed traditional old-time fiddle tunes and songs at festivals and concerts in Minnesota, New York, Virginia and most states between. In 1997, the Red Mules had the honor of performing in the Ralph Rinzler Memorial Concert of the Smithsonian Institution’s Festival of American Folklife, on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

Over the years, Sue, Beth, and Lynn have developed quite a repertoire of songs. They have specialized in learning songs by the legendary Carter Family. Often called the “First Family of Country Music,” Sara, Maybelle and A.P. Carter were hugely popular and influential recording artists and song collectors of the 1920s and ‘30s. Nearly every country music performer since is in some way indebted to the Carter Family for their songs and music. Carter Family songs such as “Will the Circle be Unbroken?” and “Keep on the Sunny Side” are still widely sung and recognized.

Sue and Beth both play guitar and sing, alternating lead and harmony roles much in the styles of Sara and Maybelle Carter. Lynn sings the A.P. Carter parts, and fills in the instrumentation with mandolin and banjo. The trio sings songs that many will recognize, as well as others that are rarely performed. Sue, Beth, and Lynn perform four Carter Family songs on the Red Mules’ recording The Red Mules: Old Time Music; one of these selections is included in the Rounder Records anthology Old Time Music on the Air, Volume Two. Sue can also be heard with Rayna Gellert, from the all woman old-time group Uncle Earle, on the CD Starch and Iron.

Clear Fork

Bluegrass music has its roots in old-time as well as jazz and blues. Impressive guitar, mandolin, banjo, and fiddle solos as well as tight harmony singing are the distinguishing features of bluegrass music. Like jazz and blues, bluegrass typically features each melody instrument playing an improvised solo while the other players revert to rhythm. Two, three, and four part harmonies with at least one high tenor voice help give bluegrass what some call “that high lonesome sound”. Bluegrass banjo differs from old-time claw-hammer banjo in that the strings are finger picked with signature rolls and licks. The great Bill Monroe is considered the “Father of Bluegrass”, and he helped create, cultivate, and popularize bluegrass music in the 1940’s and 50’s.

Formed in 1984, the Clear Fork Bluegrass Quartet is one of the region's premier bluegrass bands. Paul Kovac, who has performed on banjo with Bill Monroe, sings, plays guitar and mandolin, has fun as the band’s MC, and is also the quartet’s business manager. The banjo duties are superbly handled by Jim Metz, whose playing is clean and hard driving. Jim has a clear, bona-fide tenor voice that blends well with Kovac’s lead vocals. Bill Watson handles the stand up bass for the group. He is a rock-solid acoustic bass player, and he is adept at playing all American roots music styles. His playing often spurs creativity from the rest of the band. Ray Sponaugle, the recipient of the 2006 Ohio Heritage Fellowship for the Traditional Arts, plays the fiddle for the band. Ray has over forty years of experience listening to, learning, and playing great fiddle music. Ray talks with excitement of playing on television with Don Reno and Red Smiley in the early 1960s, and he plays today with that same emotion.

In addition to playing classic Bluegrass music, the Clear Fork Bluegrass Quartet also draws on other styles of traditional American music to shape their own sound. In concert and on the band’s recordings, you’ll hear elements drawn from early country music stars including The Carter Family and Jimmie Rodgers, as well as the influence of Old-time, Western Swing, Gospel, Blues, and even polka music.

The list of special live, radio, and TV performances and famous artists that the Clear Fork Bluegrass Quartet has appeared with is long and impressive. They’ve played extensively throughout the NE Ohio region, and at the best bluegrass festivals all over the eastern United States. They have appeared with artists like Bill Monroe, the Tony Rice Unit, Peter Rowan, Alison Krauss, Ralph Stanley, John McCutcheon, the Horseflies, and Garrison Keillor to name a few. In 1987, the band won the State of Ohio Bluegrass Band Championship.

The Fullertones

The Fullertones play old-time music. Old-time string band music is a genre of traditional American music that reached its commercial heyday in the 1920s but has survived to capture the interest of new generations of musicians. Old-time can be loosely defined as traditional North American music from the Appalachian Mountain regions of the southeastern United States with roots in many contries, most notably England, Scotland, Ireland, and Africa . Distinct styles of old-time music developed in different regions of the Appalachian Mountains, and these styles can be heard in thousands of 78-RPM records from the 1920’s as well as more contemporary recordings by bands like Mike Seeger and The New Lost City Ramblers, Highwoods Stringband, Foghorn Stringband, and many more. Although old-time music encompasses a large variety in songs and tunes from Mississippi to Virginia and west to Ohio and Kentucky, it is often characterized by a fiddle playing the main melody backed up by a bass strumming rhythm guitar and a claw-hammer banjo playing melody and rhythm. Claw-hammer banjo is distinctly different from the finger picking banjo style found in bluegrass music, a more contemporary genre.

The Fullertones, an excellent Northeast Ohio old-time band, are Dave Rice, harmonica; Joe LaRose, mandolin and fiddle; Beth Braden, guitar; and Lynn Frederick, fiddle and banjo. Joe, Beth and Lynn have been performing old-time string band music together since the early 1980s, and with Dave since the early 1990s. Dave is a music instructor and instrument repair specialist at the Cleveland folk music store Goose Acres. In recent years, he has been a harmonica instructor for the Augusta Heritage Arts Workshops at Elkins, West Virginia. Joe is an old-time expert, but is also a guitarist and performer of traditional blues. Beth and Lynn used to perform with the Red Mules, an excellent old-time string band, but currently they perform with the Fullertones as well as an old-time group called Doris and the Twinkies. Together, the Fullertones are probably best remembered as hosts of the Kent Community Square Dance, which served as a regional square dance oasis from 1981 until the close of the millennium. Besides being veteran dance musicians, each of The Fullertones has spent decades performing with other talented musicians in concerts and festivals throughout the tri-state area and beyond.

All four Fullertones can be heard on various recordings. Some of them are Cheesy Little Souvenir (The Fullertones), Fine Artiste -- Old Time and Blues (The Bergmann Brothers); Grinnin' in Your Face (Andy Cohen and Dave Rice); Old-Time Music (The Red Mules); Dave Rice and His Old Time Cronies; and The Big Monster Bash, Vol. 1. (various artists including Joe LaRose).

Acadian Driftwood

The story of Cajun music begins in the seventeenth century with the migration of Europeans from western France to the new world. Their destination was Cadie, or Acadia, a region of New France that is now called Nova Scotia. There, they and their descendants lived until 1755, when they were forced to leave by the British. Most Acadians eventually ended up in South Louisiana. This new environment allowed Acadians to combine elements of French, Celtic, Spanish, Native American and African music and culture into a new and unique musical genre: Cajun music. The word “Cajun” comes from the rough Acadian French pronunciation of the word they used for themselves "Cadiens" or "Cajuns". Cajun music had nearly two centuries to develop before it was first recorded in the 1920’s. Much like with old-time music, these original recordings are treasured by Cajun musicians and used as “source” material for learning.

The traditional Cajun band, Acadian Driftwood, features local Cleveland musician Brad Smedley on accordion. Brad began learning to play the Cajun accordion after seeing Marc Savoy perform at the 1979 Kent State Folk Festival. Four years later he formed Stand Bayou to play traditional Cajun music at dances and festivals. Major festival appearances offered the opportunity to share the stage and develop friendships with many of his mentors, including Marc Savoy, Michael Doucet (of the legendary Cajun group Beausoleil), Dewey Balfa, Queen Ida, John Delafose, Conray Fontenot, and Bois Sec Ardoin. Brad is joined by his friends of over 20 years, Bill Lestock on fiddle and Jim Richards on guitar, who have both been active in teaching and performing traditional roots music at local events and venues. For more information on Cajun music in general see (www.dirtylinen.com/feature/60cajun.html).

Mike Lenz

The “blues” has had such an enormous influence on music today that it’s hard to know where to start. What follows is a techincal explanation for the “roots” of the blues from an encyclopedia source. “The blues is a vocal and instrumental form of music based on a pentatonic scale and a characteristic twelve-bar chord progression. The form evolved in the United States in the communities of former African slaves from spirituals, praise songs, field hollers, shouts, and chants. The use of blue notes and the prominence of call-and-response patterns in the music and lyrics are indicative of the blues' West African pedigree. The blues has been a major influence on later American and Western popular music, finding expression in ragtime, jazz, bluegrass, rhythm and blues, rock and roll, hip-hop, and country music, as well as conventional pop songs.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blues)

Mike Lenz is an accomplished blues musician based in the Akron, Ohio area. He performs with bands and solo on guitar, vocals, harmonica or kazoo, and stomp box. Winner of the Marietta, Ohio based Blues and Jazz Folk Music Society’s 2005 13th Annual River City Blues Challenge, Mike represented them at the International Blues Competition in Memphis in 2006. He is influenced by everything from delta and piedmont blues artists such as Robert Johnson, Son House, Blind Willie Johnson, Blind Blake and Tommy Johnson to Jug Band stomps and rags of the 20’s and 30’s to classic 50’s and 60’s electric Muddy Waters, Jimmy Reed, and Howlin’ Wolf to the juke joint boogies of Hound Dog Taylor and modern North Mississippi blues. Check out Mike online at www.mikelenz.com.

Maple Hill Rounders

The Maple Hill Rounders are the square dance band for the Raccoon County Music Festival. Lynn Frederick, member of The Fullertones and Doris and the Twinkies, will be the dance caller for the evening. Lynn has been known to sing the dance calls along with the music, and he might even pull an instrument out to play along with the band. Lynn has twice called dances from the main stage of the National Folk Festival.

The Maple Hill Rounders represent a family of musicians. The Haas family, of Munson Township, Geauga County, OH, grew up with their mother singing and playing folk songs on the piano, so music was a big part of life. The name for the band comes from the name of the hill (Maple Hill) that the Haas family could see from the kitchen window of the house where they grew up. The original band members included Chris Haas on banjo, Mark Haas on guitar, Louise Haas-Keller on mandolin, and Peter Haas on fiddle. Rebecca Feigle played stand up bass and Gary Esmond played harmonica. Later on, Gordon Keller joined and filled in where needed on guitar, banjo, and fiddle. Just about everybody in the band got in on the vocals.

Early on, the group played at square dances as well as the Geauga County Maple Festival. One of their favorite places to jam and to perform was the Raccoon County Music Festival. During the 1980’s, they performed at the festival, played on the open stage, and met many other great musicians and music lovers playing in open jams on the beautiful grounds of the Geauga County Historical Society’s Century Village Museum. Some other venues where the band played were The Kent State Folk Festival, The Little Mountain Folk Festival and The Hale Farm Music Fest. Over the years the band members married, had children, got busy and the performances grew few and far between, but they continue to play at family gatherings and members can be seen playing with all different combinations of friends and family members at parties, farmers’ markets, and a festival here and there.

The band's musical styles and song choices reflect their love of old-time, bluegrass, and other genres of traditional music. They mix classic old-time fiddle tunes and songs with traditional bluegrass numbers, and even sing their own versions of early gospel songs. They are characterized by a raw sound and an infectious energy, and when they sing you’ll hear everything from sweet and sad to powerful and gritty.

Gayle Wohlken

Gayle Wohlken is this year’s featured visual artist at the Raccoon County Music Festival. Gayle is a resident of Burton, OH and has been a local artist for many years. She designed the 2006 Raccoon County Music Festival logo using a combined woodcut and digital graphics technique. The logo appears on most festival literature, and is featured on the festival T-shirts.

Gayle has been a woodblock printmaker since 1992, having learned at Lakeland College as well as a class on Vancouver Island, British Columbia with instructor Graham Scholes. Her woodcuts have been on the covers of a few issues of PLAIN, a neo-luddite Amish publication, The Listening Eye (KSU Geauga's poetry magazine), and one of Grace Butcher's poetry books. HOUSE, CHILD, WORLD. Her woodcuts have also been in shows in the United States and Canada, as well as Uganda, Bulgaria, Scotland, Israel and Japan.

Gayle's woodcuts are in permanent collections such as the New York City Public Library, the Spenser Museum in Lawrence Kansas, the Australian Print Collection of the Wagga Wagga Regional Art Gallery in NSW, Australia, and one of her carved blocks is in the Heritage Historical Library in Ontario, Canada. In addition to many other artistic endeavors, Gayle has edited and illustrated a book of poems by northeast Ohio poets and titled VAMPYR.

Currently, Gayle has a woodcut on exhibit at the West Woods Nature Center in Newbury until June 30th for Infinitree, the Geauga Council of Arts and Culture project for the Geauga County bicentennial. Her piece is titled "Cecropia Moth" and was made from seven carved blocks from the maple tree that was harvested for this project.