Meeting House Presents 2021-22 Season
Concerts are at 7:30 pm. at the Unitarian Society of Hartford,
50 Bloomfield Avenue Hartford, CT 06105
Hello friends and music lovers. Live music is back!
- We continue to follow CDC guidance; right now, that guidance is for everyone to wear a mask indoors.
- Please bring proof of vaccination.
- Bring and wear your mask; if you forget, we have a supply and will give you one. The sanctuary is large enough to comfortably accommodate all who are likely to come. We can spread out, maintaining reasonable distance from each other.
- Seating is every-other pew to facilitate separation.
Mad Agnes – April 22, 2022 50 Bloomfield Ave. at 7:30 p.m.
Mad Agnes is Margo Hennebach, Adrienne Jones and Mark Saunders. Each member arrived at the trio from a staggering list of solo accomplishments, including songwriting competitions, recordings, and the ability to sleep on any surface.
Multi-instrumentalists all, Hennebach is classically trained in piano, Jones is self-taught on guitar and bass, and Saunders adds color with a vintage mandolin and subtle electronic processing on his guitar. The sound can be full as a concert hall or delicate as three voices singing a cappella.
Harmony-driven performance of contemporary singer-songwriter material influenced by classical, Celtic, folk/rock, PDQ Bach, and a touch of street theater. Their lyrics, vocal intricacies and instrument prowess are unforgettable.
Susan Werner – Saturday, April 30, 2022
50 Bloomfield Ave. at 7:30 p.m.
Werner spills out trademark jazzy vocal stylings, pleasant acoustic ballads, a few Bangles-esque rockers, and plenty of word-riffing. “Always an impressive songwriter, Werner continues to compose sharp, funny, compassionate lyrics, a gift rare enough to set her apart…”
— The Washington Post
Tickets are $25 for this show, or $20 for season ticket holders.
Celebrated performing songwriter Susan Werner has made a name for herself coast to coast. From her 1995 major label folk/rock debut “Last of the Good Straight Girls” to her2007 collection of agnostic gospel hymns “The Gospel Truth” to her 2017 travelogue “An American In Havana,” Werner writes ambitious concept albums with subject matter and sounds to match.
“Susan Werner has always been a remarkably perceptive artist, one who’s able to tap into the current climate and share sentiments that ought to be expressed. Her new album, and her 14th studio set to date, Flyover Country, is no exception. While it’s grounded in a specific theme — that is, her love of the heartland sounds that inspired her early on, the sentiment goes far deeper, a reflection of the absolute uncertainty that’s plagued the nation since the beginning of the year and, in reality, further back than that.”
— Lee Zimmerman, AmericanSongwriter.com
Magic and Myth: Music from the Old World and the New
Seán Heely duo with bouzouki player Beth Patterson– May 20, 2022
50 Bloomfield Ave. at 7:30 p.m.
Experience the magic music of Scotland and Ireland with Seán Heely and Beth Patterson. U.S National Scottish Fiddle champion Seán Heely and bouzouki player Beth Patterson perform fiery dance tunes and ancient, soaring melodies from Scotland and Ireland. Original compositions abound and they have rich vocal harmonies in their solid song repertoire that features ballads, sea shanties, and songs in Irish and Scottish folk tradition. Seán plays fiddle, mandocello, shruti box, and sings in English, Irish, and Scots Gaelic.
Multi-Genre violinist/fiddler Seán Heely is one of the most creatively versatile and captivating young artists of his generation. He is a U.S National Scottish Fiddle Champion as well as an award-winning Irish Fiddler and singer in the folk traditions of Scotland and Ireland. Seán holds a degree from University of South Carolina in Classical Violin Performance and was a 2019 Artist in Residence at Strathmore Music Center in Maryland.An educator in demand, Seán is an Adjunct Instructor at American University, he has also been on the faculty at several summer camps such as Acadia Traditional School of Music and Arts, Upper Potomac Fiddle Retreat, and Fiddle Hell Festival. He was selected to compete in the prestigious Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann All-Ireland Senior Fiddle competition in Aug 2017. He has performed in Scotland, Ireland, and at venues in the U.S such as the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C.
Seán has performed with traditional music icons such as Liz Carroll, Bonnie Rideout, Natalie Haas, Cathy Jordan, Eamon O’Leary, Zan McLeod, and Paddy Keenan.
Along with his accolades in Traditional Music, Seán made his Classical solo debut with the Virginia Symphony in 2012 performing Mozart’s 5th Violin Concerto. A composer and arranger, Seán has won national awards including the 2016 Scottish Fiddling Revival’s Tune writing competition. Seán was a featured soloist with the Virginia International Tattoo in Norfolk, VA in April 2017 and 2019. Recently, Sean was named the recipient of the first annual Claude Martin Memorial Life Membership Award from the Folklore Society of Greater Washington, an honor granted in recognition of his significant contributions to the local folk scene while still under age 30.
Waiting to reschedule
Maine Fiddle Camp comes to Connecticut
For the first time, Maine Fiddle Camp is bringing a road show to Connecticut so we can enjoy the unique blend of traditional Maine music with a variety show twist. Music will be performed by some of the very talented professional musicians who spend part of their summer teaching at Maine Fiddle Camp, to raise money for their Scholarship Fund. After intermission we might even have a barn dance in Fellowship Hall.
We don’t take reservations, but advance tickets are available online at Brown Paper Tickets. Information about Brown Paper Tickets.
Contact information:
- Buy tickets at Brown Paper Tickets or at the door if the show is not sold out
- Email us at MeetingHousePresents@gmail.com
- Phone the Unitarian Meeting House at (860) 233-9897, Office Hours: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday 10:00-3:00
- Phone Laura and Paul Cipriano at (860)298-9984
- Check this web page or subscribe to our email list for notification if shows are sold out or rescheduled
Our email includes concert announcements, updates, and info about folk music events in the area. Subscribe to Meeting House Presents Email send a message to MeetingHousePresents@gmail.com. Put “subscribe” in the subject line. We send one or two emails each month. 50 Bloomfield Ave. at 7:30 p.m.
Special Post-Season Concert – Meeting House Presents the Maine Fiddle Camp Road Show
Rescheduling this concert at the Unitarian Society of Hartford when we are able to gather for live concerts again.
Maine Fiddle Camp is about playing music and learning tunes, and being able to play and enjoy those tunes with other people whatever your level of experience or ability.
The emphasis at camp is on learning tunes the traditional way—by ear.
Maine Fiddle Camp is an outdoor Maine summer camp experience. Campers stay in basic rustic cabins without electricity or in their own tents. Youths stay in cabins but may stay in tents with their families if they wish. We have separate, centrally located, men’s and women’s bath houses with hot water showers, multiple wash basins and flush toilets as well as convenient “potra-potties” throughout camp. Eating is outdoors under a tent, and classes are mostly outdoors under canopies.
Summer days in Maine can be hot or cool, and nights might be hot but are more generally cool or sometimes even cold. Come prepared for anything. And yes – there are mosquitoes. But there are loons, too, and when we’re lucky they make their own beautiful music at night. 
Good music and good food are elegantly combined at camp, with meals and snacks planned and prepared by our head chef, Tim Johnson, and a cadre of volunteers who take time out from music to help in the kitchen. Fiddle Camp is like that – many things happen because someone pitches in and helps out.
For the first time, Maine Fiddle Camp is bringing a road show to Connecticut so we can enjoy the unique blend of traditional Maine music with a variety show twist. Music will be performed by some of the very talented professional musicians who spend part of their summer teaching at Maine Fiddle Camp. After intermission we might even have a barn dance in Fellowship Hall.
Doug Protsik
Doug likes to play the “old-time piano” for dances, melodramas, honky tonk saloons, and silent movies. He learned his style from Otto Soper, Geneva Walton, and Danny Patt among many others. He plays with Old Grey Goose and produced all three of their recordings, including the group’s first recording in 1978 for Folkways, “Old Time Country Dance Tunes and Songs from Maine”, now available again on CD. Doug also plays piano, accordion, and fiddle. He is the Camp Director again this year.
Owen Marshall
Vogue magazine calls musician Owen Marshall “A guitar/mandolin/banjo player rivaled in character only by the occasional three-pronged carrot” (Vogue 2009). Owen has accompanied and collaborated with many of traditional music’s top performers including Aoife Clancy, Liz Carroll, Darol Anger, John Doyle, Andrea Beaton, Jerry Holland, Ari & Mia Friedman and his own traditional Irish trio “The Press Gang”. His music has appeared on NPR “the Thistle and Shamrock,” BBC television, and the back of his left elbow has appeared on MTV. In addition to being a respected performer, Owen is in demand at music camps throughout New England and the U.S., where he shares his approach to accompanying traditional music.
Neil Pearlman
Neil Pearlman is emerging as one of the traditional music scene’s most innovative young artists. Legendary Cape Breton fiddler Jerry Holland said that “watching Neil’s hands on the piano is like watching two spiders on crack!” His piano style is rooted in Cape Breton traditions while drawing on latin, jazz and funk influences. The result is a exciting new sound that remains true to its traditional roots. An accomplished Cape Breton step dancer and mandolinist as well, Neil grew up in the family band Highland Soles and has performed with many of the best musicians on the traditional music scene today, including Natalie MacMaster, Alasdair Fraser, Seamus Connolly, Kimberley Fraser, Abby Newton, Frank Ferrel, Maeve Gilchrist, Mike Vass, Ed Pearlman and Greg Boardman.
Visit Neil’s website at www.neilpearlman.com.
Meeting House Presents uses Brown Paper Tickets for advance ticketing services until noon the day of the show.
To purchase tickets to a Meeting House Presents concert, click on “buy tickets” to the event you want to attend. You will be taken to the Brown Paper Tickets website where you can complete your purchase.
When your ticket purchase is complete, you may print paper tickets on your own printer. You can also show the confirmation email received from Brown Paper Tickets on your mobile device at the door. Your ticket purchase will appear on your credit card statement as Brown Paper Tickets.
Ticket purchases are non-refundable. A small service charge in addition to the ticket price applies to every purchase. A portion of the service charge is used to support arts and cultural organizations throughout the United States. Tickets can also be purchased at the door with cash or check.
Contact information:
- Buy tickets at Brown Paper Tickets or at the door if the show is not sold out
- Email us at MeetingHousePresents@gmail.com
- Phone the Unitarian Meeting House at (860) 233-9897, Office Hours: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday 10:00-3:00
- Phone Laura and Paul Cipriano at (860)298-9984
- Check this web page or subscribe to our email list for notification if shows are sold out or rescheduled
WWUH Folk Calendar Upcoming Folk Events in the WWUH Listening Area
Folknotes.orgis a comprehensive web site maintained by Brent Hall featuring folk music events in Connecticut and southern New England.
Archive 2017-18 Meeting House Presents Shows
- May 2017 Jack Williams
- Oct. 27 Sam Moffett Quartet
- Nov. 24 David Massengill
- Jan. 19 Jacques Lamarre
- Jan. 26 New World Trio
- Feb. 23 Dennis McCorkle with Idalberto Perdomo, Edilio Bermudex, Desiree Negron-Carrero and Adèle Paxton.
- March 23 JP Cormier
- March 30 Susie Burke and David Surette
- Apr. 27 An Evening with Mary Gauthier
Archive 2018-19 Meeting House Presents Shows
- Sept. 14, 2018 Jill Friedman, Tang, Self-Suffice, David Giardina, and friends
- Sept. 29, 2018 Peter Mayer
- October 26, 2018 Charlie King
- Nov. 30, 2018 Lula Wiles
- Dec. 28, 2018 Sarah Harmon McKenzie and Ellen Iovino
- Jan. 18, 2019 Hubby Jenkins (of the Carolina Chocolate Drops)
- Feb. 22, 2019 Citizen U
- March 22, 2019 Belle of the Fall
- April 5, 2019 Mackie and Me
- Saturday, May 4, 2019 Pete Seeger Birthday Party Sing-Along Gathering with Annie Patterson & Peter Blood, Sally Rogers, Magpie, and Charlie King
Archive 2019-20 Meeting House Presents Shows
- Friday, Sept. 27, 2019 Moonfruits
- Friday, Oct. 4, 2019 Mad Agnes
- Friday, Nov. 1, 2019 Annie Sumi
- Friday, Nov. 22, 2019 Louise Mosrie
- Friday, Dec. 27, 2019 Hartford Hot Several Brass Band
- Friday, Jan. 24, 2020 Reggie Harris
- Friday, Feb 28, 2020 Belle of the Fall
Closed from April 2020 through May 2021 due to Covid-19 precautions.
Archive 2021-22 Meeting House Presents Shows
- Friday, Sept. 17, 2021 Abbie Gardner
- Friday, October 15, 2021 Scott Cook
- Friday, November 19, 2021 Vance Gilbert
- Friday, December 17, 2021 Reggie Harris and Pat Wictor
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