Press Information
at 7:30 pm
(except where
otherwise noted)
(high school, college)
with valid ID, and
wheelchair occupants:
half price.
free with adult.
Valley Folk Press Releases:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
February 1, 2012 (Corning NY)
Contact: Debra Chesman, Valley Folk Music Director
607-962-4461
www.valleyfolk.org
Debra Cowan sings folk songs
from both sides of the Atlantic
at Valley Folk Music
When: Saturday, February 18, 2012, 7:30 PM
Where: Drake House at 171 Cedar Arts, Corning NY (Corner Cedar and First Streets)
Admission: $15 cash or checks at-the-door only; 14 and under free with adult;
Half-price for students (Full-time College/High School) and wheelchair occupants.
In a music scene full of singer-songwriters contemplating their own navels, Debra Cowan is a breath of fresh air. She has all the skills of a real folk singer. Perfectly happy singing with her guitar or unaccompanied, she is a singer of songs written by others and she can make them convincingly her own. Cowan’s captivating warm alto sound, with just a little vibrato, carries each of her carefully-chosen folk songs with such emotion that you’ll forget they were written by others. Her newest release, Fond Desire Farewell, takes contemporary and time-honored public domain songs, but puts them in modern settings.
Idolizing Julie Andrews while a young girl, she later discovered Jethro Tull and Steeleye Span in her teens. Escaping her small Midwestern town at 21, she ended up in northern California (randomly chosen by the toss of a dart) where she attended college, sang in bars, and eventually found work as a math teacher. Continuing her discovery of folk music led her to English and Scottish singers like Sandy Denny and Ray Fisher. While she started performing 35 years ago, she began touring in 1998, with frequent stops in the US and UK, from folk clubs to festivals, eventually becoming the full-time folk singer she is today, bridging the old and new.
In 2011, Cowan sang the part of Marilyn from Si Kahn's musical production "Silver Spoon". She has performed in many prestigious UK venues and for six months in the late 90’s, held a residency at Sandy Bell’s Bar, Edinburgh's premier folk music pub, following in the footsteps of Dick Gaughan and Aly Bain. She was a formal showcase artist at several International and Regional Folk Alliance Conferences and twice performed on the nationally syndicated live radio show Folkstage (2002), hosted by Rich Warren and River City Folk (2008) hosted by Tom May. Her earlier recordings Dad’s Dinner Pail and Other Songs from the Helen Hartness Flanders Collection and The Long Grey Line brought her praise both in the US and abroad. In 2006 her version of “Walloping Window Blind” was featured in SingOut! magazine and also that year, her rendition of Richard Thompson's "Has He Got a Friend For Me" was included in the Free-Reed Records box set RT-The Life and Times of Richard Thompson.
“She is blessed with a beautiful voice and a deep appreciation for the tradition....each song is a new story to be shared and experienced." -- Ron Olesko, host "Traditions", WFDU, Teaneck, NJ
"Cowan is a clear-voiced singer who presents songs with affection and feeling." -- Dirty Linen Magazine
Visit www.debracowan.com. For high resolution photos click on “Publicity”. For interview, contact (508) 662-9746 dcowan@DebraCowan.com
On concert nights (unless otherwise noted) audience members are encouraged to bring acoustic instruments to play, and songs to sing together, in the gallery while the the concert hall is being set up. Beginning at 6 pm, this is a self-run jam session. The types of folk music played varies depending on who shows up and what they play, so come join in or just come to listen!
These concerts are made possible, in part, by a grant from the NYS Council on the Arts Decentralization program, distributed locally by the ARTS Council of the Southern Finger Lakes.
Visit www.valleyfolk.org and our Facebook page for more info about the Valley Folk concert series, directions, and contact details to volunteer.
For more information contact Debra Chesman, 607-962-4461 or
Visit Valley Folk Music at www.valleyfolk.org to find out more about upcoming concerts.# # #
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
January 2, 2012 (Corning NY)
Contact: Debra Chesman, Valley Folk Music Director
607-962-4461
www.valleyfolk.org
Valley Folk Music Announces 2012 Concerts
Valley Folk Music proudly announces the upcoming 2012 concert season with performers from the US, Canada, Italy and Scotland. General admission will increase to $15 (cash or checks only--at the door). Full time students and disabled concert-goers still receive half-price admission. Children 14 and under remain free with paying adult.
Since the concerts are still partly funded by grant money, "if you don't attend, you are missing great concerts paid for, in part, with your tax dollars," claims Debra Chesman, the Director and Booking Coordinator of Valley Folk Music. Chesman has booked Valley Folk Music concerts since fall of 2004. Before coming to Valley Folk, Chesman had booked concerts for a number of years for a weekly folk club in Southampton, England. She has also volunteered with the Cornell Folk Song Society.
Valley Folk welcomes volunteers and would especially like to find some people to serve on the first official Board of Directors as they soon hope to become an official non-profit organization. In addition, one more person to join the sound team would be welcome--training is provided.
January 21—Beppe Gambetta
Italian king of the flat-pick guitar bridges American and Italian music, sharing each with passionate singing from his heart.
February 18—Debra Cowan
Eclectic folk singer with repertoire from both sides of the Atlantic.
March 10—Peggy Lynn & Sandra Weber
Singer and guitarist Peggy Lynn and costumed storyteller Sandra Weber present "Remarkable Women of the Adirondacks". Prior to the 7:30 pm concert at Valley Folk, there will also be an informal 2 pm workshop at the Benjamin Patterson Inn, 59 West Pulteney St., Corning, entitled "The Importance of Telling Women's History". Additionally, on Tuesday, March 6, The Southeast Steuben Library in Corning will hold a book discussion at 6 pm, led by Professor Louise Sullivan-Blum about the book "Breaking Trail: Remarkable Women of the Adirondacks" written by Lynn and Weber, who also co-wrote songs for the concert. These events are part of the month-long Festival of Women in the Arts.
April 14—Matt & Shannon Heaton
Gorgeous Irish songs and tunes.
May 19—Alice Gerrard & Beverly Smith
Legendary Appalachian music with wonderful harmony singing.
June 9—Enoch Kent
Enoch Kent returns with a special program: "Women in Folk Song".
October 20—Alison McMorland & Geordie MacIntyre
Superior ballad singers from Scotland.
November 17—Al Parrish
Al Parrish, one of the members of the Canadian super group Tanglefoot, brings his solo show to Valley Folk Music.
All concerts start at 7:30 pm in the Drake House Studio Theater at 171 Cedar Arts Center, 155 Cedar Street, Corning, NY. General admission is $15 (at the door). Half price for students and the disabled. Children 14 and under are free with adult.
On concert nights (unless otherwise noted) audience members are encouraged to bring acoustic instruments to play, and songs to sing together, in the gallery while the the concert hall is being set up. Beginning at 6 pm, this is a self-run jam session. The types of folk music played varies depending on who shows up and what they play, so come join in or just come to listen!
These concerts are made possible, in part, by public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts Decentralization program, administered locally by the ARTS Council of the Southern Finger Lakes.
More information about these concerts can be found on our Web site (www.valleyfolk.org) as well as links to the performers' websites (many of which include sound samples).
Visit www.valleyfolk.org and our Facebook page for more info about the Valley Folk concert series, directions, and contact details to volunteer.
For more information contact Debra Chesman, 607-962-4461 or
# # #
For more information...
Contact: Debra Chesman, Valley Folk Music Coordinator
607-962-4461