6

Rooting About

WHAT’S HAPPENING News Edited by Sarah Coxson

Because we go to press a month before publication date there are occasionally announcements made after copy date about things which will have passed by the time the next issue is published. If you have urgent news about something happening in the current month, we have a Facebook Page at facebook.com/frootsmag where you can post it.

FESTIVALS & EVENTS Normafest runs on 6th and

7th Jan at Whitby Spa Pavilion with The Gift Big Band with Neill MacColl & Kate St John, Waterson Carthy, Peggy Seeger, Lynched, The Devil’s Interval, The Furrow Collective, Stick In The Wheel and DJ Dolphin Boy.

musicportfestival.com The 38th annual Whittlesea

Straw Bear Festival runs from 13th –15th January, featuring not only people dressed in grass and lots of dance teams but also Sam Kelly, Flossie Malavialle, Greg Russell & Ciaran Algar, The Iron Masters (the “rebranded” All Blacked Up) with caller Baz Parkes, Kevin Buxton and The Yarnman Of Norwich.

The Devil’s Interval – Normafest It’s the weekend for

weirdlore. StroudWassail takes place on 14th January, with dancing and mumming plays taking place in a number of locations around the town, as well as wassailing. The Wassail procession will make its way around the town centre throughout the day, with proceedings rounded off by traditional 12th Night Revels inside the Subscription Rooms from 7pm with ceilidh dancing, concert spots, mummers plays, poetry readings, a ‘parade of beasts’ and riotous communal singing. Stroud Wassailers will be collecting food and money on behalf of the Stroud Food Bank. stroudwassail.com

New York's premiere world

music festival, globalFEST, takes place on 8th Jan 2017 at Webster Hall with appearances from Batida, Betsayda Machado y La Parranda El Clavo, Jojo Abot, L'Orchestre Afrisa International et M'bilia Bel, Maarja Nuut feat. Hendrik Kaljujärv, Ranky Tanky, Rascasuelos, Septeto Santiaguero, SsingSsing and more. globalfest.org/

The masses congregate in

Glasgow this month for Celtic Connections, from 19th January to 5th February, with over 200 musicians from across the globe taking part in 300 events at venues throughout the city. Amongst the guests on the bill are Shirley Collins, Orchestra Baobab, Laura Marling, Aziza Brahim, Billy Bragg & Joe Henry, La Banda Europa, Dervish, Hurray For The Riff Raff, Karine Polwart’s Wind Resistance, Martha Wainwright, Le Vent Du Nord, De Temps Antan, Atlantic Arc Orchestra with Karan Casey, Eliza Carthy & The Wayward Band, George Monbiot & Ewan McLennan, Sharon Shannon Band, Treacherous Orchestra, Mànran, Blazin’ Fiddles, Unusual Suspects, Shooglenifty with special guests gathering together for A Night for Angus, paying tribute to Angus R. Grant, Trilok Gurtu & Evelyn Glennie, Jayanthi Kumaresh, C Duncan, Pictish Trail, Fairport Convention, Liz Lochhead, Seth Lakeman, Tom Paxton, King Creosote, Session A9, Dallahan, the premiere of piping project Tryst, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Altan, Jarlath Henderson, Damien Dempsey, Four Men & A Dog, a 20th anniversary performance of Phil Cunningham’s Highlands & Islands suite, Where You're Meant to Be featuring Aidan Moffat, Tommy Emmanuel, Derek Gripper, John McCusker Band, Quinn Bachand's Brishen, Fairport Convention@50, Steve Tilston & Jez Lowe, Tom

Stroud Wassail: there be beasts

Paxton, Leveret, Tartine de Clous, Alasdair Roberts, Breabach, Beoga, The Furrow Collective, Rachel Newton Band, Siobhan Miller, Vishten, Robyn Stapleton, Tom Russell, RANT: 4/4 – A Project for Projection, Koshka, Jon Cleary & Dirk Powell, Darlingside, Lula Pena, Sarah Jarosz, Blue Rose Code, Lindsay Lou & The Flatbellys, Gillian Frame, 'Pendulum' with Anna Lindblad Trio, Elephant Sessions, Dosca, Slobodan Trkulja & Balkanopolis, Imar, Duncan Chisholm: The Gathering, Adam Holmes & The Embers, UrbanFarmHand, World Beat Bothy featuring Niteworks, Inyal and Hamilton De Holanda, Ezza, 3Hattrio, Lizabett Russo and many, many more. celticconnections.com

London Roundhouse, currently celebrating its 50th anniversary year, launches its 2017 Music Programme with the return of In the Round from 31st Jan – 4th Feb, a series of intimate performances with Orchestra Baobab, Susheela Raman, Ghost Gamelan Orchestra, Martha Wainwright and more. roundhouse.org.uk

The UK Americana Awards

2017 run from 1st – 2nd February at St John At Hackney, London, in which Richard Thompson receives a Lifetime Achievement Award and Billy Bragg is amongst the UK Artist of the Year nominees… Erm – Americana? Someone’s going to have to take

Orchestra Baobab – Celtic Connections

Photo: © Judith Burrows