Finding testimonials from the Folk Project’s past is easy. Legions of well known musicians have performed there over four decades.
But to appreciate the legacy of this nonprofit — named Outstanding Arts Organization of 2015 by Morris Arts— you need to speak to its future.
“I had some of my first performance experiences through the Folk Project, before an audience of people who valued talent, heart, and genuine connection over slick presentation,” said Jean Rohe, a young singer-songwriter who performed this month at The Minstrel Acoustic Concert Series, the intimate Morris Township gathering where the Folk Project presents live music every Friday night.
The Folk Project will be honored at the Bickford Theatre — just around the corner from The Minstrel’s home at the Morristown Unitarian Fellowship– by Morris Arts on March 25, 2015. The 5 pm event is free, but registration is required, online or by calling (973) 285-5115.
To mark the occasion, Morristown Mayor Tim Dougherty has proclaimed April as “Folk Project Month.”
The mayor lauded the Folk Project as “New Jersey’s leading acoustic music and dance organization,” producing more than 100 events a year.
In addition to The Minstrel shows, the roster roster includes Swinging Tern dances, semi-annual Acoustic Getaway music festivals, a yearly ukulele festival, and a TV show, Horses Sing None of It.
SINGING PROJECTILES
All of this sudden recognition amuses Folk Project greybeard Mike Agranoff, an accomplished performer and songwriter who will provide live music at the Bickford bash with fellow “Projectiles” Jean Farnworth (Celtic harp), Kris Lamb (flute, whistles), Diane Perry (fiddle) and Hen3ry Nerenberg and Frank Sole (guitars).
“It’s good that somebody noticed. Maybe we can get some of them through the doors to catch a show sometime,” deadpanned Agranoff, a punster who titled his new album Straight Lines.
“I’m not big on ceremony and fanfare. And as my friend and fellow musician Roger Deitz and I like to say, all we gotta do is live long enough, and everybody else will die, leaving us as the Grand Old Men Of Folk Music,” he said.
“But when I look back on it, I gotta admit, it’s quite an accomplishment to put on a concert a week for 40 years. We must have been doing something right.”
On any given Friday at The Minstrel, you can hear seasoned folkies share traditions of Appalachian music on one-of-a-kind hammer dulcimers, or sing along to timeless tunes by Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger.
But Agranoff really lights up about the young talent nurtured on The Minstrel stage, from family acts such as Dugan’s Hooligans to the 20-something brothers in The Lords of Liechtenstein.
‘WE ALL HAVE MUSIC IN US’
The elder Lord, Dan Rauchwerk, sang with his brother Noah as openers for Jean Rohe this month at The Minstrel. They all grew up there.
“The Minstrel has been our go-to place for folk concerts since we were little,” Rauchwerk said.
“If we wanted to see one of our idols, like Bill Staines or Tom Paxton, perform, then that’s where we went.
“The Folk Project as a community has fostered us and encouraged our growth as musicians over the years. If it weren’t for their open mics and late-night jams at the festivals, we would not be the musicians that we are today. They have been incredibly kind and supportive to us, and we are eternally grateful to them,” the singer said.
Video: The Lords of Liechtenstein, March 2015, sing about their late grandfather.
Agranoff takes special pride in noting that Jean Rohe, now 30, launched her career at the Folk Project when she was 8.
Rohe has played in quite a few countries since then. She credits the Folk Project with imparting invaluable lessons.
“I was encouraged to grow as a performer, and ultimately, have made performance my livelihood,” said Rohe, who got her start in a family ensemble.
“But I have never wavered in the conviction that we all have it in us to make music, that arts and music make us whole. This is a value I learned as a young person, simply by spending time with other people who lived it. The Folk Project remains a special home to me. ”
“Celebrate the Arts”
Bickford Theatre
6 Normandy Heights Road, Morris Township
March 25, 2015, 5 pmMorris Arts recognizes:
Outstanding Arts Organization
The Folk ProjectOutstanding Corporation
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLPOutstanding Arts Advocate
New Jersey Choral ConsortiumOutstanding Arts Educator/School
Caren Frost Olmsted, teaching artistOutstanding Professional in the Arts
Kristy & Paul Jach, Speakeasy GallerySpecial Recognition
Trustees of the Morristown Green/ Morristown PartnershipEugenie Coladarci Arts Scholarship
Tori Hey, dancerElaine Ehlers Arts Scholarship
Reed Puleo, percussionist
