Who are we? - What do we do?
In the late Sixties a small group of Long Island residents dedicated to the preservation of traditional folk music founded the Folk Music Society of Huntington. Begun in 1968, we incorporated as a non-profit entity in 1970. Our original membership of seven has today grown to the active participation of over 200 and a mailing list of more than 2,000.
Folk music, acknowledged as the musical conscience of society, has preserved in its variety of forms, the sorrows, struggles and joys of people from all nations. The Folk Music Society of Huntington has endeavored to sponsor and encourage culturally enriching activities by presenting artists in concert, by fostering membership participation in community programs related to the Arts, and by encouraging the sharing of musical expertise and knowledge of folklore.
Today's Folk Society continues its long established tradition by presenting several events which seek to cover the growing varieties of folk music styles and categories.
First Saturday Concerts Series
The First Saturday Concerts series is our forum for presenting regional, national and international folk artists. Folk enthusiasts can enjoy a guaranteed variety of various folk forms, as we have carefully designed the series to ensure that the traditional, contemporary, bluegrass/blues and ethnic music categories are fairly represented each concert season. From the folk legend Tom Paxton, to America's foremost Irish group Cherish the Ladies, to the music of the Andes in Hinantillan, the First Saturday has become THE day for folk music among our audiences.
The Hard Luck Café
During the Sixties and into the Seventies, coffeehouses served as smaller forums to see and hear local artists such as Bob Dylan, Phil Ochs, and Tom Paxton. The Hard Luck Café Series, begun in 1992, strives to do the same by presenting local and regional within an intimate atmosphere. Held on third Thursdays in the Sky Room at the CinemaArts Centre, The Hard Luck Café features two artists while the Cinema serves up fresh coffee and sumptuous refreshments.
Open-Mikes
The preservation of folk music is not limited to "professional" artists. Folk music is the music of the people and the people, well, that's all of us. In order to give the people a voice there is an open-mike preceding both the First Saturdays Series and the Hard Luck Café. The Folk Society encourages its members and audience to participate musically and the open-mike is there for those who wish to share a new song or tune or two.
A limited time is available for the open-mike portion of our concerts, so performers are required to sign up at least 10 minutes prior to the scheduled start. Performance time allocated will depend upon the number of mikers present, and some prospective mikers may be turned away if the slots have been filled; priority will be given to performers who did NOT mike at the previous month's Open-Mike. Mikers are expected to pay a regular admission fee.
Concert Hall
Most First Saturday concerts are held at the Congregational Church of Huntington, 30 Washington Drive, Centerport (at the Eastern border of Huntington off Route 25A), in the church sanctuary. Check on the concerts pages to verify the venue for each specific concert, and also for an stylized outline map to the church, or for a Yahoo map page, click here.
The Hard Luck Café concerts are held on the third Thursday of the month in the Sky Room at Huntington's Cinema Arts Centre.
Parties
One of the oldest Folk Society traditions for our members has been the parties following each First Saturday concert. Held at the homes of various members, those attending should bring a beverage and/or a snack to share. These gatherings serve as a bonding force in which we all participate in song and conversation while sharing food and drink.
House Concerts
Occasionally the Folk Society has the opportunity to present a touring artist "in between gigs" on a Sunday afternoon in the home of a member. These up-front-and-personal house concerts offer artists in quite a different light. Both casual and informal, house concerts are set in a festive format, encouraging participants to bring a dish or snack to share, as well as sharing their voices or instruments.
The Members Concert
Each year the First Saturdays Series dedicates a night out of its concert season to present its own members in concert. This event is a benefit for the Folk Society which helps us in turn by providing a little extra funding to "balance the budget" while giving our performing members a spotlight on the big stage. The past years have proven that talent abounds within the Folk Society and we're proud to proclaim that performance levels have been high.
The Huntington Folk Festival in the Park
It's lawn chairs and picnic blankets. Since 1969, the Folk Society has presented its own version of a mini "folk festival" — a summer evening in Heckscher Park in Huntington. The event featured an annual theme along with artist(s) whose performance repertoire fit the current theme, whether it be Women in Folk Music, The Music of the "Americas" or humorous ditties, just to name a few. This program is quite unique in that it is a free event funded in part by the Huntington Arts Council, other grant monies and the Folk Society itself.
Starting in the Summer of 2006 this event expanded to become the free annual all day Huntington Folk Festival — with musicians on stage throughout the afternoon, a children's stage featuring songs and stories, songwriting workshops, folk dancing workshop, folk jam on lawn open to all. Many music organizations were welcomed there at tables with their own artists and workshops. The featured performer is chosen each year by the Folk Music Society and coordinated with the Huntington Arts Council as part of their annual Summer Festival.
Folk Jams
Once a month the Folk Music Society of Huntington sponsors a Folk Jam. The purpose of the Folk Jam is to allow musicians from beginner to advanced the opportunity to play and sing with other musicians. For those who are seeking a place where performing folk music can be shared ... this is it. Closet "folkies" can come out and jam with others, swapping old and new songs. Attendence is not limited to musicians as all are invited, but be advised amateurs are getting together as amateurs, — the folk jam is not Star Search. We wouldn't be surprised though if some jammers were to appear at the occasional open-mike.
Currently, the usual venue is the Huntington Library on Main Street in Huntington, and the usual time is 1:00 to 5:00 pm on the second Sunday of each month, which varies with the library availability (e-mail Gary to query which Sunday is scheduled, or see the dates on our Upcoming Concerts Schedule page). Bring your instrument/voice and a snack to share. For detailed information, please contact Gary Schoenberger (liconcertnotes@optonline.net)
Membership
Membership brings such benefits as an open invitation to parties following the First Saturday concerts, web site linking, priority on reservations for house concerts, and very importantly, membership admission pricing at all events presented by the Folk Society. This translates to a 20% to 30% discount on general admission pricing.
- Memberships are:
- Single — for 1 yr is $15.00 — 2 yrs is $25.00 — 5 yrs is $60.00
- Family — for 1 yr is $25.00 — 2 yrs is $40.00 — 5 yrs is $100.00
Link to application for printing out and mailing
Honor Roll
As an all-volunteer non-profit organization, the Folk Music Society of Huntington owes its success and endurance to its valued members. We wish to honor those individuals who have made significant contributions. We do so here, and will periodically add some others of the many who share in our continued efforts to bring superior music to our community.
- Link to Honor Roll
Newsletter
Our newsletter, Acoustic Long Island was an irregular publication of the Folk Music Society, last published in the Fall of 2006. The mission is to provide local music-related information on festivals, concerts, jam sessions, and just plain old fun stuff for those who enjoy acoustic music. It contained many useful and informative articles.
We're no longer publishing this newsletter, and granted Dave & Rob Dircks the rights to use the name for their music presentation series in St. James.
- Link to Most recent and prior issues in PDF format (Adobe reader required)
Helping Out
Here is a list of our concert tasks and committees along with details of what they do and how to get in touch. If you would like to volunteer a bit of your time, it would be really appreciated and you're more than welcome - just give a call and let us know which committees you're interest in. We're always open to new faces and new friends, so please give a call and help us put on the show.
- Hall Set-Up - This could mean setting up our portable stage if the performers request its availability. This also involves bringing out extra folding chairs for overflow, setting up tables for the gate and sales, and clearing the stage area for performance. And, of course, putting it all back the way we found it at the end of the concert
- Refreshments - At the First Saturday Concert, serving up coffee, teas, cider and munchkins for sale at the break, cleanup afterwards,and transporting supplies to the concert. At The Hardluck Cafe, refreshments are served throughout the evening.
- Raffle Sales - We always could use another hand
with this.
- Admissions - This involves a bit of sacrifice since ticket
sales begin around 30 minutes prior to start time, run through the open
mike, and into the beginning of the concert. However, it's quite rewarding since you certainly get to meet and greet the audience.
There are other tasks such as publicity, flyer composition, performer hospitality, and so on. If you seek general information or don't know what needs to be doing, give a call to the President who can give you the bigger picture on what's coming up.
Community
The Folk Music Society of Huntington participates in community local organizations and events, and to the degree possible, works with governmental or corporate grant programs for the benefit of our organization, our members and the community.
- Memberships - The Society is a member of the Huntington Arts Council, the Long Island Music Hall of Fame, the Folk Alliance International and NERFA (NorthEast Regional Folk Alliance).
- Grants - Purchase of new sound equipment was made possible with funds from a JPMorgan Chase Organization/Stabilization Award. In Nassau and Suffolk Counties, the JPMorgan Chase Regrant Program is administered by the Huntington Arts Council, Inc
- Acoustic Allies - The Society supports local organizations and events that support original and traditional folk musicianship. See their particulars on our Acoustic Allies page.
- Social websites -
- Visit our Facebook page -
Contacts
- Officers
- President - Michael Kornfeld - president@fmsh.org — 631-418-8548
- Co- Vice Presidents - Lee Ann Rush & Karen Finkenberg - vice-president@fmsh.org
- Secretary - Lee Ann Rush - wordplay101 @yahoo.com
- Treasurer - Jesse Oelbaum - treasurer@fmsh.org
- Immediate Past President - Ira Perlman
- Co- Vice Presidents - Lee Ann Rush & Karen Finkenberg - vice-president@fmsh.org
- Activities and Presentations
- Hardluck Cafe - Dave Waxman - hardluck@fmsh.org
- Artist Liaison (booking) - Karen Finkenberg - bookings@fmsh.org
- Folk Jam - Gary Schoenberger - liconcertnotes@optonline.net
- Summer Festival Information - Summer-Festival-Info@fmsh.org
- Sound crew - Volunteer to help with sound
- Artist Liaison (booking) - Karen Finkenberg - bookings@fmsh.org
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General Information - info@fmsh.org Webmaster - webmaster@fmsh.org |
Link to: Membership application, for printing out and mailing
