The Fiddleheads, New Haven's venerable contra dance band, was formed in 1978 by Paul Englesberg and Pete Spicer. Members through the years include Michael Koenigsberg, Ellen Cohn, Skip Healy, and Michael Bell. The present core band is Jim Sirch (banjo, whistles, and bodhran), Willow Sirch (fiddle), Gary Wikfors (mandolin and mando-ephemera), and Norman Plankey (guitar), with appearances by Colin Healy (fiddle/mandolin), Matt McCauley (upright bass), and other local musicians. The Fiddleheads are the house band for the New Haven Country Dancers.Contact: e-mail (203.881.1390) Text & photo from Fiddleheads website
Fifer's Delight Band's repertoire of contradance music is born in New England, detours via Quebec and ricochets off fife-and-drum just for special effect. The band provides eclectic, traditional tunes with plenty of punch to keep the toes tapping. Members are Walt Sweet (fife, flute), John Kalinowski (accordion, fife), and Chris Hebert (piano)
Contact: e-mail (860.798.7568) Text from Fifer's Delight Band website; photo from Facebook
The Jackson Pike Skifflers, based in Fairfield County, Conn., specialize in old-time music, primarily from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The repertoire includes rural and urban vernacular music, early country music, minstrel and vaudeville songs, street ballads, Gospel songs, country dance tunes, mountain music and more, played on fiddle, banjo, mandolin, guitar, autoharp, bass, accordion, washboard and a variety of other instruments. The Skifflers have performed at leading traditional music festivals, and for 15 years have played for the Lincoln Center Out-of-Doors summer concert series. In Connecticut, the Skifflers perform at many country fairs, festivals and concerts. The group consists mostly of the Tressler family from Easton, Conn.Contact: e-mail (203.268.7674) Text from: The Block Island Times, 6/23/2001 & photo from The Skifflers website
The Please & Thank-You Stringband is a widely acclaimed trio, with Bill Walach (mandolin), Will Welling (fiddle), and Dave Howard (guitar). Their original and traditional approach to instrumental music and songs paints unexpected yet pleasantly familiar images. Combining humor, passion, and a candid view of tradition, with more than 20 years of playing music together, has made this trio substantially more than the sum of its parts.Contact: e-mail (860.872.1529) Text & photo from the Please & Thank-You Stringband website
The Reel Thing is a western Connecticut-based band made up of experienced, professional musicians who have a passion for folk music, dancing, and performing. They specialize in live music for traditional social dances, costumed, authentic colonial dances and music from the 18th century, workshops for children and adults, community "barn" dances, and concerts.
Formed in 2001, the band includes Bill Campbell (guitar and bass guitar), Sue Hill (fiddle), Fran Hendrickson (piano/keyboard and accordion), Julie Sorcek (flute and saxophone), and Ginny Worrell (keyboard and fiddle). Contact: e-mail Text from Julie Sorcek & photo from The Reel Thing website
Thread City String Band, based in Willimantic, play traditional, French-Canadian,and Irish 3-tune sets for contra dances, as well as tunes that callers sing for square dances. The band includes Chuck Morgan and June Bisantz-Evans (fiddles), Noreen Morgan (guitar), Larry Boisvert (harmonica), and John Soltys (bass).Contact: e-mail (860.423.5403) Text & photo from Chuck Morgan
Wild Goose Nation is a remarkably versatile band with a repertoire
that ranges from Appalachian to Zydeco, with contras and swing on the way. Craig Edwards (fiddle, guitar, banjo, accordion), Mike Fischman (mandolin, banjo, guitar, bass), and Dirck Westervelt (guitar, banjo, bass) have performed widely as a group and have a number of recordings as solo performers and sidemen. Craig is a member of the Mystic Seaport shanty crew and has a deep interest in traditional American instrumental music and song and in exploring social and cultural history through music.Contact: e-mail or e-mail (203.263.5808) Text from Country Dance and Song Society & photo from Wild Goose Nation website (no longer available)
Wild Notes, an energetic and exuberant traditional acoustic group with roots in Irish, Scottish, French-Canadian, jazz, and classical music, has been described as "St. Patrick at a hoedown." As one fan put it, "Wild Notes will change your O'Doul's to Guinness!" With Mickey Koth on fiddle and various wind instruments, John Kalinowski on accordion, concertina, and fife, and Kasha Breau on keyboard and harp, they have played together since 1998, first as the Wingnuts, then as Wild Notes. After a hiatus of a couple years, they played as the contra dance trio Oh, Reely?, and took back their original name in early 2016. Contact: e-mail (203.671.0731)
Wry Bred has been energizing dance floors in the northeast with good music and good humor since 2009.
Wry Bred perfectly blends the usual array of instruments with the added flute and saxophone, creating beautiful and harmonious danceable music! With Julie Sorcek on flute (and saxophone), Mickey Koth on fiddle, and Robert Messore on guitar, they play for barn and family dances and private events and have played for contra dance series in Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York State, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Tennessee.Contact: e-mail (203.671.0731) or e-mail (203.792.7865)
Photo by Craig Norton