The High Note

Mohsen Amini is probably the best concertina player you have ever heard. I met him as co-founder of the multi-award-winning Celtic trio Talisk, based out of his hometown of Glasgow, Scotland.

Amini talks about his adventures since we last spoke last at the 60th annual Philadelphia Folk Festival including his tour with Talisk and Ímar, jamming with his friends, getting ready for the band's performance at Celtic Connections in Glasgow and the 2023 Talisk world tour which includes stops in Philadelphia and New York City.

See Talisk Sunday, Feb. 19 at the Ardmore Music Hall in Ardmore, Pennsylvania and Monday, Feb. 20 at City Winery in New York City and see all the band's tour dates here.

Follow Mohsen Amini on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Follow @HighNoteBlog anywhere you go on social media including Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook. Subscribe to The High Note E-Zine. The intro and outro music was written, composed and recorded by Paul "Dawg" Dixon.

Perry Thompson is the president of the Rhythm and Blues Preservation Society based in Atlantic City, New Jersey whose mission is to preserve and promote Black music culture through education and experiences.

He has held lectures in person at Stockton University featuring Reggie Reg from Cash Crew and singer and pianist Nina Simone as well as online seminars covering the legacies of Prince, Jimi Hendrix and Snoop Dogg.

Follow the Rhythm and Blues Preservation Society Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok.

The Rhythm and Blues Preservation Society is a nonprofit organization that accepts donations via check or money order to P.O. Box 7401 Atlantic City NJ 08404, or Cashapp $RBPSOC18

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The intro and outro music was written, composed and recorded by Paul "Dawg" Dixon.

BRAN NU is a rapper and artist based in South Jersey. He has been rhyming since he was in high school and is currently touring throughout the east coast. During a brief break in his touring schedule, we chat about his influences, his music career, his most recent tour and the projects he is currently most excited about. You can see him on the Full Blast Fall Tour featuring CL Smooth beginning Nov. 3, 2022. His mixtape "Total B.S." is available on Soundcloud and you can listen to his projects on YouTube. You can see all his projects via his Linktree and follow him on Instagram and Facebook.

Subscribe to The High Note podcast anywhere you subscribe to podcasts including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, TuneIn and Google Play.

Follow @HighNoteBlog anywhere you go on social media including Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook.

Subscribe to The High Note E-Zine.

The intro and outro music was written, composed and recorded by Paul "Dawg" Dixon.

Mike McKenna Jr. is a helluva singer-songwriter from Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada. He carries on the Canadiana folk music tradition in his songs his homespun lyrics with historical references and a warm voice. We talked Sunday, Aug. 21, 2022 at the 60th annual Philadelphia Folk Festival where he was a performer throughout the weekend.

His latest album is "At The Edge of the World." He is showcasing Saturday, Nov. 5 at Nova Scotia Music Week at the Highland Arts Theatre in Sydney, Cape Breton, Thursday, Nov. 10 at The Carleton in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Saturday, Nov. 12 at the Bras d'Or Lakes Inn in Cape Breton, Novia Scotia. Follow him on social media @mikemckennajr.

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The intro and outro music was written, composed and recorded by Paul "Dawg" Dixon.

South Korean shamanic folk-pop band ADG7 quickly became one of my favorite acts of the 60th annual Philadelphia Folk Festival - so much so that I, along with many, many others, saw the nine-piece band Saturday night and again Sunday morning.

See all the show notes, links and photos here.

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The intro and outro music was written, composed and recorded by Paul "Dawg" Dixon.

Photos by Justyna Smith.

My old friends from Talisk, concertina player Mohsen Amini and guitarist Graeme Armstrong return to The High Note podcast and bring along their new fiddle player Benedict Morris to chat about performing at the Philadelphia Folk Festival for the fourth year in a row, and the recording process for the latest Talisk album due out in February 2023.

Get tickets to see Talisk Sunday, Feb. 19, 2022 at the Ardmore Music Hall.

Learn more about Talisk and follow them on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Apple Music, Spotify, YouTube and Bandcamp.

Subscribe to The High Note podcast anywhere you subscribe to podcasts including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, TuneIn and Google Play.

Follow @HighNoteBlog anywhere you go on social media including Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook.

The intro and outro music was written, composed and recorded by Paul "Dawg" Dixon.

Read the full show notes here:

https://highnoteblog.com/episode-27-talis…ia-folk-festival/

It's been a while, friends! I dust off the microphone as I prepare for the 60th annual Philadelphia Folk Festival this weekend - Aug. 18-21, 2022 at the Old Pool Farm in Upper Salford Township, Pennsylvania.

I run through the list of my can't miss performers including Emily Drinker, Talisk, American Acoustic: Punch Brothers, Watchhouse and Sarah Jarosz, Crys Matthews, Christine Lavin, Michael Franti and Spearhead, Tom Rush, Runa and Hiss Golden Messengers. I also mention some of my favorite crafters and vendors including the Upper Salford Volunteer Fire Company and the Lower Frederick Fire Company Pancake Break"fest."

Read my blog previewing the festival at HighNoteBlog.com.

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Steve Dawson is one of my favorite singer-songwriters. I first discovered him through the album "Funeral Bonsai Wedding" and I fell in love with the song "Ezra Pound and the Deep Wood River." He currently teaches songwriting at the Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago.

His latest solo album "At The Bottom Of A Canyon In The Branches Of A Tree" was released July 17 on Pravda Records. We discuss his journey in the music industry, his work with Stump The Host, Dolly Varden, Funeral Bonsai Wedding and why this latest solo album is so personal for him.

Subscribe to The High Note podcast anywhere you subscribe to podcasts including Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, TuneIn and Google Play. If you like the podcast, please consider leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. Paul Dixon wrote the theme song. Follow @HighNoteBlog anywhere you go to social media including Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook. Consider donating to The High Note here. See full show notes with the videos we talk about on The High Note blog.

Ken Shiles and Cibon, two-thirds of the Atlantic City acoustic folk band Originaire join The High Note podcast for this episode, recorded Saturday, Jan. 25 at Ventnor Coffee. We chat about the band's debut EP "Off the Ship," set for release Feb. 21, 2020, their songwriting process including stories of overcoming addiction which is a central theme of the album, the South Jersey music scene and the Philadelphia Folk Festival. Originaire will play an EP release show 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 28 at the Philadelphia Folksong Society. Get "Off The Ship," and see where Originaire is performing at OriginaireMusic.com and follow @originairemusic. Subscribe to The High Note podcast anywhere you subscribe to podcasts including Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, TuneIn and Google Play. If you like the podcast, please consider leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. Paul Dixon wrote the theme song. Follow @HighNoteBlog anywhere you go to social media including Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook. Consider donating to The High Note here.

Talisk is a Scottish Celtic band consisting of three incredible musicians, Mohsen Amini on concertina, fiddle player Hayley Keenan and guitarist Graeme Armstrong. They have accumulated multiple accolades across the United Kingdom. We met for a chat Sunday, Aug. 18, 2019 at the 58th annual Philadelphia Folk Festival to talk about their music, the festival and Scotland, including our favorite football clubs. Talisk's second album, Beyond, was released October 2018 and the band is touring throughout North America including Sept. 27 at Rockwood Music Hall in New York City and Sept. 28 at the Philadelphia Folksong Society. Subscribe to The High Note podcast anywhere you subscribe to podcasts including Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, TuneIn and Google Play. If you like the podcast, please consider leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. Follow @HighNoteBlog anywhere you go to social media including Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook. Consider donating to The High Note here.