Music & Potlucks to present live stream concert, showcase and workshops September 30 - October 2
RIVER FOREST IL - The 4th Annual Folktoberfest will live stream three workshops, an Acoustic Neighbors Showcase and Songwriters In the Round concert September 30, October1 and October 2.
“We’re excited to be back,” said Stephanie Schrodt of River Forest who is co-director of Music & Potlucks a 501(c)(3) non-profit community organization. “We of course had to take last year off from any live programming due to the pandemic. We’re proud to be partnering on this event with The Friendly School of Music and WDCB radio.”
Music & Potlucks has presented fifty-seven community and cultural arts events since forming in 2017 supporting agencies like Beyond Hunger Food Pantry, Share Food Share Love Food Pantry, Beds Plus La Grange, Roseland Hospital Youth Ward, The Old Town School of Folk Music Employee Support Fund, Crossroads Barrington, The Book Table, Build Chicago, OPRF Community Foundation, PING, Peace Corners Youth Center and many others.
Headlining the event are Chicago’s Steve Dawson, Jenny Bienemann of Oak Park, Illinois and Midwest troubadour Mark Dvorak.
Dawson is the acclaimed singer songwriter, educator and founder of Dolly Varden, Chicago’s indie country-soul band. Bienemann is an author, songwriter and recording artist, and Dvorak is well-known in folk circles and is the resident artist for Music & Potlucks.
On Saturday, October 2, 7:00 pm central time, the three will share and swap their original songs in a live stream, in-the-round setting. Each will also offer a workshop during the course of the weekend.
Friday, October 1, 7:00 pm features the "Acoustic Neighbors," Music & Potlucks monthly live-stream acoustic music and spoken word showcase. Acoustic Neighbors will feature Chicago singer and songwriter Belinda Fuller, Oak Park’s Caudell Family String Band, jazz and pop vocalist Desiree Vasquez, also from Oak Park, pedal harpist Tim Lilly from St. Louis, Missouri and others.
Proceeds from the event support both the Friendly School of Folk Music, 6731 Roosevelt Road, Berwyn and “Folk Festival” with Lilli Kuzma, the 90.9 fm WDCB weekly folk radio show.
The Friendly School of Folk Music is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization created by Rob Pierce in 2012. The school offers classes, children’s programming, private instruction and other activities. Visit www.friendlyschool.org.
Lilli Kuzma of the Chicagoland area has been hosting “Folk Festival” on WDCB since 2001. The show can be heard Tuesdays from 8:00 pm to 11 pm at 90.9FM and streams live at www.wdcb.org.
The complete Folktober Fest schedule:
- Thursday, September 30, 7:00 pm central • Live stream workshop with Mark Dvorak • Arranging Your Songs for Performance • Dvorak will lead viewers through the basics of using the acoustic guitar’s natural voice to create simple, expressive and solid arrangements.
- Friday, October 1, 6:00 pm central • Live stream workshop with Steve Dawson • Beyond 1,4,5 - Expanding Your Chord Knowledge • Dawson will teach viewers how to use chords outside of a given key and the wonderment of moving from major to minor.
- Friday, October 1, 7:00 pm • Live stream performance • Acoustic Neighbors Showcase • Featuring Belinda Fuller, the Caudell Family Band, Desiree Vasquez, Tim Lilly and others.
- Saturday, October 2, 1:00 pm • Live stream workshop • Bringing Your Songs to Life - A Multi-disciplinary Approach with Jenny Bienemann • Singer songwriter & author Bienemann will explore the thought process & present strategies to help viewers make their songs more buoyant and breathe with vitality.
- Saturday, October 2, 7:00 pm • Live stream performance • Songwriters In-the-Round • Steve Dawson, Jenny Bienemann & Mark Dvorak swap and share their original compositions in a one-of-a-kind performance.
Visit Steve Dawson at www.stevedawsonmusic.com. Learn more about Jenny Bienemann at www.jennybienemann.com. Find Mark Dvorak at www.markdvorak.com.
Enrollment to a workshop is $10. Enrollment to all three workshops is just $15.
Tickets for the Saturday evening concert are $20 for adults, $10 for students and seniors. Admission to the Acoustic Neighbors Showcase is $5.
A $30 ticket admits viewers to the concert and all three workshops. Tickets available at www.musicandpotlucks.org.