Golden Link Festival

"World class fiddler... far from just offering one dance tune after another, simple settings allow the true beauty of the music to shine through" - Sing Out

The traditional music of New England can be as warm and comforting as a winter fire or as potent and exhilarating as a summer thunderstorm. Fiddler and singer Lissa Schneckenburger is a master of both moods, a winsome, sweet-voiced singer who brings new life to old ballads and a skillful, dynamic fiddler who captures the driving rhythm and carefree joy of dance tunes old and new.

Raised in a small town in Maine and now living in Vermont, Lissa grew up with music. She began playing fiddle at the age of six, inspired by her mother's interest in folk music and a family friend who was a professional violinist. Soon she was studying with influential Maine fiddler Greg Boardman and sitting in with the Maine Country Dance Orchestra. By the time she was in high school she was playing concerts on her own, specializing in the sprightly New England dance tunes that combine influences from the British Isles and Quebec with homegrown twists that have been evolving since Colonial days. Another of her major influences was the diverse musical community that she found at fiddle camps, where she had a chance to play with and learn from a wide variety of musicians including noted Scottish fiddler Alasdair Fraser. In 2001 she graduated from the New England Conservatory of Music with a degree in contemporary improvisation, and since then has been performing around the US and internationally for a growing audience of enthusiastic listeners. She has recorded seven CDs, (four solo and three with various groups).

Whether playing for a folk club audience or a hall full of dancers, Lissa brings to the stage enthusiasm, energy, and the bright future of New England?s musical traditions.

"One of the few undisputed geniuses among singer-songwriters today," says Sing Out! Magazine.

“Hearing the songs of Michael Smith in this day and age is like reading an anthology of short stories by Hemingway after decades of only comic books,” says Song Talk Magazine.

Michael Smith is a songwriter’s songwriter, with songs that are poignant, mysterious, or hilarious...and sometimes all three at once. Michael’s songs have been recorded by dozens of artists in the folk, country and pop music genres … Steve Goodman, Anne Hills, Tony Trischka, Gordon Bok, Trout Fishing in America, John McDermott, Bernice Lewis, Tom Rush, Claudia Schmidt, Jerry Jeff Walker, Liam Clancy, Jimmy Buffett, and on and on. His song The Dutchman has been recorded by more than thirty artists.

Michael's own performances are uniquely exciting, with inventively crafted guitar accompaniments and his uncanny ability to inhabit the characters of his songs.

Michael's songs have been sung in nearly every folk music room in the United States and Canada, popping up in modern British cinema, on Broadway, in cabaret and theatrical reviews, in Russian coffeehouses, camp singalongs, house concerts, weddings and funerals, radio and television. He has been featured on All Things Considered, Good Evening, and other National Public Radio programs, and on CBC Radio in Canada. His theatrical work includes the music for Steppenwolf Theater Company’s production of The Grapes of Wrath, which won the 1990 Tony Award for Best Play. Michael performed with the play for over three years in North America and England. Just try to remain unmoved by his song Rose of Sharon.

He has performed live at dozens of major folk and music festivals in the United States and Canada, including the Philadelphia Folk Festival, Bethlehem Musikfest, Kerrville Folk Festival, and the Owen Sound, London Ontario and Winnipeg Folk Festivals in Canada...and at Golden Link's 2003 Turtle Hill Folk Festival!

Our annual Turtle Hill Folk Festival is a family-oriented event, with concerts, workshops, open jamming, campfire singing, dancing, open mics, and a great children's activity area. We encourage you to bring the entire family and enjoy a weekend of music and fun; children 12 and under are admitted free. Rough camping is free; there are no hookups. Enjoy a unique variety of craft and food vendors. No alcohol or pets are permitted on the festival grounds.

Our weekend-long event is held rain or shine. Indoor or covered facilities shelter the activities.

Volunteers are needed to work the gate, sell performer and GL merchandise, set up on Friday and tear down Sunday afternoon, to assist with sound and recording, to provide performer hospitality and lodging, for daytime workshop area coordination, to staff the children's area and for campfire building. Contact the Festival Chair, Tom Taylor, at 585-728-5572, glfsstt@yahoo.com for more information or to volunteer.

*Three days of music*	*Dances & Dance Workshops*
*Daytime Workshops*	*Children's Activities Area*
*Food & Craft Vendors*	*Free Camping*
*Jam Sessions & Sing-alongs*	*Family Fun*

For general information, booking & publicity the address for the Festival Chair, Tom Taylor, is: P.O. Box 28, Perkinsville, NY 14529, glfsstt@yahoo.com or call 585-229-4963.

Potential vendors should contact our festival Vendor Coordinator, Jantina Cornelison at jantina@rochester.rr.com.