Welcome and ‘come all ye’ to the folks of Coventry and Warwickshire!

CVFolk works in association with the Albany Theatre, Coventry where it stages most of its events – concerts, club nights, sessions and (eventually) workshops and masterclasses. For more info about the CVFolk project, click here.

‘

Introducing the CVFolk App

Here’s a simple app to keep you up-to-date with CVFolk events-plus what’s happening on the local folk club circuit. Click here to download and install, or use this QR code.

The app is updated regularly. This should be an automatic process, but if the date on the home page is more than a few days old, we recommend closing and reloading the app.

Use the menu in the top left hand corner to navigate. Pages on this app are:

  • Home page
  • Pages 1-4: CVFolk events (2nd Sunday, Folk Freshers Workshops, etc)
  • List of local clubs and small guest-booking venues, with links
  • List or regular music/song sessions in the area, with links
  • (One or two pages) Forthcoming events in the CV post code area

Please let us know if any of the information provided in incorrect, unclear, or just plain missing!

_____________________________________________________________

Music and sunshine with CVFolk at Warwick Folk Festival

2024 was a great year for Warwick Folk Festival and CVFolk was proud to be part of it!

We presented a full Friday afternoon of fantastic home-sourced music, performed by Yonderland, The Hoarse Whisperers, The Stationary Wilburys, and Kristy Gallacher. Click here to read about the memorable concert, with photographs and review!

_____________________________________________________________

Exciting new era for our project!

Folk stars fill the Main House stage
Grand Finale to CVFolk’s Ukraine fundraiser event, March 2022

Five years after it was first formed, CVFolk has become an integral part of Coventry’s Albany Theatre and plays an important part in the venue’s aim to reach out to the community through performing arts.

Established initially in response to Coventry’s successful City of Culture bid, CVFolk staged its first public event at the Theatre in June 2018. This was a consultation with local folk event organisers, musicians and educators, followed by a music session – the first step of its mission to promote, support and celebrate folk music and dance across Coventry and Warwickshire.

The Albany Theatre Trust has now agreed to include CVFolk folk events as part of the Theatre’s own programme and incorporate the CVFolk ‘brand’ as part of its own identity.

This means that CVFolk will continue to stage its monthly events, showcasing and providing public performance space to the wide range of talented folk acts based in the CV postcode area, and will continue to run this website as a source of news and information for the local folk scene.

But in addition, CVFolk will be making use of the new studio spaces to be opened later this year by staging music and song workshop events and masterclasses. There will also be a more flexible programme of folk events, from afternoon family concerts in one of the Studios to big name shows in the Main House.

Says CVFolk founder and co-ordinator, Pete Willow, ‘This is excellent news for the CVFolk project and for folk music across the region. Our relationship with the Albany Theatre has proved very fruitful, enabling us to stage some wonderful home-grown music, including the spectacular fundraiser event for Ukraine last year.

‘Now as part of the Albany Theatre, we’re confident of making a further impact on Coventry and Warwickshire by encouraging new talent and greater interest in all aspects of folk music – from traditional music-makers to contemporary singer-songwriters,from unaccompanied singing to folk-rock.’

CVFolk will continue its activities with Warwick Folk Festival and Coventry MotoFest and has also launched a new partnership event with Leamington’s acclaimed Temperance Café. The Temperance hosted a successful afternoon and evening event last February when organisers of nearly all local folk clubs met to share ideas on promoting their venues and then provided a well-received concert with club residents in the cellar venue.

Thursday 10th August sees CVFolk presenting the Leamington Folk Club with nine superb, home-grown acts performing. See here for further details.

____________________________________________________________________

in 2022, CVFolk’s Ukraine appeal raised £2100 following an all-star day of music at the Albany Theatre, Coventry

Over 60 musicians and singers took part in a packed programme of concerts and sessions at the Albany Theatre, Coventry, Sunday 27 March 2022

Follow this link to view the afternoon and evening concerts on YouTube

Follow this link to view and download photographs of the day

Afternoon: Craig Sunderland, Bob Brooker, The Ryders, Thrup’nny Bits, Hatstand, KC Jones, Mick Bisiker, The Paper Circus, Daisybell, Malc and Gill, Nunc, Poachers Pocket, Willow & Tool Band, The Harvesters, MCs John McIntosh, Paul Sanders.,

Evening: Rob Halligan’s Homeward Hie, Kristy Gallacher, Lauren South & Keith Donnelly, Meet On The Ledge, The Silver Wye, The Lost Notes, Pauline Black & Nick Welsh, The Kevin Dempsey Trio, Speech by Lord Mayor of Coventry , Ukrainian National Anthem by Nigel Beckett, Grand Finale, MC Keith Donnelly.,

If you enjoy the music, remember all performances were given for free to support CVFolk’s Ukraine appeal. So please click here to donate directly to the #HELPUKRAINE Emergency Appeal.

Funds raised from CVFolk4Ukraine and its aftermath are donated to this appeal organised by the Association of Ukrainians in Great Britain. With low overheads and direct first-hand knowledge of where help is needed, the AUGB is supported by a wide range of community groups and accredited charities in Ukraine to provide food, shelter, medicines and support to the vulnerable.

_____________________________________________________________