If you'd like to submit a folk related link please e-mail us at richmondfolkmusic@yahoo.com .  We support locally owned businesses and establishments.

Maria Fakhoury is a massage therapist (she's also co-director and co-founder of Richmond Folk Music Society).  She specializes in working with singers, musicians and performers.

Celtic Curves is a custom motorcycle/auto body painter with a small shop in Dinwiddie County.  Duncan and Brenda do a clan tent every year at the Richmond Highland Games, and are supporters of traditional music.

Coffee Shops (that also feature live music)

Crossroads Coffee and Ice Cream is getting to be one of the hottest spots for live acoustic music in Richmond.  It's an old converted filling station on the Southside, at the corner of Forest Hill and Semmes Avenue.  It's funky, laid back and fun.  They serve everything from complete meals to snacks to ice cream to assorted brews (yes, they do serve alcohol)!

Ellwood's Coffee is a community gathering place in Carytown that features organic and sustainably grown food and superb coffee, (as well as beer and wine) and also features acoustic music and other events such as movies, coffee tasting, etc.  Check their calendar to see what's on !

Baines Books and Coffee is a fascinating bookstore and coffeeshop that features quality live music.  We need more places like this!  They're located in Appomattox, Virginia, but well worth the drive from Richmond.  Get out and enjoy small town America at its best.

Ashland Coffee and Tea - in the "Center of the Universe" right next to the railroad track - a great listening room that features a variety of acoustic roots music.

Music Venues

Shady Grove Coffeehouse - Our "Sister" series in Richmond's West End.  Here you'll find a warm reception and a friendly group of people.  They book top notch talent (they lean towards singer songwriters, but they are always the best) and they serve HOMEMADE cookies and pastries.   They are located in Richmond's West End.

Jam, Inc. - This concert series features a varied assortment of acoustic music in a cozy setting that is acoustically superb (it's held in a recording studio).  Folks bring a pot luck dish to share before the concert (and there's wine!).   The location is near 19th and Broad in the "In Your Ear" Studio building. 

 Williamsburg Library - Not always folk, but they lean heavily in that direction.  Many of the concerts are worth the run from Richmond to Williamsburg.  Their concert section is a little hard to find on their website but the above link will take you right to it.

Musical Instruments

Mitchell Music - Hand Crafted and Custom Instruments - Located in downtown Floyd, Virginia (which happens to be one of the best music scenes around), this family owned music shops has a wonderful collection of hand crafted instruments - guitars, fiddles, mandolins.  It's well worth a trip to beautiful and unique Floyd, Virginia to check them out.

Don Leister - Violin Maker - Don Leister make beautiful sounding, affordable violins and offers expert repairs for your bass, cello, viola, violin or bow. He has master luthier training in bow rehairing, instrument restoration and construction.  His violins have won several awards, and many well known fiddlers, including Richmond's own Mark Campbell, own violins made by Don. 

Mark Brummitt - Guitar building and repair - Mark is one of the few luthiers here in Richmond who is authorized by C. F. Martin to perform warranty work on Martin guitars.  His rates are reasonable and his work is top notch, plus he's a super nice guy.   He also works on other stringed instruments, such as violins.   (Mark repaired my Martin guitar after the airline lost it on the way back from Scotland.  When I finally got it, it had suffered some serious damage - it's now as good as new! )

Folk Friendly Radio Stations - Support Independent Radio!

WGOE Internet Radio and Folk/Roots music resource site

WRIR - "Radio for the Rest of Us"


Information and Resources for Tradtional Folk Music

The Mudcat Cafe -  "Everything you always wanted to know about folk music, but were afraid to ask".    An on-line discussion group that has evolved into a true cyber community.  If you post a question about folk music it will probably be anwered within a few minutes.  There is also a huge stock of song lyrics.

Chivalry Music - This site contains not only lyrics, but you can actually listen to songs (click here to go directly to the song section - Cantaria).  It's designed to help people who want to learn songs by actually hearing them sung.  There is also an on-line shop where you can purchase hard to find CDs.

Acoustic Music Scene - an on-line online publication providing news & commentary for the folk, roots and singer-songwriter communities. 

Scotchsnap - A site promoting Scotland's composers and song writers and making their sheet music available to view, purchase and print.   There is a good selection of We have a lot of Robert Burns' music: songs with piano accompaniments and arrangements of Burns songs for a variety of instrumentation.

Organizations 

Irish American Society of Greater Richmond - A great organization to join if you are interested in Irish culture.  They sponsor monthly programs (sometimes musical) highlighting various aspects of Irish culture and organize frequent 'pub suppers' for socializing. 

St. Andrew's Society of Richmond - This organization is dedicated to the preservation of Scottish traditions and culture.  They sponsor monthly programs and pub suppers, as well as special events throughout the year.


Blue Ridge Irish Music School - Offers classes, instruction, performances and workshops on traditional Irish music in Charlottesville. 

Saint Andrew's Legion Pipes and Drums

The St. Andrews Legion Pipes and Drums is a performance band based in Richmond, VA that offers free lessons to anyone interested. It supports itself through paid performances which allows the band to provide uniforms, instructional materials, and in some cases, instruments to its students. The band also performs at numerous charitable events as a means of supporting the community that does the same for the band. Festivals 

The National Folk Festival -   Three days of the finest folk music, and it's free!  Lots of delicious foods, and interesting crafts to browse too.  Every three years this festival is held in a different city.

The Richmond Folk Festival - Richmond, Virginia has continued the tradtion of the National Folk Festival, which it hosted for three years. It's fun, it's free, and the acts are the cream of the crop.Record Labels and On-Line Sources for Traditional Folk Recording


Camsco Music - Whenever we go to a festival where Dick Greenhaus, owner of Camsco Music, has a booth we spend way too much money!  A treasure chest of hard to find recordings.  If there is a folk record you've been looking for and haven't been able to find, give Dick a call.

Smithsonian Folkways - Not only a great selection of recordings, mostly from original sources, there is a wealth of information on the website.