EFN Newsletter March 2025 #28

EFN editor
Mar 31
8 min read

WELCOME AND SUMMARY

Welcome to the new edition of this communication and outreach initiative of the EFN. Feel free to forward it to your friends and colleagues. Receiving this newsletter is open to anyone for free, here. Read to the end to find out how to submit content for future editions.

This is what you'll find below:

🔹News from EFN: summary of the three special news we announced yesterday: 2025 conference, date and place, announced; European Folk Day, 3rd edition!; new chair for the EFN

🔸EFN welcomes two new members: Folklorni ansambl Tempet, from Croatia, and Danilo Gatto, from Italy

🔹Our next featured member is Andrew Lambert, from Ireland

🔸Our next featured artist is the French singer-songwriter Gabriel Yacoub

🔹Special section: Insights on Festival Folklore(s) de la Península Ibérica, with Laura Poggio, Director of Fundación Música Creativa

✍️ Do you want to participate? At the end of the newsletter you will find how you can contribute to future editions, whether you are an EFN member or not. And of course EFN is always looking for new members and at the end of this newsletter there is a note about how and why to join, with links to the membership pages of the website and the application form.

Thanks for your attention, have a fruitful reading and, please, forward this to any person who could be interested!

News from EFN

🔸2025 EFN Conference - new location and dates

We are delighted to announce that the 2025 EFN Conference will now be hosted on Friday 10 & Saturday 11 October in Manresa, Catalonia, Spain, by EFN Member Fira Mediterrania de Manresa.

More details of how to register and book hotels will come very soon – right now Save The Date!

🔸European Folk Day 2025

Save The Date also for the European Folk Day – 23 September! It’s your chance to participate in the Folk Day – on the Day itself or in the days surrounding it.

EFN will be launching more info and making new partnerships across Europe to underline the Folk Day – more details coming very soon!

🔸New Chair for EFN Board

At the most recent Board meeting, Steven Vandersapoilden (of the Flemish Folk Network and Muziekmozaiek) was unanimously elected as the new Chair of EFN.

EFN WELCOMES NEW MEMBERS

By EFN editors

Before March had hardly begun, two new members joined our ever-growing network.

🔹Folklorni ansembl Tempet, Makarska, Croatia

We warmly welcome our first Member from Croatia – Folklorni ansambl Tempet (Folk ensemble Tempet) from Makarska, who describe themselves as “a cultural group focused on preserving Croatian folklore through dance, music, and traditional singing.” They organise the Metno Festival in Makarska, showcasing regional traditions. Their projects include “performer VS Tempet + Điger, dance workshops, and the Keep Our Heritage programme, promoting cultural education and heritage preservation.”

In writing about why they joined EFN and what it means to them, they echo so many of our Members by saying: “As members of the European Folk Network, we offer our expertise in traditional Croatian folklore, dance, and music, along with experience in organizing cultural festivals. We hope to share knowledge, collaborate on international projects, and gain access to a wider network of folk artists, fostering cultural exchange and growth.”

We got the picture from their Facebook profile.

🔹Danilo Gatto, from Calabria, Italy

Welcome, too, to Italian musician and educator Danilo Gatto. He says: “I've been involved in folk music for 40 years, when I started playing in the group Re Niliu. I continued to play in various projects and to organize Folk Festivals. I currently direct the Department of Traditional Music at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Nocera Terinese (Calabria).”

Danilo’s reason for joining EFN is direct to the point: “Having a network of partners is important for the possibility of developing projects, exchanging experiences and artistic productions."

We got this portrait from CatanzaroInforma.

Featured Member: Andrew Lambert

When he became a member in 2019, he introduced himself like this:

"Musician and event organiser. Co-organiser of the annual Kilfenora Traditional Music Festival and the Irish Old Time Appalachian Musicians Gathering. (Both are low budget, volunteer-run events, just about keeping their heads above water!)"

About the question on what you can give to the European Folk Network as a member and what you think will be the benefits of membership was "An Irish dimension, as well as long experience of the festival market in the UK."

We took this nice portrait from his Facebook profile.

Featured Artist: Gabriel Yacoub

By Araceli Tzigane

A few weeks ago, the community of folk music in Europe received the sad news of the passing of one of its icons: the French singer-songwriter Gabriel Yacoub, known for his work under his own name, with the band Malicorne, which he founded, and for his collaborations with Alan Stivell (read our profile of Stivell in this previous edition). Here is our tribute to his legacy.

This picture is "Par Lurulu — Travail personnel, CC BY-SA 3.0"

This bio is a summary of the one on Yacoub's website.

Gabriel Yacoub was born in Paris in 1952 to a Lebanese father and a French mother from Saint-Benoît-sur-Loire. In the early 1970s, as a teenager, he began his musical career as a guitarist and backing vocalist for Alan Stivell, a key figure in the revival of traditional music in Europe. In 1973, after an experimental album, Pierre de Grenoble, recorded with Marie Yacoub, he founded Malicorne, a groundbreaking band in the history of French folk music.

At a time when France was heavily influenced by American culture, Malicorne paid attention to the traditional music, blending old melodies with modern technology and rare folk instruments, such as crumhorns, hurdy-gurdies, harmoniums, and bagpipes. Gabriel Yacoub’s unique songwriting and the talent of his band members created a distinctive sound, making Malicorne one of the most influential folk groups of the era, earning three gold records and the Grand Prix of the Académie du Disque Français.

This is a live performance of the song L'écolier assassin. The songs tells a dark and tragic story based on a traditional French ballad. It narrates the tale of a schoolboy who, in a moment of rage, commits a violent act. The lyrics describe how the young student, after being wronged or provoked, reacts impulsively and kills someone. It carries a moral undertone, warning about the dangers of anger and revenge.

During Malicorne’s peak, Yacoub launched a solo career. His early solo albums, such as Elementary Level of Faith (1986) and Bel (1990), showcased a mix of acoustic and experimental styles. Later works like Four (1994) and Babel (1997) expanded his sonic palette with rich arrangements and philosophical themes, addressing topics like globalization and poetry.

In the 2000s, he continued releasing albums, including The Simple Things We Said (2002), an "American album" recorded with acoustic groups. He also founded the label Le Roseau, releasing a double live album in 2004.

Yacoub’s career spanned decades of performances worldwide, with over 1.000 concerts across North America and Europe. His concerts combined folk melodies, storytelling, and humor, solidifying his legacy as a key figure in modern folk music.

This is a live performance of the song Mes Belles Compagnes. The poem, by Yacoub, is a melancholic evocation of past companions, portrayed as almost ethereal figures, each with a unique personality and outlook on life. The lyrical speaker reflects on them from a distance, with a mix of nostalgia and resignation.

Special section:

Insights on Festival Folklore(s) de la Península Ibérica (Madrid), with Laura Poggio, Director of Fundación Música Creativa

A brief conversation between Laura Poggio and Araceli Tzigane

The Música Creativa Foundation is organizing the fourth edition of the Iberian Folk Music Festival in Madrid, taking place from May 22nd to 25th. According to Ángela Domínguez, Project Manager at the Foundation, "For four days, renowned artists and emerging talents in Iberian traditional music will come together to celebrate and preserve the rich musical heritage of our roots. The festival blends deep folkloric traditions with contemporary influences, offering a space where the past meets the present. Audiences are invited to reconnect with their cultural heritage and explore the depth of traditional music."

And "The programme includes concerts, masterclasses on traditional dance and folklore performance, a panel discussion on the instrumental role of women in preserving traditional music, and an outdoor event featuring family-friendly activities—such as an educational concert for children and a workshop on crafting traditional instruments with recycled materials."

Angela also advices that all sessions will be conducted in Spanish; however, the Música Creativa team will be happy to assist non-Spanish speakers in navigating the events. Check all the details on their website. You can watch a video teaser, here. And if you are interested in attending the event, contact Ángela at adominguez@musicacreativa.com.

We take this opportunity to ask Laura Poggio, director of the Foundation, a few questions about the festival and some more general topics. Here it is:

Araceli: What is the current situation of folk music in Spain? Have you noticed any changes in these four years since you have been making this festival?

Laura: We could say that folklore is "in style." Folk music in Spain has been experiencing a revival for several years now, and more and more young musicians are turning to their roots—to the villages where they grew up or spent their summers—in search of those traditional melodies, playing with them to create new music. Over these four years, we’ve had to move to larger venues to accommodate bigger audiences, thus it is safe to say there is a clear increasing interest in traditional music.

Araceli: Which are the main challenges you are facing to make this edition?

Laura: As is often the case, financial constraints remain the biggest challenge. We still struggle to attract private sponsors interested in supporting our traditional music, despite the fact folk has now proven to be very attractive to different audiences.

Araceli: Who is your public profile? You are a school in the educational level of a university, so perhaps you have many students in the public. Is this right? How do these young people approach folk music in the frame of your festival? Do you have other kinds of people, like older people, who also attend?

Laura: Our audience is very diverse, spanning all age groups. We always bear this in mind when designing our artistic programme, incorporating both traditional and more modern proposals, as well as content for families and children and new audiences. Of course, as a higher education institution, we encourage our students not only to attend but also to participate through collaborations with the artists involved. However, I believe that student attendance is relatively small compared to the large number of young and older attendees who travel from different regions to spend four days singing, playing, and enjoying incredible concerts.

Araceli: Imagine that, for the next year, you had no budget restriction at all. Tell us a couple of dreams that you guys would like to realize in the festival in 2026.

Laura: Without a doubt, we would extend the festival to cover two full weekends and an entire week of activities. There would be more workshops and talks, and we would bring in guest artists from other countries—although this is already starting to happen, as our plan from now on – starting in 2026 - is to feature a different international artist in the programme each year.

HOW TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS NEWSLETTER

Are you already a member? Then, remember that you can submit contents for this monthly newsletter. Email your content to efneditors@gmail.com, for these sections:

· News from EFN Members. Brief announcements – of around 100 words and a link.

· Featured artist. - A profile with around 200 words, an embedded video and one link. Members are invited to submit profiles, considering solo and ensemble living or not living artists who have achieved lifelong artistic and technical quality or historical significance in the field of folk art from or developed in or settled in Europe. If you have any artists in mind that you'd like to feature, please ask in advance, just to be sure there is no other member already doing it.

And whether you are a member or not, you can participate in this section:

· Special sections. For instance, an interview with someone from an institution that is not a member or a thematic article by a guest writer or anything that can appear and be considered as interesting. This section can also host guest writers that are not members.

If you'd like to share any content, contact us in advance to schedule it by emailing efneditors@gmail.com

Of course, self promotional articles lacking interest won't be accepted. In case of doubt, the EFN board will be consulted and will decide.