Songs and Ayres: Lute songs and Traditional Folk Music

About this event

Program Description

Join Erin Shea Hogan for Songs and Ayres , a recital at the intersection of traditional folk ballad performance and early lute song accompanied by master celtic guitarist, Adam Hendey, and multi-instrumentalist Pablo Kennedy on lute. The repertoire will explore the connection between two distinct and beloved pillars of English music, featuring selections from Dowland's Books of Songs and Ayres , and folk songs, Child Ballads, and their variants.

While storytelling and collaboration are central to both genres, the two traditions approach these elements in different ways. The folk ballads are collaboratively arranged, based on various song collections and aural traditions, whereas the lute songs are composed works brought to life by a combination of historical accuracy and creative interpretation. By bringing these song traditions together, Hogan invites listeners to consider the ways both genres share investment in the expressive and expansive possibilities of the human voice.

Artist Bios

Erin Shea Hogan is a vocalist and musical shapeshifter whose voice moves effortlessly between early and sacred music, folk traditions, and cross-genre collaborations. A sought-after collaborator, she performs with Forsyth, a four-part harmony ensemble singing traditional American, English, and Irish music; The Adam Hendey Band; and as a staff singer at Trinity Church in the City of Boston. Her voice can be heard on recent releases by the University of Notre Dame Folk Choir and Adam Hendey, with upcoming recordings by Forsyth and David McKindley-Ward. Alongside her collaborative work, Erin enjoys arranging traditional folk ballads and writing original music. As an educator, she maintains a private voice studio, teaches at Club Passim School of Music, and serves on the adjunct faculty at New England Conservatory. She is also the Department Chair of Contemporary Musical Arts for NEC Expanded Education, supporting multi-style/genre, community-centered music education.

Adam Hendey is a multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, and composer living in Boston, Massachusetts. A powerhouse accompanist with a backseat-driving style, Adam Hendey has collaborated and performed with many of traditional music’s brightest stars, including Maura Shawn Scanlin, Elias Alexander, Eliot Grasso, Éilís Kennedy, Hanneke Cassel, and Alasdair Fraser. Taking center stage, he leads his own ensemble: The Adam Hendey Band, featuring Erin Shea Hogan, Brendan Hearn, and Elias Cardoso.

Adam is a graduate of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland with a Master's degree in Traditional Music. In addition to performing, Adam is also a prolific teacher and has taught at Alasdair Fraser's Sierra Fiddle Camp, the Acadia Festival of Traditional Music and Dance, the Community Music School of Santa Cruz, and the Passim School of Music.

Pablo Kennedy is a Boston-based multi-instrumentalist frequenting on double bass, theorbo, and other lute-family instruments. He earned his Bachelor of Music in Performance from Boston University, studying double bass with Edwin Barker and lutes with Catherine Liddell. Pablo's recent ensemble experience includes collaborations with the Texas Early Music Project, Portland Bach Virtuosi Festival, the Ashmont Hill Bach Project, Cappella Clausura, the Marsh Chapel Collegium, and Classical Uprising.