Society organises Folksong Evening
The Alfred Williams Heritage Society has made a date for its first fundraising event - a celebration of folk music at the King and Queen in Longcot. The Alfred Williams Folksong Evening will host an Alfred Williams Folksong Evening on Tuesday, April 20.
Local folksingers will be singing songs collected by Alfred during his research for Folk Songs of the Upper Thames, and the evening will also have an educational element, with information about the collection and a session for children, led by local folk arts expert Chris Park.
Longcot was one of the villages visited by Alfred during his extended bicycle tour around the region, during which he wrote down the lyrics of hundreds of songs - saving them from extinction. It was an act that now makes him the toast of English folksong experts, although he only recorded lyrics and not music.
But local musicians will be using their expert knowledge to try to recreate the songs, by setting them to traditional tunes.
Dr John Cullimore, the Chairman of the Society, who will also perform at the event, said Longcot was a fitting venue.
"There is a view of the White Horse, which he wrote poems about, literally from the pub, and it's quite likely that he actually visited the King and Queen when he was searching for folk songs.
"If he were alive today, he'd be the first person knocking on the door of the King and Queen for a ticket, as we anticipate an educational as well as an entertaining evening."
To find out more, including details of ticket sales, see our special Folksong Evening page.
Alfred's importance as a collector of folk songs - a revealing feature by Mike Yates
King and Queen - official website
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