"...one of the county’s best weekends of music." - Oxford Mail
#LiveToYourLivingRoom continues...
We all know everything's a bit strange at the moment, but you may not have realised what a crucial time this is for the arts and cultural sector - particularly for those of us who work in live events.
All over the country venues are under threat of closure, and a whole range of staff from musicians, to technicians, to cleaners are suddenly out of work. Folk musicians all over the world have had tours cancelled, projects postponed, and are facing months of little or no work - and likely years of uncertainty as the industry finds its feet on the other side of this pandemic.
At Folk Weekend: Oxford, we want to do our bit to support the artists and the community, and we pioneered a successful festival of online events using Zoom and Facebook live. The beauty of running events via Zoom is that audience and artist can see and hear each other; interaction is possible, applause is encouraged(!), and audience members can even ask questions or chat to artists during the event.
We don't know how long the world is going to be in quarantine, but we do know that virtually all 'in person' events have already been cancelled throughout the summer, and we suspect it may be many months before promoters and venues feel able to take the risk of putting on events. We have taken the decision to continue promoting events online via Zoom for the foreseeable future, to help support artists who are out of work, and to keep our community connected.
Please see our What's On page for details of our forthcoming #LiveToYourLivingRoom events.
Join us?
If you want to get ready for you weekend full of music, then there are a couple of things you can do:
1) Sign up to our Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/folkweekendoxford - this is where the free events are happening
2) Download Zoom from http://zoom.us - this is what you'll need to watch the ticketed events. All passwords are on the main ticketing page for the event at fao.yapsody.com.
3) Virtual sessions are also happening in Zoom - you'll need to download the programme where you'll find the room link, and use the password FWO2020 to enter.
4) Buy some merch! We have some fantastic special edition festival merch available from the brilliant MudChutney, so do go and check it out.
Help!
Running a festival online is a completely new thing for us and for you - and unlike most events we are doing it LIVE rather than pre-recorded so there's a limit to how much we can test beforehand. It's quite likely that there will be issues, but we will be here ready to help!
If you have any problems accessing any events you have booked for during the festival here are some things you can try:
- Turn your technology off and on again(!)
- Make sure your volume is turned up and your speakers are plugged in
If none of those have worked you can email Cat on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or Rachel on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Jackie is a singer and fiddle player hailing from Staffordshire and now living in Oxford. Her unique treatment of English ballads and songs, and pure, haunting singing style has attracted increasing attention. Since appearing as a finalist in the BBC Radio 2 Young Folk Awards 2003, she has performed extensively at festivals and folk clubs across the country, in a solo capacity and with a number of bands. Her second album 'The Violet Hour' was one of the Top 10 on the Mojo folk album of the year chart in 2008, followed by 'Hyperboreans' reaching number five in the chart the following year. Also in 2009 Jackie won two BBC Folk Awards - The Horizon Award for best new comer, and the Best Traditional Track Award. She is currently singing with her own band, and touring as a member of The Imagined Village alongside Eliza Carthy. When not busy with all this Jackie dances with 
John Spiers, known better in folk circles as Squeezy, has made a name for himself as one of the leading squeezebox players of his generation. Well known for his long-standing duo partnership with Jon Boden in the formidable Spiers & Boden as well as his contribution to the massively popular Bellowhead, John has also played with Eliza Carthy’s Ratcatchers and a number of local folk-dance bands.
We are always delighted to welcome Morris dancers to Folk Weekend, who perform in the streets and at fantastic locations across the City centre including the Botanic Gardens and the Ashmolean Museum. For more information, go to our