Who's On?

Jim has a formidable pedigree in the world of Sea Shanties, having been singing since the early 1960's

mainly solo and as a duo with the late, great, Johnny Collins. He has toured extensively and won awards

worldwide from major festivals. Jim's infectious enthusiasm and skill make him an unmissable performer

Cztery Refy (4 Reefs) are the foremost Shanty Group in Poland, having performed at all the major festivals

there and also worldwide. Originally formed in 1985 by a group of members from the Academic Sailing Club in Lodz,

Cztery Refy has a large repertoire of Shanties, Sea Songs and Folk Songs from the British Isles and Brittany.

They sing in Polish and English, sometimes accompanied by traditional acoustic instruments,

Graeme has been involved in the Folk world for over 20 years, singing a wide variety of traditional

(and sometimes contemporary) songs and also running Folk Clubs and a Folk Festival. His rich baritone voice

lends itself particularly well to Shanty singing and Graeme is a popular guest at Clubs and Festivals throughout

Singing together as a Folk Duo since 1969, Tom & Barbara Brown are here at the Harwich Shanty Festival

to present their show "Short Sharp Shanties". They will also be singing at venues throughout the town,

so be sure to catch up with them. See programme guide for more details of the show.

Der Shantychor Langballigau are all members of the Langballigau Yacht Club and have been singing together

now for some 30 years. As is often the custom in Germany and Holland, the Shanty singers are in the form of a

choir, rather than a crew. Der Shantychor Langballigau are an excellent example of this form of Shanty singing

and their repertoire is a mixture of English, Scandinavian, German, German Folk and German Dialect. Amongst their number are a Swing Trio, who will also be entertaining over the weekend.

Paul has been touring extensively both on the Maritime and Folk Festival scene for many years and is an accomplished singer and guitar player. His relaxed, easy style and competent delivery make him a favourite wherever he appears. We are very pleased to welcome him back to Harwich in 2011.

This multi instrumental group accompany themselves with guitar, hurdy gurdy, fiddle and accordion.

They come from the Loire Valley in France, which in times gone by was an important trade route

for goods such as coal, slate, sugar and wine, ferried by barges. They have been playing together since

Charlotte & Spong have proved immensely popular on their previous visits to Harwich Shanty Festival.

They are consummate performers, singing and playing fiddle and concertina. This year, in addition to their

Dressed in Victorian clothes, appropriate to the age of the Lantern used for the Show (1890), Allan and Rene

have been presenting Magic Lantern Shows for the past 8 years. A mixture of music, songs, poetry

and monologues accompanies the original glass slides of all things maritime for this year's show -

From the beautiful Isles of Scilly, this 8 piece harmony group use interesting arrangements for

their rendition of Shanties and Sea Songs from Cornwall and beyond. The present line up

have been singing together for about two years now, but the older members of the group were

part of a Shanty Choir who enjoyed some success singing together in the 1970's.

Unfortunately Bone Idol are now unable to be with us this year. We very much hope they will be at the

2012 Festival instead. Meanwhile we are pleased to have been able to secure the talented

and popular Portsmouth Shanty Men at very short notice. They will be substituted on the programme

Portsmouth Shanty Men were somewhat "thrown together" in 1978, when a local festival became convinced that a

Naval town like Portsmouth must possess a Shanty Crew! From that hasty beginning however, they have continued

to grow and develop into an accomplished group much in demand at Folk and Shanty Festivals in Britain and abroad.

Now regulars at many Festivals and also on board HMS Victory and Warrior in their home town, this is their first visit

A popular all round entertainer, Alan has a particular love of Sea Songs and Shanties and has performed at Maritime Festivals

throughout the U.K. and abroad. Singing both unaccompanied and with his beloved English Concertinas, we are pleased

Another local group, Hunt the Wren have been playing together for some 10 years now, both locally and further afield. For Harwich Shanty Festival they will be playing their "Maritime Set" throughout the town.

Formerly known as the Royal Marine Shanty Crew, after the Pub at which this group was formed, the Naze Shanty Crew have been in existence now for 9 years. Their new name pays homage to the geographical peculiarity from which their home town takes it's name; Walton-on-the-Naze in Essex. Singing mainly acapella, but with occasional guitar, melodeon or concertina, this small band of enthusiastic singers have attended several Festivals and Maritime events both in Britain and overseas. Their proximity to the changing Essex coastline inspires them and their music.

A group of friends living in the Harwich area, Golden Rivets are our closest "home grown" guests for the 2011 Shanty Festival. They share a number of interests, sailing and music amongst them. All are keen sailors, regularly sailing the Essex and Suffolk coasts. They have been playing together for a few years now, mostly for fun and the odd pint or two.

An enthusiastic and accomplished supporter of Sea songs and Shanty Festivals, Malcolm will be singing mostly as a solo performer throughout the weekend, but sometimes teaming up with other guests.

Pete now lives in France, from whence he will be visiting the Festival this year. Previously resident in England, he has for many years been a stalwart singer and performer at many British Festivals, being particularly involved with one of Britain's biggest Folk Festivals - Broadstairs Folk Week.

Jed Stone and Des Tighe are well known around the folk scene in their Suffolk homeland, but have also travelled extensively to venues around the British Isles and further abroad. They were the founder members of XXLsior, a shanty crew put together to support the sail training trawler Excelsior and have previously sung with a variety of other groups. This is their third visit to Harwich in their present incarnation!

Formed from the weekend workshops of the 2010 Festival, we are so pleased that Harwich now boasts its very own Shanty Crew. With several performances already under their belt, the Crew are looking forward to the opportunity to perform at the 2011 Festival in their own right. Anyone wishing to join for the 2012 season should contact the Festival or speak to members of the Crew at the Festival.

A late, but welcome addition to the Festival this year, Becky Graham is a former member of the Witches of Elswick and daughter of the infamous Pete Stockwell, a Harwich regular. She will be performing a range of shanties from the sea and others from the Mississippi river. She may even give you a few nautical tunes on the fiddle. If you find it hard to understand the idea of a female shanty singer she also answers to Dave.