Continue to explore the roots of New England’s unique and beautiful folk music tradition via Concord Community Music School’s ongoing “New England Roots & Branches” series. Some of New Hampshire’s premier folk musicians will combine concerts, jam sessions, and contradancing into lively celebrations of a variety of traditions. Folk musicians of all levels are invited to bring their instruments to play along with performers (and CCMS faculty) Audrey Budington, Jordan Tirrell-Wysocki, and Liz Faiella, fiddles and Dan Faiella, guitar at the start and end of each session. However, it is not necessary to play an instrument or have contradance experience to attend and enjoy the events.

Our second season of the “New England Roots & Branches” series concludes on Saturday, May 30, 2026 with “Contradance Music: The New England Contradance Repertoire”, honoring the genre’s melding of a variety of folk traditions. This event will be held at the Citywide Community Center (Concord, NH.) It begin with an open slow jam session at 6:00 p.m., followed by a contradance called by David Millstone at 7:00 p.m. For the second half of the dance, starting at 8:00 p.m., musicians are invited to join the band and play along.

The “New England Roots and Branches” series is free and open to the public. It is made possible in part through an arts grant from the City of Concord, NH.