Mario’s report on Folk Club # 166 on 6 March 2026

 

Time is relative, 

and not just in terms of one’s own sense of time, but also in terms of the meaning and substance of the word itself. If one person has no time but takes it anyway, another spends a good time and enjoys themselves without thinking about the time that has already passed. Well then, before things get any more philosophical, let’s take the time together to let the evening of the 166th Folk Club Bonn pass before our mind’s eye once more.

As always, the welcome call from master of ceremonies John Harrison ensured the necessary calm – and this was particularly important this time, as, due to the evening’s featured artists, there were also many non-regular guests present who had not yet internalised the proceedings as a matter of course. Once calm had been restored, the musical programme began, opened by John with the rock ’n’ roll song “Feeling Happy” – yes, even a bluesman like John can play rock ’n’ roll (after all, it did originate from the blues). With “Rabbit Hills” he returned to the blues, before allowing his poetic streak to shine through with the a cappella rendition of the poem “If”, set to music. And it is precisely this poem that strikes at the heart of the theme, in which a father’s good advice to his son describes the journey from boyhood to manhood.

After John, Ute Brüggemann took to the stage, and a surprise awaited me – what a voice!!! With crystal-clear intonation and very distinct pronunciation, she paid homage to the singer-songwriter and folk scene. “The Hills of Strathblane” by Sheila Hall was performed so beautifully that, even amidst the enthusiastic applause, the desire for more arose. Ute Brüggemann proved she can also perform a cappella with the old traditional “Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child”, with many in the audience knowing the song and happily singing along. But then the guitar was brought out again and a tribute was paid to the great songwriter Peter Yarrow with the song “Day Is Done”. Now, anyone who isn’t quite sure who Peter Yarrow is might just remember that very same Peter from Peter, Paul & Mary – and suddenly the song is familiar too. A magnificent performance, and I’m already looking forward to more from Ute Brüggemann (who, as I discovered online, can also be heard in the Bach Choir in Bonn).

Although not for the first time, but having not been to the Folk Club for a while, it was now Andreas Kulik’s turn. I’ve been an enthusiastic listener of Andreas’s from day one, and I think it’s brilliant how he brings his Polish culture to life for us through his interpretation of Polish music. I’m always thrilled when an artist performs in their native language and doesn’t cram everything into – often, sadly, because it’s not their native tongue, botched – apostrophe English (the apostrophe here stands for the respective native language: D’English, F’English, Sw’English and so on). In my view, music from the heart with appropriate lyrics can only be conveyed to the audience in a language that feels authentic – of course, there are also non-native speakers who are almost like native speakers – they can probably do it. But how many artists are there who try to convey emotions using school English – everyone can form their own opinion of the result. But from this digression, back to Andreas Kulik, who, with great feeling and musically improving with every performance, presented the ballads ‘Zawirowai Swiat’ and “Czarny Blues O Czwartej Nad Ranem” as cover versions of Stare Dobre Malenstwo, and then performed a song (at least 65% of which was his own) about a quarrel with St Peter at the gates of heaven, in which he describes how, at this very crossroads of his existence, he is happy to leave everything behind, but wants to take only his guitar with him to heaven. “Zostaw mi moja gitarę” (Don’t Leave Me Without My Guitar) is the title of the song.

 Daniel Habermann has since become a frequent and welcome (or rather, well-heard) guest at the Folk Club Bonn – this time, however, he came with the support of Ruth and Esteban as the trio Los Rios. The three had taken the motto to heart and paid homage to time with the tracks “Time In A Bottle”, “Time in Space” and “Timing”. Two covers and an original piece, sensitively and at times ruggedly arranged and performed, and presented with great musical and instrumental professionalism. What could make the Folk Club even better?

Well, given that I’ve asked the question, it will come as no surprise that I have an answer ready – namely, a completely different way of interpreting time. Apparently, Ismael de Barcelona & Thomas Monnerjahn didn’t have much time, as they played the notes of their songs in rapid succession – otherwise they would probably have run over the Folk Club’s time limit? Of course, the performance was not the result of a lack of time, but solely of skill. Flamenco meets jazz, and here gypsy jazz – also known as jazz manouche or Sinti jazz (or, in these times of sensitive anti-discrimination language shifts, also… well, what exactly?) – brings together two forms of folklore, both of which can express both profound sadness and exuberant joie de vivre, and therefore often thrive on rapid sequences of notes and sweeping rhythms. Ismael and Thomas each have one of these styles running through their veins, and united as an instrumental duo, they regularly create a fantastic atmosphere at their concerts. With ‘Noche En Cartagena’ (an original composition by Thomas Monnerjahn), ‘A Manuel’ (an original composition by Ismael de Barcelona), ‘Nueve de Julio’ and, in the second half, ‘Libertango’, “Una Matina”, “Mediterranean Sundance/Rio Ancho” and “Shape Of My Heart”, they not only created a great atmosphere but also left the audience wanting more – something that can be experienced in the near future at a number of concerts outside the Folk Club (it’s best to check the dates on the website https://www.ismaeldebarcelona.com/). What else is there to say? Well, perhaps that the two are not only masters of their instruments (and know it), but also very natural and lovely people who gratefully acknowledge every round of applause and take it as an incentive to delight us time and again with new virtuoso performances.

 But let’s jump back to the start of the second half. John Hurd came on stage with a small bouquet of yellow flowers to recite, accompanied by John Harrison, William Wordsworth’s beautiful poem ‘I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud’. This poem – as you might have guessed – pays homage to the season of spring, when the daffodils begin their new life all over the lawns and meadows. The poet captures this image in his mind’s eye so that in later times, when the daffodils have faded, he can bring it back to life as a beautiful memory.

After John Hurd, it was the turn of another new face. Accompanying himself on the piano, Jochen Hiester sang the song “Wenn Alles da sein darf” from his own song cycle “Beziehungsweise”. A song that rebels against the establishment and social obligations.

Following this interlude on the piano, the performance returned to guitar accompaniment, provided by Peter Bachmann both for himself and for Caroline Bernotat. These two artists, well known to us, also took the theme of the evening to heart and sang about it with the songs “The Good Times We Had” (a song by Noel Paul Stockey, better known as Paul from Peter, Paul & Mary), “Tomorrow Is A Long Time” (by Mr Zimmermann, better known as Bob Dylan) and a German version of the Tom Waits song “Time” (this time known as “Zeit”) . You can tell that the two of them really enjoy making music and come across as so authentic and completely natural. A promise of surely many more performances at the Folk Club.

 

Now came another highlight of the evening. After a ten-hour drive from Prague to Bonn, the two regulars Ashleigh and Gareth (Midnight Fyre) should really have been completely exhausted and on their last legs. But they’ve never let us down. And so, even in front of the Bonn audience, they were full of beans and, as always, got the auditorium rocking with their powerful voices. During their last performance, they announced the upcoming CD, this time mentioning the imminent wedding – I’m curious to see what surprise they’ll share with us next time. It came as no surprise that the musical performance of the songs “You Go Your Way My Love”, “Happy Song” and “Second Home” was magnificent. As Midnight Fyre’s songs always involve a bit of a musical performance, I won’t say much about the content – experience it for yourselves, either at a concert or in a video on the relevant platforms.

Well, that was actually the end of the show (I’ve already covered the final act by Ismael & Thomas above), but when John asked if the audience might have a little more time, the unanimous reply was: “Yes!!!”. So all the artists of the evening gathered on stage once more, and together with the audience, they sang “Jock Stewart” with their usual fervour – the song that serves as both a theme tune and a farewell, and a song of hope for a next time. 

And remember: after the Folk Club is before the Folk Club. 

Out of the bedroom and cu on 10 April – postponed again by a week due to the public holiday on Good Friday, 3 April. Featured artist then will be Pierluigi (PG) Petricca from Italy. 

https://www.facebook.com/pierluigi.petricca.180

 

Mario