New World String Project will be performing on Saturday, August 25 in Beckman Institute Auditorium (Little Beckman) at 8:00 PM.   NWSP is a fine new hybrid group that combines Lisa Lynne and Aryeh Frankfurter, who you may have heard perform at Caltech with Irish harper, Patrick Ball a couple of times in the last 10 years, along with Stuart Mason and John Weed, who are long time members of Molly’s Revenge, a Celtic music band who have also performed in our series for a pair of shows.

Lisa’s main instrument is the Celtic Harp, and she also plays  the bouzouki and Ukranian Bandura.  She has released several internationally recognized recordings on the prestigious Windham Hill and New Earth Record labels.  Aryeh is one of the few American players of the  Swedish Nyckelharpa, a keyed harp that dates back to the 14th Century, as well as the Celtic Harp, Violin, Viola, Cittern, and guitar. We’re sure he will have the Nyckelharpa, but we’re not sure what other instruments he’ll be bringing on this tour.

Besides Celtic music, Stuart and John play  a variety of other music  in other configurations (together and separate.)  John has been immersed in Irish music, spending a good amount of time studying music and giving workshops in Ireland, but he has an affinity for American old-time fiddle music as well.  Stuart sings and plays guitar, as well as banjo and mandola.  Like everybody else in the band, he has diverse talents and interests, and he also tours with a bluegrass band!

Together, these four musicians will take you for a musical ride that will shake your boots, uplift your spirit and warm your heart.   They are yet to release a recording, though they have established a strong body of recordings in their various other musical lives.  You have not heard anything quite like them, and we think you will like them a lot.  Their web site is Newworldstringproject.com.

Tickets are $20 for adults and $5 for children and Caltech students. They are available at the Caltech Ticket Office by calling (626) 395-4652 and at the Caltech Ticket Office in their new location at 1200 E. California Boulevard in Pasadena (Southeast corner of Wilson Avenue). Their usual hours are 10:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. You can get them online (for a fee) until Thursday, August 23 here. There is a fee for both phone orders and for online tickets, while purchases at the Ticket Office are free. Tickets can also be purchased (without additional fee) at the door of the venue one half hour before the show. Join our mailing list and you’ll be sure to be notified about the show a few weeks ahead of time.

The show will be in Beckman Institute Auditorium (“Little Beckman”) at 400 South Wilson Avenue. Free parking is available in the lot behind Beckman Auditorium (“Big Beckman). You can always find parking for our shows in the two parking structures on Wilson Avenue, just south of Del Mar Boulevard. On weekends and after 6:00 PM, you may park in spaces that have individual names. Restrictive wording at the structures refers to weekdays before 6:00 PM. There is also parking available on Wilson Avenue itself. Beckman Institute is on the other side of the large lawn on Wilson Avenue, on the first floor of the left portion of the building. If you get to the fountain and pools that point toward the white, round, building (Beckman Auditorium, which we refer to as “Big Beckman,” you have gone too far. See this map. Beckman Institute is building #74 and the parking structures are #123 and #124.

A bit more about parking if you haven’t been to one of our shows for awhile:  There will be the usual limited parking right behind the large Beckman Auditorium- It is OK to park in slots with names on weekends and evenings, but the lot may fill up, depending on what other events may be taking place on the Caltech campus.  This is the best place to park for the handicapped (try to come a little early- email us at [email protected] if you need help planning your visit). The parking lots between Michigan and Wilson have been  closed- a new building is rapidly rising at the southeast corner of Wilson and Del Mar.  The most reliable parking will be on Wilson Avenue, either on the street or in the two parking structures just south of Del Mar Avenue, across the street from Beckman Institute.   One structure is just north of the Institute at 341 S. Wilson Avenue, and the other, 405 S. Wilson, is just a bit south of the Institute.   Rest assured that after 5PM on weekdays, and all day on weekends, you can park for free in these structures, despite signs that allude to the more restricted parking rules during the day on weekdays.   You are permitted to park in slots that have names on them here as well.  From the structures, walk around the big lawn (much of which is currently fenced in for the building projet to the north) in front of Beckman Institute and you will recognize where to go.  On this map, we are suggesting that you park in structures #123 and #124 in the upper left.    Beckman Institute is building #74, just to the east (right).  If you need help figuring this out, try calling (626) 616-4559

If you haven’t listened to and supported FolkScene on KPFK for awhile, this Sunday may be the last opportunity to help them out by making a pledge.  Listen to the show at 90.7 FM between 6PM and 8PM this Sunday, August 12.  They play a lot of music, even when they are fundraising.  Last week, they played some new recordings, as well as  an interview/performance of Nanci Griffith.

Festivals and free music series coming up through the end of summer:

July 12- August 16 (Thursdays)  Culver City’s Boulevard Music Summer Festival (free)

August 17-19 (Friday-Sunday) Summergrass San Diego (in Vista, CA)

August 30- September 3 (Thursday- Monday)  Fall Strawberry Music Festival (Tuolumne, CA)

September 21-23 (Friday-Sunday)  Millpond Festival  (Bishop CA)   No daily 2018 schedule yet

October 5-7 ( Monday-Saturday) The Huck Finn Jubilee It’s coming back!  In Ontario.  No daily schedule yet

October   5-7 (Monday-Saturday) Hardly Strictly Bluegrass (San Francisco Golden Gate Park- free)  No 2018 schedule as yet

October 14 (Sunday) Santa Barbara Old Time Fiddler’s Festival (Stow House, Goleta, CA)    No daily schedule for 2018 yet