Festival Groups
Take a look at who will be performing at the Falmouth International Sea Shanty Festival in 2025!
With performances from 80+ groups across various venues, Falmouth is filled with songs of the sea at the three-day festival. There are groups from the UK as well as groups travelling from overseas to be part of the festival.
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ACapella Moonshine
ACapella Moonshine is an all –female shanty group living in and around Falmouth.
We have been singing together for many years and, in 2013, were the first all-female group to appear at the Falmouth International Shanty Festival – inspiring other female groups to do the same!
We are very proud to say that we are “multi–generational”; our line – up of ten lovely ladies spans all the ages from 20 somethings to 70 somethings, and all the decades in between, but what unites us is our love of singing rollicking, rousing shanties and telling the tales of our nautical heritage, often from the woman’s perspective.
We sing a blend of shanties, Cornish songs and songs of the sea – many of which we “Moonshine” by adapting the locale and the gender to personalise the songs and set them in our beloved Cornwall. We also sing songs that are unique to us, written by ourselves or close friends to tell a personal story about our love for Cornwall and the sea.
One of our favourite things is to meet other groups and sing along with them. There is no surer way to forget your woes and worries than by a hearty rendition of rumbustious sea shanties!!
Ajoupa Trio
Ajoupa Trio are three musicians from Orléans in France. Nicolas on accordion, Thierry on guitar and vocals and Jean-Paul on irish flutes, harmonica and vocals. Their repertoire is made up of sea shanties, celtic, irish and scottish music… Whatever they like!
The trio are also Loire mariners, and perform Loire sea shanties.
Back Beach Boyz
Putting a smile on people’s faces for 11 years!
Teignmouth’s Back Beach Boyz shanty & maritime folk crew are named after our famous “Back Beach” where everyone meets to watch the sunsets and socialise. Our Hawaiian shirts are inspired by the 60’s group the Beach Boys.
The band was formed on the 1st of February 2013 and so 2024 sees us celebrate our 11 year anniversary!
We believe in having fun whilst we are singing and we perform at suitable charity events for free – our 1st album, “Good Libations”, released in 2019, raised £1,000 for Macmillan. Our second CD “Captain Baarman’s Dog” was released in June 2024, along with an accompanying promotional video called “The Monk Of Lidwell Chapel’, which can be found on our You Tube channel. Our next CD, “Captain Jack Spratt” will be released soon. Many of the tracks on these 2 latest albums were written by several members of the band. We have had three new members join us at the start of 2024, so we are back up to our fighting strength!
E-mail: info@backbeachboyz.co.ukWebsite: https://www.backbeachboyz.co.uk
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheBackBeachBoyzInstagram: backbeachboyz2022
Twitter (X): @backbeachboyz
YouTube: www.youtube.com/@BackBeachBoyzBandcamp: https://backbeachboyz.bandcamp.com
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/back-beach-boyz
Barnacle Buoys
Barnacle Buoys are excited about returning to Falmouth this year. We are based in Clevedon, North Somerset, on the briny Bristol Channel.
We have been going for 13 years now, with only one of original member still singing with us, but are rolling along merrily with new Buoys learning the ropes and reducing our average age dramatically!
We sing acapella, with our own interpretation of traditional and unusual shanties and sea songs. We continue with our mission to have fun, bring a smile to the faces of our audiences, whilst raising an appreciable amount of funds for our charities.
Barrel Seagals
The Barrel Seagals are an all-women shanty crew from Bude.
Having only formed in April 2023, it was straight in at the deep end as their debut performance was broadcast on BBC as part of the Kings Coronation celebrations from around the country.
From there, they’ve been in demand both locally and further afield including some prestigious events – Widecombe Fair, Clovelly Herring festival, Port Isaac Shanty Festival and Plymouth Pirate festival, and with a full bookings calendar in 2024 they are enjoying their moment.
Their songs include unique takes on traditional shanties to represent the female perspective, original material based on local Bude legends, songs written by Cornish women such as Brenda Wootton and some humorous surprises.
They’re delighted to be at Falmouth Festival this year and can’t wait to sing for you all.
Barrett’s Privateers
Formed in 2019 and based on the Cornish side of the beautiful Tamar Valley, the group met through a joy of acapella singing in local pubs, and Barrett’s Privateers was born.
From the deep, resonating notes of the father and son bass to the high notes of the girls, Barrett’s Privateers have delighted audiences throughout Cornwall and well beyond, with their broad, rich harmonies. They take each song and make it their own, with each of the voices finding a way to complement its neighbour. The power and harmony within their lively performances are both enjoyable and hugely entertaining.
Bryher’s Boys
Since 2017, Bryher’s Boys love of the folk repertoire, both Nautical and Cornish, have proved a hit with audiences both local and international, with over 300 performances clocked up to date in venues as diverse as crowded pubs, weddings, community events, fundraisers and large scale concerts.
The group are particularly proud to have represented Cornwall abroad at the 2019 Festival Interceltique and the 2022 Celtic Gathering and being asked to compose a “G7 Shanty” for the 2021 G7 Summit – performing it live on BBC News, reaching an audience of millions worldwide.
Contacts:
C Birds
We are a group of 10 women shanty singers who formed in 2022, following a friend’s request for locals to sing at a village fete. We had minimal experience of performing, and for some of us the only singing we ever did was in the shower. Spurred on by the challenge, we practised and practised and nervously ventured out to face the audience, and had a whale of a time.
Bolstered by the experience, we decided to continue with our group and to see where it took us. If nothing else, a weekly meet-up over a glass of port, supporting each other through the ever-changing tide of life, seemed a good reason to carry on.
We constantly look into new songs, sometimes tweaking the words to match our style. We have enjoyed practising traditional shanties and songs about strong Cornish women and have been fascinated when looking into the meanings of the lyrics and the stories behind them.
Since our first gig, we have rehearsed in some unusual settings such as a preaching pit and a campsite’s laundrette! We have performed at many local events, in several pubs and twice at the Crantock Folk Festival. We have sung at a wedding and have also had the honour of singing at a friend’s funeral.
We are extremely excited about performing at the Falmouth Shanty Festival in 2024 and look forward to seeing you there.
Cadgwith Singers
The Cadgwith Singers started many years ago in the Pub at Cadgwith with Buller and Hartley. The singing has changed over the years and many of the original singers are now gone, sadly missed, and their voices too. Their parts have been passed on to others who keep the traditional songs going. The songs are also changing a little. What has not changed is the Friday night gathering to sing, well, anything and everything really but always in the same unrehearsed and unique style. Long may this tradition continue.
These days the Cadgwith Singers are to be found singing in clubs, pubs, theatres and rugby matches all over Cornwall, wherever there is a convivial atmosphere and an audience that enjoys the unique, full blooded style of singing that never fails to please. Further afield there have been tours to various S.W. Counties, London, Ireland, France, and the Czech Republic.
All this from a group of people who just get together for the pure enjoyment of singing, and as their late great leader David Muirhead once said “You must remember we’re not a choir, we’re just a group of friends who just get together to sing the songs we love to sing”.
Cape Cornwall Singers
The Cape Cornwall Singers were formed early in 1997 in an attempt to resurrect the singing tradition in the local pubs around St Just. A very familiar sound at weekends and especially during St Just Feast, singing in the town had declined in recent years due mainly to the closure of our local tin mines.
The first of many public appearances came in April 1997, followed by a guest appearance at the Tall Ships concert at Falmouth Castle in July and the Cornish Gorsedd in September of 1998. Brief television appearances, the release of our first CD/cassette tape “Our Beautiful Land” followed by our second CD “Men of Cornwall” in 2000 and the local radio exposure have kept Cape Singers in the public eye. Much of our success is due to the efforts of singer songwriter Harry Glasson who continues to write many of our most popular songs about Cornwall, our people and our traditions.
The Singers have been on many “tours”, the first being the Isles of Scilly in April 1998. In October 1999, we sailed from Swansea to Cork and on to Listowel for three days, then on to Kenmare. On our return to Cornwall we had a request to sing at the Kernewek Lowender (world’s largest Cornish festival in South Australia), so in May 2001, 26 singers with their wives and friends set off for Australia.
Captain Cat and the Sailors
Formed as a one-off for a talent contest in late 2008, Captain Cat and the Sailors are a shanty loving folk band that just keep on going. Based in South Wales, they draw on a range of musical traditions including shanties, working songs, Welsh, Irish and American music to create immersive and engaging musical experiences with their audiences. If you like stories, singing along and sinking beers then they are the band for you.
Twitter: @capcatsailors
Facebook: https://en-gb.facebook.com/captaincatandthesailors/
Some of their music is available on iTunes and Spotify.
Catch Of The Day
All At Sea are fourteen women from Salisbury, where five rivers meet to run to the sea. We love to sing shanties and songs of the sea, particularly those that tell stories from women’s point of view. Our repertoire includes the classic shanties that audiences love to sing along with, but also sing original songs that we have written, or that have been written for us, which tell personal stories of women’s lives in and around the sea.
Contact us via our Facebook page – All at Sea
Culdrose Military Wives Choir
Culdrose Military Wives Choir was formed in 2012, inspired by Gareth Malone’s TV series ‘The Choir’; one of the first in the network that today comprises 72 choirs and nearly 2,000 members at British military bases across the UK and overseas.
A registered charity, the Military Wives Choirs bring women with a military connection together to sing, share and support one another.
The Helston-based choir has collaborated on three Military Wives Choirs albums and enjoys performing a diverse repertoire at a variety of occasions, from community events to large-scale venues.
Culdrose Military Wives Choir Facebook
Du Hag Owr
Known as the Roseland Shantymen, after a couple of busy years following our evening with the World Leaders at the G7 in St Ives, this year is a bit more relaxed, although we still have a fairly full programme which suits five old men plus the youngsters, Simon and Jim.
Having fun and raising money for our charities, Childrens Hospice SW and the RNLI still keeps us busy and we now have an Electric Pirate that brings fundraising up to date.
A mix of traditional and our own shanties provides a great evening out and every week brings something new. Looking forward to Falmouth 2024!
Dutch Uncle
The Dutchman, Hans Weehuizen “Dutch Uncle “ gives his workshop How To Play Bones, during the Falmouth International Sea and Shanty Festival Weekend.
Hans is also active with singing sea songs and playing on his one row squeezebox and concertina. One of the oldest instruments to make rhythm are “bones” (bone).
On board ships, there were not many instruments, so the men searched to make simple instruments themselves, from wood or bone.
During the whale fishing there was enough material on hand to make bones (rattle-bones). Today you can’t get whalebones so easily, so people use wood, which works very well. It gives you an extra opportunity to make additionals sounds. To play with bones is divergent of old-fashioned “rattles”. The difference is, how to hold the bones, it gives greater possibilities to play additional rhythms. You often hear bones being played during shanty festivals.
One of the promotors in Europe is Shanty Jack, who uses bones as an accompaniment on his songs.
In America it goes much further, if you visit the Festival in Mystic Seaport, you hear many bone players.
There is even a Rhythm Bones Society, who organize their own Bones Festival. They have members all over the world.
*) The workshop teaches you the first steps of how to play the bones
*) How to hold the bones
*) The first movement with music
*) There is enough learning material to practice
*) On sale, there is a complete course with a coursebook in English, tape and practice bones
*) But you can also make your own bones!
For the workshop schedule, view the festival programme and try ‘HOW TO PLAY THE BONES’. The workshops are of course free of charge.
To find out more about the Bones workshops see:How to Play the Bones Website
Contact: hweehuizen@freeler.nl
Falmouth Shout
The Shout was born in the back room of the legendary Seven Stars in 2002. Having sadly lost some friends and happily found new members in recent years, we are rejuvenated and looking forward to this year of the shanty festival we started in 2004.
We are, as ever, a group of friends who enjoy a song and a drink and raising funds for our charities, notably the RNLI, Mission for Deep Sea Fishermen and the Cornwall Air Ambulance.
Femmes de la Mer
Femmes de la Mer are a group of women hailing from across Cornwall. Each individual member brings a unique sound to the group, yet it’s their blend of a cappella voices that has gained them recognition amongst the folk and sea shanty communities.
Led by musical director, Claire Ingleheart, this women+ group are known for their rich harmonies and bold interpretations of well known traditional songs as well as newly written shanties celebrating the lives and stories of Cornish women.
As well as launching their first album, Today’s Haul, a beautiful collection of shanties and songs of the sea, they recently appeared on the latest BBC series of Rick Stein Cornwall!
Figurehead
Figurehead are an all female shanty group from North Cornwall who share a love of songs with a traditional, nautical and maritime flavour. In fact if it contains a reference, however slight, to water, we consider it fair game.!
The group originally formed as a bit of fun around a kitchen table for 5 women who shared a love of sea songs and harmonies. Over the years the personnel have changed but the love of singing in harmony together and entertaining people with foot stomping songs and shanties remains constant.
Currently the members are Cath, Rachel, Sharon and Gill. As well as singing at local events, they can be seen performing at a wide variety of festivals around the South West. In 2023 they also enjoyed performing on Radio5 Live Sunday breakfast and appearing on CBeebies!
Flash Jack
Flash Jack is a group formed by combining previous members of the late lamented shanty crew Hanging Johnny with other well established local singers and musicians. They all hail from Plymouth and East Cornwall (although some of their roots are more widespread).
The groups repertoire has shanties and ballads old and new, tragic and comic. Tunes associated with the coast and seafaring (both at home and abroad) and songs from a woman’s perspective. Flash Jack also sing ballads and work songs from the land, reflecting the strong link which has always existed between the songs from coastal districts and the songs sung by the seafarers from those districts.
They maintain the honourable tradition of comic songs established by their illustrious predecessors and they positively encourage audience participation, with singing and dancing as brilliantly demonstrated by their audiences in the UK and their performances in European Maritime festivals
Freddie’s Barnet
Formed in 2018, Freddie’s Barnet love nothing better than singing old and new Shanty songs at open air summer festivals, by the sea or by a cosy fireside on a Winter’s eve. They travel our wonderful country from coast to coast raising a rousing song and a smile here and there as well as a few pounds for the RNLI.
Guillaume Yaouank
Guillaume Yaouank is a child of the Lorient coast.
He has toured for several years in France and abroad: England, Ireland, Luxembourg, Czech Republic, Hungary, Singapore, Vietnam…
With his voice and his guitar, he offers you the purest in marine Folk. Guillaume Yaouank interprets the texts with the salty airs. Five albums in duet and participations in different musical projects of artists singing about the sea punctuate this rich career of an artist who loves to get close to his audience.
The authenticity that emerges from the repertoire chosen by Guillaume Yaouank takes the public on a journey beyond the seas.
Hit and Miss
Hit and Miss are a young, vibrant, local singing group who keep Cornwall’s musical heritage alive through song.
Hit and Miss were formed after five school friends were heard singing with the regular singers of the Blue Anchor Inn, Helston one Spring evening in 2017. It was pointed out to us that we should form a group to perform for the ‘Helstonbury’ festival in the coming August of that year. This we duly did and after being very well received, we entered in to ‘Helstonbury’ 2018 with a little more rehearsing under our belts. Since then we have gone from strength to strength taking on many other engagements across West Cornwall. We throughly enjoy singing together and are proud of our reputation for rich four-part harmonies.” Samuel Trounson
Kessenyan
Kessenyan are a three part harmony group made up of, Harry, Olly and Ruby, based in Redruth, Cornwall, singing sea shanties, sea songs and songs from the English/Irish/Scottish folk circuit. Kessenyan means harmony and it represents us perfectly as we are a group of young singers who sing the songs we want to sing and enjoy ourselves whilst doing it!!
Les Souillés De Fond De Cale
Since 1991 the band of five from The Côtes d’Armor have strolled along with their songs related to the sailing world from The North to the South, from Iceland to Italy , Quebec to Estonia, not to mention The British Isles, Poland, Switzerland, Belgium or The Nethherlands.
The Souillés have already skimmed the stages of many famous sailing folk festivals in France or Europe.
Coming from various and different musical backgrounds, the members of the band succeeded in creating a group with its own identity full of friendship and complicity.
They play folk tonic songs and melodies flavoured with emotion, humour and laughter inevitably capturing their audience along.
Set the sails and weigh the anchors ! The Souillés will take you along to a trip on the Coasts of Brittany, across the Channel and on a cruise across on the World’s seas !
Such a fine mix of traditional songs pickled with a very special Celtic sauce !
Les Vénus du Matelot
THREE VOICES’ MARITIMES SONGS are from Les Sables d’Olonne, France.
Accompanied by a guitar or a cittern, they travel in the universe of the maritime repertoire by adding some personal compositions found in their logbook.
The group takes you on polyphonic seas that are sometimes rough and sometimes moving.
The revisited vocal arrangements refresh traditional sea shanties and bring emotion and originality!
Les Vénus du Matelot are composed of two female voices, a male voice and a guitar. You will find Isa (voice), Christine (voice) and Jean-Louis (voice, guitar and cittern).
Loose Cannons
Loose Cannons is a group of five friends who have many years experience singing with other shanty groups. We decided to get together in 2023 to get back to singing some of the songs we love in a smaller acoustic group, able to rock up and sing in smaller venues without the need for lots of PA gear, a kind of shanty Flying Squad! We hit the ground running in 2023 wiith successful gigs at Falmouth, Weston, St Ives and Mevagissey, as well as many smaller venues. Since then we have adopted the Fisherman’s Mission as our charity and have been lucky enough to attract sponsorship from the Harbour Tavern in Mevagissey. Our style is entertaining with lots of audience participation but, as our name suggests, you never know what to expect from Loose Cannons! We hope to see you over the weekend and make you smile!
Mariners Away
Based on Dartmoor, Mariners Away have been captivating audiences since 2007 and are now in our 18th year of performing at festivals and other prestigious events. This year marks their 17th appearance at Falmouth!
In recent years Mariners Away have performed live on BBC Spotlight (twice), entertained on BBC Radio Devon & Cornwall, and even fired up the crowd at Exeter Chiefs. A standout moment came last December when they were honoured to perform at Britannia Royal Naval College in Dartmouth for their officer’s graduation dinner – a truly special experience at the UK’s premier officer training academy which is steeped in royal history.
Missin’ Tackle Shanty Crew
Following the success of ‘The Provident’ play in Brixham Theatre in 2015, a group of lads decided, as they had had so much fun singing together they would form a shanty group. Thus, ‘Missin’ Tackle’ came together. With very varied backgrounds in singing it is the camaraderie of it all that draws them together. Their love of the sea and the very different way of life in days gone by is brought to together in shanties and sea songs including some old favourites that everyone will want to sing along too. In the past twelve months, they have enjoyed singing in Brixham and beyond singing for many local charities. Like many shanty crews, their free annual quay concerts in the summer down under the Old Fish Quay on Brixham Harbour to raise funds for local good causes were very well received. ‘Missin’ Tackle’ are very pleased to return to once again be a part of the Falmouth International Shanty Festival 2025.
Molgoggers
Formed in 2012, the Molgoggers are an a-cappella sea shanty and maritime song group. This group sings a mixture of traditional sea shanties and contemporary songs and are based in the town of Cobh on Great Island, lower Cork Harbour. It was from Cobh that the RMS Titanic sailed on her fateful voyage.
Monkeyfists
Foot-stomping, carousing, singalong – with voices AND instruments (including a percussive box housing the bones of one of The Longest Johns)! Come be in the crew, have a laugh. We do old sea songs, folk songs, a couple of modern-ish covers, and salty drinking songs too! We pride ourselves on gigs with an authentic atmosphere and fun times.
The Monkeyfists are the UK’s most landlocked shanty band, hailing from central England, and this year is our tenth anniversary! So, shout, “10 already? You look so young!” when you see us, we’ll get the drinks in! Here’s to the next ten years of honest raggediness!
Month’s Advance
“We answer to the name of Month’s Advance!” Josh and Emily have played together since 2009. While living on an historic ship, they discovered a shared love of sea shanties and combined Emily’s folk fiddle with Josh’s irreverent double bass to underpin their versions of the Age of Sail’s finest salty classics, mixed with originals which they write, as often as possible, at sea. Month’s Advance love Martin Carthy and Dave Swarbrick, the Dreadnoughts and hanging out in maritime museums, so if you love those things, we hope you’ll love Month’s Advance, too.
Join us on:
Nankersey Male Choir
Nankersey Male Choir – based just across the Penryn River at Flushing.
A male choir composed of individuals from differing jobs and homes, with varied temperaments yet united in their love of music, and when the baton is raised, they are ‘as one”. They sing a varied repertoire of popular, classical, sea shanty and folk songs. Accompanied by Michael Uren and led by their Musical Director, Elaine Tangye.
New members always welcome, Monday 7.30pm Church Hall Flushing.
Nordet
This year will be the thirteenth time Nordet have participated in the “Falmouth International Sea Shanty Festival”. For more than 35 years Nordet has been performing traditional sea shanties and its own creations. The crew knows how to make people dance and sing in a festive spirit. Nordet have sailed from Lorient, their home port, to New York; from Paimpol to Liverpool and from Hoorn to Douarnenez. These five sailors, exuberant and joyful, will embark the audience, from dead calm seas to storms, from the middle of oceans to the docks, and from Breton taverns to Cornish pubs. So welcome on board you sailors.
Odds & Sods
Odds n Sods are as the name implies are a group of like-minded friends who enjoy singing together, over the last three years we have raised over £6500 for various local charities.
This will be our second visit to Falmouth and if it’s anything like last year, will be a blast.
Oll An Gwella
Newquay’s rehearsed acapella chorus “Oll an Gwella” has wowed audiences with 4-part Cornish, folk, seasonal & shanty songs since 2010. Representing Cornwall live on ITV, BBC & German channel ZDF; on the deck of the Cutty Sark; from the Festival Interceltique in Lorient, Brittany; and from Newquay’s Boardmaster’s stage, their passion for Cornish culture & heritage resonates through their performances at home and abroad including annual appearances at Falmouth International Sea Shanty Festival, of course, and other shows and festivals. Fees, donations and CD sales have raised more than £55,000 for their adopted Cornish charities since 2015 and their 3 charity albums mix 4-part Cornish singing with culture & smiles – 3 key elements of an Oll an Gwella performance!
Find out more at Oll an Gwella’s Website: https://ollangwella.co.uk
Or Facebook – Oll an Gwella
Pirates of St Piran
The Pirates of St. Piran are a St. Austell based nonprofit, charity fundraising group, who perform all over Cornwall and Devon to raise money for local charities. So far, they have raised over £100,000 for local charities including Children’s Hospice Southwest, The RNLI and the Cornwall Air Ambulance Trust, along with many other charities and good causes in their area.
The group are a rocky rumbustious sea shanty crew who perform in full pirate costume, playing at festivals, pirate events and taverns all over Cornwall and Devon. They sing traditional sea shanties and their own original songs of the sea.
Port of Bristol Shanty Crew
This Bristol crew are the stuff of legend, singing traditional working sea shanties and songs of the sea, often celebrating Bristol’s renowned maritime history. Join crewmates Rev, Nobby, Skipper, Art, Fish, Paddles, Chuffer, Doc, Ol’Bill and Ash for some rollicking entertainment, ship-shape and Bristol fashion. Fun and friendship, melody and mirth. Guaranteed. They don’t claim to be the best or brightest shanty crew in Bristol. We just know that they “Arrrrgh!”
Portsmouth Shantymen
The Portsmouth Shantymen have been described as a “power harmony group” who specialize in Sea Songs.
They were formed in 1978 when the Christchurch Festival unexpectedly found itself without a Shanty Crew, which almost certainly makes them the longest continually running Shanty Group in the UK.
Since then they have performed at festivals, historic ships including HMS Victory, clubs, book launches, schools, charity events , on Television and many other places too numerous to mention. They have performed all over the UK , the near continent and the USA, and over 45 years later they are still going strong!
Press Gang
Based in and around the St Austell Bay Area, The Press Gang are a group of eight singers and musicians who perform foot-stomping shanties, melodic songs of the sea and songs of their beloved Cornwall.
Well established and revered by audiences near and far, they are known for reworking traditional shanties and folk songs into their own harmonious, energetic style and mixing Cornish tradition with raucous entertainment.
From grand stages to small intimate venues, The Press Gang have been taking audiences near and far on maritime and Cornish heritage voyages through songs and shanties for well over a decade.
Come, stomp your feet, clap your hands and let them immerse you in the captivating melodies of the sea and Cornwall.
River Notes
The River Notes have been singing since 2016. They are a mixed choir of 40 members who sing for the joy of it and always have fun both rehearsing and performing. They still hold weekly practise sessions at the Falmouth Cricket club which also gives the singers a chance to refresh their vocal cords at the bar!
As well as Shanty and songs of the sea, the River Notes sing pop, well-loved rock oldies, Cornish and other folk material as well as original material by local composers. Essentially anything that is cheering, rousing or toe-tapping!! Last year was an exciting year for the River Notes with new performance opportunities including a wonderful gig with many local Cornish choirs on the King Harry ferry accompanied by a brass band ensemble. They sung a new choral piece, A Candle Shines music composed and conducted by Gareth Churcher and words by Bob Willmot. The River Notes also sang at the Source FM Parklive in June and some choir members took to the stage for the first time in the cast of the new musical Bal Maiden Musical produced by Cobb Riddle and Spall Music Theatre and written by Lucetta Radcliffe. This year the River Notes are part of the Princess Pavilion Summer Sessions festival. Their next performance date singing in the Garden room at the Pavilion is on Monday 14th July We are so happy to have been invited back to sing at the 20th Falmouth Shanty Festival.
The River Notes are conducted by Lucetta Radcliffe and accompanied by Nicki Tumbridge and perform in a variety of local settings and events. Please get in touch if you would like us to sing for you. We can be contacted through our facebook page, River Notes choir. https:// www.facebook.com/rivernoteschoir New members are always welcome.
Rum & Shrub
We are a group of traditional singers from Cornwall with a worldwide reputation for lively singing of shanties, sea songs and folk songs. Performing together since 1991 from the Eastern seaboard of the USA to many places in Western Europe as well as national TV work and many more local events, we take our name from a well-known local drink reputed to have been enjoyed by smugglers and of course we are always delighted to allow you the opportunity to buy us a sample for you to try!
We always look forward to the International Sea Shanty Festival, it’s such a wonderful event and having performed at every single one there is always plenty of good singing to listen to with a terrific atmosphere and an opportunity to meet friends and colleagues old and new. We want you to enjoy our singing so find our venues for the weekend on the programme or festival website and come and watch the show or buy CD’s from the group and from record stores. We’ve even mastered the art of making our music available electronically!
We look forward to making new friends and hearing new songs wherever we go, and we very much hope that you enjoy our singing as much as we do. Just follow the contact links for enquiries and bookings.
Sam Wheatley
In his lifetime, he has been known by a few names and faces. But now, just Sam seems to do it. After spending most of his adult life in London (someone has to), he chose to do the correct thing, and move across the country to Cornwall, where he now has lived happily for the last few years. Not quite local, but local enough to live just up the road.
He had his passion ignited for singing and playing various musical instruments from LARP, or Live Action RolePlay. Normally, this involved heading into woodlands and beating the hell out of each other with foam swords wearing plate armour, whilst pretending to be someone else. But also included singing in various styles, from Folk and Celtic, to traditional Sea Shanties.
For many years during these events, Shanty Nights were his favourites. Hours upon hours of the best of the best. Through his many many solo performances, he’s also written his own music, inspired by some of the greatest, from Stan Rogers, to The Longest Johns, with also various forms of modern music. He has been overthinking every last detail for months to provide some of his favourite music, for his first proper appearance! (At least this one has electricity)
Soundcloud Link: https://on.soundcloud.com/cWQg4
Seaweed in the Fruit Locker
Seaweed in the Fruit Locker is an LGBTQIA+ sea shanty choir formed by artist Rhys Morgan; exploring queer motifs within seafaring history and collective performance in marginalised communities through the tradition of shanty singing.The choir have used their lived experience to rework existing shanties and inspire new ones, continuing the tradition of these hybrid folk songs being adapted time and again through generations and across cultures.LINKSIMAGE CREDIT: Dom Moore
Severn Whalers
In 1885 a whale was found on a bank of the River Severn, and more than a century later the Severn Whalers are still looking for another….
A group of four friends from villages along the banks of the Severn, the Whalers came together six years ago over a shared love of sea shanties and songs of the sea.
Highlights from 2023 were the numerous Shanty Festivals they were able to attend, including Falmouth, Mevagissey and their first trip into France for Festival du Chant de Marin in Paimpol, together with the recording of their first CD, Moves on the Water.
They are delighted to be returning to the fantastic Falmouth International Shanty Festival again in 2024.
Sheringham Shantymen
The Sheringham Shantymen were launched in 1990 and in 2024 they celebrate their 34th Anniversary. They support the RNLI performing at lifeboat stations around the United Kingdom and Ireland and purchased a lifeboat for the RNLI at Wicklow in 2007. They have travelled widely throughout the UK, Europe, and the USA. The Shantymen have completed over 1,300 public performances, made three videos and recorded seven CD’s. This year they are concentrating on helping the RNLI mark its 200th anniversary by undertaking a ‘Sail of two Centuries Tour’ to various RNLI & local Theatre venues to help celebrate the occasion.
The Sheringham Shantymen Website
Short Drag Roger
Having just celebrated our 20th anniversary with a sell-out theatre concert, Short Drag Roger continue to bring shanties and sea songs to the landlocked people of Oxfordshire and further afield. With our unique close harmonies, we have performed at shanty and folk festivals all over the UK and Europe as well as pubs, theatres, village shows and other venues closer to home. We not only sing traditional shanties to our audiences a capella but also more modern sea songs and a growing number of self-penned numbers.
Simon The Shanty Harpist
Far from the crying gulls, the breaking waves, the desert isles
Where once lurked the ancient mariner and the press gang vigilantes,
Beyond the sea-soaked quay, the narrow harbour and the moorings
You may find a harpist singing shanties.Is it yet the desolation of the minstrelsy of knowing
That the rushing of the sea-wind is the calling of the tide?
Is it restlessness or longing or a riptide in the soul
That sends a Shanty Harpist far and wide?So do go down to the lonely sea, the lonely sea and the shore
And hear the strings a-pinging to the songs that yet bewail
The sorrows of the sailors and the dangers of the deep,
And treat yourself to several pints of ale!
Sloop Groggy Dogs
Sloop Groggy Dogs, are probably the finest sea shanty crew from land-locked Milton Keynes.
We are blokes in stripes, with all the moves, songs of nautical adventure, an eclectic mix of instruments and our very own mermaid.
We love singing live and seek full audience participation for an immersive fun experience.
Having performed at festivals around the country and locally, we are helping to raise much needed funds for RNLI, Macmillan, and other worthy causes.
Let us liven up your event – get in touch….
Email: sloopgroggydogs@gmail.com
Website: Sloop Groggy Dogs
Facebook: Sloop Groggy Dogs
Solent Shanty Buoys
The Solent Shanty Buoys are a group of friends who enjoy singing shanties but also some lesser known songs of the sea. They are thoroughly enjoying being able to perform again and will be at Yarmouth and Mudeford festivals as well as Falmouth this year! They do love performing at beer festivals and micro breweries…..can’t think why!! But they perform to a wide range of audiences, always encouraging audience participation.
Stuns’ls Shanty Group
Stuns’ls were formed in Mevagissey, Charlestown and Truro Cornish Pilot Gig rowing clubs and named from one our earliest songs “Old Maui”. Stuns’ls is sailors slang for the Studding Sail, an extra sail that can be hauled out on a square-rigged vessel’s yardarm to run in light winds.
We are a light-hearted bunch, who doesn’t take life to seriously and have a lust for harmonies, always seeking out that extra note. Over the last two years we have had the honour of singing for King Charles and the Queen consult, played a part in Rick Steins Cornwall (2021), and are the voices for Visit Cornwall’s G7 campaign, whilst also performing for German TV and singing at the Bremen International Shanty Festival in Germany.
We strive to make those chords ring and to put a smile on spectators faces, whilst ensuring that we promote Cornish harmonies and songs of the sea.
Suitcase Singers
The Suitcase Singers – are a 50 strong community choir led by Musical Director, Claire Ingleheart and based in Penryn. Being by the sea, they have a love for shanties and folk songs, old and new and have a rich repertoire of traditional Cornish songs and contemporary songs that reflect the incredible stories of our Cornish heritage.
The 5 Men Not Called Matt
5 Men have been singing together for over 20 years in pubs, clubs, boats and anywhere else they can find. This is the groups 13th appearance at Falmouth, their favourite festival. The 5 Men Not Called Matt are looking forward to meeting friends old and new.
The Chantry Buoys
The Chantry Buoys, the original and youngest East Devon shanty group, singing for fun and local charities, originally formed in 2016. We keep on going through storms, monsoons, viruses, nothing stops us!
The Countrymen
It’s difficult to find a musical genre that would fully describe The Countrymen, but Folk Rock Harmony comes close.
A five-piece band featuring tight four-part vocal harmony and strong instrumentation. Primarily performing original songs and their own arrangements of known contemporary folk, the band’s lyrical inspiration is drawn from life in Cornwall, the demise of local industries and other rural issues that resonate throughout the country. The Countrymen are accomplished performers, engaging the audience with light-hearted banter and back-stories to their songs.
The Countrymen perform up to 50 live gigs per year including spring and autumn concert tours, festivals and other folk events. These include Little Orchard Festival, Rock Oyster Festival, Falmouth International Sea Shanty Festival, Falmouth Oyster Festival and Falmouth Week.
“These guys are really entertaining. The musicianship, vocal harmonies and the humour all come together to provide a great evenings entertainment” – Graham Bunney.
They’ve also appeared at Looe Saves The Day, supporting Paul Young’s Los Pacaminos, headlined at Bridport Folk Festival and are looking forward to appearing at Bie Diap in TheNetherlands, Europe’s largest folk and sea song festival. More recently, The Countrymen have been shortlisted for Glastonbury’s Pilton Stage 2024. The Countrymen have also made several appearances on West country Television, BBC Radio Cornwall and numerous online folk radio stations.
“If you get the chance to see these guys (The Countrymen) in concert then take it, you will not be disappointed” – Harry Glasson.
To date, the band have released two albums, Trees on the Hill and The River Rolls On, both available on CD and all major streaming/download sites. They are currently working on a third album to be released later in the year.
Website: thecountrymen.co.uk
Facebook: www.facebook.com/countrymenband
Instagram: @thecountrymenbandcornwall
Video Clips
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_yXiVqHLdU
https://www.dropbox.com/s/1vckoqyyf88afn5/The%20Wreckers.mp4?dl=0
The Following Seas
The Following Seas shanty group was formed in 2022 to provide music for the visit of the Archbishop of Canterbury to Fairwinds Mission Centre and more generally to the Shanty Festival of that year. In the end, he didn’t show up, but the choir still sang. Following this slightly ill-omened beginning, the group has reformed for this year, but now to take part in the festival more generally.
The group ranges in age from 20s through to 70s, and while many of its members are associated with music-making in King Charles the Martyr Church in the centre of Falmouth, not all are. The group’s unique selling-point(s) are its inclusion of new arrangements of existing shanties that combine a folk and Jazz vibe, of classical songs with a nautical flavour (including solos) and a rigorous approach to harmony that sees the group split occasionally into as many as 8 parts.
The group is led by Richard Bailey, who also serves as Director of Music at KCM.
The Harry Browns
The Harry Browns are the longest serving group from Bristol. Named after the old Harry Brown sand dredger, they began singing as a “super group” in the late 1980s and expanded their repertoire to include a wide range of songs of the sea including contemporary and self-penned songs. They have toured Europe and sung at major festivals in the UK and abroad.
In addition to researching and giving life to many forgotten songs, the Harrys are renowned for their musical arrangements and harmonies, their humour and spontaneity.
Every Harry performance is unique and engaging. You have been warned!
The Lemonaires
Cornishmen are passionate about singing and The Lemonaires are no exception. They are a well known 4 part acapella group based in Mylor Bridge near Falmouth.
They sing of Cornwall, fishing, farming and mining with the vigour you would expect from proud Celtic men.
The Lemonaires are familiar faces performing in a range of venues with a growing, loyal following. The Lemonaires regularly sing in pubs and clubs, at special celebrations, in shanty festivals, caravan parks, private residences, in churches, in fact anywhere that brings a smile to the faces of anyone appreciative of Cornish or Celtic Folk Music.
The Longest Johns
Having met and bonded over sea shanties across a kitchen table in their native Bristol a decade ago, The Longest Johns – Jonathan ‘JD’ Darley, Andy Yates and Robbie Sattin – have sailed the seven seas in the name of the “rock ‘n’ roll of 1752” to grace the stages of international folk festivals, tour the UK, Europe and North America, and appear on TV.
To celebrate ten years of pitching and rolling in brotherly harmony, in October the band are set to release a tin anniversary edition of their self-released debut EP Bones in the Ocean. That follows their latest tour of Canada in September as they build towards the release early next year of a new studio album – their ninth but the first as a three piece following the departure of co-founder Dave Robinson in May.
By any standard The Longest Johns have enjoyed a whirlwind of a journey these last ten years. As well as eight full length albums, they’ve released four EPs and nine singles, including the 2021 version of ‘Wellerman‘ that began a sea shanty craze on social media as a 150 year-old folk song from New Zealand became a worldwide viral sensation, sweeping the group to the #2 berth on the US Spotify Viral Chart and #5 Global.
They’ve racked up more than 500 million streams across all platforms, signed up more than half a million YouTube subscribers and logged some 200,000 hours watched on Twitch. Their gaming partnerships include Sea of Thieves and Wanderworld and they’ve recorded the soundtrack to No Man’s Wife, a new film made by the co-producers of the Fisherman’s Friends films
The Navy Larks
We sing a variety of traditional sea songs and shanties plus a few of our own salty compositions, some accompanied by melodeon, guitar and even the occasional banjo!
In and around our home port of Salisbury, we perform at festivals and charity events, raising considerable sums for our favoured causes the Parkinson’s Disease Society and the RNLI.
The Oggymen
If our history forms the people we are, then it is the places we inhabit that shape the people we become. Our love for the history and the community of our hometown, Falmouth, is intense but unsentimental. As we grew up, it was folk songs that bound us to this special place. Our fathers sung them in male voice choirs, our brothers sung them at Falmouth Working Boat regattas, our sisters sung them at Pilot Gig Races and we all tried to sing them down the pub…
For over a decade, The Oggymen have championed contemporary Cornish folk music and celebrated those songs that bind Cornish people to their community and to their past. We are known for our tight harmonies and rousing performances that convey the rugged beauty of the Duchy and celebrate her peerless industrial heritage. The Oggymen’s performances at this year’s Falmouth International Sea Shanty Festival will feature new musical arrangements that will captivate the heart of the every Cornishman or Cousin Jack.
The Perraners
The Perraners are a long established and eclectic group from Perranporth who sing Cornish songs and songs the Cornish love to sing. With a huge repertoire including sea songs, shanties and lullabies in 5 part harmony, they can often be found at The Seiners Arms by the beach in Perranporth on a Tuesday evening, with glass in hand, in full voice! The Perraners were delighted to be invited back to sing again at The Falmouth International Sea Shanty Festival and are excited to be taking part alongside so many other talented singing groups.
The Rusty Tubs
The Rusty Tubs are a mongrel band of 10, A Cappella, sea shanty singing Jack Tars. As one of the country’s rowdiest shanty sides, they sing traditional sea shanties, songs of the sea, military songs, protest songs, folk songs, working songs & drinking songs. They are all based on traditional themes: being at sea, drinking, shagging, not shagging, working, getting mistreated, fighting, tragedy, poverty & general skullduggery. The Rusty Tubs are loud, rough & ready, with a punk attitude, but a certain style. Drunken revelry is a certainty!
Treizhadenn
Treizhadenn is a Breton group (Crossing in English) coming from Paris area.
It is composed of musicians (vocals, chromatic accordion, guitar, flutes, saxophone, Bombardes, bass and percussions). Treizhadenn is 17 years old. We perform through-out France and abroad in Wales and Cornwall. Our repertoire is almost exclusively composed of group creations (music and lyrics) it is dedicated to the sea, sailors and Brittany. Most of them are dance tunes from different terroirs of Brittany and Celtic countries.
We have recorded 4 CDs. For more details you can visit our website, where you will find videos and CD extracts.
Wellington Wailers
Hailed as ‘Sea Shanty Favourites’ in their native Shoreham-by-Sea, the Wellington Wailers were formed in 2012 by a small group of likeminded ‘sea dogs’ interested in singing traditional shanties. Their repertoire has expanded to include a number of ‘fore-bitters’ and some more bawdy favourites.
The Wailers regularly fundraise for the RNLI, contributing over £11,000 to-date.
Their performances focus on humour and enjoyment, with a harmonious and rousing sound that fans adore. Everyone is encouraged to join in with any mischief and shenanigans that the Wailers embark on
Will Keating
Will Keating’s passion for his home county of Cornwall shines through in his music. The award winning singer song-writer, also one of the members of popular Cornish male singing group The Oggymen, has wowed audiences far and wide since embarking on a solo career in 2017. Two sold out headline performances at the iconic Minack Theatre, cemented Wills reputation as one of Cornwall!s stand out performers. Will is also known for his involvement in various community projects, including organizing and performing at various events, workshops, and cultural festivals. His contributions to the community often extend beyond music, promoting Cornish culture and supporting local initiatives.
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