Performers for Mennofolk-Michiana, 2005

andi and i (Chicago, IL) Funked-up Folk - Al Tauber's lyrics, ranging from intensely thoughtful to patently absurd (sometimes within the same song) are well served by his dexterous and creative guitar playing and Andi Tauber's whisper-to-roar vocals.

Andru Bemis (South Haven, MI) Americana & Old-Folk - Since 2002, Andru has traveled more than 60,000 miles- by train, by motorbike and by thumb- performing his original songs of love, loss and longing on the banjo, fiddle and guitar.

Wendy Chappell-Dick (Harrisonburg, VA) Folk- An activist, a healer, a friend to musicians, and an evangelist Wendy blends the sacred and the secular, believing in God's power to infuse all areas of our lives. She is happiest when singing Joni Mitchell or playing hymn arrangements on her dulcimer.

Ben Brown (South Haven, MI) Jazz & Instrumental Folkharp - Highly-regarded master of the cross-strung chromatic folk harp.

Benjamin Ezra Deckard (West Lafayette, IN) Indie-Folk - 24 yr old artist from Indiana, currently putting the finishing touches on his degree in Film & Television Production at Purdue University. He started playing piano at the age of 6, but forgot most of it by 13 when he started playing trumpet and trombone. At the age of 14 picked up the guitar and got the ball rolling.

Drop the Dawg (Cassopolis, MI) Bluegrass, Blues, Country & Gospel - DtD consists of James Shenk, Duane Gundy and Mike Hoover, who united and performed together for the first time at the original Mennofolk-Michiana in 2002. They utilize guitar, mandolin, keyboard, dobro, bass, flute and vocals to create the Dawg sound.

Dan & Rachel Eisenstat (Goshen, IN) Acoustic-Rock

Les Gustafson-Zook (Goshen, IN) Pioneer-Folk - Les is an entertaining and energetic multi-instrumentalist performer for both children and adults. He is the 2001 International Autoharp Champion as well as the 1989 National Autoharp Champion, and performs and gives workshops on the autoharp at festivals from coast to coast.

Kentucky T Dutchersmith & the Rubber Band (Goshen, IN) Music for Kids of all Ages - KTD&RB debuted at the 2003 Mennofolk-Michiana Festival. They released their debut CD, "Mama Don't Allow No Nose Flute Playin' Around Here," in February, 2004. Band members include Kentucky "Kent" Dutchersmith, Brian Kruschwitz, Deron Brill Bergstresser, and Teresa, Magdalena, and Luisa Dutchersmith (sometimes).

Heather Kropf (Pittsburgh, PA) Piano-based Folk-Pop - Heather has shared her gentle, thoughtful songs for the past thirteen years in coffee shops, clubs and college campuses throughout the Great Lakes region, making special appearances at the Smoky City Folk Festival and the Philadelphia Music Festival. Her music is guided by what Pittsburgh Magazine called "a heavenly voice somewhere between Aimee Mann and Jill Sobule."

Tim Lowly (Chicago, IL) Folk Rock - Fairly minimal and sometimes ethereal soul indebted rock (or was that folk) music that floats between personal rumination and political critique

Rick Meisterheim (Wolverine, MI) Political Folk - Rick performs original peace-based folk and other artists' peace and general folk songs with a social message.

Old Seed (Winnipeg, MB) Hard-core Folk - Started in spring of 2003 as a direct reaction to everything else Craig Bjerring was doing, "Old Seed" has quickly developed into Bjerring's main form of musical expression. Passionate, charming and honest, OS has graced stages from Winnipeg to Nashville to Berlin.

Mike Petkau (Winnipeg, MB) Electric Singer-Songwriter - Mike Petkau is standing next in line to wave Winnipeg's flag as a hotbed for literate and impassioned songwriters. This former member of 'Astarte' has armed himself with a vintage guitar, a thesaurus, and a collection of road-tested songs delving into the psyche of his home town in all its awkward beauty.

Mike Reeb (Chicago, IL) Alt-Country - Independent musician from Chicago who works closely with Ground Vinyl Records and the artists therein. Midwest Beat Magazine writes of his softer, alt-country style, "His angelic voice makes each song a lullaby to the soul."

Rachel Ries (Chicago, IL) Prairie-Swing & City-Folk - Chicago resident Rachel Ries marries sophisticated, vintage musicality to breathtaking lyrics. Her lyrics range from the romantic simplicity of jazz standards to the distilled intensity of poet Anne Sexton.

Silver Tones (Goshen, IN) Children/Novelty - Folk and fun music for children and adults. A foursome (Alden & Doris Bohn, Harold and Kate Hartman) in their 70s who say, "We should quit, but we're having too much fun."

Brad Yoder (Pittsburgh, PA) Acoustic Singer-Songmaker - Original songs combining the personal, political, humorous and spiritual into collages which engage, amuse, and sometimes startle.

Please let us know if you have talented folk musicians in your church who would enjoy performing at Mennofolk! Also, we encourage all musicians to register on our folk musician database.