April 11
Music by women and for everyone is celebrated this month at a mini-festival of female singer-songwriters. Godfrey Daniels and Foul Rift Productions have joined forces to present Muses at the Ice House on Sand Island in Bethlehem for all who appreciate an evening of great acts.
Originally known as Muses in the Vineyard, this event was started by the brothers behind Foul Rift: Blair and Brian McCloskey, self-confessed music junkies and festival heads with their fingers on the pulse of the scene.
“Frankly,” Brian says, “I find that women’s music in this country gets short shrift.” They decided to deal with this frustration by setting up microphones and an audience in front of the talented acts they saw going uncelebrated.
Their Vineyard lineups of female singers graced New Jersey’s Four Sisters and Brook Hollow wineries in the mid-twenty-teens, and now Brian’s revamping the experience for the Lehigh Valley. One thing hasn’t changed: giving the mic to women.
Those coming from near and far to perform for Muses at the Ice House include the harmonious No Fuss and Feathers, Grace Morrison, Brittany Ann of Easton, Emily Barnes and Emily Mure. Ophelia is made up of Beth Sherby and Bethlehem’s Dina Hall, whose Back Door Bakeshop is catering the event.
Whether they tour nationally or got their start right here at home, Muses’ acts have ranged from traditional folk to rock to blues. “We bend genres here,” says Brian, “from one end to the other.”
The plan is to welcome varied acts to Muses at the Ice House twice a year. Celebrate spring with the rebirth of this fine female festival and support those bringing great musical events to the Valley.
$33.50; kids: $17.50 | 4 p.m. | Charles Brown Ice House | 56 River St., Bethlehem | 570.801.1771 | facebook.com