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Eclectic Music in Ashland sets 1999-2000 lineup By BILL VARBLE Concert series What : Folk music concerts When : Sept. 24-May 5 Where : Unitarian Fellowship, Ashland Tickets : $10-$15 adults, $6 children (5-17) at Cripple Creek Music, Ashland, or St. Clair Productions, P.O. Box 835, Ashland, OR 97520. Information : 482-4154 Singer-songwriter Ferron, world music star Jai Uttal and bluesman Michael "Hawkeye" Herman headline the 1999-2000 Eclectic Music in Ashland concert lineup announced Thursday. Presented by St. Clair Productions of Ashland, most of the concerts take place at the Unitarian Fellowship at Fourth and C streets in Ashland. Ferron performs Sept. 24. The feminist singer-songwriter last played in the Rogue Valley four years ago at the Britt Festivals. After more than 20 years of live shows, the Indigo Girls pal has joined the best-kept-semi-secret category with raves from Rolling Stone and National Public Radio's "All Things Considered." She's probably best known for 1996's "Still Riot" (Warner Bros.). These days she also holds down a gig as writer in residence at the Institute for Musical Arts in Bedega, Calif. Celtic harpist and storyteller Patrick Ball performs Oct. 23. Ball is probably the leading contemporary practitioner of the art of Turlough O'Carolan, the legendary Irish harpist and balladeer. In his live shows he mixes witty Irish tales with harp solos. Jai Uttal, who performs Nov. 19, combines traditional Indian music with dance, reggae, jazz and even pop. He teaches at the Ali Akbar Kahn School of Music in San Rafael, Calif., when he isn't touring. In an era in which world beat is an increasingly elastic term, Uttal seeks to preserve the integrity of traditional Indian music while subjecting it to jazz and other Western influences. Bluesman Michael "Hawkeye" Herman debuted in Ashland this year as music director, composer and musician in the Oregon Shakespeare Festival's production of the hit play, "El Paso Blue." A student of the blues for three decades, the Iowa native is known for his grasp of many blues styles. After years of living in the Bay area, he likes Ashland well enough to call it home now when he's not on the road spreading the blues gospel. But he hasn't made a point of performing publicly in Southern Oregon outside the theater until now. Kitka (Jan. 21), a nine-woman choir, performs the music of Eastern Europe, including Russia, Macedonia and Georgia. Chris Proctor (Feb. 25) has released seven CDs (on the Windham Hill and Flying Fish labels) and works in part as a spokesman for Taylor guitars. Guitar Player magazine has compared him as a finger-picking stylist to Martin Simpson. Rebecca Riots (March 11) is billed as a radical acoustic folk trio. Whatever you call them, the three women have been winning fans in the Bay area with acoustic musicianship and vocal harmonies in a topical context. Golden Bough (March 31) is evidence that the fascination with things Celtic is still alive. Members of the Celtic trio play harp, violin, pennywhistle, guitar, accordion, octave-mandolin, bodhran and more. A bluegrass show sometime in April will feature the band Siskiyou Summit. Members Glenn Freese and Jeff Jones are familiar to Southern Oregon acoustic music fans for their work in the progressive bluegrass band Foxfire. Joining them are banjo player Rick Nelson, bassist Jim Calhoun and fiddler Crystal Reeves (of Blue Lightning). A Cinco de Mayo show May 5 will star Irene Farrera, another Rogue Valley favorite. Along with her dance band, Farrera draws on Venezuelan jorope (fast rhythm music) and gaita (dance music) as well as Brazilian bossa novas and boleros. The show will be at the Abdill-Ellis Lambca Community Center in Ashland and will include a Mexican dinner and silent auction. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA