The husband-wife duo of Atwater-Donnelly brings a unique and thrilling blend of traditional American and Celtic folk music and dance, along with original songs and poetry to our stage. Singer-songwriter Oen Kennedy, a man of vast and eclectic interests, is currently celebrating the release of his third CD, Oook.

Aubrey Atwater and Elwood Donnelly met as volunteers at the Stone Soup Coffeehouse in Providence in early 1987. Within just a few months these self-taught musicians from Rhode Island formed a duo. Married since 1989, Aubrey and Elwood perform throughout the United States and, on occasion, abroad. Their ten recordings receive international airplay. Highlights include airplay on National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered,” Fiona Ritchie’s “Thistle and Shamrock,” and the nationally syndicated “Midnight Special” out of Chicago. Atwater and Donnelly have performed and researched traditional folk music and dance in Appalachia, the Ozarks, New England, and other key places in the United States, as well as Ireland, England and Prince Edward Island. They have performed with or shared festival billing with folk legends Jean Ritchie, Pete Seeger, and Doc Watson.

Atwater-Donnelly won Motif magazine’s “Best Local Folk Act” award in 2006 as well as three awards in 2007: “Best Folk Act” for the Atwater-Donnelly Band, “Album of the Year” for The Halfway Ground, and “Best Female Vocalist” for Aubrey Atwater. In addition to ten recordings, Aubrey has written three books of poetry and a songbook and Elwood has recently created a songbook for The Halfway Ground. The duo is part of more than fifteen compilation CDs and has appeared on numerous recordings of other musicians

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Oen Kennedy has been a practicing music therapist since 1990, and has specialized extensively in working with children with autism. He worked full time at The Perkins School for the Blind from 1987–1998, and received his master’s degree in expressive therapies and a national music therapy certification through Lesley College in 1992. Oen is also a birdwatcher and has led numerous volunteer nature walks around New England. He was weaned on West African and South Indian music, having spent his early years overseas. He has been writing songs since childhood; covering many subjects, especially love. Besides birds, which are a long-standing chronic source of joy, his other obsessions have included: underwater tunnels, Bach fugues, Sequoias, Blue-black spider wasps, Gaia, stargazing, Vincent Van Gogh, Sea Otters, tsunamis, Mandelbrot Images, Armadillos, Morocco, cyanobacteria, Glenn Gould, and mangoes. Some of these obsessions, especially the birds, show up in his music.

In conjunction with the Golden Key Society at UMass Boston and WUMB radio, the me&thee will be collecting warm clothing for children in need. Please bring items of gently worn winter clothing so that we can contribute them to this worthwhile cause.

Photo by Mary Akylas Harman

Atwater-Donnelly are marvelous musicians. Their voices blend beautifully, their instrumental work is sparkling, and they are captivating performers. I could listen to them for hours. Frank Dudgeon, WUMB

Your discs arrived on Thursday — excellent! There’s something about your style that can take people back to a time they may not have even lived, like a bit of country in all of us! You’ve also found a very special way of re-working some of the Scottish traditional standards, with a kind of American ‘lift’ — rather than the Celtic! I have not heard anything like it. Glen Clifford, Celtic World, DEAKIN, Australia

The duo shows that traditional music can still be done beautifully by performers who care. Their harmonies entwine delightfully, and Atwater’s solo vocals are uplifting and impressive. Stephen A. Ide,
The Patriot Ledger

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Oen Kennedy is musical, he’s subtle, he’s irresistible and he has an innate sense of the innocent soul in every one of us. Weaving birdsong and exotic instruments into his music as naturally as dew gathering on grass, his songs embrace the natural world with a gentle intelligence that is altogether unique. Oen can fill a room with melody and birdsong and take the people in the room to a far and magical place . . . Earth. Marilyn Rea Beyer, Music Director, WUMB