Gordon Bok
Gordon Bok grew up around the boatyards of Camden, Maine, and sailed on the lovely old schooners that hail from that port. As he sailed, he sang: songs and ballads of the sea and the schooners and the fishes and the fishermen. At a time when folk music was experiencing a great revival, he became a leader in preserving, collecting, creating and sharing a wide variety of rich and intensely beautiful songs of both land and sea. His mastery of 6- and 12-string guitars and his well-known trademark, the 'cellamba, have added to his unique vocal expression to create an unmistakable style that has carried him through decades of being one of our most cherished folk artists. He has made more than a score of albums, and many other musicians have recorded his songs. In addition, his music has been used in films and published in folk music anthologies. He has recently published his own second songbook: One To Sing, One To Haul.
In addition to performing in concert halls, coffeehouses and festivals throughout the U.S., Canada, Great Britain and Scandinavia, Gordon has taught choral singing and song writing at summer music camps and other gatherings. He has organized choral groups in his own community and gladly shares his knowledge with others wishing to do the same. A superb storyteller, he often introduces songs in concert with a bit of their origin and history.
Besides his countless solo appearances, Gordon has toured for nearly thirty years with the trio, Bok, Muir and Trickett, and in recent years with his wife, harper Carol Rohl. He has also performed with Cindy Kallet, Anne Dodson, Kendall Morse and other well-known folk artists. He has appeared in concert with the Paul Winter Consort and the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, and has been heard on NPR's A Prairie Home Companion. He has served both as Artist-in Residence and faculty member of the College of the Atlantic. In 1997, he received an honorary Doctor of Science degree from the Maine Maritime Academy.
"If the sea had a voice with which to sing, it would be the voice of Gordon Bok." The Brunswick Times-Record
"For me, he's the Bard . . . he has true depth and nobility: a musical genius." Paul Sullivan
"The poet laureate of those who go down to the sea in ships." Time Magazine
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