Faire-Folk® Books

Directory of Renaissance Performers

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*** Listings are impartial. They do not imply author endorsement. ***

Musicians

You can hear many of these bands are played on RenRadio — internet radio featuring Renaissance Faire musicians.

Also, visit the Modern Bard Database. This noble site is attempting to capture all the info it can on Renaissance musicians so that their work does not fade into sad obscurity. Please visit and make sure your favorite groups are represented.

Pirate & Sailing Music

  • Pyrates Royale
    The original singing pirate band, creating music and mayhem since 1987
  • The Crimson Pirates
    The result of merging the crews from the Crimson Tide and the Sea Dog — one big happy (if slightly dysfunctional) pirate family!
  • The Corsairs
    Pirate music since 1996
  • The Jolly Rogers
    A pirate-themed group who perform at Renaissance faires in the Midwest United States
  • The Shantyman
    Sea shanties, nautical tunes, and piratical ditties.
  • The Bilge Pumps
    A music troop for the pirate in everyone
  • Bounding Main
    Six sexy singers performing shanties and nautical ballads between Milwaukee and Chicago.

Pub and Bawdy

  • Drunk and Disorderly
    When peasants get musical… “It’s not just a band name – it’s a way of life!”
  • Celtic – NOT!
    Equal parts whiskey and vodka, Celtic – NOT! is sure to entertain
  • The Dregs
    A cappella Irish music & comedy!
  • Naughty Nymphs
    Rollicking, hillarious, and 100% Naughty — Katya, Delia, and Amanda provide beautiful bawdy songs in three-part harmony
  • Poxy Bogards
    A drinking group with a singing problem
  • Vagabond Celtic
    Wild Celtic music available for parties, festivals, weddings, and concerts
  • Blackjacks ‘n Blarney
    An Irishwoman, a Scotsman, and a Welshman walk into a pub… and musical mayhem follows
  • Axel the Sot
    Music and comedy
  • Ten Seconds of Harmony
    Come see what people have called “The Renaissance Man Show”
  • Steve Newman & Friends
    British pub song
  • Naughty Bawdy Brigade
    A trio of female performers who entertain Midwestern Renaissance fairgoers with their uncouth humor and songs. Not for the faint of heart, they specialize in original & historical songs, colorful limericks and questionable jokes.

Instrumentals

  • Tanya Brody, Harper
    Tanya Brody is a professional Harper and Singer/Songwriter with the voice of an angel according to her fans
  • The Rogues of Scotland
    Over eight years of harmonic pipes and pounding drums.
  • Joe Jewel and Featherstone
    Traditional Celtic, Scottish, and Welsh music
  • Menagerie Music
    Instrumentals on the hammered dulcimer, guitar, flute & penny whistle that fill the streets with lively jigs & planxtys.

All-Women Groups

  • Belles of Bedlam
    A comedic romp through the Belles’ lives, with songs sprinkled in.
  • Queen Anne’s Lace
    A small, a cappella women’s ensemble specializing in a variety of musical genres.
  • Naughty Bawdy Brigade
    A trio of female performers who entertain Midwestern Renaissance fairgoers with their uncouth humor and songs. Not for the faint of heart, they specialize in original & historical songs, colorful limericks and questionable jokes.

Music for Children

  • Mother Goose Melodies
    Olde songs for young children performed by “Mother Goose” in Renaissance garb. Audience participation – colorful props!

Traditionalists

  • Gallowglass Irish Trio
    No namby-pamby madrigal stuff – these guys kick butt!
  • Neid Fyre
    Enchanting music for the joyful heart
  • Pint and Dale
    Beautiful traditional music… and the best-played hurdy gurdy in the states.
  • Minstrosity
    A trio of troubadours providing musical mayhem with tight harmonies and instrumentation.
  • Gibbon the Troubador
    A 21st century caricature of a 16th century minstrel
  • Moor of Dundee
    Strolling troubador specializing in ballads of the British Isles
  • Bruce the Bruce
    Wandering Celtic minstrel
  • Earthly Delights
    Anglo-Celtic Central European minstrels with a wonderful array of instruments, playing music for listening and/or dancing.
  • Howl-o
    Douglys and Bella breathe new life into songs from the Olde World and are known for their lush vocal arrangements
  • Minstrel Woode
    A 2-man act performing Celtic and “Celtic-Influenced” original and traditional folk music as well as contemporary story-songs & ballads.
  • Minstrels of Mayhem
    Making great music… and having fun doing it
  • Craig of Farrington, Minstrel Lutenist
    Songs of love, faith, and myrth — songs of heaven… and of earth
  • Tourdion
    Songs of the British Isles and beyond.
  • Gypsy Guerrilla Band
    It’s not an invasion, it’s a celebration of international music!
  • Brobdingnagian Bards
    Drinking songs for breakfast; fantasy, filk, and dragon sandwiches for lunch; and an extra helping of Tolkien-esque instrumentals for dinner.
  • Reve du Faun
    The Irish band with a French name
  • Siler & Clarc
    A diversified duo that performs Folk, Celtic, Classic Rock, and other music styles.
  • Fiddler’s Fancy
    Celtic music & dance, including Shanachie: The Challenge of the Sidhe step dance show. Violin, mandocello, guitar, bodhran
  • Wyldfyre
    An acoustic/vocal duo who perform “traditional music of the British Isles” – ranging from ballads to bawdy Ren Faire favorites.
  • Bruce the Bruce
    Wandering Scottish Minstrel, nowadays spending most of his time with Rowan Golightly and Desahra in Queen’s Gambit.
  • Queen’s Gambit
    Celtic band specializing in Irish and Scottish traditional music, with a side order of English Folk, dance, and Renaissance music.
  • Jeff Kalmar
    Traditional Celtic with rock roots
  • Sweet Amaryllis
    Three ladies on harp, cello and flute, playing music from the Renaissance and Early Baroque periods
  • Bramblebush
    Renaissance festival music loaded with harmonies, rhythm guitars and energetic percussion

“Traditional”… with a twist

  • Lojo Russo
    Home of Lojo Russo, musician extraordinarie. The stuff on the “Lick the Blarney” album she did with her former band Funks Grove is very much the sort of music that would happen after-hours.
  • Folk Underground
    Cool melodies, strange lyrics, severely damaged traditional tunes, and original songs.
  • Avalon Rising
    Avalon Rising blends Celtic rock & Medieval music: Vocals, Celtic harp, guitars, electric violin, recorder, flute, bass, mandocello & drums.
  • Counterfeit Bards
    Folk music with a ‘faire’ attitude, including Arthurian and Faire-themed parodies by “Sir Dyladan.”

Other

  • Three Guys And A Bunch Of Drums
    The name says it all
  • Blackmore’s Night
    Cobblestone streets, firelit hillsides, and magick in the air. Let your spirit dance to the stirring melodies of Blackmore’s Night.
  • Fugli
    From traditional folk to silly filk, and whatever else pops into his mind.

Acts

Swordplay

  • Don Juan and Miguel
    Swordfighting comedy.
  • Phoenix Swords
    Swordfighting, puppetry, fire, and dance — not necessarily at the same time
  • The Blade Brothers
    Two brothers who perform feats of Gypsy swordfighting and silliness
  • The Swordsmen
    Bold and stupid men, at your service!
  • To The Hilt
    Because when you think comedy, you think swordfighting! Join Gypsy swashbucklers Leonardo and Katya for their comedy swordfighting extrrrravaganzza!
  • Cut, Thrust, and Run
    Swashbuckling comedy with an acrobatic twist.
  • The Duelists
    A dazzling display of comedy and swordfighting brilliance
  • Free Lancers
    Authentic jousting since 1981
  • New Riders of the Golden Age
    Jousting professionally since 1982 at Renaissance Festivals, state and county fairs, and other events across North America
  • Hack and Slash
    Hilarious two-man, Shakespearean, comic-swordfighting duo
  • The Hey Nonny, Nonny Players
    The landlocked bungling pirates from the cornfields of Indiana perform swordfighting and swashbuckling comedy for your pirate pleasure.

Fire

  • Mephisto the Master
    Home of Mephisto, professional fire-eater and all around Really Cool Guy.
  • The Daring Douglasses
    A Comedy Fire Eating Show that guarantees to show you something Gross & Disgusting, Incredibly Dangerous, and Really, Really Stupid.
  • Johnny Phoenix
    Comedy for a world on fire!
  • DragonTrybe
    A progressive pyro entertainment and theatrical group in the Diallas, Texas Metroplex
  • Circle of Fire
    Texas’ Largest Community of Fire Performers

Dance

  • Royal Scottish Country Dance Society-Twin Cities Branch
    The colorful, energetic art of traditional Scottish country dancing. Sit back and enjoy a performance — or better yet, join them on the dance floor.
  • Isis and the Star Dancers
    A group of Middle Eastern (bellydance) and Polynesian (Hula) dancers based in Dallas\Ft. Worth, Texas.
  • Everything Celtic
    Everything Celtic can furnish any event with award winning dancers and a wide repertoire of dances
  • Labyrinthe Gypsy Dancers
    A group of musicians and dancers whose style reflects a unique blend of Spanish, Middle-Eastern, Iron Age and Gothic influences

Juggling

Magic

Storytelling

Those Who Defy Categorization

Street

  • Twig the Fairy
    A whimsical fairy handing out glass stones and sweet dreams since 2003.
  • The Salty Kiss
    An all-women privateer crew (and their associates) — street performers.

Guilds

Performance guilds

Non-performance guilds

Living History