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Leaf Seligman listens to Bob McQuillen’s tunes -
A jam session with Jane Orzechowski, Deanna Stiles, Sarah Bauhan and guest musicians -
Attendees of Kwakfest listen to Bob McQuillen’s Jams -
Jan Jones plays the fiddle -
Kathleen Vetter and John Zurich dance along to Bob McQuillen’s music. -
Kelly Strauss holds Bob McQuillen’s 16th and final tunebook, “Bob’s Book of New Hampshire Tunes,” featuring songs he wrote for each town in the state.
Kwackfest celebrated what would have been contra dance musician and traditional music composer Bob McQuillen’s 100th birthday July 1.
McQuillen resided in both Dublin and Peterborough, dedicating his life to service, teaching, dance and music. He was a National Heritage Fellow who died in 2014, and drove to dances in a Jeep with a license plate reading “KWACK. The Town of Peterborough had previously proclaimed June 27, McQuillen’s birthday, as “Bob McQuillen Day.” ”
The grounds of the Guernsey Building in downtown Peterborough, along with Peterborough Town House the Monadnock Center for History and Culture, hosted live music, food trucks and stories about McQuillen during the festival. Attendees listened, danced and played along to McQuillen’s tunes.
Kwackfest was sponsored by the Monadnock Folklore Society and was supported by grants from the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Country Dance and Song Society.