There are lots of ways to bring in my programs at approximately $1.00 -$1.50 per student and .25 a mile (rule of thumb) 

Hint: The more shows I do in a day in the same area, the cheaper it gets.  Find out who the school assembly planner is in nearby schools and work together for the best price!

- call for ideas to even help make the program pay for itself!

Contents below:   

CLICK ON TITLE FOR MORE INFORMATION

Family/School Programs:

(Schools and Libraries: see History programs above also)

        KIDSTUFF                                                   ( for the younger set)

        WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD     (Every day is Earth Day)

        POTLUCK                                   (Songs that cross generations)

        SING A SONG OF CHRISTMAS             (Christmas/Holiday)

         A SCHOONER SONG BAG                        (Sea songs for Kids)

        ECO-ARTS        ( A Cooperative of artists for the Environment)

Festivals and Events 

  Characters and a list of Festivals Played

A Song for all Seasons

Songs that fit "like that favorite old sweater" (SING OUT Magazine/ Summer 1997)

David at his best in a full evening concert.  Original songs by David HB Drake and songs from the best of contemporary singer-songwriters, including Tom Paxton, Gordon Bok, Stan Rogers, Bill Staines, Kate Wolf, Phil Ochs and more.

 (Available on "Secret Garden" CD and Tape! )

Shorelines

"A sailor 's love song to the sea" (Wind in the Rigging /1996)

Songs of the Great Lakes,  Wisconsin rivers and classic shanties and waterfront pubs songs from the seven seas. David is the resident folksinger for the Great Lakes Schooner Project. This concert can also be done as a trio with shanty man / mandola player Clifford Long and storyteller Dusty Rose joining David as "The Rose and Dragon". 

(Available on "Fisherman's Beach" CD and Tape as ! )

Blowing in the Wind

with "The Old Crusty Minstrels"

Call it retro or nostalgia, but David's been around doing folk music since the sixties.  "Blowing in the Wind" is a sing-along concert of those favorite songs that we all remember from Peter, Paul, and Mary, the Kingston Trio, Tom Paxton, Simon and Garfunkle, and many more.  Audience requests are encouraged ! (assuming Alzheimer's hasn't set in - if we can remember it, we'll sing it) .  David acts as song leader for an evening of those good old songs we grew up on if you're willing to admit you're a boomer.   Sixties survivor Walter Craft or some other old folkies just might show up as "THE OLD CRUSTY MINSTRELS!"

Let There be Light 

solo or with "Sweet Survivor"

A seasonal collection of little known folk songs played on handmade instruments ideal for a gentle look at what Christmas is really about.  This concert has been presented for almost 20 years at Milwaukee's Mitchell Park Domes and can be done as a duet program with Elizabeth Friedman joining the harmony. 

(Available on "Let there be Light" CD and Tape! )

Wish I Had Troubadour 

solo or with Dusty Rose

A concert for St. Patrick's Day or anytime you're getting your Irish up!  David has performed at Milwaukee's IRISH FEST for over 15 years as bard, troubadour, and stage performer.  Dusty Rose of "The Rose and Dragon" can "spike the punch" in a duet program. 

(Available on "Wish I had a Troubadour" CD and Tape! )

Sweet Survivor

solo or with Elizabeth Friedman

A concert of love songs.. some borrowed, some blue, some old and some new.  A Valentine for any time of year.  Elizabeth Friedman can make this concert a twosome joining David in harmony!

The Rose and Dragon

Clifford Long, David HB Drake, and Dusty Rose  sing songs of the salt seas, shanties, pub songs, stories, and original Great Lakes music in a program of music from the dockside pubs haunted by seamen the world over.  The trio has performed regularly at Irish Fest and sea music festivals around the Great Lakes.  

Multimedia History Programs

for schools, seniors, festivals*and community groups

*(These programs are available for outdoor events without the slides!) 

WISCON-SING...The musical history of Wisconsin

WISCON-SING is a 55-minute multimedia program which presents songs that introduce Wisconsin’s vibrant history to audiences of all ages in a music and visual performance enhanced with over 100 historic and scenic slides of our state. From the Native Americans and French explorers, European immigration, the work of lumberjacks and Great Lakes sailors, up to our present day farmers, Wisconsin comes to life in song.  David plays a variety of handmade and historic instruments, the kind our ancestors played, including Indian courting flute, mountain banjo, dulcimer, and concertina in addition to guitar to give the music an authentic flavor.  The audience is invited to participate, encouraged by special sing-along slides. 

 From the great northwoods, the songs of lumberjacks and the great pine forests, of deep winters and fish-tales are found in songs like “The Lumberjack’s Alphabet" and “Jon  Jonson”.  Work songs of the sailors and rivermen are reflected in  “Where are you Bound” and “The Rivers of Wisconsin”. From the rich farmland, “When I First Came to this Land”, ”Many, Many Cows”, and “The Cranberry Bog” with everyone singing on the finale, “On Wisconsin!”   Heritage, family, comedy, and nostalgia all come alive in David’s concerts. 

This show is ideal for enhancing 4^th grade Wisconsin History studies 

(Available on "WISCON-SING" Video, CD and Tape! )

 Heartland ...The musical history of Illinois

HEARTLAND is a multimedia historical program of folksongs, stories, and images that cover the width and breadth of the state of Illinois.  The program is richly illustrated with over 100 slides reflecting the music, heritage, and beauty of Illinois, including special "sing-along" slides and audience participation.  HEARTLAND focuses on the unique aspects of Illinois including songs of trains, rivers, the prairies, and the lives of Abraham Lincoln and Carl Sandburg and is ideal for all school assemblies and the 4^th grade study of  state history. The 55 minute program presents songs that introduce Illinois from the first explorers and immigrants up to our present day farmers and Great Lakes sailors.  David plays a variety of handmade and historic instruments including Indian Courting Flute, Mountain Banjo, Dulcimer, and Concertina in addition to Guitar.  Songs of historic persons and places include "The Rivers of Illinois”, "Land of Lincoln", “Illinois" State Song) and poems of Carl Sandburg.  The audiences can sing along, assisted by slides of the chorus parts while a travelogue of Illinois slides and historical photos grace the verses.  

Ideal for 4^th Grade Illinois History studies and curriculum goals!  

(Available on "HEARTLAND" Video, CD and Tape! )

Gather by the Waters 

A multimedia program created for the Wisconsin Lake Schooner Project as an outreach program introducing the history of the Great Lakes and immigration to these shores. For the days of glaciers to our modern ports, this programs flows like our rivers through time. Songs in seven different languages about the people who came to populate the western shores of Lake Michigan present a multicultural view of our forefathers. Slides and songs teach us that we are "all in the same boat".

School Residencies and Workshops

David presents residencies including songwriting, folk music instruments, environmental studies and state history in extended-stay residencies.

Family Programs

Kidstuff

Winner of the PARENTS CHOICE Award for Children's Music

A sing-and-clap along hootenanny for kids featuring some of America's favorite folk tunes. David plays familiar and audience accessible songs for kids on the banjo, dulcimer, flute, and concertina and introduces each instrument is a musical "show and tell. There's lots of audience participation as David gets the kids up to dance along, so sign language, and more!   

(Available on "KIDSTUFF" CD and Tape! )

What a Wonderful World

 Every day is Earth Day when David sings recycled songs for the creatures on this planet in this program celebrating better tomorrows.  This program has been a regular at Nature Centers, Earth Day celebrations, and schools studying the environment.

(Available on "What a Wonderful World" CD and Tape! )

Potluck

 A potpourri of songs and remembrances of the good old days played on fine old instruments.  From "Grandma's Patchwork Quilt" to the community feast we call a "Potluck" David stirs up a sing along soup for the whole family.  Fine for a festival, family concert, library or back porch! This program is especially popular among senior citizens and audiences that span the generations.

Sing a Song of Christmas

See "Let there be Light" above.  This program is presented in schools from Thanksgiving to Christmas with the program material adjusted to the needs of Parochial and Public schools.

A Schooner Song Bag

David performs  songs of the seas and sailors for younger audiences.  Included are "The Schooner Alphabet", "The Tall Ship Sails All Around", and songs from the Wisconsin Lake Schooner's "Lakewatch Expedition" Program. The program also includes an introduction to shanties (sailor's work songs) used on the Wisconsin Flagship Denis Sullivan, knot tying, yarns, and history.

(Available on "A Schooner Song Bag" CD! )

FESTIVALS AND EVENTS

Main stage and family stage concerts covering a wide variety of folk and popular regional music appropriate to each festival’s theme including the Heartland, The Great Lakes, or various themes.  All of the programs above from history to families can be included. 

David also does strolling costume characters including :

        JON JONSON _a north woods lumberjack 

        JIMMY THE SQUEEZE (William Hulme)- a Great Lakes sailor

        CARRIE O'TUNNE - an Irish troubadour.

ECO/ARTS

 David is now collaborating with other area fine artists using the arts to teach kids about the environment.  Many of the arts are represented, including “eco-dance” with Betty Salamun of DANCECIRCUS, science and wisdom with Professor Oops (Dr. Sky Schultz) , nature explorations with David Stokes, earth stories with  Celia Farran, and of course, music by David.

DAVID HAS PERFORMED AT :

thousands of festivals, concert venues, schools, libraries, senior and community centers across Wisconsin, Illinois, and the Midwest.
E-mail or call for a listing of references and past programs in your community! Some highlights include:

Maritime Programs: Solo and with "The Rose and Dragon"

Aboard Tallships Denis Sullivan, HMS Bounty, Clearwater, Maryland Dove, Pride of Baltimore, Ernestina, & Rainbow Warrior 

And ashore at...The Annapolis Maritime Festival, Muskegon Tall Ship Festival, Door County Maritime Festival, Chicago Maritime Museum, Wisconsin Maritime Museum, Wisconsin Historical Museum, Port Washington Fish Days and Heritage Days, Two Rivers Ethnic Festival, Wisconsin Lake Schooner Tall Ship Festival, Milwaukee WI