Staff 2025

Anne Bingham Goess enjoys wearing many hats (and wreaths). Trained as a classical violinist, she immersed herself in choral singing and light opera for many years, and then fell in love with Irish fiddle at Lark Camp. These days she plays regularly for Irish, English Country and Contra dancing in the Bay Area, and wields the violin and viola with the band Erica & Friends. She has also performed since 2010 with the Midwinter Revels, including the 2024 Celtic Celebration of the Solstice. 

Craig Johnson has been to almost every Family Week, and has also played piano and accordion for dancers since 1982. He plays for community and Celtic dance at SF’s Dickens Fair, performs with the Dogwatch Nautical Band, and is a regular musician for San Francisco’s Cotswold and longsword teams, Goat Hill and Ring of Cold Steel.

David James has spent time in western swing bands, symphony orchestras, pop/rock bands, and ECD/contra dance bands. He’s the musician for Wild Wood Morris (Border) and Rising Phoenix Morris (Cotswold), and a member of the ECD/contra dance band Whirled Peas. David has spent the last 20+ years as a kindergarten through 6th grade classroom music teacher in southern California public schools.

Jeffrey Spero has been playing piano and singing since he was five years old. At a young age he discovered an affinity for popular music and developed his style emulating musicians like James Taylor, Elton John, and Bruce Hornsby. In his 30s, he brought his rhythmic style to American and Celtic folk and dance music and now travels around the country playing dances, concerts, and festivals with bands such as Syncopaths and Rhythm Raptors. In addition to editing and music, Jeffrey is a contradance caller and choreographer whose dances have been enjoyed all across this country and overseas.

M’Gilvry Allen is a musician and producer from Sebastopol, California. He tours as a fiddle player and utility hitter in several indie projects, while his solo music blends folk instruments, modern electronic production, and multilayered vocal harmonies into a kaleidoscope of familiar sounds. In 2019, M’Gilvry and some friends built an earth plaster music studio in a remote part of Oregon, where he produced his debut album, In My Garden. M’Gilvry’s work can be found at his website, mgilvryallen.com, on patreon at patreon.com/mgilvryallen, and on all major platforms as @mgilvryallen.

Talitha Amadea Aho is returning for a second year, teaching singing for all ages and Morris dancing for kids. She has been Morris dancing for a quarter century – first on Ring O’ Bells Morris and now on Berkeley Morris. Her singing class this year will feature folk and gospel songs about journeys over land or sea or through troubles. 

Tom Phillips has been playing his fiddle for English and American country dancing in New York since the 1970’s.  He recorded two albums of contra dance music with the Fish Family, a band named in 1986 by his three-year-old daughter Talitha, with whom he has been dancing and singing since she was in utero at Pinewoods Camp.  Nowadays Tom can be found playing Irish tunes in pubs, with his bodhran-beating wife Debra Given.