All the suggested agencies: Nancy Carlin, Folklore (with which I am associated), and the two new agencies Fleming & Associates and Tamulevich & Associates (the old agency Fleming-Tamulevich has been dissolved) are excellent. But I strongly suggest you take a moment to examine their rosters on the net (all have web sites) to make sure that your artist is on the same career level as the artists they represent. Since I know Folklore best, I'll say that we represent, to take just a few of our 30+ artists, Doc Watson, Martin Carthy, John Renbourn, and until his passing a few months ago, Dave Van Ronk. These musicians are (or were, in Dave's case) full time touring music professionals, each with 20-30 LPs and CDs on major and major independent labels to their credit, each a performer for many decades, each a highly rated, multiple-award-winning, internationally known figure in the folk music world. Is your artist at that level? Then it might be a good match. If, on the other hand, your artist's performing experience is primarily at the local level, and he/she has one or two self-produced CDs under his/her belt, it's likely not a good fit. Look for an agency that can further your career, that represents artists with whom you feel you're a good fit, and most importantly one where you won't get lost in the backwash of "bigger" artists. I know that there are too few agencies for the number of artists who need them. Folklore gets 3-5 phone calls a day asking for representation. Unfortunately we are full to capacity right now, and in recent months have had to turn down some incredibly gifted and extremely well-known performing and recording folk artists who we'd give our eye-teeth to work with.

Mary Katherine