Fall 2025 Clay on Main Concerts
DATE POSTED: 6/19/25
UPDATED: 7/7/25
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Clay on Main will host six sets of concerts on Friday evenings between October 3 and December 5
Each event will include a half-hour performance in the "Front Room" followed by a two-hour performance in the "Half Moon Cafe.
THIS CHARMING CONCERT SERIES IS NEARLY 20 YEARS OLD, AND IS A TREASURE IN OUR COMMUNITY. ​
Clay on Main is at 313 Main Street, Oley.
Parking is in the nearby Church lot (not on the street, please). Doors open at 7:00.
Front Room acts are compensated by a tip jar - please be generous.
(Front Room artists keep all of the money from the jar)
Half Moon Cafe acts are compensated by a $15 admission for those 12 and over.​
(Half Moon artists share the $15 admission with Clay on Main)
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Clay on Main is an arts resource for us all.​​​
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Oct 3:
7:15 - 7:45, Front Room: Pigeon Creek
Dave Warner - Jack Scherneck - Glen O'Donnell - Brad Haberle
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Four friends, many instruments, Pigeon Creek plays & sings Country, Blues, Bluegrass,
Jazz, Old-Time, & anything else that strikes their fancy & yours. Great musicians,
funny, engaging. Dave Warner (guitar), Jack Scherneck (guitar & banjo),
Glen O'Donnell (guitar & mandolin), and Brad Haberle (bass) are Pigeon Creek.
They will surely set your toes to tapping & set the tone for a wonderful evening with
a tasty array of tunes and songs.​
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Come share the fun!
8:00 - 10:00, Half Moon: Mark Cosgrove & Good Medicine
Mark Cosgrove - Nate Grower - Larry Cohen - Peter Lorch
https://www.mcosgrove.com/EPK01.html
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After touring throughout the US, Europe, Australia, and Japan as the lead guitarist in
The David Bromberg Quintet and Big Band, Mark Cosgrove now fronts Mark Cosgrove &
Good Medicine. Featuring some of the most respected players in roots and acoustic music,
this quartet brings incredible energy, chemistry, and musicianship to every show.
Cosgrove, winner of the coveted National Flatpick Championship in Winfield (1994) and
The Doc Watson Guitar Championship (1995), joins with monster fiddler Nate Grower
(who also performed in The David Bromberg Quintet and Big Band), veteran bass player
and new acoustic music pioneer Larry Cohen (co-founder of the legendary Tony Trischka
and Skyline), and the brilliant vocalist and rhythm guitar player Peter Lorch.
Cosgrove, Grower, Cohen, and Lorch are a force.
This band has chops and experience in spades.
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Oct 17:
7:15 - 7:45, Front Room: Justin Santoro
Solo violin
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Justin has played violin since he was 10 when his music therapist showed him her violin and encouraged him to play, and boy does he! He's studied violin with numerous wonderful violin teachers through the years, and loves his lessons with his current teacher, Judy Terwilliger. He's been her student since 2019.
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Justin has played at Trinity Lutheran Church in Reading as well as Lititz Moravian Church in Lititz. This is his first performance at Clay on Main. Justin plays a variety of music, from pop hits to classical standards. Because of that breadth, we're unsure what he will bring us tonight, but we know you'll enjoy it because he plays for the right reason -- he loves itl Music is very important in his life. We love his taste in music and know you will too!
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8:00 - 10:00, Half Moon: Sunday Sinfonia Trio
Judy Terwilliger - Paul Eppley - John Pankratz - https://sundaysinfonia.org
Did you see the Sunday Sinfonia Quartet at the Half Moon last year? If you did, you
already know that you NEED to put this date in ink on your calendar. If you didn't see them last
year, you at least get a chance to see three of the four this year. Judy Terwilliger (violin/viola),
Paul Eppley (violin), John Pankratz (cello) They are AWESOME!
They will delight us with chamber music by Mozart, Hayden, Beethoven, and more!
Allow us to brag a little on our own Judy Terwilliger. Not only is she one of our wonderful teachers,
she's also the person who put this lovely trio together. She's the principal violinist and Concertmaster
for Sunday Sinfonia, the President of the Board for Gabriel Chamber Ensemble, and the Coordinator of
the Vermont Music and Arts Center’s Chamber Music Program. The other members of the quartet are also spectacular. This is a MUST-SEE concert!
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Oct 31
7:15 - 7:45, Front Room: Emme Ryan (Drago)
Guitar, vocal, fiddle - https://www.emme-ryan.com/
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Emme Drago began playing fiddle at age 5. Ten years later, inspired by her dad (who’d written songs her whole life), wrote her first original song. A switch suddenly flipped on & she began writing constantly. She began performing regularly & recorded her first EP during her senior year of High School.
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Partnered with drummer/producer Brandon Geiger she's been bringing her music to the public through live performance &, more recently, recording. Her current recording project is a collaboration between Geiger & TX-based producer, Shannon McArthur.
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Her music defies classification. Her sound is her own. Take this opportunity to see a local musician who's got her foot on the first step on a long, creative journey.
8:00 - 10:00, Half Moon: TBA
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Nov 7
7:15 - 7:45, Front Room: Toad Creek Tom
Solo guitar & vocal - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPPKWcdJMdle4qKPS4yTq2Q
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​Thomas Meitzler is Toad Creek Tom. Why Toad Creek? Two reasons:​
1) Tom used to play in Toad Creek when he was a kid.
2) Toad Creek is also the name of a pub in Topton where Tom performs.
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He also performs at the Bally Hotel, the Kutztown Beneficial Association, Heilman House, here at Clay on Main,
and at other local venues. He performed here as part of a benefit concert on May 2, this year
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Tom's played guitar and sung most of his life.​
We are delighted to have him play and sing for us tonight.
8:00 - 10:00, Half Moon: TBD
John & Kass Bolles
John & Kass met when Kass's band Crosswind opened for John's band Glad at a Philly area concert. For both, it was love at first listen, and soon they began performing as a duo for private parties & civic organizations -- each continuing with their respective bands (John recording 2 albums, doing some TV & radio, & touring and Kass performing in & around Philadelphia). After that, they both went to Nashville to work as session musicians.
When, they returned home, John worked in industry & Kass gave singing lessons & worked as a music director & session singer (spots for the Phila 76ers, Merv Griffin's Resorts, Amoroso's Rolls, New Jersey Lottery, Thunder 102 & Friendly's Restaurants). All-the-while, the couple continued to perform part-time at restaurants, private parties, weddings, civic organizations & community events.
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John now owns & operates a project recording studio, Allegra Recording Company, where he records projects for local artists & business clients. At the Camden Waterfront, Kass opened for James Taylor & Elton John. They've played th Ritz Carlton, Four Seasons, Franklin Institute, Union League, the Downtown Club, Trump Castle, Caesars, Resorts, Guest Quarters, Liberty Park... and the Half Moon Cafe (this photo was taken last time they were here).
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It's been a while, but worth the wait to have them return!
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Nov 21
7:15 - 7:45, Front Room: Lewis Music, Inc.
https://lewismusicinc.com/home
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Dave & Amy Lewis are Lewis Music, Inc. Husband & wife, "they pour their hearts and souls into [Lewis Music Inc], a do-it-yourself undertaking that knows no bounds” (Don Botch, Reading Eagle).
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“Amy’s soulful vocals — I’ve likened her to Stevie Nicks in the past for a reason — provide the perfect complement to Dave’s sharp guitar work, and the pair combines their talents to draw the listener in”
(Underground Music Collective). “With striking vocals, relatable lyrics, and some cool guitar riffs this duo will surprise you” (The Balcony).
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Come be surprised by Lewis Music, Inc. in their debut performance at Clay on Main!
8:00 - 10:00, Half Moon: Busker Incognito Blues Trio
Busker Incognito (aka Dave Kline) - resophonic guitars & vocals,
John King - guitar, harp, vocals, and Chuck Steinle - cajon & vocals
https://www.facebook.com/share/16kJvRiNZ4/?mibextid=wwXIfr
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The Busker Incognito Blues Trio is all about Blues music, but is unafraid to draw from other genres and to write original stuff so long as it delivers high-energy fun. Expect a taste of Rock-a-billy, Diddly music, jamming music (and a bit of everything else) to be mixed in the Blues that Busker Incognito plays. Each of these three musicians are well known, well loved, and diverse.
You've probably seen them in one of the many ensembles of which they're individually part (Mountain Folk Band, John King Band, the Shemps...), or maybe you've seen them as the Incognito Trio - they've been performing together under that name since 2019.
You may have seen them at the Evergreen Club (Fleetwood), the Saucony Creek Franklin Station Brewpub, Judy's On Cherry, the Liederkranz, Roselawn Bistro (all in Reading), the Radisson Hotel (Wyomissing), , the Nitro Bar (West Reading), or The Twisted Tail Restaurant & Juke Joint (Philadelphia). Now you have a chance to see them at the Half Moon Cafe at Clay on Main. We can't wait!​​​
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​Dec 5
7:15 - 7:45, Front Room: Larry Ahearn
Solo guitar and vocals - https://larryahearn.com/home
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Larry Ahearn is an accomplished singer/songwriter and an avid promoter of live music. He works for Trespass Music with artists like Craig Bickhardt and Michael Braunfeld. Back in the 60’s and 70’s, Larry worked at the legendary Main Point in Bryn Mawr where he booked artists like Eric Anderson and Jerry Jeff Walker.
At the Half Moon Cafe, Larry will delight us with some of his own wonderful music.
This is going to be a wonderful night!
8:00 - 10:00, Half Moon: Craig Bickhardt
Solo guitar and vocals - http://www.craigbickhardt.com/
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When Craig Bickhardt steps onto a concert stage, he comes with his acoustic guitar and thestories of a lifetime, vividly translated into words and melody.
“I start a lot of songs because I feel conflicted,” he explains. “I may begin from a point of darkness, but I usually end up writing towards the light because, for me, hope is the thing worth singing about. The characters in the stories I sing aren’t heroic; they’re very ordinary. But they’re reaching for something beyond themselves, and I find nobility in that.” His songs have been recorded by such legends as Ray Charles, B.B. King, Johnny Cash, the Judds, Tony Rice and Alison Krauss.
A Craig Bickhardt concert is a mix of absurd anecdotes and personal confessions, accompanying a well-stocked bag of original tunes and the occasional choice cover. “I think people come to my shows to be reminded that there’s something profound in the small stuff we experience every day,”
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Come let Craig remind you.
