Welcome
Hello and welcome to our website! Thanks for visiting. We are a duo based in Lincoln, and sing Americana, folk-country songs in close harmony. You can book us for events, pub gigs, weddings and private parties. We are also available for vocal harmony workshops. Just get in contact for further information and prices and read our bio to find out more about where we've performed previously.
We are delighted to be running a harmony singing workshop during the day and then a concert in the evening from 7.30. This is to advertise the evening show, but if you are interested in attending the harmony workshop which will run from 10 to 4.30, please contact us through our website. We will be joined by Roger Jackson - composer, arranger and choir director, producer of our album 'Distant Light'.
https://www.thehopbarn.org.uk/events £12 for the evening show. Harmony singing event pricing to be announced later. There will be a discount if you would like to sing at the workshop and attend the concert in the evening
This is the 5th Annual Hexham International Bluegrass and Americana Festival - 2026! We are so honoured to be involved. We will be taking folks through a singing workshop and performing as The Rye Sisters. There will be glorious bands involved! Get your harmony on!
Back to our favourite local community gathering of artists. What a special day this is. I walked there (10 miles) last year...nearly missed it. Don't think I realised where exactly Leadenham was in relation to my house. Anyway, still local. You can get there on foot! Lots of great stalls, great talent on display...dancing, drinking, music... Lincolnshire appreciation. I LOVE this day! It's FREE too!
Learn to Sing in Harmony with The Rye Sisters and Roger Jackson - SATURDAY 11th July Day Workshop and Evening Concert!
Rip Roaring Success, Knutsford (supporting) and Carrington Triangle Folk Club (Nottingham) in June
Well it's gonna be a busy late Spring for us and we'll be bouncing into the summer with gigs and festivals and workshops! Tell your Cheshire friends and your Nottingham friends to come and see us on 4th and 17th June, will ya? See our ‘shows’ for information!
Thank you so much for your support when we did our 10th Anniversary gig! It was so wonderful to see so many of you there. Here we are singing with our long-standing friend and producer of ‘Distant-Light', Roger Jackson; - where we're singing our hearts out at St Mary’s Guildhall, Lincoln on 18th April 2026.
If you like singing and want to try out singing in beautiful three or four part harmony, come and sing with us at The HopBarn on 11th July! We are also doing a concert in the evening there. Again check out our shows for details. See you somewhere down the road. I think we might be full for September now. We've just accepted another gig making that SIX gigs in September! Phew!
Coming up to The Rye Sisters' Tenth Birthday
Here's a celebratory pic of a gig we did at the fabulous Caistor Arts Centre, a couple of years back. We did our very first gig in May 2016 at The Rogue Saint in Lincoln…and, unbelievably, that was ten years ago nearly! Thank you so much for your support over the years. At the time, we thought we'd just give it a go. And now look! We've produced a couple of albums and played everywhere from Western Scotland to The Gower in Wales, Bristol to Nottingham, and so many places in between. But there's no place like home. Keep 18th April free please!
We're delighted to be celebrating 10 years playing music together and we're doing a concert to celebrate on Saturday 18th April. We've had some wild adventures along the way. But it will be special to come home to Lincoln's St Mary's Guildhall to do a concert in that beyond beautiful setting. We'll be joined by friend and musician/ composer/ Distant Light album producer Roger Jackson. It will be a fabulous night out. Please do come and help us celebrate in style. We have new songs to play!
Hope to see some of you there!
Love
Sue and Ishani
Back from Didmarton Bluegrass Festival 2025!
Hello everyone…we had an absolute blast in Didmarton…mind you here we are looking slightly pensive…! Anyway, it was wonderful. Thank you for all who braved the weather all weekend and saw our set on Sunday. We were honoured to open the afternoon and were followed by our absolute song-writing and old time heroes Carl Jones and Erynn Marshall. And then…TAFF RAPIDS! If you haven't heard of these guys, you really really want to listen to them. They sing beautifully and their musicianship is completely stunning! We are next performing at home (phew!) - I mean, we could even walk there! (well Sue could)…It's at the Mary Magdalen Church on the Bail in Lincoln, opposite the Magna Carta pub and right next to the Castle and Cathedral. Do come! It's on 17th September at 7 in the evening. We can't wait: the acoustics are superb! See you there!
Ishani and Sue x
Nettleham Live! EXTRAVAGANZA - Day Festival of Folk 17th May
Nettleham Live! has been home to regularly beautiful music. That's thanks to Andy Watkins and his team - and he has been making it happen for 50 years. What he wants to do to celebrate is put on a great show, which is what he always does. We are privileged to be part of the celebrations and can't wait to see some of you there. The day features Jez Lowe and the Bad Pennies, Tim Edey, Roisin Ban, Damien Barber and Mike Wilson. And us - The Rye Sisters. This line up is just awesome! Please see this ticket link and look at ‘Shows’ for more details!
Ishani and Sue
Newbald Live - on Sunday March 23rd
NEWBALD LIVE
This month…gosh is it March already? Come and see us at Newbald Village Hall, York! 4.30 pm -an afternoon gig at a lovely civilised time on a Sunday! Please see shows for details and links to tickets!
See you there!
Ishani and Sue
Happy New Year 2025!
Hello everyone
Last year was a whirlwind. So much so, I didn't have time to write any kind of update, so busy we were with work and playing at events. We feel really lucky to have had such a full year. It was also pretty exhausting! From the warm hearted glow of Bristol Bluegrass Day to poor flooded Gower and its Blitz spirit in organisers and audience alike, we had a blast. Thank you for the opportunities and for your support in the many events up and down the UK last year.
This year we are going to take it much much easier, and use the time to write new songs (we've already started) and focus on family and work/ life balance. Whatever that is. If someone knows, can you drop us a line and give us the secret please?
So if it looks like our gig list is way shorter than usual, don't panic, we are as passionate about music as always!
Thanks lovely people
Sue and Ishani
IT'S REAL: KEEP AN EYE ON YOUR POST AND EMAILS - SHOUT OUT to you marvellous people!
Today, we have packaged up the rewards and we are shipping them out TOMORROW if you ordered a physical copy of the CD!
Thank you to:
Dr Caz, Aaron Swan, John and Jo Dunstan, Paul Brewer, Bob Delbridge and Issie Howie, Steve Lea, Sheldon, Jane Howie Alison and Graham, Françoise Evans Julian and Helen Dellar, Sean McManus, Simon and Kasey, Zanna Bleasdale, Samantha Jeffery, Linda Scrutton, Sue and Brian Kendrick, Ellie and Lloyd Siriwardena, Samantha and Paul Jeffery, Lynwen Davison, Karen Mepsted, Neil Scully, Georgina Siriwardena, Chris Harris, Christine Waldron, Andy and Elaine, Jane Wybron, Tony and Sally Bleasdale, John McNally, Dave Smith, Joe Heckels, Mal and Carol Brady, Paul Rees, Séan the Hog Hogan, Andii Gosling, Matt Ellerby Katy Baggott, Christine Phipps, Jean C, Ken Buckmann, Rachel Roberts, Mike Wistow, Ian T and Katy C, Jon Barker, Angela O'Brien, Amanda Berry, Ruby Moshenska, Rachael Elliot Wood, Jennifer Platt, Phil Davidson, Tim Grummell, Brett, Dawn and Graham Petch, Kaye Twomlow, Jane Anderson, Emily, John Murphy, Anne Wilson, Beverly, John Gosling, Ruth Stanley, Faye and Evie, Caroline and Niro Siriwardena, Alastair Fraser, Sally W, Anne Steel, Paul B, Neil Ward, Sarah, Martin Froud, Tony Heckels, Sean Clingan, Dick Embery, Louise Hiscott, John Tomlinson, Mike and Jenny Everett, Tannis C, Stacey, Derik Palmer, Ali |
ALBUM FUNDED - THANKS TO YOU! - NOW...LET'S PARTY!
Thanks to you responding so well to our Kickstarter Campaign we now have a fully funded album project. We had faith that it just might ‘fly’ - so even before we initiated the campaign, we had of course being pursing our music dreams as if they would come true.
Therefore here's where we are: we have recorded the music; added beautiful double bass to it (thank you Ben Somers!), added gorgeous cello undertones on a few tracks (Thank you Andii Gosling!) and it is being mastered as I type by the nonpareil of sound engineering, Josh Clark (Get Real Audio). The hardest work has been done by producer Roger Jackson, who took such care when recording our music - and he's ensured that it sounds just like our live sound, but with added sprinkles of fabulousness. Well he is the leader of the ‘Fabulous Festival Choir’ (Towersey, Purbeck etc) - so obviously, everything he does is fabulous! Thank you Roger Jackson!
Our Album Launch Event is on Friday 15th December at St Mary's Guildhall in Lincoln. If you have backed our campaign, and would like to come along, please do book your ticket soon - there are such limited places due to fire regs!
Here's the ticket link: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/rye-sisters-distant-light-album-launch-soiree-tickets-747922013877
HELP MAKE OUR NEW ALBUM A REALITY! PRE-ORDER AND PLEDGE HERE!
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ishanimay/the-rye-sisters-that-difficult-second-album
BIG NEWS! We've launched a kickstarter campaign to raise the funds to finish the album. Launching TODAY! (3rd October) we've got just 30 days to raise the funds to make this happen. If you like what we want to do and want to pre-order a copy of the new album, buy something a bit special as part of the promotion of the album or just chuck a friendly couple of quid our way, please follow the link above. Thank you so much 