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Lena Spencer
Photographer Unknown |
"Lena Spencer is the creator of an artistic milieu unparalleled in music history in this century. This is no exaggeration. A glance at the list of performers at the Caffè Lena over the past quarter century is like reading a Who's Who in American folk, country and western, blues and acoustic pop music for the same period. Her achievement is unique and unrivaled, and those of us who are lucky enough to know and work with her stand almost in awe of her talent- the ability to spot, to present, and to nurture talent, which is the rarest talent of all."
—Dave Van Ronk, 1987
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Lena Spencer
Photo: William Carr |
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"Lena is an old friend, and her Caffè must be famous throughout the English-speaking world, at least. The human race needs more perservering people like Lena."
—Pete Seeger, 1987
"It has not been easy to keep the Caffè together and it has been beset with its share of hardship, financial struggle, disappointments and sometimes disillusion. The incentive to carry on has been the awareness of its importance to the folk performers who have a place to share their rare talents, to appreciative audiences and the importance to the audience to have a place to come to that is not steeped in the brash commercialism of a dollars-and-cents oriented business culture.
I have never allowed myself to succumb to the money-making attitudes of music clubs who insist that the artists they engage must be established in the field with national reputations and best-selling albums. The coffeehouse should be a showcase for deserving artists as well as established musicians. Educate your audiences to expect the best in musical talent, familiar or unfamiliar, and always be governed by the dictates of good taste."
—Lena Spencer on running a coffeehouse
"Compiled and edited by Jocelyn Arem, Caffè Lena historian/Board of Directors with special thanks to the Saratoga History Museum"
This project is made possible by the generous support of The Sparkplug Foundation & Skidmore College’s President’s Discretionary Fund
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