Oxford label Park Records have some of the biggest names in the folk world on their list - Pentangle, Kathryn Tickle, Maddy Prior and Steeleye Span - so for new artist Katie Dohertyok to be signed to them is quite a coup for her.

But clearly they recognised a real talent in the making. Katie, a product of the pioneering folk studies programme at Newcastle University, has been winning over critics with her voice and songwriting on her debut album Bridges, the title track of which has already earned her an award. Comparisons will I'm sure be made with Kate Rusby but with a voice reminiscent of the great Jacqui McShee she is already showing a maturity of style of her own and that rare ability to make an original song sound like a traditional such as with Bonnie Laddie. Watch out for the name.

Klezmer and gypsy music is undergoing a renaissance, so the release of the Téa Hodzic Trio's album Stay Awhile - Songs from the Balkans and Beyond (Taith Records) was a welcome addition to the music collection. Téa Hodzic hails from Sarajevo and she considers the songs on the album "to be the jewels of traditional music from my former country". She certainly sings with the pain and intensity of that troubled land and is described as the "Balkan Bonnie Rait" - but why the need to compare her with a rock singer? Her trio is made up of two highly accomplished British musicians - Luke Carver Gossok and Oliver Wilson-Dickson - and together they perform music that moves you emotionally - and moves your feet, too.

Finally, lovers of folk dance will probably have already come across new local ceilidh band Boldwood, so a mention for their album Feet, don't fail me now (Hobgoblin Records). For future gigs visit www.boldwood.co.uk