Katie Howson: Looking East, Looking West
From Chatterbox with Mel Biggs by Mel Biggs Music
April 5, 2026 · 1h 15m · Episode 28
About this episode
Katie Howson discusses her extensive career in traditional music and her contributions to the genre.
Katie Howson, often thought of as a one-row player but these days she plays mainly D/G, is best known as a driving force in a number of significant English ceilidh bands including the Old Hat Dance Band and PolkaWorks, playing melodeon and harmonica. She grew up in the East Anglian tradition, playing alongside legendary musicians such as Oscar Woods and Dolly Curtis, but all along, she has had a very eclectic wider repertoire stretching from south west Ireland to the south west states of America, and north east England to north east Australia. 2026 will be her 50th year playing the melodeon, which will be marked by a solo presentation “Carry on Squeezing” at summer festivals. As well as being a musician and educator, Katie is also a researcher, historian and writer on various aspects of traditional music, song and dance, with several books and websites to her name. She has made various media appearances including film and TV. Together with her late husband John Howson, she founded and ran the East Anglian Traditional Music Trust from 2000 to 2017. During this tenure she produced the annual “Melodeons and More” workshop days which were much-loved events in their day, and organised…
People in this episode
Host: Mel Biggs
Guest: Katie Howson
Topics covered
- traditional music
- melodeon
- ceilidh bands
- music education
- music history
- cultural heritage
Keywords
- melodeon
- ceilidh
- traditional music
- East Anglia
- music history
- music education
- Oscar Woods
- Dolly Curtis
- EFDSS Gold Badge Award
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: East Anglian Traditional Music Trust, EFDSS
More episodes of Chatterbox with Mel Biggs
- Anna Pack: From Fan Girls To Band Girls · May 31, 2026 · 1h 6m
- Nick Wiseman-Ellis: Weaving Musical Kinship · May 3, 2026 · 1h 1m
- Filippo Gambetta: Ciao From Madagascar · March 2, 2026 · 1h 2m
- Jo Freya: Mentor. Icon. Legend. · February 2, 2026 · 1h 7m
- Mel Biggs: Trusting Instinct & Opportunity · January 5, 2026 · 1h 7m
- Roger Watson: Transforming Tradition · December 1, 2025 · 1h 9m
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Chatterbox with Mel Biggs podcast page.