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The Gleaners

The Gleaners are a new band of the finest award-winning folk musicians from across Australia and the UK.

Hailing from Scotland and Australia, its four members are united by a love of traditional music and a commitment to creating new joyful arrangements. They blend high quality fiddle, accordion, guitar, bouzouki, and vocals with boundless energy and an unmistakable joie de vivre. With long histories in acclaimed international folk bands, the Gleaners are made up of professional musicians and highly skilled performers.

Playing the best high energy tunes and stunning songs The Gleaners will transport you and have you singing along, and dancing in no time.

The Gleaners features Sam De Santi (Qld) on bouzouki and guitar, Fiona Black (Scotland) on accordion, Jeri Foreman (Scotland) on fiddle and Hannah Pelka-Caven (Vic) on vocals.

Guitar, Bouzouki

Sam De Santi

Sam is one of Australia's finest multi-instrumentalists, and sound engineers.

In 2015, he relocated to London and achieved recognition for his guitar skills, placing second in the Senior All Britan Fleadh Competition and Senior All Ireland Fleadh Competition in Guitar (2019).

Sam's cross-genre playing encompasses Australian, Celtic, Italian, and Bluegrass music.

Born into a musical family, Sam played Australian traditional music from a young age with his parents in Wongawilli (Bush) Band (2003-2015) and Zumpa (Italian folk).

Sam is a current member of Zumpa, The Munster Bucks, Antiri, Jane Brownlee and Samuel De Santi Duo, and The Salty Sirens.

Accordion, Fiddle

Fiona Black

From the Highlands of Scotland, Fiona Black is widely regarded as one of Scotland's most talented accordion players, and has toured the world with international folk sensation 'The Outside Track', and was a finalist in the young traditional musician of the year at the Scottish Traditional Music Awards.

Fiona has undergone rigorous training at the National Centre of Excellence in Traditional Music and completed a BA with Honours in Irish Music and Dance from the University of Limerick.

Fiona’s accordion style incorporates many different influences, intertwining her native Scottish style with Irish, Swedish and Cape Breton repertoire, always adding her distinctive rhythm and vibrancy.

Fiddle, Vocals

Jeri Foreman

Jeri is, to quote an English Folk Festival, “one of the finest fiddle players the UK has seen”.

Glasgow based, she has performed all over the world - notably in the US, the UK and across Australiasia.

Jeri is an admired session musician with acts as diverse as Scots singers, Americana bands, prog rock composers, jazz guitarists, country singers and ceilidh bands.

She has released two albums of fiddle tunes, featuring her compositions in the traditional style. Awards include the 2016 Australian Bluegrass Scholarship (first female awarded) and the 2014 “Best Composition” Golden Fiddle Award.

She has performed across the globe including Australia, Canada, China, Germany, Finland, France, Ireland, Norway, Switzerland, UK and USA. She plays stadium shows, major festival stages, small pubs, local dance halls and everything in between and has guested with heavyweights, including Billy Strings, Brittany Haas, Sierra Ferrell, Jenn Butterworth, Kris Drever and Rachel Baiman.

Jeri has featured on recordings with celebrities like Eddi Reader and Rod Stewart and opened for acts such as Shooglenifty and The East Pointers under her own name.

Her own projects include The Fountaineers (bluegrass), Jeri Foreman & Ruth Eliza (old time duo), Nice Like That (bluegrass/early country), The Household Names (modern trad) and Point Five Ceilidh Band (Scottish trad).

Vocals, Fiddle

Hannah Pelka-Caven

Hannah Pelka-Caven is a classically trained opera singer, and award winning folk singer.

She has performed across Australia in folk band 'The Raglins' at festivals from Woodford, to Port Fairy, which was nominated for Folk Band of the Year in the Australian Folk Music Awards.

Hannah has also acted as a session vocalist for pop singers including Deltra Goodrem, performed for Victorian Opera, and the Edinburgh Military Tattoo. Hannah also writes and performs cabaret songs and will be performing in acclaimed New Zealand Variety Show 'Idiom' throughout December 2023.

Hannah received the Liz Johnston Memorial Prize for Vocal Excellence at the National Folk Festival.