Old Songs hires new executive director

Founder Andy Spence to stay as emeritus, advisor

Old Songs, Inc., the organization behind the venerable folk festival and Voorheesville arts center, has appointed singer, folk-music administrator and longtime Old Songs attendee and performer Joy C. Bennett as executive director.

Her appointment was effective Sept. 5. She succeeds retiring founder Andy Spence, who will remain as executive director emeritus and advisor to Bennett and the board of directors.

“Joy Bennett’s background in business and folk music, along with her familiarity with the Old Songs organization, made her the ideal candidate for the position,” said board president Phil Teumim in a statement.

Co-director of the Traditional Music and Dance Camp held in Plymouth, Mass., Bennett spent 20 years on the board of the Folk Music Society of New York — 10 as president — and is a founding member of the all-female a cappella group the Johnson Girls, which sings maritime music and performed at Old Songs in 2013. She also spent 26 years in various positions with the New York City Transit arm of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

Bennett, who relocated to the Capital Region from Binghamton, is a graduate of New York University.