Twenty-four solo artists and bands have been selected from among hundreds of applicants to perform in the Emerging Artists Showcase during the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival on Friday afternoon, July 23, 2010.

Appearing in this year’s Falcon Ridge/Grassy Hill Emerging Artist Showcase are: Mia Adams and The Scenic Roots (Burlington, VT), Barnaby Bright (Brooklyn, NY), ellen cherry (Baltimore, MD), Anthony D’Amato (Blairstown, NJ), The Folkadelics (Brooklyn, NY), Caleb Hawley (New York, NY), Evie Ladin (Oakland, CA), Bobbie Lancaster (Bloomington, IN), Rebecca Loebe (Atlanta, GA), Mike Miz (Scranton, PA), Marie Moreshead (Portland, ME), Stephanie Nilles (New Orleans, LA), Chris O’Brien (Somerville, MA), Pauline Pisano (Brooklyn, NY), Nicole Reynolds (Pittsburgh, PA), Rachael Sage (New York, NY), Spuyten Duyvil (Yonkers, NY), Vanessa Torres (Portland, ME), Tripping Lily (West Yarmouth, MA), Chris Velan (Montreal, QC, Canada), Anna Vogelzang (Madison, WI), Wiggins Sisters (Wilton, CT), John Wort Hannam (Fort Macleod, AB, Canada), and Shannon Wurst (Fayetteville, AR).

The Emerging Artists Showcase is not a contest, and artists won’t be judged per se, although the audience is surveyed as to which showcase artists they’d like to see return the following year to participate in a Most Wanted Song Swap. This year’s Most Wanted Song Swap will feature The Brilliant Inventions, Chuck E. Costa and Swing Caravan.

Among the Northeast’s most popular music festivals, Falcon Ridge, now in its 22nd year, takes place July 23-25 at Dodds Farm on Route 7D in Hillsdale, New York, located in the foothills of the Berkshires near the tri-state corner of New York, Connecticut and Massachusetts. The festival features dozens of artists performing on several stages, a dance tent, children’s music and activities, and a wide array of crafts, food and other vendors.

Those camping at Falcon Ridge and staying up through the wee hours of the morning can enjoy informal jams, mini-showcases and after-hours song circles that help foster a sense of “folk” community and a different kind of festival experience. AcousticMusicScene.com and Tribes Hill (a nonprofit organization uniting musicians of the Hudson Valley region and their patrons in support of a music community coming together to celebrate human experience through song) will again co-host late-night song swaps– an invitational hour each evening, followed by open song circles — under a big white canopy tent.

More information on the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival can be found at www.falconridgefolk.com and will be posted on AcousticMusicScene.com in coming weeks.