News – Northeast U.S.

Falcon Ridge Folk Festival Goes Virtual

Over the span of more than 30 years, the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival has drawn thousands of music lovers to Hillsdale, New York in the foothills of the Berkshires near the tri-state corner of NY, Connecticut and Massachusetts. Although the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic prompted the cancellation of this year’s festival, a virtual one will take place online in its place over the same extended weekend – Thursday, July 30 - Sunday, August 2, 2020. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]

Clearwater Sets 2020 Virtual Revival, June 20

Clearwater’s Great Hudson River Revival, a festival celebrating environmental activism and education, traditionally held over the Father’s Day weekend, won’t be taking place at Croton Point Park in Croton-On-Hudson in New York’s Hudson Valley this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, you can enjoy music by some of the artists who would have been there and more from the comfort of your own home on Saturday, June 20, during Clearwater’s 2020 Virtual Revival. [To continue reading this article and see the complete festival schedule, click on the headline.]

Entries Sought in CT Folk’s 2020 Grassy Hill Songwriting Competition

March 27 is the deadline for singer-songwriters to enter the 2020 Grassy Hill Songwriting Competition that is held in conjunction with the Connecticut Folk Festival & Green Expo. Five finalists will be invited to perform two of their submitted songs during the annual free outdoor event that takes place in New Haven’s Edgerton Park on Saturday, September 12, from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]

Falcon Ridge ‘Most Wanted’ Artists Named

Scott Cook, Zoe Mulford and South for Winter have been invited to participate in the Most Wanted Song Swap at this summer’s Falcon Ridge Folk Festival. They were chosen in balloting by 2019 festival attendees from among 24 artists/bands who performed in last year’s Falcon Ridge/Grassy Hill Emerging Artist Showcase. [To continue reading this article -- that also includes several video links, as well as information on applying for this year's Emerging Artist Showcase -- click on the headline.]
Ron Olesko Receives NERFA's Creator of the Year Award for Folk Music Notebook

Ron Olesko Receives NERFA’s Creator of the Year Award for Folk Music Notebook

Veteran folk DJ Ron Olesko was the recipient of the inaugural Creator of the Year Award presented by the Northeast Regional Folk Alliance (NERFA) during the nonprofit organization’s 25th annual conference in Stamford, CT, Nov. 7-10, 2019. Olesko, a NERFA stalwart, who has been hosting a folk show (Traditions) on WFDU-FM (Teaneck, NJ), was recognized for launching Folk Music Notebook, an online radio station showcasing folk music 24/7 earlier this year. [To continue reading this article -- which includes mention of the other award-winners and some other conference highlights -- click on the headline.]
NERFA Celebrates 25 Years of Music and Community at Its Annual Conference, Nov. 7-10

NERFA Celebrates 25 Years of Music and Community at Its Annual Conference, Nov. 7-10

Some 700 performing artists, presenters, promoters, agents and managers, folk DJs, and others actively engaged in contemporary and traditional folk music are expected to converge on the Crowne Plaza in Stamford, Connecticut, Nov. 7-10, 2019 for the 25th Annual Northeast Regional Folk Alliance (NERFA) Conference. AcousticMusicScene.com will again have a major presence as it hosts afternoon and late-night song swaps in addition to its popular Midnight Hoot at the close of the conference’s first day. [To continue reading this article previewing the conference and including the complete AcousticMusicScene.com showcase lineup, click on the headline.]

Monica Rizzio Wins 2019 Grassy Hill Songwriting Competition at CT Folk Fest

Singer-Songwriter Monica Rizzio was named the winner of the 2019 Grassy Hill Songwriting Competition following a final round featuring four artists during the 14th annual CT Folk Fest & Green Expo in New Haven, Connecticut on Sept. 7. As the songwriting competition winner, she receives a cash prize and will have a performance slot in next year’s festival produced by the nonprofit organization CT Folk. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]

CT Folk Fest & Green Expo Set for Sept. 7, 2019

Donna the Buffalo, an Americana roots band, headlines CT Folk’s 14th annual Connecticut Folk Festival & Green Expo. The daylong event takes place Saturday, Sept. 7, in New Haven’s Edgerton Park. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]

Juried Official Showcase Artists Chosen for 2019 NERFA Conference in Stamford, CT, Nov. 7-10

More than 40 artists/acts have been selected for juried formal and semi-formal showcases during the 25th annual Northeast Regional Folk Alliance (NERFA) Conference, slated for Nov. 7-10, 2019 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Stamford, CT. [To continue reading this article, click on he headline.]
Philadelphia Folk Festival Set for Aug. 15-18

Philadelphia Folk Festival Set for Aug. 15-18

Thousands of music lovers are expected to converge on Old Pool Farm in Upper Salford Township, near bucolic Schwenksville, Pennsylvania, Aug. 15-18, for the annual Philadelphia Folk Festival that will feature more than 100 artists and acts on eight stages. Now in its 58th year, the family-friendly event, produced and presented by the Philadelphia Folksong Society, is the longest continuously running outdoor music festival in North America. [To continue reading this article -- which includes audio and video links -- click on the headline.]

AcousticMusicScene.com Hosts Song Swaps During Huntington Folk Festival, July 27

Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Loudon Wainwright III headlines the 14th Annual Huntington Folk Festival on Saturday, July 27, at Heckscher Park, located off Main Street (Route 25A) and Prime Avenue, in Huntington, New York. Opening for Wainwright on the park’s [Harry] Chapin Rainbow Stage at 8 p.m. that evening will be his daughter, Lucy Wainwright Roche. Extending from 11 a.m. to 10:30 p.m., with a dinner break from 6-8 p.m., the free event – co-presented by the Folk Music Society of Huntington and the Huntington Arts Council – is part of the 54th Huntington Summer Arts Festival. [To continue reading this article and see the complete festival schedule, click on the headline.]

New Bedford Folk Festival Set for July 6-7, 2019

The New Bedford Folk Festival is one of the Northeast’s most pleasant, refined and enjoyable music festivals. Slated for Saturday-Sunday, July 6-7, 2019 in New Bedford, Massachusetts, the family-oriented festival, now in its 24th year, takes over the cobblestoned streets of this historic New England port city –- which is part of the Whaling National Historic Park. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]