The 2nd Annual Huntington Folk Festival is slated for Saturday, August 11, 2007, beginning at 5 p.m., on the Chapin Rainbow Stage at Heckscher Park, Prime Avenue and Route 25A in Huntington Village.  Steve Forbert, a folk-rock singer-songwriter best known for his 1979 album Jackrabbit Slim and its sprightly hit single “Romeo’s Tune,” headlines the free festival that is jointly presented by the Folk Music Society of Huntington and the Huntington Arts Council.  The evening festival is part of the larger Huntington Summer Arts Festival that features a diverse array of entertainment through August 19.

Forbert, who hails from Meridian, Mississippi and lives in Nashville, emerged on the music scene after busking for spare change in Manhattan’s Grand Central Station during the mid-1970s and is known for his well-crafted and tuneful songs.  Although touring in support of a June release, Strange Names & New Sensations, Forbert has been known to eschew set lists and will likely perform older tunes as well.  “Romeo’s Tune” and “Goin’ Down to Laurel,” both written nearly 30 years ago, have been licensed for inclusion in a major studio movie, “Margot at the Wedding,” that’s slated for release this fall.

Opening for Forbert is Beaucoup Blue, a Philadelphia-based father and son acoustic blues and roots duo that evoked a well-deserved standing ovation following their rousing performance as part of the Folk Music Society of Huntington’s first annual Emerging Artists Showcase in January.  Charlie Backfish, host of WUSB-FM’s “Sunday Street” will introduce them.

Preceding the evening’s featured concert at 8:30 p.m. will be three on-stage song swaps featuring talented performers from Long Island and throughout the East Coast.

            Long Island singer-songwriters Steve Robinson, Glen Roethel and Denise Romas — all of whom have been featured performers in the Folk Music Society of Huntington’s monthly Hard Luck Cafe series — as well as blues harpist Ken Korb and ragtime fingerstyle guitarist Bruce MacDonald, share the stage and kick things off at 5 p.m.

Following that at 6 p.m., Richard Cuccaro, editor & publisher of Acoustic Live in New York City & Beyond, emcees a song swap featuring Meg Braun, an Ohio-bred and Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter; Lara Herscovitch, a Connecticut-based singer-songwriter and 2006 finalist in the John Lennon Songwriting Contest, whose music  blends folk, pop and world styles; Anthony da Costa, a 16-year-old singer-songwriter from Pleasantville, N.Y., who was a winner in the prestigious Kerrville New Folk Competition this year; and Paul Sachs, a Manhattan-based singer-songwriter and fingerstyle guitarist.

At 7 p.m., Michael Kornfeld, editor & publisher of  AcousticMusicScene.com, emcees a song swap featuring Phil Minissale, “The Long Island Blues Boy,” who’s been impressing people locally with his fingerstyle guitar playing; Danielle Miraglia, a soulful and raspy-voiced Boston area singer-songwriter and delta blues-influenced guitarist (accompanied by Tom Bianchi on bass); and James O’Malley, a gifted and gentle-voiced Long Island-based singer-songwriter and two-time finalist in the Plowshares Songwriting Contest.

“We encourage people to bring their lawn chairs and picnic suppers and come join us for what promises to be an enjoyable evening,” says the Folk Music Society of Huntington’s Karen Finkenberg, who co-chairs the festival with Kornfeld.