January is Music Festival Time in Florida

Floridians and visitors to the Sunshine State have opportunities to escape the winter doldrums and enjoy some fine music in mid-January. Both the South Florida Folk Festival and the 30A Songwriters Festival take place over the same weekend in different parts of the state.

South Florida Folk Festival

The Kennedys, Zoe Lewis, No Fuss and Feathers, and Spuyten Duyvil headline the 2016 South Florida Folk Festival. Presented by the nonprofit Broward Folk Club, the festival takes place Saturday-Sunday, Jan. 16-17. More than 40 musicians will perform on two stages at Fort Lauderdale’s Hugh Taylor Birch State Park (3109 E. Sunrise Blvd., just west of A1A) over the weekend.

Since its inception, the festival has been a combination of music fest, family reunion, community gathering, and weekend musical retreat. In addition to the festival’s headliners, a number of Florida-based musicians and other national touring acts are slated to perform. These include Ruth & Max Bloomquist, Ellen Bukstel, Kate Callahan, Annie & Rod Capps, Jud Caswell, Vincent Cross, Jennings & Keller, Michael Johnathon, Rod MacDonald & Rex Blazer, Danielle Miraglia, Grant Maloy Smith, Tret Fure, Amy Carol Webb, Ely Wininger, and John Wort Hannam & Scott Duncan (all the way from Alberta, Canada), among others. Some of the performing artists also will lead workshops, while there also will be a jam area for those who enjoy playing traditional folk and other acoustic styles of music. Campfires also are planned for both evenings after 8 p.m.

Kicking-off the weekend’s musical festivities on Saturday, Jan. 16, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., will be the 12 finalists in the festival’s singer-songwriter competition, each of whom will perform two songs. They are Eric Bannan (Pittsboro, NC), Cindy Bear (Jacksonville, FL), John John Brown (Winter Garden, FL), Mary Beth Campbell (Orlando, FL), Jane Fallon (Brookline, NH), Larry Mangum (Jacksonville, FL), Kirsten Maxwell (Huntington, NY), Al Scortino (Sebastian, FL), Jan Seides (Austin, TX), Debbie Tassone & Gary Frost (Stuart, FL), and Joe Virga (Cape Coral, FL). Three winners selected by a panel of judges will each receive the Vic Heyman Songwriting Award – a $200 cash prize and an invitation to perform at next year’s festival, as two of last year’s winners -– Robin Greenstein (New York, NY) and Martin Swinger (Augusta, ME) — will this year. In addition, all winners and runners-up may be afforded the opportunity to play ‘in-the-round’ during the festival’s second day, on Sunday, Jan. 17.

The annual songwriting competition is co-presented by Reba Heyman. Along with her late husband, Vic, Reba has been an integral part of the folk community in South Florida and nationally for many years. The couple has been known for decades for their generous financial backing of folk festivals and artists. They formerly ran a concert series in Rockville, Maryland known as Vic’s Music Corner, have established a scholarship fund for artists, and served on the boards of several music festivals.

For more information on the festival, which is co-sponsored by Sea Turtle Oversight Protection (STOP), and to order tickets in advance, visit www.southfloridafolkfest.com.

30A Songwriters Festival

Now in its seventh year, the 30A Songwriters Festival is set for Friday-Sunday, Jan. 15-17. More than 150 artists are slated to perform at more than 25 venues and locations along the northern gulf coast’s scenic Highway 30A in Walton County.

Co-produced by Russell Carter Artist Management and the Cultural Arts Alliance of Walton County, the 30A Songwriters Festival features artists working in such genres as Americana, blues, country, folk, and soul. Headliners include Jackson Browne, Grace Potter, Shovels & Rope, and Women, Wine & Song featuring Matraca Berg, Suzi Bogguss and Gretchen Peters. Although the festival schedule has not yet been finalized and posted online, among the other confirmed artists are Caroline Aiken, Dan Bern, Jeff Black, Randall Bramblett, Kristian Bush (Sugarland), Hayes Carll, Joe Crookston, Kris Delmhorst, Brigitte DeMeyer, Ani DiFranco, Annalise Emerich, Jay Farrar (from Son Volt), Ashleigh Flynn, Jeffrey Foucalt, Griffin House, Sonya Kitchell, Jim Lauderdale, Toby Lightman, Liz Longley, Heather Maloney, Parker Millsap, Shawn Mullins, David Olney, Grant Lee Phillips, Steve Poltz, Joel Rafael, Willis Alan Ramsey, Hayley Reardon, BettySoo, and Caroline Spence.

These artists and more will perform at amphitheaters, town halls, restaurants, theaters, bars and covered patios with capacities ranging from intimate venues that can seat 75 people to others that can accommodate several thousand.

“The 30A Songwriters Festival is one of the most diverse songwriters festivals I’ve ever been to,” says Shawn Mullins. “The wide range of songwriters performing, the great crowds, the unique venues, and the beautiful location all made for an incredible experience.”

Festival weekend passes, priced at $250, can be purchased online at www.30asongwritersfestival.com, where you’ll also find more information on the festival, its performers and venues – including a complete schedule when it’s available. Tickets may also be purchased in-person at the Cultural Arts Alliance’s office in South Walton and at Central Square Records in Seaside.

NPR’s Folk Alley, a multimedia music service produced by WKSU in Ohio, will be on site throughout the weekend, interviewing artists and filming and recording performances – segments of which will air throughout the year on the syndicated radio show, Live From Folk Alley, as well as on its website and mobile app.