Natalie MacMaster & Donnell Leahy, Hot Club of Cowtown and The Klezmatics headline the annual Susquehanna Folk Festival that that takes place at downtown York, Pennsylvania’s Appell Center, August 9-11. Although the festival’s matinee and evening concerts –- as well as contra and swing dances — are ticketed, much of its daytime programming (which includes live music, an emerging artist showcase, jams, and family-friendly activities) is free.
A fiery, world-renowned fiddler and talented step dancer, multiple Juno Award-winner Natalie MacMaster is among Cape Breton, Nova Scotia’s most notable musical exports, while her husband and musical collaborator Donnell Leahy is also a first-rate fiddler recognized for his ability to synthesize traditional influences with contemporary Celtic/folk sensibilities.
[Here’s a link to listen to “Women of the House,” a song by the Celtic duo that topped the Folk Alliance International folk radio chart in March 2023: https://youtube.com/watch?v=PFsR13T0pFw.]
Hot Club of Cowtown is an internationally touring, Austin, Texas-based hot jazz and western swing trio that has also been U.S. State Department –sponsored musical ambassadors to Algeria, Armenia, Azerbaijan, the Republic of Georgia, and the Sultanate of Oman.
The Klezmatics are Grammy Award-winning purveyors of Eastern European Jewish music who have been entertaining audiences for nearly 40 years with joyously unconventional Klezmer music that is steeped in tradition and spirituality, along with contemporary influences.
Among the other festival performers are Hubby Jenkins (a multi-instrumental roots artist formerly with the Carolina Chocolate Drops whose music melds country blues, ragtime and traditional jazz), Larry & Joe (a multi-instrumental duo fusing Venezuelan and Appalachian folk music), and Poor Man’s Gambit (a young Celtic trio that will be Natalie MacMaster & Donnell Leahy’s special guests on Friday night, Aug. 9).
Free Folk Saturday on August 10, from 10 a.m. – 3:20 p.m. will feature an Emerging Artist Showcase, folk dancing, hands-on activities in a Young Folks Zone, an old-time jam, and a performance by Bobbi Carmichael, a Lancaster County-based singer-songwriter. Free Folk Sunday will feature performances by local artists Brazilian Vibes and Tanjo and Crow, as well as Limberjacks & Limberjanes and The Archive Challenge. Hosted by Jennifer Cutting and Stephen Winnick from the Library of Congress’ American Folklife Center, The Achieve Challenge will feature several artists performing their interpretations of songs from the Center’s extensive collection of American folk music.
Earlier this year, artists were invited to apply to participate in a Saturday afternoon Emerging Artist Showcase during the festival. As previously reported on AcousticMusicScene.com, applicants were asked to share short bios, two or more video links, information documenting their online presence, and high-resolution publicity photos.The five jury-selected finalists are Dann Pell, The Honey Badgers, Red South & Blue Dawn, Erin Lunsford, and Joseph Alton Miller. Each will perform a 20-minute set, followed by a short interview. Four judges will evaluate their live performances based on stage appearance, originality, personality, and overall consistency. The winner will open for Hot Club of Cowtown at the Capital Theatre that evening and receive a $1,000 cash prize.
The Susquehanna Folk Music Society – a Harrisburg, PA-based nonprofit organization, organizes and presents the annual festival. The organization — which bills itself as Central Pennsylvania’s grassroots voice for folk music and dance — has been presenting traditional, contemporary and international folk music and dance events since 1985 and the festival since 2015. For more information on the festival and the society, visit sfmsfolk.org.
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