The official showcases take place Friday and Saturday evenings from 7:15-10:15 p.m., with each artist/act performing a 15-minute set. Unplugged guerrilla showcases follow from 10:40 p.m. to 2 a.m. Also on the agenda are daytime panel discussions and workshops, a Wisdom of the Elders session, a couple of film screenings and Q & A sessions, several thematic song circles, an open mic, peer group and one-on-one mentoring sessions, an awards presentation, an exhibit hall, communal meals, and plenty of other opportunities to learn, share and network –- including during built-in afternoon breaks in the programming.

SERFA is a regional affiliate of Folk Alliance International (folk.org), a nonprofit organization that aims to serve, strengthen and engage the global folk music community through preservation, presentation and promotion. Formed in 2002, SERFA (serfa.org) exists to promote, develop and celebrate the diverse heritage of roots and indigenous music, dance, storytelling and related arts in the southeastern United States. SERFA has produced an annual conference since 2008. Its conference’s move to Black Mountain this year marks a return of sorts. Prior to the event’s move to Chattanooga, Tennessee in 2019, it had taken place for eight consecutive years at the Montreat Conference Center, a few miles down the road and also nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina. The COVID-19 pandemic prompted SERFA– like other FAI regional affiliates – to pivot to an online event last year, SERFA in Session: A Virtual Gathering.

Acclaimed Songwriter Thomm Jutz to Deliver Keynote Address

Named Songwriter of the Year in 2021 by the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) Thomm Jutz (pronounced “Yootz”) has written a number of bluegrass hits and his songs have been recorded by Balsam Range, Nanci Griffith, John Prine, and The SteelDrivers, among others. A native of Germany who has called Nashville home for many years, Jutz toured with such artists as Griffith, Mary Gauthier, David Olney, and Kim Richey; built a recording studio and produced albums for other artists – including Country Music Hall of Famers Bill Anderson and Mac Wiseman. He received a Grammy nomination for Best Bluegrass Album in 2020 for To Live in Two Worlds, Volume 1 and is featured in the Country Music Hall of Fame’s American Currents exhibit, which is slated to extend from 2022-2023.

Afternoon Programming Includes Workshops, Film Screenings, Song Circles, Wisdom of the Elders, and More

Nearly 20 workshops and panel discussions will delve into such topics as African-American contributions to Southern Appalachian music and dance, basics of piedmont picking, creating in community: the Jack Hardy Songwriters Exchange method, expanding our folk community, free-range folklore: an introduction to the Music Maker method, getting the gig and being invited back, the magic of collaboration, media coverage and strategy, music off the radar: making money and making a difference, simple measures for drastic guitar playing improvement, social media & fan engagement, songwriter residencies, and trends in folk radio and radio promotion.

Besides the workshops and panel discussions, there will be screenings of two recent music documentaries – The Mountain Minor and Nobody Famous – followed by Q & A sessions, as well as a Wisdom of the Elders session, several thematic song circles (songs of joy, struggle, place, and the environment), and one-on-one mentoring sessions during the afternoons.

The Mountain Minor is an award-winning narrative feature film that provides an authentic and respectful glimpse of Appalachian culture, music and history; of the joys and challenges experienced by the folks who have kept traditional mountain music alive. Loosely based on a true story, the film follows five generations of a family from their roots in eastern Kentucky in 1932 to a stage in Cincinnati, Ohio today as told by a man who yearns to return to his Kentucky home after migrating with his family to southwest Ohio during the Great Depression. Written-and directed by Dale Farmer (himself an old-time musician) and produced by Susan Pepper, a Cincinnati native now based in North Carolina, the film notably features traditional Appalachian musicians in acting roles. Among them are The Tillers, Smithsonian Folkways artist Elizabeth LaPrelle, banjoist and fiddler Dan Gellert, and Pepper herself. Following a series of festival screenings, The Mountain Minor had a limited theatrical run in late 2019-early 2020 due to the pandemic. It has aired on some public television stations and is available for home viewing.

Named Best Documentary in the 2021 New Jersey Film Festival and Best Music Documentary in the Seattle Film Festival earlier this year, Nobody Famous is set against the backdrop of the socially and politically volatile 1960s and traces the quick rise and ready fall of the folk-pop trio Pozo Seco Singers as folk music’s zeitgeist gives way to the heavy rhythm of rock & roll. Nobody Famous features Taylor Pie (Susan Taylor), who helped form the trio with Don Williams in the early 1960s and has been a solo singer-songwriter and musician since it disbanded. As Taylor Pie – then fresh from her first year in college – recounts today, while Williams went on to become one of the most successful country music artists of the 20th century, she shied away from fame and fortune, instead choosing to “go where the folk wind blows” – embracing her own path, her own unique artistry, and her own individual identity in the process.

Dozens of Artists to be Featured in Official and Guerilla Showcases

Following the official showcases (as well as on Thursday overnight), late-night guerilla showcases will take place in various rooms for several hours. AcousticMusicScene.com, which has had a presence at the SERFA Conference since 2011, will host late-night song swaps and a midnight hoot (featuring two-dozen artists/acts – each performing one song) on Thursday, May 12, overnight. The AcousticMusicScene.com Midnight Hoot is a pre-arranged, round-robin song swap, a three-plus-hour version of which has been a popular staple at Northeast Regional Folk Alliance (NERFA) conferences since 2007, will feature two-dozen artists/acts – each performing one song. The Midnight Hoot is intended to provide concert and festival presenters, folk DJs and others with an opportunity to get a small sampling of the music of a lot of artists in a short period of time on the conference’s opening night. It also enables artists to enjoy each other’s company and music before the conference really gets into full swing on Friday.

Here’s the AcousticMusicScene.com showcase schedule:

11 p.m. PuffBunny Records Songswarm: Taylor Pie, Nancy K. Dillon,Nicholas Edward Williams

11:30 p.m. Texas!: Andrew Delaney, Claudia Gibson, Scott Martin

12:00 a.m. AcousticMusicScene.com Midnight Hoot, Part 1:

(one song each, not necessarily in order of appearance)

Antonio Andrade, Ashley & Simpson, Meg Braun, Matt Burke, Cheryl

Cawood, Emerald Rae, Kala Farnham, Alice Hasen, Lara Herscovitch,

Lucy Isabel, Rob Lytle, Karyn Oliver

1:00 a.m. AcousticMusicScene.com Midnight Hoot, Part 2:

(one song each, not necessarily in order of appearance)

Amy & Mike Aiken, Crowes Pasture, Dan & Faith, Paul Helou,

Letters To Abigail, Crys Matthews, Brant Miller, Halley Neal, Sam

Robbins, Hank Stone, Annette Wasilik, Elly Wininger

Editor’s Note: In addition to hosting the AcousticMusicScene.com guerrilla showcase and moderating the Q & A session with Taylor Pie following the screening o the award-winning documentary Nobody Famous that features her, I will be assisting PuffBunny Records (Taylor Pie’s label, for which I handle public relations) with its Friday night guerrilla showcase and an exhibit hall table. I will also again be a mentor offering advice and counsel on various aspects of PR, social media and strategic communications. A board member of Folk Alliance International, I’m a past president of Northeast Regional Folk Alliance (NERFA) and continue to serve on its board of directors. I have been an active participant at SERFA conferences since 2011.

The show can be viewed online at Harbortown Music’s Facebook page or YouTube channel. It may also be shared via the AcousticMusicScene.com group on Facebook. Although there is no set fee to view the livestream, tips for the artists would be most appreciated (suggested donation: $20) and may be made via paypalme.com/harbortownmusic.

About the Artists:

One of the most acclaimed voices in contemporary folk music, Amy Speace was discovered in 2006 by Judy Collins and signed to her record label. The Americana Music Association UK named the title track of her album Me and the Ghost of Charlemagne was named International Song of the Year in 2020. Speace’s latest release, 2021’s There Used To Be Horses Here. chronicles the year between the birth of her son and the death of her father. A new album, Tucson, is set for release this year. Collins, Red Molly, and Blues Hall of Famer Sid Selvidge among others, have also recorded her songs. Speace founded the East Nashville Song Salon in 2010 and teaches songwriting and performance at conferences, institutions, and privately. For more information, visit amyspeace.com.

Accompanying herself on piano, Kate Klim, whose songs mix her folk and pop sensibilities, was a winner of the prestigious Kerrville New Folk Competition in 2010, has been part of the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival Emerging Artist Showcase, and has been a finalist in the Mountain Stage Newsong Contest, the Mid-Atlantic Song Contest and the Telluride Troubadour Competition, among others. After a hiatus of a few years surrounding the birth of her two sons, she returned to the studio in early spring 2020 to begin recording her fourth album. Released earlier this month, Something Green is an album about hope, love, change, and new growth. For more information and to listen to some of her songs, visit kateklim.com.

Both artists also have YouTube channels. Here’s a link to view an official video of Amy Speace performing the title track of There Used To Be Horses There. And here’s a link to view the official lyric video for “Something Green,” the title track of Kate Klim’s new release.

About Your Hosts:

Michael Kornfeld, a veteran strategic communications and public relations professional – whose clients have included a number of independent recording artists and labels – launched AcousticMusicScene.com in 2007 to provide news, information and commentary for the folk, roots and singer-songwriter communities. The longtime president of the Folk Music Society of Huntington, a nonprofit presenting organization on Long Island, NY, Kornfeld also serves on the boards of Folk Alliance International and NERFA, curates the annual Huntington Folk Festival, emcees concerts, and hosts showcases and mentors artists at various music conferences and festivals.

Kathy Sands-Boehmer is an enthusiastic and tireless presenter, promoter and supporter of independent musicians. For years, she booked and promoted artists, new and old, at a well-respected 225-seat venue north of Boston, Massachusetts; was an active leader of the Boston Area Coffeehouse Association (BACHA); and has also mentored and managed artists. She blogs about all kinds of great music for Everything Sundry and recently launched Harbortown Music as a resource for musicians and venues — building community, while promoting and presenting high-quality music. Sands-Boehmer works with Stephen Bach of The Digital Docs, who engineers all of Harbortown Music’s virtual shows and lends his technical expertise to the participating artists as well.

“What began as a way to fill a tough booking weekend in 1998 has become the single–biggest way that we help develop new talent and celebrate the Boston-Cambridge area’s amazing music scene,” said Matt Smith, managing director of Club Passim and founder of the semi-annual Campfire Festival. Another edition takes place over the Memorial Day Weekend.

Originally called the Cutting Edge of the Campfire, the festival combined the idea of artists sitting around the campfire playing music with our commitment to bringing new talent to Club Passim’s attentive listening audience, according to Smith. Among the artists who played the festival prior to becoming more established in folk and roots music circles are Lake Street Dive, Anais Mitchell, Ryan Montbleu, Josh Ritter, and Regina Spektor.

“Today, Campfire. is as much about the community as it is about the music,” said Smith, noting the communitarian spirit that the event has helped to foster among artists and audiences alike. Although solo and band sets are sprinkled throughout the course of each day and night of the festival, in-the-round performances featuring several songwriters swapping tunes have become a highlight of the event. These songwriter rounds can lead to spontaneous collaborations, friendships and gig-sharing among artists who previously didn’t know each other, while also providing unique musical moments for audiences and exposing them to a few different artists in a short span of time. Smith also noted that singer-songwriters Deb Talan and Steve Tannen of The Weepies met at a Campfire.

Among the notable artists who will be performing during he 2018 Labor Day Weekend edition of Campfire. Festival, for which tickets are $10/day or $25 for a weekend pass, are Lisa Bastoni, Daniel Champagne, Yann Falquet (from the Quebecois trad folk group Genticorum), Ian Fitzgerald, Jefferson Hamer, Alice Howe, Jim Infantino, Kate Klim, Rose Polenzani, Hayley Sabella, Ashley Storrow, Dietrich Strause, Lloyd Thayer, and Jim Trick. Closing out the musical festivities on Monday night will be The Singer and The Songwriter, an indie jazz-folk duo from Los Angeles.

The full line-up appears below and also can be found, along with links to artist pages, online at
https://www.passim.org/live-music/club-passim/campfire-festival/. To watch the musical festivities at Campfire online, visit https://www.concertwindow.com/clubpassim.

Although it didn’t adopt its current name until incorporating as a nonprofit in 1994, Club Passim has its roots in what was then Club 47, a folk club that opened its doors at another Cambridge location in 1958 before moving to its current location on Palmer Street five years later and changing its name to Club Passim in 1969. It has been a cornerstone of the arts community of New England for more than half a century. Club Passim is one of the few “listening rooms” in the greater Boston-Cambridge area. It’s a place where audiences and artists can interact with one another in an intimate setting. More than 400 shows are presented each year, featuring artists from a broad range of musical genres. A musical Mecca for the folk and singer-songwriter scene since its early days, Club Passim retains a folk aesthetic. Among the folk luminaries who have graced its stage are Joan Baez, Shawn Colvin, Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Tom Rush, and Suzanne Vega.

Booking gigs may be the primary objective of some performers who attend the annual NERFA conferences, and many presenters and folk DJs do scout out new artists and those whom they have not previously heard and seen in live performance. However, the conference experience is much more than that; it’s really about forging connections, building community, and attending workshops and seminars to learn about options to further careers.

As previously reported on AcousticMusicScene.com, taking center stage during this year’s conference will be 14 artists/acts selected by a panel of judges, with each to perform a 15-minute formal showcase set in the resort’s theater on Friday and Saturday nights. Slated to perform on Friday are Billy Jonas and The Billy Jonas Band, Tall Heights, Connie Kaldor, OCEAN, Jean Rohe and the End of the World Show, Darryl Purpose, and The Hickory Project. Saturday’s Formal Showcase lineup features Comas, Natalia Zukerman, Miles to Dayton, Amy Speace, Roosevelt Dime, Buddy Mondlock, and The Boxcar Lilies.

After the formal showcases, attendees will shuffle between four conference rooms to catch short sets by 40 additional artists who were selected by a different set of judges. Performing in Quad Showcases on Friday night are Mike Agranoff, C. Daniel Boling, Meg Braun, Michael Braunfeld, Jon Brooks, Cary Cooper, Joe Craven, John Flynn, Fred Gillen, Jr., Hannah & Maggie, Matt Harlan, Kim & Reggie Harris, Kate Klim, Zoe Mulford, Jory Nash, Red Moon Road, Janet Robin, SONiA, Spuyten Duyvil, and Sloan Wainwright. Saturday’s Quad Showcase artists include Amy Black, Roy Bookbinder, Rich Deans, Aengus Finnan, Ian Fitzgerald, Harpeth Rising, Robby Hecht, Louise Mosrie, Murphy Beds, Karyn Oliver, Panache Quartet, Jim Photoglo, Hayley Reardon, Red Tail Ring, Cosy Sheridan, Sultans of String, Vinegar Creek, Anne Weiss, The Whispering Tree, and Brooks Williams.

Following the juried showcases each evening (as well as during the afternoons), AcousticMusicScene.com will join dozens of presenters, performers and others in hosting guerilla showcases in their hotel rooms that extend through the early morning hours. Open mics, informal jam sessions, private showcases, thematic song circles and round-robin song swaps round out the musical mix. It’s not unusual to see musicians staking out other areas of the hotel and jamming until 4 or 5 a.m.

Acoustic MusicScene.com Midnight Hoot Features Artists and Singing Folk DJs

Now in its seventh year, the Midnight Hoot is intended to shine a spotlight on several folk DJs who also enjoy singing, while providing them, presenters and others with an opportunity to get a small sampling of the music of a lot of artists in a short period of time. It also enables artists to enjoy each other’s company and music before the conference really gets into full swing on Friday (although since increasingly more people have been arriving on Thursday, some intensive workshops will take place that afternoon).

Artists slated to perform in the Midnight Hoot (listed alphabetically, not in order of appearance) include Bob Ardern, The Barrel Jumpers, Marc Black, C. Daniel Bolling, Matt Borrello, Marc Douglas Berardo, Susan Cattaneo, Jerry DeMeo, Tony Denikos, Ian Fitzgerald, Chris Fuller, Connor Garvey, Gathering Time, Marci Geller, Ghosts of the American Road, Susan Greenbaum, Melissa Greener, Brian Ashley Jones, Stuart Kabak, Brian Kalinec, Keith Kelly, Savannah King, Mike Laureanno, Mara Levine, Bernice Lewis, Rob Lytle, Zoe Mulford, Karyn Oliver, Davey O, Janet Robin, John Sonntag, Bethel Steele, Hank Stone, Jonah Tolchin, John Tracy, Chuck Williams, Avi Wisnia, and The YaYas. A house band comprised of David Buskin (keyboards), Mark Dann (bass) and Marshal Rosenberg (percussion) also will be there for anyone who desires accompaniment.

American and Canadian Artists to Showcase in the AcousticMusicScene.com Room

The AcousticMusicScene.com showcase schedule appears below, as well as on the attached flyer.

Friday Afternoon
(Hosted by Hank Stone and Connor Garvey)

2:30 Funny Folk: Mark Allen Berube, Drew Jacobs, Martin Swinger

3:00 Long Island Sounds: Jerry DeMeo, The Folk Goddesses, Rorie Kelly, Hank Stone

3:45 Maine Stage: Connor Garvey, Calen Perkins, Chris Ross, Sorcha

Friday Evening
(Hosted by Michael Kornfeld)

11:45 Mara Levine (accompanied by Gathering Time)

12:00 Harmonic Convergence: The Boxcar Lilies, Gathering Time, Kim & Reggie Harris

12:30 A Trio of Duos: Hannah & Maggie, The Levins,
Lords of Liechtenstein

1:00 Folk You Should Know: Arlon Bennett, Marc Douglas Berardo, Rob Lytle

1:30 More Folk You Should Know: Jeremiah Birnbaum, Marci Geller, Scott Wolfson & Other Heroes

2:00 Bandemonium: Miles to Dayton, Pesky J. Nixon

Saturday Afternoon
(Hosted by Stuart Kabak and Michael Kornfeld)

2:00 Amy Black, Rich Deans, Fred Gillen, Jr.

2:30 C. Daniel Boling, Stuart Kabak, Keith Kelly

3:00 Nashville in New York: Brian Ashley Jones, Louise Mosrie,
Twangtown Paramours

3:30 I’m From New Jersey: Loretta Hagen, Jean Rohe, John Sonntag

4:00 O’Canada: Aengus Finnan, Kat Goldman, Jory Nash

Saturday Evening
(Hosted by Michael Kornfeld)

11:45 Texas Songwriters: Cary Cooper, Matt Harlan, Brian Kalinec, Amanda Pearcy

12:30 No Fuss & Feathers Road Show: Karyn Oliver, Carolann Solebello, The YaYas

1:00 Mid-Atlantic Songwriters: Tony Denikos, John Flynn, John Tracy

1:30: Fingerstyle Guitar Virtuosity: Bob Ardern, Hiroya Tsukamoto

2:00: All Keyed-Up: Anna Dagmar, Allie Farris, Kate Klim, Heather Pierson, Rachael Sage, Avi Wisnia

NERFA (www.nerfa.org) is part of the larger Folk Alliance International, an association that seeks to foster and promote multicultural, traditional and contemporary folk music, while strengthening and advancing organizational and individual initiatives in folk music and dance through education, networking, advocacy, and professional and field development.

Editor’s Note: My thanks to Stuart Kabak, with whom I partner in hosting late-night song swaps and open circle under the AcousticMusicScene.com Tent @ Pirate Camp during the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, for providing a carpeted wooden platform stage and stage lights for this year’s AcousticMusicScene.com showcases. Thanks also are due to him and fellow singer-songwriters Connor Garvey and Hank Stone for graciously offering to guest host afternoon showcases, to Amy Blake , Gary Schoenberger and Sybil Moser for the loan of folding chairs, and to Karen Finkenberg for her assistance in designing flyers.

In addition to hosting the AcousticMusicScene.com Midnight Hoot and other showcases during the NERFA Conference, I will be offering some one-on-on mentoring sessions focused on artist bios and one-sheets, media relations, social media, website content, what presenters look for when considering artists for their concert series, and how artists and presenters can work together to promote concerts.. I also serve as vice president of NERFA’s board of directors and am a candidate for the Folk Alliance International board.

Appearing in this year’s Showcase are (listed alphabetically by first name or name of group, not in order of appearance):

Brad Cole (Chicago, IL)
Burning Bridget Cleary (Philadelphia ,PA)
Cary Cooper (Dallas, TX)
Chris Kokesh (Portland, OR)
Dan Charness (New York, NY)
Gathering Time (Long Island, NY)
Heather Maloney Band (Northampton, MA)
Honor Finnegan (New York, NY)
Jarrod Dickenson (Brooklyn, NY
Jim Hayes (Ringwood, NJ)
Jon Brooks (King City, Ont, Canada)
Julie Christensen (Ojai, CA)
Kate Klim (Nashville, TN)
Kevin Neidig (Etters, PA)
Miles to Dayton (Long Island ,NY)
Poor Old Shine (Storrs, CT)
Rebecca Pronsky (Brooklyn, NY)
Ryan Tennis (Philadelphia, PA)
Sarah Blacker (Cambridge, MA)
Sorcha (Portland, ME)
Steve Chizmadia (Peekskill, NY)
Sweet Talk Radio (Los Angeles, CA)
The Marrieds (London, Ont, Canada)
The YaYas (Mohegan Lake, NY)

The Falcon Ridge/Grassy Hill 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 Nashville, TN-based singer-songwriter Blair Bodine, Baltimore, MD area-based band ilyAIMY, Nashville-based singer-songwriter Louise Mosrie, and Boston area-based band Pesky J. Nixon, who also host the popular Lounge Stage on the festival campgrounds on Thursday night, July 26, before the official start of the festival. These artists also are currently playing a number of Northeast gigs as part of a FRFF Most Wanted Tour. Upcoming performances include the Urban H20 series at the Beczak Environmental Education Center in Yonkers, NY on Saturday night, July 21, and headlining the seventh annual Huntington Folk Festival at Heckscher Park in Huntington, Long Island, NY on Sunday evening, July 22. Co-presented by the Folk Music Society of Huntington and the Huntington Arts Council, that free, day-long festival, also features unplugged showcases and song swaps during the afternoon. Hosted by AcousticMusicScene.com and Acoustic Live! in New York City and Beyond, the afternoon festivities will feature more than three-dozen performers — including several of this year’s FRFF Emerging Showcase Artists. Both Acoustic Live! and AcousticMusicScene.com also will have a presence at Falcon Ridge.

Among the Northeast’s most popular music festivals, the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, now in its 24th year, takes place July 27-29 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. Among the artists performing this year will be Aztec Two-Step, Brother Sun, Eddie From Ohio, John Flynn, Girlyman, Tracy Grammer, The Grand Slambovians, Eilen Jewell, Holly Near, Nerissa and Katryna Nields, Rod MacDonald, Todd Sheaffer (of Railroad Earth), and Spuyten Duyvil, among others.

Those camping at Falcon Ridge and staying up through the early morning hours can enjoy an array of informal jams, mini-showcases and after-hours song circles that help foster a sense of “folk” community and a different kind of festival experience.

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

Songwriters may either send two original songs (written after Jan. 1, 2009) on a home-burned CD, not to exceed eight minutes in total length, to the Kerrville Folk Festival office or submit them electronically via Sonicbids. The entry fee is $25. Official guidelines, along with entry information and forms, are posted at www.kerrville-music.com/newfolk.htm.

The 2010 winners were Jon Brooks (King City, ON, Canada), Dan Colehour (Nashville, TN), Andy Gullahorn (Nashville, TN), Kate Klim (Boston, MA), Kim Richardson (Mountain Home, AR) and Michael Troy (Fall River, MA) The six received cash honorariums and other prizes, as well as the opportunity to strut their stuff for 20 minutes each during a New Folk Winners Concert at the festival.

Established in 1972 at the urging of Peter Yarrow, the Kerrville New Folk concerts have become a highlight of the annual festival that is geared towards singer-songwriters of various musical styles and their fans. Being named as a New Folk winner is regarded as a very prestigious honor.

Five artists/acts will perform in concert each evening beginning at 7 p.m. They include Acoustic Eidolon, Baskery (from Stockholm, Sweden), Berkley Hart, Marshall Ford Swing Band, John Fullbright, Seth Glier, The Killdares, Tom Kimmel, Matt King, Snarky Puppy, SONiA, The Trishas, Uncle Lucius, Kevin Welch and Corinne West with Kelly Joe Phelps. Craft vendors, food and wine booths will be open an hour before each evening concert.

The festival kicks-off on Friday afternoon when Texas-based singer-songwriter Raina Rose hosts the Ballad Tree. Seth Glier and SONiA host on Saturday and Sunday afternoons, respectively. Rose, Anthony da Costa and John Elliott – who have been touring together recently – perform a two-hour concert on Sunday afternoon, while a Saturday afternoon New Folk In-The-Round will feature Andrew Delaney, Wyatt Easterling, Kate Klim, Chet O’Keefe and Kim Richardson.

Two-hour wine seminars, for which tickets must be purchased in advance, are slated for late in the afternoon on both Saturday and Sunday. A yoga session and a 10-mile Hill Country bike ride are scheduled for Saturday morning, while a folk song service is set for Sunday morning.

On Aug. 31, from 8-9 p.m. central time, www.radiofreetexas.org will broadcast a performance by Uncle Lucius live from the Tin Roof Steakhouse in Boerne, TX to promote the Wine & Music Festival. Dalis Allen, producer of the Kerrville Music Festivals and president of the Southwest Regional Folk Alliance (SWRFA), hosts the show.

For more information on the festival and to order tickets, log-on to www.kerrville-music.com.

In addition to cash honorariums and other prizes, the six were afforded the opportunity to perform on the festival’s Threadgill Stage as part of a Grassy Hill Kerrville New Folk Winners Concert on Sunday afternoon, June 6.

Geared towards singer-songwriters of various musical styles and their fans, the Kerrville Folk Festival is the longest continuously running festival of its kind in North America. In addition to concerts each evening, Kerrville features “Ballad Tree” song-sharing sessions, campfire jam sessions, concerts and activities for children, organized canoe trips on the Guadelupe River, Hill Country bike rides, and a professional development program for teachers, as well as a three-day songwriters school and instrumental workshops.

More information on the festival, which is now in its 39th year, is available at www.kerrvillefolkfestival.com. An article listing the 32 Grassy Hill Kerrville New Folk Finalists was posted on AcousticMusicScene.com on April 15 and is archived in the Awards & Contests and Festival Focus sections.

Scheduled to perform (in order of performance) at the Threadgill Theater on the Quiet Valley Ranch Campgrounds in the Texas Hill Country on May 29, from noon to 3 p.m. are Cassie Peterson (Nashville, TN), Daniel Makins (San Angelo, TX), Terry Holder (Olympia, WA), John Batdorf (West Hills, CA), Chris O’Brien (Somerville, MA), Annie & Rod Capps (Chelsea, MI), Leanne Atherton (Austin, TX), Liz Longley (Downingtown, PA), Alex Woodward (San Diego, CA), Kate Klim (Boston, MA), Neal Katz (Tyler, TX), Blair Bodine (Ambler, PA), and Wyatt Easterling (Nashville, TN).

New Folk Finalists slated to perform on May 30 include Chet O’Keefe (Nashville, TN), Jen Cass (Bay City, MI), Dan Colehour (Nashville, TN), Angela Easterling (Taylors, SC), Bobbie Lancaster (Bloomington, IN), Gretchen Witt (Brooklyn, NY), Michael Troy (Fall River, MA), Brad Boyer (Friendswood, Texas), Joe Scutelle (Nashville, TN), Jennifer Morrison ( Sarasota, FL), Jon Brooks (King City, ON, Canada), Mai Bloomfield (Venice, CA), Sam Doores (New Orleans, LA), Kim Richardson (Mountain Home, AR), Andy Gullahorn (Nashville, TN) and Lucas Ohio Pattie (Pleasanton, CA).

After performing, six songwriters will be selected as 2010 New Folk Winners by judges Tom Prasada-Rao, Ronny Cox and Susan Gibson. The six will receive cash honorariums and other prizes, as well as the opportunity to return the following weekend during a Grassy Hill Kerrville New Folk Winners concert at the festival on Sunday, June 6.

Among the former New Folk finalists and winners in this year’s Kerrville Folk Festival lineup are BettySoo, porterdavis, K.C. Clifford, Eric Schwartz, Danny Schmidt, Anthony da Costa, Jack Harris, Abi Tapia, Tom Prasada-Rao, Ernest Troost, Louise Mosrie, Rebecca Loebe, Raina Rose, Robby Hecht and Jimmy LaFave.

Now in its 39th year and geared towards singer-songwriters of various musical styles and their fans, the Kerrville Folk Festival is the longest continuously running festival of its kind in North America. In addition to concerts each evening, Kerrville features “Ballad Tree” song-sharing sessions, campfire jam sessions, concerts and activities for children, organized canoe trips on the Guadelupe River and Hill Country bike rides, a professional development program for teachers, as well as a three-day songwriters school and instrumental workshops. Also slated is the fifth Music to Life songwriting contest, a biannual event sponsored by Noel “Paul” Stookey’s Public Domain Foundation that features songwriters performing songs dedicated to social or political issues of concern

The Kerrville Folk Festival runs for 18 straight days – Thursday, May 27 – Sunday, June 13. For a complete festival schedule and additional information, visit www.kerrvillefolkfestival.com.