Share Email Print RSS

Folk Festival Fun

After three years of rocking out in Richmond, The National Folk festival has moved on, but Richmond, it seems, has decided that … well, we're not ready to move on. 

Venture Richmond and the National Council for Traditional Arts have teamed up to produce the first annual Richmond Folk Festival . The festival will be held on the weekend of October 10 through 12, in association with The National Folk Festival and the American Folk Festival.  

Keeping with tradition, the folk festival will be an event for the whole family and will feature music, folk art and other facets of folk life from around the world.  

And even better than that, the Richmond Folk Festival is keeping the best tradition of all … it's free. That's right -- seven stages, over 30 performing groups, access to folk life marketplaces and ethnic foods, all for no admission cost. 

Over the next few weeks leading up to the festival, Richmond.com will be previewing some of the performers and events, but for now, here's a run down of some of what you can look forward to. 

Each performer slated to be at the festival represents the best of their respective worlds, and one of those is Dale Watson . Watson is a classic country artist, a one-man revival of Merle Haggard, Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson.  

"This isn't retro-minded," Watson says in his profile on the festival's website. "It's hopefully a natural progression of what country music would have been if it hadn't been polluted by the '80s and '90s." 

Watson is beloved in his hometown of Austin, TX and he's sure to be one of the biggest draws at this year's festival. 

Dan Tyminski is normally found on the road with Allison Karuss & Union Station, but Tyminski has brought together his own group of good 'ol boys for The Dan Tyminski Band.  Tyminksi, also known for being the singing voice of George Clooney in "O Brother Where Art Thou?" is based out of Nashville, TN and bringing a bit more on the bluegrass side than his normal fair with Union Station. 

Before going any further, let's clear something up. Despite those first two acts, the "folk" festival isn't just Americana. Folk music covers the traditional song and dance of any culture. A good example is Nukariik, a duo that performs Innuit throat singing as well as Hawaiian guitar masters Ledward Ka'apana and Mike Kaawa. 

Aside from music, attendees will also be given a glimpse into other traditions, like art and, best of all, food.  

Ernesto Gomez and David Amoroso will display their work centering on Mexican Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, traditions. These visual artists create the temporary ritual spaces to be used in the observance of Dias de los Muertos, a time when the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead overlap and families are believed to be able to contact lost loved ones. 

For those with a sweet tooth you'll want to search out Wilhelm and Melanie Wanders , Master Chocolatier and Marzipan Artisans from Choclaterie Wanders in Manassas. The Wanders family business has been all about the sweets since way back in 1726. Wilhelm Wanders and his wife opened their Manassas store in 2005 and are sure to have enough sweets on display that the scent alone will put you into diabetic shock.    

So, there's going to be music, from country to Inuit throat singing, and artisans from the dead to the delicious, and just about everything in between.

This has only scratched the surface of what the Richmond Folk Festival is going to have to offer. Be sure to check back with Richmond.com as the big weekend approaches to get the low-down on the newest Richmond tradition.