What's happening during the Philadelphia Folk Festival
Please note: This article is published as an archive copy from Philadelphia City Paper. My City Paper is not affiliated with Philadelphia City Paper. Philadelphia City Paper was an alternative weekly newspaper in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The last edition was published on October 8, 2015.
The educational element has returned to the Folk Festival in a big way, and you’ll find participatory workshops are thick among the mini-concerts. Janis Ian, one of the few who has sold big numbers of folk recordings, promises to teach you “How to Make Friends with Fear Onstage and Off” (noon, Saturday).
In the not-too-distant past, just about everybody made music for their own entertainment. The Rev. TJ McGlinchey (of Fistful of Sugar, see right) makes reviving that practice part of his ministry. Bring an extra $50 and you’ll leave with a new uke and some rudimentary skills (1 p.m., Friday and Saturday). Or maybe harmonica’s on your bucket list. Forty bucks gets you a basic instrument and lessons with two of the area’s best, Ansel Barnum and Seth Holzman (3 p.m., Sunday). Look for these guys to be prominent in the tribute to blues harp legend Sonny Boy Williamson which follows.
Now, let’s talk about the pros that’ll have the whole hillside shimmying. Shemekia Copeland, Tempest and Old Crow Medicine Show are guaranteed to bring out the dancers on Friday. Saturday, count on ReBirth Brass Band to get your blood pumping.
On Sunday, check out new acoustic Canadian Celtic-style sleepers Ten Strings and Goat Skin from Prince Edward Island, followed by our own old-time act Orpheus Supertones. Dakha Brakha started as a project of an avant-garde theater troupe in Kiev who learned the old Ukrainian songs then put them to modern dramatic purposes. Sarah Jarosz is a refined mandolin player whose music is based in bluegrass but roves far beyond. As for mainstream bluegrass, the Steep Canyon Rangers surprise and delight with the way they blend old-school instrumental phrases with modern songs. Two of the best contemporary songwriters close out the festival: Jason Isbell and Loudon Wainwright III.
Philadelphia Folk Festival, Fri-Sun., Aug. 15-17, Old Poole Farm, Upper Salford Township, Pa., 215-247-1300, pfs.org.
