Yumnuts will keep you snacking healthy while you rock at Connecticut Folk Festival and Green Expo in New Haven, CT.
“One Planet, Many Choices”: New Haven’s Edgerton Park is the place to be September 10-12 for music and green ideas.
September 3, 2010 CT Folk is pleased to announce that Grammy-winning folk/country singer Kathy Mattea will headline the Connecticut FOlk Festival and Green Expo’s main stage concert on Saturday, Sept. 11, 2010, in New Haven’s Edgerton Park. Known for such classics as “18 Wheels and a Dozen Roses” and “Where’ve You Been” Kathy Mattea’s most recently recorded album inspired by the mining culture of Appalachia, is, in her words, a tribute to “my place and my people.” Her success as a folk/country crossover artist has earned her four number-one songs on the Billboard country charts and an armful of awards, including a Grammy and the Country Music Academy’s Female Vocalist of the Year (twice).
Kathy is stepping in for Nanci Griffith, who cancelled several shows in her fall tour due to medical reasons. “We’re sorry that Nanci won’t be with us this year,” says Alice-Anne Harwood, CT Folk’s director. “We plan to bring Nanci back to New Haven as soon as possible. Meanwhile, we are incredibly excited to have an artist of Kathy’s stature taking the stage in Edgerton Park. Kathy’s warm and resonant voice is sure to charm our audience, and her recent project of songs about Appalachian coal mining culture resonates with the environmental message of our Festival and Green Expo.”
The 5 p.m. concert under the stars will also feature acclaimed singer-songwriter Susan Werner, The Kerry Boys (a favorite of the Irish music scene), Connecticut State Troubadour Lara Herscovitch, and the mesmerizing “musical circus” of Gandalf Murphy and the Slambovian Circus of Dreams.
The CT Folk Festival and Green Expo kicks off on Friday Sept. 10, with the Grassy Hill Song Circle, a unique evening of collaborative entertainment. Four of the hottest musicians on the indie/Americana scene will play solo work and then accompany each other in a jam-session atmosphere: Trina Hamlin, Reed Waddle, Seth Glier, and Mark von Em. Vance Gilbert, an outstanding performer in his own right and widely known as the funniest man in folk, will play emcee for the evening. For the first time, the Grassy Hill Song Circle will also be held in the magical atmosphere of Edgerton Park, beginning at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, afternoon, Edgerton Park will be the site of CT Folk’s fifth annual Green Expo, a free afternoon event (11 a.m. - 4 p.m.) featuring 75 exhibitors, demonstrations, workshops and activities to promote sustainable lifestyles, as well as free family concert and activities for kids. This year, the Connecticut Green Expo will explore the theme “Local is Green.” Local food, local farming, local services, local transportation options and local musicians will be highlighted. Free activities for kids include a solar cell workshop and a magic show that will demonstrate “recycling is magic.”
As part of its annual family programming, CT Folk’s World Stage will offer a free family concert during the Green Expo on Saturday afternoon. National touring artists Red Molly will bring their signature blend of girl-power and old-timey Americana to Edgerton park stage. We’re particularly excited in this year of celebrating all things local to have Red Molly join us with their newest memeber and New Haven native, Molly Venter. The Professirs of Bluegrass (featuring Yale Provost Peter Salovey on bass) will perform, and New Haven favorite Rob Messore will do a special set for the younger listeners. For the first time, the Expo’s World Stage will feature the top five artists from CT Folk’s 2010 songwriting contest in a competitive showcase. Of these finalists (Brian Dolzani, Sam Chase, Rebecca Pronsky, Walter Rodriguez, and Allison Tartalia), one outstanding artist will be selected to perform their winning song on the Main Stage line-up later that evening. The reliably hilarious Vance Gilbert will act as host for the contest showcase.
The Festival will conclude at noon on Sunday, September 12 with the Dava Hoot, an informal community singallong hosted by Connecticut’s own Pierce Campbell, at noon in Edgerton Park.
Now in its second decade, the Connecticut Folk Festival & Green Expo is a nonprofit, primarily volunteer organization based in New Haven. The Festival & Green Expo’s parent organization, CT Folk, is dedicated to traditional and contemporary roots music and to caring for the earth.
