The 2008 Albuquerque Folk Festival is over!

Thanks to everyone who helped make it a success!

The managers, the volunteers, the performers, the workshop leaders, and all the attendees: we all came together to have a great festival day! We'll have pictures up soon, and we've put up a forum where you can share your festival experiences and give us feedback for next year. (It's a little plain right now, but we'll spruce it up later.)

If you want to continue to be a part of the folk community in Albuquerque, check our Resources page. Keep dancing, singing, and playing all year long!

We're starting to get photos and video!

Here are a couple of sets of photos and a video of the square dance workshop with music by the Virginia Creepers:

Enjoy reliving the memories of a great festival! And thanks again for making it such a great day!



Info on the 2008 Festival

The Albuquerque Folk Festival is a non-profit event held with the goal of increasing the public's participation in music, dance and other folk activities.  The 2008 Festival (our tenth annual!) will be held Saturday, June 21, 2008 at the State Fairgrounds (Expo New Mexico) in Albuquerque. In the tradition of the folk ethic, the goals of the Albuquerque Folk Festival are to highlight non-commercial acoustic folk music and dance activities in the greater Albuquerque region and to encourage individuals to sing, dance and play music.

For general information about the festival, including ticket prices, advance ticket sales locations, and parking information, see Festival Info. To see what's happening at the festival this year, see our schedule. If you have any questions, find out how you can contact us.

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Volunteers wanted!

Want to help out with the festival? We are a completely volunteer organization. If you enjoy the festival and want to support what we are trying to do for the folk music, folk arts and dance community of Albuquerque, come join us! For further information and to get on our distribution list, email .

News! The Folk Festival's program has gone to press

We've created a new, more informative program this year. If you'd like a preview, you can see it here.

News! Folk Festival Raffle!

Musicians! Singers! Friends of musicians and singers! (That should include just about everyone at the festival...) We'll be raffling off 20 hours of studio time at Transductions Productions recording studio (plus the services of a Pro Tools engineer) -- a $600 value. Tickets will be $5 apiece and 3 for $10. You'll be able to buy tickets and get more information at the CD table at the Main Stage, and you don't need to be present to win. So grab a chance to get some professional studio time and support the festival; come to the festival ready to buy a bunch of tickets. And there will be other prizes also, so get ready to buy those tickets.

News! The schedule is done!

Our main stage lineup is complete. The day will start with local favorites Le Chat Lunatique and Los Primos. Syd Masters & The Swing Riders return this year, followed by Ninos Flamenco. Bryan Bowers, world-reknowned auto-harpist, Mike Lopez and Richard Hardy with Native American stories in song with traditional flute, and The Wilders, internationally-touring string band from Kansas City round out the day.

The rest of the schedule has been firmed up under the leadership of our 2008 co-directors, and . Entertainment will start at 10 AM, with some special performances before we get all the venues going, and end at 11:00, when the dances are over. Check out the schedule for more information.

New! Folk Festival Presents in Old Town

Can't wait for June 21 for your fix of Folk Festival music? Come on down to Old Town every Thursday for "Folk Festival Presents", a series of folk music programs by local area artists. This program kicks off April 17, with a contra dance featuring the Albuquerque Megaband. The fun starts at 6:30 and goes until 8:30. For more info, check our Old Town schedule, and see the city's website.

New this year: A fiddle contest for kids

We've scheduled two hours in the Li'l Folks tent for a couple of fiddle contests: one for kids 12 and under and the other for teens 13 to 18. So, kids, get ready to fiddle!

The Return of the Band Scramble

Last year, we closed the Main Stage performances with a Band Scramble at 6 PM. It was a great success, and we'll continue the tradition this year, giving musicians and dancers of all levels a chance to be a Main Stage Performer at the Albuquerque Folk Festival. The deal is you put your name and the instrument you play (or dance style) in hat, and we'll put together some randomly organized bands (with dance accompanists). You'll have about 45 minutes to put together two numbers and a band name (that's the hard part), and learn the tunes and be ready to perform them on the main stage.

Learn something new!

One of the things that makes the Albuquerque Folk Festival so unusual is the incredible variety of workshops and performances that fill the day. Over 100 different things all going on in one place!

Jam!

We have three formal (well, as formal as jamming gets) venues for jamming at the festival. At the two hosted jam tents, a different host every hour will keep things moving, encourage everyone's participation, and perhaps influence tune selection. At Hosted Jam 1, the hosts are partial to bluegrass and Celtic music; at Hosted Jam 2, the emphasis will be on popular and folk-rock styles. At the Jam with the Band venue, you can play along with your favorite local bands.

Remember: it's easy to bring an instrument to the festival! We provide a free instrument checkroom from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. so you can store your instrument safely. New this year: the checkroom is staying open until 11 p.m. so you can dance the night away, knowing that your instrument is safe and sound.

Bring the kids!

Along with a special venue just for Li'l Folks, kids are welcome throughout the festival. This year, Niños Flamencos, a group of young Flamenco dancers from the National Institute of Flamenco's National Conservatory of Flamenco Arts, will be appearing on the Main Stage. Also, at 10 am, JUBAlation, a group of young musicians will perform, and the Chinese Martial Artists group always features young performers. New this year: Two children's fiddle contests!

Kids under 11 years old can come to the festival for free! And kids 11-17 can get in for $5. The Folk Festival is an inexpensive day-long activity for the whole family.

Get your instruments out of the closet!

A closet instrument is a musical instrument nobody plays. It sits in the closet year after year while an aspiring musician longs for an instrument to play.

Help the festival and help other musicians by donating your closet instruments. We'll do our best to get those instruments into hands that will use them!

Coming from Out of Town?

Our sponsor hotel, Sandia Courtyard Hotel & Convention Center (formerly Howard Johnson) is offering special rates for people coming to the Albuquerque Folk Festival. Discounted rates are $49 + taxes for Standard Single, King or Double Queen, and $59 + taxes for Deluxe Double Queen. Rates apply to 1 or 2 adults; each additional adult would be $10 more nightly. Rates include their Deluxe Rise-N-Shine Breakfast. There are 2 restaurants on the premises. Call the hotel at 505-296-4852 and mention the Albuquerque Folk Festival and the code #CG0673 to receive the discount. Hotel address is 10300 Hotel Avenue NE, I-40 Exit 165 North & Eubank. Hotel is only 10 mins. from Expo, and a courtesy shuttle to Expo will be available upon request.

What's in the works for the 2008 festival:

Thanks to all our sponsors and volunteers!

Thanks to all our volunteers who are helping put on this community gathering. Whether you are a performer, a workshop teacher, a dance demonstrator, a tireless volunteer, an active participant or a fascinated viewer, we thank you all. We couldn't have this successful event if it were not for every one of you and the part you play in making a community event like this come to fruition.

This project is made possible in part by New Mexico Arts, a division of the Department of Cultural Affairs and a grant from the Urban Enhancement Trust Fund of the City of Albuquerque. We also offer our heartfelt thanks to Mayor Martin Chavez and the City of Albuquerque and NMArts for their support, as well as to KUNM for broadcasting live from the festival Saturday morning, and many more that you can find on our Supporters page.

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