Stay tuned right here for performers booked at the 2020 FRFF on July 31-Aug 2. Our 2020 Friday Night Summer’s Eve Song Swap will feature Vance Gilbert, Susan Werner, Matt Nakoa and Mary Gauthier. Others confirmed so far include Nerissa & Katryna Nields, Slambovian Circus of Dreams, Professor Louie & the Crowmatix, The Gaslight Tinkers, The End of America, Quarter Horse, The Storycrafters, Annie Wenz, Tame Rutabaga, The Oshima Brothers, Buddy System, The Russet Trio and Eileen Ivers. Our complete list will be available soon.
Festival Hours
Pre-fest Tasting and Farmer’s Market 2pm -7pm Thursday, July 30th.
Main Stage: Friday noon – midnight, Saturday noon – midnight, Sunday 11am – 6:30pm
Dance Stage: Friday 2pm – 2am, Saturday 10am – 2am, Sunday 10am – 6pm
Workshop Stage: Friday 5 – 6:30pm, Saturday 10am – 6:30pm, Sunday 10am – 6pm
Family Stage: Friday 1:30pm – 5:30pm, Saturday 11:30am – 5:30pm, Sunday 11:30am – 5:30pm
Activities 4 Kids: open Friday – Sunday for kids of all ages.
The festival ends Sunday at 6:30pm.
THE LOUNGE STAGE — 5PM -11PM at the DANCE TENT
The Lounge Stage began as an event for the FRFF camping community, a Thursday night campgrounds space curated by Tribal Mischief Productions with tech support by Scotten Jones.
To stream or download Lounge Stage performances, please visit www.theloungestage.com.
MOST WANTED SONG SWAP 2020
The top THREE voted artists from our 2019 showcase who have been invited to the 2020 Most Wanted Song Swap on our Main Stage are:
- SCOTT COOK in FIRST place with an amazing 49% of the voters in his corner, a massive response.
- ZOE MULFORD came in SECOND place garnering 22% of the voters.
- SOUTH FOR THE WINTER came in THIRD with 19%.
A major HONORABLE MENTION too! GoldenOak in a close 4th place with over 17% of the voting audience, if any of the top 3 are unavailable GoldenOak as the first and only runner up will be invited.
We also had a number of OVER 10% ers this year: Suzie Brown, Benjamin Dakota Rogers, Corner House, Grace Morrison, Lara Herscovitch, River Run and The Promise is Hope were all named by over 10% of the voting audience. Much thanks to our 2020 showcase judges, Bruce Swan & Louise Baker from Baker Booking and WPKN Radio sharing one vote, Bruce Martin from Blues Cafe in Southbury CT & Pam Robinson from The Folk Project & curator of the New Jersey Uke Fest. Big thanks as always to mainstage manager Donna Grande & our intrepid showcase wrangler, Don Beesley. A special, heartfelt thank you to GRASSY HILL ENTERTAINMENT for their continued sponsorship of the showcase and festival.
Grassy Hill Emerging Artist Showcase 2020
The 24 selected SHOWCASE artists will be announced in June. See below for submission instructions. The Showcase began at the 1992 fest and has become one of the most popular segments of the entire weekend.
Falcon Ridge Folk Festival Booking/Showcasing Guidelines
FRFF begins booking every year by December 1st. At that time we have carefully tabulated all our audience surveys and begin with the artists most requested. Artists may submit electronically for a feature performance spot and/or the Emerging Artist Showcase via our online platform SUBMITTABLE. See their website for general information at www.submittable.com/film-music.
How Do We Decide Whom To Book?
FRFF has 4 stages. Dance is booked first, Main Stage next, and Family Stage last. The Workshop stage features different combinations of performers booked on the other 3 stages sharing sets on a variety of topics. Some performers are booked specifically for one stage but most appear on more than one.
The Artistic Director makes all programming decisions, but before doing so, our audience surveys are carefully tabulated. A great deal is decided by our audience including specific artists & types of music to include. New performers are sought out every year. Sources include radio, internet, other venues & recommendations.
For Feature Performance Consideration
You must be an established artist with a following in the northeast. There is an additional opportunity for EMERGING artists, see below. The Feature Submission link on SUBMITTABLE is active from mid-December to February 10th. Check the SUBMITTABLE site for any deadline changes.
Emerging Artist Showcase Information
The Grassy Hill Emerging Artist Showcase is open to all performers who have not showcased in the last two years and who will not be appearing in any other capacity including sideperson or special guest in the current year. This is a two song or ten-minute spot on our Main Stage on Friday afternoon.
There is a $20 Showcase application fee.
Selected artists appear in the program book, are assisted by our excellent stage & sound crew and may have their mailing list and merch in our sales tent. While there is no compensation for this showcase, artists receive full admission, on-site camping and meals for the entire festival plus one guest pass per act. The showcase is not a contest. However, the audience is surveyed as to which three showcase artists they wish to see return to the Most Wanted Song Swap (MWSS) at FRFF the following year. Three to four artists are invited to return.
The showcase and song swap are an opportunity to be seen and heard in a large amphitheater setting with hundreds of folk fans, presenters, agents, record labels and media in attendance. A committee of 3 music professionals review submissions and make selections. The only criteria are high quality performances of interesting, well-crafted, acoustic based material. It need not be original.
All showcase applicants will be notified no later than June 15. More details on production, merchandise, camping will be sent to all selected artists.
To apply for either FEATURE or SHOWCASE, use the SUBMIT BUTTON below.
Falcon Ridge Artistic Director
Anne Saunders anne@falconridgefolk.com
