The full list of confirmed artists will be released on April 26, 2012, but confirmed artists for this years Calgary Folk Festival include BEIRUT, JEFF MANGUM, IRON AND WINE, SINEAD O’CONNOR, RURAL ALBERTA ADVANTAGE, JUNIOR BROWN, BESH o droM, JUSTIN TOWNES EARLES, RANDY NEWMAN, THE BARR BROTHERS and SAM BAKER amongst others.
The Calgary Folk Music Festival provides authentic, even magical encounters that surprise the most dedicated festival aficionados, creating once-in-a-lifetime experiences for both artists and audience members. The Festival’s programming format, lovingly referred to by festival goers as a series of “arranged marriages,” creates rare and wonderful opportunities for artists to meet and collaborate. These collaborative sessions group disparate artists loosely by themes, encouraging them to collaborate on each other’s material, creating coveted once-in-a-lifetime opportunities for audiences and artists alike. Some Examples: Bonnie Prince Billy playing with Dick Gaughan and Lightning Dust in 2011, Kid Koala and Arrested Development in 2009, Burning Hell, Man Man and Frank Turner in 2010, Calexico, Andrew Bird and Handsome Family in 2008.
Located on Prince’s Island Park, the site is likened to a small town in a big city – a forested retreat nestled on an island in the heart of downtown Calgary, surrounded by rivers and skyscrapers. The Festival’s eco policies are second-to-none, feeding 1700 volunteers and artists organic and locally sourced meals, composting across the site, and providing free water to all patrons while disallowing the sale of bottled water. In 2011 the Festival was even rewarded for these efforts with A Greener Festival (UK) Award.
This year will certainly be a treat with some of the biggest names in music on the line up. Impressive as always, The Calgary Music Festival is sure to be a success this year, so be sure to get your tickets in advance for this stellar 4-day event.
