Maryland Folk Festival announces first five acts

SALISBURY — The Maryland Folk Festival has announced the first five acts for its Sept. 20-22 event.

They include DuPont Brass, Melody Angel, the Pine Leaf Boys, Ken & Brad Kolodner and the Seán Heely Celtic Band.

Approximately 250 artists — musicians, dancers, storytellers and craftspeople — will take part in the Maryland Folk Festival, on four outdoor stages.

The gathering is dedicated to creating unique experiences of discovery and learning; cultivating cultural and ethnic diversity; and pursuing opportunities to enlighten through music, dance, food and more.

“We are so excited to bring these artists to downtown Salisbury for the Maryland Folk Festival,” said Caroline O’Hare, events and culture manager for the city. “Our team has been putting together an impressive lineup, and we can already tell that the 2024 festival is going to be a great one.”

The five artists announced Friday include:

• DuPont Brass (Washington, D.C., metro area), a brass-driven group that mixes varied genres of music, including jazz, hip hop and R&B, in a style they’ve coined “eclectic soul.”
• Melody Angel (Chicago), who fuses the deep roots of the blues with the mind-expanding ethos of Jimi Hendrix’s electric church music.
• The Pine Leaf Boys (Lafayette, Louisiana), a group that has made a name by presenting its own inimitable brand of Louisiana music with youthful exuberance, blending the sounds of Cajun, zydeco, swamp pop, country and soul.
• Ken & Brad Kolodner (Baltimore), a father-son team that weaves together a captivating soundscape on hammered dulcimer and claw hammer banjo, blurring the lines of old-time, bluegrass and American roots music. Plus, the two will perform for a festival square dance Saturday evening.
• The Seán Heely Celtic Band (Washington, D.C.), which features Scottish Gaelic songs, ballads, sea shanties, pub songs and more from the rich Celtic folk tradition.

Over a dozen individuals of different backgrounds — and with a deep passion for music and art — came together from across Delmarva to serve on the festival’s Performers Committee. Its role is to advise, review and select the artists who will perform.

After more than five years as the host of the National Folk Festival, produced in collaboration with the National Council for the Traditional Arts, Salisbury’s Arts, Business and Culture Department launched its own event in 2023.

For information, visit mdfolkfest.com.