General news from the Montana Folk Festival.
Marc Brogger, a fifth-generation Western horseman, has built over 900 saddles since the start of his career in 1981. He is well respected in the Western community for his intricate leather work and flower stamping, bringing his skills to creating ornately hand-tooled saddles which bridge art and utility. On the …
The first loom Maude sat down to was threaded to an overshot draft. As a beginner, she let her foot travel across the treadles and watched amazed as the sheds opened and closed – the yarn from the shuttle floating over and under – and a marvelous wavy fabric growing …
Over the course of his 45-year career in crafting Western and working boots and shoes, Mike Ryan has meticulously crafted over 5,000 pairs of custom boots for clients spanning from Montana to the broader Western region. Growing up outside Brusett, Montana, Mike developed an interest in boot and shoemaking, inspired …
Olivia “Rose” Williamson, owner and operator of Lady Pompadour Beadwork and Design, has garnered widespread recognition within the Apsáalooke community and across the Northern Plains. Renowned for her expertise in traditional beadwork, Rose is affectionately referred to by friend Carrie Moran McCleary as a “certified bead florist,” further stating that …
Terry Hill, a fourth-generation Montanan, spent 29 years as a game warden for the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife & Parks before retiring in 2007. Come 2009, Terry discovered his love for segmented woodturning through a course taught by Rich Charlson, a previous MCAM honoree, who he studied under for …
Tom Dean, a completely self-taught artist, discovered his passion for woodwork at the age of 45, beginning his experimentation in 2005. Guided by what he refers to as his God-given talent, Tom transitioned to full-time artist status in 2008 and began producing his artwork under the name of Milo Creek …
Presenter: Interviews on Stage – Sunday Born and raised on her family’s Montana ranch where the Great Plains rise up to meet the Rocky Mountains, Dr. Edrienne (Cindy) Kittredge has lived and worked across the US before finding her way home. Kittredge studied at the College of William and Mary, …
Presenter: Interviews on Stage – Saturday Mike has been involved in numerous field work, projects and folk festivals across the West and in the southern Appalachians, documenting traditional music, cultural and occupational traditions. He worked for the Smithsonian Institution’s Folklife Program as well as on projects of the American Folklife …
Brazilian Choro For 19 years, Choro das 3 was a family band formed by the three sisters: Corina (flute and piccolo), Lia (7 string guitar), Elisa (mandolin, clarinet, banjo, piano and accordion) and their late father Eduardo (pandeiro), who tragically succumbed to COVID-19 in 2021. Everything started with a volunteer …
Ethiojazz Hailu Mergia was born in 1946 in the Shewa Province of the Ethoipian Empire. and moved to the capital Addis Adaba at age 10. He had grown up on traditional Oromo, Amhara, and Tigrinya songbook melodies, and taught himself the accordion at age 14. His mastering of the accordion, as well as …
Irish | Springfield, Illinois Reverie Road is a fresh, eclectic celtic combination, featuring fiddler Winifred Horan and accordionist John Williams (founding Solas members) alongside former Gaelic Storm fiddler Katie Grennan and Jazz and Raga pianist Utsav Lal (Young Steinway Artist). This powerful combination is made up of four of today’s …
Meti Fiddle | Harlem, Montana Jamie Fox is a Métis fiddler of the Aaniih and Nakoda tribes of Montana. The Métis are members of ethnic groups native to Canada and parts of the United States that trace their descent to both Indigenous North Americans and European settlers. Jamie grew up …
Flamenco | New York, NY Hailed by The New York Times as “a furnace of earthy sensuality”, Sonia Olla was born and raised in Barcelona when she earned a degree in Spanish Dance and Flamenco at the esteemed “Instituto de Teatro y Danza” in Barcelona. She has toured as company member and …
Japanese Traditional | Los Angeles, California The Wagaku Collective (和楽器コレクティブ) is Terry Nguyen, Shih-wei Wu and Wes Hayashi. The Los Angeles based trio are composed of three Asian American musicians that share the love and respect for traditional Japanese folk music. Through live performance, storytelling and workshops, The Wagaku Collective aims …
Country and Western Swing | Seguin, Texas Sam Platts and the Plainsmen, based in Seguin, Texas, play traditional country and western swing. Sam Platts leads the group on guitar and vocals. Songs range from Sam’s originals to country and western swing covers. They have played around the world for …
Howard Knight started tooling leather because of 4-H. As a child whose family bred and trained Thoroughbred horses, his upbringing in Sandpoint, Idaho, was steeped in western culture. Although life led him to become an electrician, his 4-H project turned into an ever-present hobby. After an accident forced him off …
Mississippi Delta Blues | McComb, Mississippi Castro Coleman a-k-a Mr. Sipp, was born August 25, 1976 to Johnelle and the late Vera Coleman in the small town of McComb, Mississippi. He began playing the guitar at the tender age of 6. Through hard work and perseverance, Mr. Sipp has become …
Hindustani Violin | Redwood City, California Maestro Kala Ramnath with her ‘Singing Violin’ stands among the world’s finest, most inspirational instrumentalists. Her playing has been featured on the Grammy-nominated Miles from India project, compositions of hers have appeared on the Grammy-winning album In 27 Pieces and the Kronos Quartet’s 50 …
Iranian Kamancheh | Brooklyn, New York Mehrnam Rastegari is a well-established Iranian musician and film score composer, singer, violinist, and master Kamancheh player. She has been featured in concerts and music festivals worldwide, including in The US, Germany, Switzerland, France, Finland, Iran, and Kazakhstan. These performances have occurred at some …
Mardi Gras Indians | New Orleans, Louisiana Behind the splendid theater and music of the Mardi Gras Indian parade lies a turbulent history: both the legacy of American slavery and segregation that birthed the unique New Orleans tradition and the internecine conflicts that marked itsmearly days, after it took shape …
Old-Time | Mouth of Wilson, Virginia Nobody’s Business is an Old-Time Stringband that hails from the Grayson Highlands mountain region of Southwest Virginia, where the state borders North Carolina and Tennessee. The band is steeped in the traditions of rural “Old-time” mountain music that has been passed down through generations in …
Traditional Zuni Dance and Song | Zuni, New Mexico The Zuni Olla Maidens are a venerated dance troupe from Zuni Pueblo in western New Mexico, equally well-known for singing, drumming and their trademark dance balancing pottery on their heads, as well as being an all-female troupe. The Zuni Olla Maidens …
Hawaiian Traditional | Las Vegas, Nevada Gary Haleamau and Kāwili, (Kāwili means to mix ingredients, blend, entwined, interwoven, interlaced~ with individual gifts of music and dance in native Hawaiian) is a Hawaiian Music family band that resides in Las Vegas, Nevada. They started singing as a trio in 2008. From performing …
Bluegrass | Nashville, TN Dobro master and 16-time GRAMMY winner Jerry Douglas is to the resonator guitar what Jimi Hendrix was to the electric guitar, elevating, transforming, and reinventing the instrument in countless ways. Additionally, Douglas is a freewheeling, forward-thinking recording and touring artist whose output incorporates elements of country, …
Texas Conjunto | San Antonio, TX Max Baca and Los Texmaniacs are the Past, Present, And Future of Conjunto Music. Conjunto music may be a familiar sound to residents of Texas, but its worldwide appeal can be surprising. Combine a hefty helping of Tex-Mex conjunto, simmer with several parts Texas …
