Falcon Ridge Folk Festival

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Falcon Ridge Folk Festival

Falcon Ridge Folk Festival Main Stage 2004
Location(s)	Hillsdale, New York
Years active	1988-1990 1992-present
Date(s)	4th full weekend in July
Genre(s)	Folk, Country, Blues, Folk rock
Website	http://www.falconridgefolk.com

The Falcon Ridge Folk Festival is an American annual folk-oriented music festival and dance festival formerly held at the Long Hill Farm in Hillsdale, New York, USA. In 2006, the event moved to nearby Dodds Farm, just off Rt. 22, five miles north of the Rt. 22/Rt. 23 intersection in Hillsdale, on County Rt. 7D.

The festival is held during the 4th full weekend of July, currently from Thursday to Sunday; camping is allowed on the premises with a camping ticket, and -- counting both camping and non-camping patrons -- festival attendance in past years has approached as much as 15,000 throughout the long weekend. The 2007 festival will be held July 26-29.

While musical styles vary, the dominant genre is "Folk-Pop"; past festivals have included such artists as Dar Williams, Richard Shindell, Lucy Kaplansky, Ani DiFranco, Tom Paxton, Vance Gilbert, Tracy Grammer, Ellis Paul, John Gorka, Holly Near, Crooked Still, Eddie From Ohio, The Nields, We're About 9, Greg Brown, Richard Thompson, Gandalf Murphy and the Slambovian Circus of Dreams, Christine Lavin and Shawn Colvin.

Falcon Ridge Folk Festival performances take place on several stages. The Main Stage features headline acts throughout the festival, including a songwriter "swap" on Friday nights, and a yearly showcase series of between twenty and thirty new or up-and-coming artists from noon to five on Friday afternoon; it is the only outdoor stage on which music continues after dark.

Across the festival grounds, the Workshop Stage features smaller-scale, generally acoustic performances around various themes throughout the day, often with several artists or groups playing "in the round". Family-oriented musical performances and other family-friendly fare, such as puppet shows and clowning, also take place on the Family Stage throughout the daylight hours of the festival.

There is also a large Dance Tent that features various group and partnered dance styles until the wee hours of the morning, including Contra Dancing, Swing Dancing, Square Dancing, and Zydeco Dancing. Bands that have played in the dance tent include Nightingale, The Clayfoot Strutters, The Greenfield Dance Band, Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys, the Reckless Ramblers, Big Table, Small Tattoo, Brave Combo and many more.

Dances are often led by dance callers. Among them have been Ralph Sweet, Beth Molaro, Steve Zakon-Anderson, Lisa Greenleaf, and Kathy Anderson.

In the evenings after the official performances are over the music continues at informal "campfires" and unofficial performance tents scattered throughout the camping areas.