The 5th Annual Baltimore Old Time Music Festival
Beloved roots-music festival moves to a new, more spacious home at the Baltimore Museum of Industry.
Tickets are on-sale now for the 5th Annual Baltimore Old Time Music Festival April 19-20, 2024 - a joyous, interactive, and inspiring celebration of the music rooted in the fiddle and banjo traditions of the region.
The sounds of the fiddle and banjo, along with ballad singing, country song, flatfoot dance, and social square dancing are sewn into the fabric of Baltimore and the surrounding communities. This music, often called Old Time, is experiencing a renaissance in Baltimore, with a community of younger players creating new takes on these old styles. The Baltimore Old Time Music Festival is at the helm of this resurgence and is a gathering for the best and the brightest performers from around the country. Now in its 5th year, the festival is moving to a new, more spacious home to accommodate the continued, expanding enthusiasm for these sounds.
The festival is hosted by the father-son musical duo of Ken & Brad Kolodner. “We’re proud of how this festival has evolved over the years and this new chapter is a thrilling development for the community,” says Brad Kolodner. “It’s shaping up to be a tremendous celebration of a wonderfully vibrant style of music. With jamming, concerts, dancing, workshops, kids programs, and more, it’s an interactive experience fun for all. Imagine a sea of fiddles, banjos, and guitars, swelling together in a chorus of joyous tunes. It’s a sight to behold.”
After four sold-out festivals, the event will move to its new home at the beautiful Baltimore Museum of Industry (BMI) on April 19-20, 2024 for a musical celebration fun for all ages! Concerts, hands-on workshops, square dancing, jamming, craft fair and vendor village, kids programming, and more on the gorgeous waterfront campus of the Baltimore Museum of Industry with stunning views of the Baltimore skyline.
Event Details:
The festival convenes some of the country's brightest old time musicians, singers, and dancers to celebrate where this music exists today. Join host artists Ken & Brad Kolodner for the Baltimore Old Time Music Festival with The Onlies; Don Flemons; Bruce Molsky; The Horsenecks; From Africa to Appalachia with Cheick Hamala Diabate, Danny Knicely, and Riley Baugus; Beatbox Dads; Becky Hill & Friends; Allison de Groot and Tatiana Hargreaves; Janine Smith; and Rachel Eddy.
The event kicks off on Friday night with a concert under the outdoor Pavillion at the BMI, followed by an all-star old time revue inside the visually engaging gallery of the museum.
The event continues on Saturday with instructional workshops in various instruments for all skill levels, along with singing, flatfoot dancing, printing-making workshops, and more. Saturday also features a FREE outdoor family day with a square dance geared towards families, a musical jam with Baltimore’s own Beat Box Dads, kids crafts from the Waldorf School, a vendor village, food, and more. Concerts will take place inside the building and under the pavilion throughout the day. As the sun sets, the event builds in energy with headline sets inside the grand gallery of the BMI and an all-star band square dance under the stars.
Background:
The Baltimore Old Time Music Festival began in 2019 as a manifestation of a growing old time community in the region that coalesced around weekly old time jam sessions and monthly square dances. As this community grew, it became more reflective of Baltimore, welcoming players, dancers, and fans from a spectrum of age, gender, sexual orientation, and racial and ethnic backgrounds.
The Baltimore Old Time Festival is uniquely inter-generational and diverse—a product of efforts to foreground the history of Black artists in the development of this music; hold deep conversations about the roles of women, Queer, and Indigenous artists in the formation of these sounds; introduce gender-free calling (saying “swing your partner” rather than “swing your girl/guy”) into the square dance; and center Baltimore in the development of this style of music.
The festival is co-produced by the Center for Cultural Vibrancy and Ken & Brad Kolodner
Festival Highlights:
Friday night kick-off concerts under the Pavilion at the BMI and inside the main gallery;
Hands-on instructional workshops for all skill levels;
Activation of the full BMI campus, both inside and outside;
Free Parking!
Locally sourced Food and Drink options;
Vendor Village with local crafts;
FREE Family Programming includes a Family Square Dance and a special performance from Beat Box Dads throughout Saturday. Kids 12 and under are free for all other activities;
Admission to the fest grants you access to the Museum and all it has to offer with its beautiful exhibits.
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MEDIA CONTACT
BRAD KOLODNER [email protected] ; 410-404-9270
KEN KOLODNER [email protected] ; 410-746-8387
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WEBSITE
