https://www.cambridgelive.org.uk/folk-festival/tickets
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“…names to whet the appetite of fans of Americana” AMERICANA-UK
“Fantastic line-up” AMERICANA MUSIC ASSOCIATION UK
Robert Plant Presents Saving Grace feat Suzi Dian – Bess Atwell – Flamy Grant
Dean Owens & The Sinners – Taylor McCall – Leyla McCalla – Darlingside
Larkin Poe – Aoife O’Donovan – Annie Dressner – Jerry Douglas – Tommy Emmanuel
Blue Rose Code’s Caledonian Soul Cavalcade – Katherine Priddy – Lizzie No – Lemoncello
Alison De Groot & Tatiana Hargreaves – Robbie Cavanagh – Dean Owens & The Sinners
Nora Brown and Stephanie Coleman
Cambridge has a long and celebrated history of diverse programming and support of Americana and country musicians. 2024 is no different with an enticing array of artists across the four main, covered stages over the festival weekend.
Amongst the many Americana styled treats to be enjoyed, Robert Plant will be presenting Saving Grace featuring Suzi Dian. In an unparalleled career of several decades Robert Plant has created music from legendary rock as Led Zeppelin frontman to a Bluegrass Grammy winning partnership with Alison Krauss. Recipient of the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award from the Americana Music Association UK, plant comes to Cambridge with Saving Grace – a collective comprised of Suzi Dian (vocals), Oli Jefferson (percussion), Tony Kelsey (mandolin, baritone and acoustic guitars), Robert Plant (vocals) and Matt Worley (banjo, acoustic and baritone guitars, and cuatro).
Bess Atwell’s new album ‘Light Sleeper’, produced by The National’s Aaron Dessner, is just out to rave reviews making the Brighton-based singer-songwriter one of the hottest tickets in the music world. See her Independent newspaper Music Box session for a peak at what to expect when you catch her at the Festival on the Sunday.
Always at the forefront of celebrating fresh artistry, Cambridge is delighted to welcome Flamy Grant. This powerhouse vocalist, intrepid songwriter, and irreverent comedy drag queen from North Carolina has lit up the Billboard-charts and scooped a basket of awards, including Kerrville Folk festival New Folk Competition winner 2023.
Irvine Welsh calls Dean Owens & The Sinners “the pulse of all our lives” and the multiple Americana UK award-winner, dubbed “Edinburgh’s finest” really knows how to delight a live audience. The band come to Cambridge this year as part of the uniqueShowcase Scotland Expo partnership.
South Carolina native Taylor McCall plunges deep into his roots with music and lyrics that embrace the legacy of his grandfather, who gave him his first guitar. McCall has recently been on the road supporting Robert Plant Presents Saving Grace feat Suzi Dian, and now shares the bill at Cambridge.
Leyla McCalla is quite simply stunning. Born in New York City to Haitian emigrants and activists, she finds inspiration from her past and present – her music vibrates with three centuries of history and influences from around the globe. McCalla possesses a stunning mastery of the cello, tenor banjo and guitar and, as a multilingual singer and songwriter, has risen to produce a distinctive sound that reflects the union of her roots and experience.
Favourites Darlingside, who took the Festival by storm in their debut year by filling a last minute Stage 1 spot, make a welcome return. Combining technical brilliance, blissful harmonies and hilarious on-stage banter, this Boston, MA four-piece are guaranteed to leave the audience smiling.
Originally from Atlanta and currently living in Nashville, Rebecca & Megan Lovell of Larkin Poe are self-producers of an electrifying, critically acclaimed body of work. Grammy-nominated singers/songwriters and multi-instrumentalist, the sisters create their own brand of Roots Blues Rock: gritty, soulful, and flavoured by their southern heritage.
Grammy award-winning American singer-songwriter, Aoife O’Donovan really needs no introduction. Co-founder of the outstanding female folk trio I’m With Her and co-founder and lead singer for the string band Crooked Still, O’Donovan has recently released one of her finest albums to date All My Friends, inspired by the passage of the 19th amendment and the evolving landscape of women’s rights in America over the past century.
NYC born and now Cambridge based singer songwriter Annie Dressner has been likened to an ‘uptempo Mazzy Star’, Phoebe Bridgers and First Aid Kit. Her music showcases her knack for rich storytelling – often based on her own life – mesmerising melodies, and lyrics that cut straight to the heart. Often with double-tracked vocals adding depth to her sound, Annie’s music strikes a balance between familiarity and contemporary freshness.
Fourteen-time Grammy winner, multi-talented Jerry Douglas is an American Dobro and lap steel guitar player, and record producer. Described by The New York Times as, ‘dobro’s matchless contemporary master,’ Jerry Douglas is also among the most innovative recording artists in music, both as a solo artist and member of numerous bands, such as Alison Krauss and Union Station and The Earls of Leicester. And, since 1998, has been a co-director of Transatlantic Sessions.
Tommy Emmanuel CGP is one of the world’s most respected musicians and is making a rare UK festival appearance. The legendary guitarist has a professional career that spans five decades and is a rare ‘certified guitar player’, an international title bestowed by guitar icon Chet Atkins. Emmanuel’s unique ‘finger style’ playing, technical precision and virtuosic improvisations must be seen to be believed.
Closing the Festival on Sunday evening in a fitting finale highlighting the huge impact of Scottish music, will be Blue Rose Code’s Caledonian Soul Cavalcade. Edinburgh-born Ross Wilson (aka Blue Rose Code), renowned for his powerful blend of alt-folk, jazz and blues, will be backed by a five-piece band and a horn section. Together they will perform inventive selections from the Scottish Songbook aided by a star-studded line-up of friends, including Karine Polwart, Justin Currie (Del Amitri),Steve Knightley and Danny Thompson. Watch this space for more big surprises.
Christian Raphael Prize winner, Katherine Priddy has quickly become one of the most exciting names on the British music scene and has not only topped the Official Folk Chart but has also featured in the Top Ten of the Official Americana Chart. Her haunting vocals and distinctive finger-picking guitar style have seen her sell out a headline tour, perform at prestigious festivals around the UK and abroad, including Glastonbury, and appear on BBC TV’s ‘Later With Jools Holland. Her second album, ‘The Pendulum Swing’, was released earlier this year to glowing reviews across the board.
Rolling Stone’s “future of music” Lizzie No is a harpist, guitarist and singer-songwriter who inhabits a space somewhere between Americana and indie folk. Her current album Halfsies is an intricate patchwork of the personal and the political, from the perspective of a queer, black woman living in today’s American cultural landscape. No has also hosted the Basic Folk podcast.
The Independent Spotlight artists, Irish duo Lemoncello (Laura Quirke and Claire Kinsella) are building a growing fanbase and media presence for their enchanting harmonies and dramatic soundscapes driven by finger-picked guitar and earthy, gritty cello playing.
Leaders in the new generation of young roots musicians, duo Allison De Groot & Tatiana Hargreaves, on banjo and fiddle, won Instrumental Group of the Year and Traditional Album of the Year at the 2023 Canadian Folk Music Awards. As well as an individual set, they will also perform with the mighty, Transatlantic Sessions in a UK Festival exclusive.
A self-confessed devotee of ‘real music’, Manchester singer-songwriter Robbie Cavanagh scooped the prestigious Bob Harris Emerging Artist Award at 2024’s Americana Music Association UK Awards. Robbie and his band have toured the UK, Europe and USA and graced many a festival stage.
First brought together by Brooklyn’s tight-knit old-time music community in 2017, Nora Brown and Stephanie Coleman share a rich musical partnership that belies their 20-year age difference. Nora plays traditional music with a focus on southern Appalachian banjo and guitar playing, Stephanie is a master old-time fiddler, having recorded with and toured internationally over the last two decades.
Alongside the world-class music, there is so much more to enjoy over the Festival weekend, including dedicated children’s activities; workshops on instrument making and song writing; a silent disco, storytelling, clog dancing, tai-chi, and an incredible selection of mouth-watering food trucks and bars from some of Cambridge’s finest food merchants. The Festival is also proud to have been deemed “Outstanding” at the Greener Festival Awards.
Weekend and Day Tickets are available, with a payment plan option. Don’t miss one of the finest events of the summer.
Ticket information:
Full festival ticket: £230, Thursday: £35, Friday: £89, Saturday: £89, Sunday: £89
Prices include booking fees. Please see website for concessions, camping and parking information.
Purchase from: https://www.cambridgelive.org.uk/folk-festival/tickets *
*Payment plan available: Many are opting this year to spread the cost of their tickets, with the Festival’s easy-to-use payment plan.
Artists By Day:
THURSDAY
Ralph McTell – Mec Lir – The Paperboys – Smith & Brewer Band
Rum Ragged – Malin – Charm of Finches – Brothers Gillespie – Frog on a Bike Ceilidh
Jakey Boy Hughes – Aine Deane – Auka – Amateur Theatre Group – Lily Lyons
FRIDAY
Robert Plant Presents Saving Grace feat Suzi Dian – Nitin Sawhney – Fantastic Negrito – Capercaillie
Tommy Emmanuel – Bess Atwell – Talisk
Flamy Grant – Birdvox – Dean Owens & The Sinners – Rum Ragged – Taylor McCall – Locarno
Nora Brown & Stephanie Coleman
Hannah Rarity – Harp & A Monkey – Brian McNeill – Assynt – Eabhal – Falasgair – Brown Wimpenny
Robbie Cavanaugh – Kirstie Almeida – Songlines Interview
Kim Yang – River Roots – Mat Hunsley – David Burnett – Fran Lusty – Anna McLuckie – Robin Adams
Mima Merrow – Brown Horse
SATURDAY
Transatlantic Sessions – Turin Brakes – Leyla McCalla – Darlingside – Butler, Blake & Grant
Larkin Poe – Jeremy Dutcher
Aoife O’Donovan – Niall McCabe – Rioghnach Connolly & Honeyfeet – The Langan Band
Sangjaru – Hack Poets Guild
Kitewing – Sean O’Hanrahan – Amy Hollinrake – Fraser Anderson – Annie Dressner
Feis Rois – Paper Sparrows – Ainsley Hamill – Constant Follower – Paul McKenna – Sian
Francesca Louise – Monique Clare – Ernest Aines – Konyikeh – Sorrel Nation – Seanie Bermingham
Mezanmi – Annie Baylis – Gareth Dunlop – The Deep Blue
SUNDAY
Peggy Seeger Family Band *US Legend Slot – Oysterband *UK Legend Slot – Jerry Douglas
Blue Rose Code’s Caledonian Soul Cavalcade – Flyte – Katherine Priddy – Genticorum
Raghu Dixit – Mitsune – Fara – Lizzie No – Dani Larkin – McGoldrick McCusker & Doyle
Jon Muq – Sarah Hagen – Nick Cope Kids Show
Lemoncello – Frankie Archer – Alison De Groot & Tatiana Hargreaves – Jali Baskary Konteh
Alexander Aga Roynstrand – Aevestaden – Erlend Viken Trio – Julie Alapnes
Nectar Woode – Joey Mac – Lorraine Nash – Tricia Collins – Lucy & Hazel
Around About Dusk – Kiki Gilmore – Slow Worm Takeover
“For sheer class and integrity, it can’t be beaten.” The Independent
“a thoroughly good-natured event” The Guardian