TENTERDEN

Folk Festival 2009

Friday 2^nd to Sunday 4^th October

There will be something for all the family at the 17^th Tenterden Folk Festival which takes place from Friday 2^nd to Sunday 4^th October.

For the children Ticklish Allsorts will, by popular demand from children and parents, be on hand on both Saturday and Sunday to entertain the younger festival goers. On Saturday their shows will take place in St Mildred’s Church Hall in Church Road while on Sunday their show will be held at the showcase marquee in the grounds of the Junior School in Recreation Road. Events should include a traditional Punch and Judy Show, a winner since 1662! There will also be an appearance by Mr Tickles the comedy entertainer and character with spoof magic, silly songs with guitar, action songs, games and parachute canopies, as well as walkabouts, talkabouts and street theatre shows. What more could the kids, of all ages, ask for?

Other festival goers will prefer to find one of the lunchtime or evening sing-a-rounds or music sessions in the Woolpack, White Lion, Vine, William Caxton or Tenterden Club and either join in singing the traditional English and contemporary folk songs, or get out their guitars, accordions, melodeons, fiddles, drums, bones, etc. and join in the tunes being played by the crowds of musicians who will be there from Friday evening to late Sunday night. These events are very much participatory but you will also be made welcome if you just want to come along and listen.

There will also be those whose main interest is the hundreds of Morris dancers attending the Festival with 50 sides expected at its peak on Saturday. These will include men’s sides, women’s sides and some mixed sides and take in all the various styles of Morris including Cotswold, Border, Molly, clog and garland, as well as Appalachian, Scottish and Slovakian dancers. One of the many highlights for the general public will be the procession on Sunday which will include most of the dancers present so could involve nearly 1,000 people. Many of the dancers will be staying on for Sunday as well.

More formal events include barn dance, concerts and folk club as well as craft fair, street stalls and music fair. There are also numerous workshops and we offer a chance to “Meet” some of the guests in informal sessions to have a chat, ask a few questions and hear a few songs or tunes. We also offer participatory workshops where you can hear about folk related topics or improve your own skills. This year’s workshops will, amongst others, include a harmony workshop with Craig, Morgan, Robson, a workshop with Jeff Warner, a melodeon workshop with Brian Peters and “More birds in folk song” with Derek Gifford. Full details of all these and other events are included in the bumper souvenir programme which is now available from us or from festival venues, Tenterden Gateway and Ashford Tourist Information Centre.

Ticket sales are up on previous years but it is not too late to buy your tickets, book your craft fair, street stall or music fair pitch.

Festival information:

More details of Tenterden Folk Festival 2009 guests, accommodation and camping are now being posted on our website at www.tenterdenfolkfestival.org.uk.

To receive our regular email updates send an email to info@tenterdenfolkfestival.org.uk with "add to festival news list" in the subject box.

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Last updated 16^th September 2009

Copyright © Tenterden Folk Festival 2009