Bangor Signs 5-Year Contract Extension With American Folk Festival
The American Folk Festival will continue on the Bangor Waterfront for another five years after the City of Bangor signed a contract extension this week.
WABI-TV reports the new agreement between Festival organizers and the City of Bangor was approved by the city council on Monday night. It's good news for the Festival, which has tangled with city officials in recent years over finances. The contract extension will keep the festival in Bangor through 2021.
The event started with the National Folk Festival, which brings music, dance, food, and culture from around the world to a different community every 3 years. The national festival stays in one community for three summers, and then moves on to another city. Before the national festival wrapped up its run in Bangor, organizers were working on a plan to continue the event as the American Folk Festival. The local festival began its run in 2005.
Tens of thousands of people from around the country flock to Bangor each Augusta for this free event.Celebrities, like Willem Dafoe, have traveled to Maine in order to enjoy the wide variety of musical styles. Several stages are set up, with simultaneous performances, so attendees can wander the grounds and experience a variety of cultures at once.
Festival organizers have already announced some of the performers that will be appearing at this year's event, which kicks off on August 25th. They include blues guitarist Selwyn Birchwood, gospel singer Cora Harvey Armstrong, Quebecois group Les Poules a Coulin, zydeco group C.J. Chenier and the Red Hot Louisiana Band, and rhythm band Las Cafeteras. Find more information on the American Folk Festival's website.