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Welcome to the 64th National Folk Festival! Whether you’re from the Bangor area, from other parts of Maine, or from “away,” you’ve picked a great time to discover what Bangor has to offer. I know it will turn out to be more than you ever expected.
It has been exciting to be part of the group bringing the 2002 National Folk Festival to Bangor. In the end, more than 1,000 people will have worked together to make this happen, and we’ve had a great time doing it. We’ll know we did our job well when we see you having a great time, too.
There’s so much to do and see and hear, and only three festival days. This will be a first in many ways – the first time many of the performers have been in Maine and the first time many of us will have the opportunity to see and hear them. I’ve never been to a Tibetan opera, danced to a Texas-Polish polka band or seen traditional Hawaiian hula dancing. This is my chance, and yours.
I hope you have a wonderful time exploring the National Folk Festival, the Bangor area, and Maine.
Thanks for being part of the 64th National Folk Festival.
Susan Pierce
Festival Director
The city of Bangor has long been recognized for the beauty of its central and historic waterway, the Penobscot River. Likewise, many in our community appreciate the rich cultural and artistic country we call America. All of this comes together as we welcome the 64th National Folk Festival to Bangor.
As a city, we welcome our own residents to the National and hope they will take pride in what it brings to and says about their own back yard. As hosts of the National, we also welcome our neighbors from the Greater Bangor region and other far-reaching areas.
The sounds, tastes and smells of many cultures are the main fare for this weekend, but we hope you’ll continue to discover the gifts of the region beyond these three special days.
I am extremely pleased and proud to be part of a city that understands the community and economic benefits of the National Folk Festival.
Welcome to Bangor!
John Rohman
City Councilor, City of Bangor
Chair, National Folk Festival
Not enough attention has been paid to the effect of boiled cabbage and turnips upon the settlement patterns and cultural development of North America. It was the bland homogeneity and relentless monotony of boiled cabbage and turnips, and a wish to enliven this tasteless European diet with a whiff of pepper, that sent Christopher Columbus sailing westward in the 15th century.
Assuming the Earth was half its actual size, he searched the Caribbean islands for pepper and other trade goods for a few years. On his final voyage, he reached the mainland of what he thought was India but was actually present-day southern Mexico.
There he witnessed and described for his patrons a spectacular dance. A tribe related to the Aztecs cut the limbs from a tall tree, built a platform on top, danced to music they made and finally launched themselves into space, twirling to the ground, tethered by their feet to the top by vines.
Ferdinand and Isabella saluted the navigator by naming him Admiral of the Western Ocean. They also could have named him First Dance Ethnographer of the Western Hemisphere.
The dance that Columbus saw and described is a religious ritual and is still performed by descendants of the people he witnessed. Yes, there has been a bit of change in the dance and ritual during five centuries. A costume has evolved, and ropes have replaced vines. But it is still spectacular and amazing, a test of skill and faith.
If the Great Navigator had possessed better information about summer in North America, I’m confident he would have persuaded the dancers he saw to abandon those torpid regions and accompany him as he sailed northward to the joys of a Maine summer. He could have become the First Summer Person!
Descendants of those dancers and other dedicated keepers of tradition – including many from Maine – will be with us in Bangor. I promise that many will be noisy and joyous, and that the Flying Man Dance is as unforgettable as it was when Christopher Columbus saw it five centuries ago.
I’m proud of the accomplishments of our partners and sponsors in Bangor, and urge you to come join them and us as we celebrate tradition with noise and joy. And be sure to lay in a supply of pepper and a good grinder in case some boiled cabbage comes your way.
Joe Wilson
Executive Director
National Council for the Traditional Arts
INDEX
General information/4
Folk Feast: National Festival comes to Bangor/5
Musical performers/8-26
Donor list/16
Creating a heritage: Passamaquoddy basket maker a national treasure/16
Different Strokes: What is folk music?/18
Festival map and schedule/27-30
Demonstrations/32-36
Food vendors/37
Food demonstrations/38
Folk arts marketplace/39-44
Advertisers index/42
National Folk Festival quilt, canoe/45
Folk preservers/46-49
Children’s performers/50
Not Your Average Joe: Joe Wilson is a
National Folk Festival feature/51-52
Maine events/53
Shake it, Bangor! Folk festival feelings/54-55
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Mark Your Calendars Now!
August 22-24, 2003
Downtown Bangor, Maine
The 65th National Folk Festival will return to the Penobscot riverfront in August 2003. Mark your calendars now for another fantastic weekend of music, dance, fun and food for the entire family. Both entertaining and educational, the festival is an outstanding blend of arts, music festival, country fair, hands-on activities and celebration of multiethnic
heritage.
To continue the National Folk Festival as a FREE family-friendly event, sponsorships are being sought continually from public and private sources. The National has received pledges of cash and in-kind support from many sources, but we need more to continue offering this broad array of activities and programming.
For information on donating, volunteering, or getting involved with the National Folk Festival, please contact:
National Folk Festival
115 Main St.
Bangor, ME 04401
207-947-5205
www.nationalfolkfestival.com
Send checks payable to: NFF/EMDC, 115 Main St., Bangor, ME 04401
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