Festival crowd sample pumped for next year

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BANGOR – What’s in a name?

Based on a sampling of those attending the last National Folk Festival held in the Queen City, not much.

Asked if they would attend next year, when the popular music, craft and food celebration morphs into the American Folk Festival, the collective answer was, “You bet!”

Most of those interviewed Saturday even conceded that if the new version of the festival charged a nominal admission fee, they would still make the trek – as long as the quality of the music and food remained high.

Several issued a warning to festival organizers, however: Avoid the carnival atmosphere that dominates many fairs and festivals around the state where Ferris wheels and dunking booths are on equal footing with music and crafts.

Jon Poitras, 30, and Christine Hansell, 32, of Prospect have attended all three festivals, and this year they had their 21/2-year-old daughter and Hansell’s tropical bird in tow.

The music was the draw, both said.

The couple enjoyed the blues and R&B offerings, as well as dobro master Jerry Douglas. Hansell would enjoy a little more rock ‘n’ roll, she said. But Poitras said ethnic and traditional music is in short supply elsewhere, which makes the festival special.

“The underdogs,” he called them: musicians who are not household names. “It’s a good variety of music.”

The couple also gave this year’s version of the festival high marks for “keeping it moving” between acts. The first year there were more lulls, they said.

Doug Hufnagel, 58, of Belfast attended the first festival and was back this year to see Solas.

“They’re one of my favorite groups,” he said. “I like Irish music, Cajun music, which are kind of hard to find in Maine.”

Hufnagel operates a coffee concession stand at festivals and fairs around New England so he can compare the Folk Fest to other events. The quality of food and drink is high, he said, though he worried that if the festival is strapped for cash, it might “start to go the way of the carnival.”

“I’ll come back,” Hufnagel said, as long as the quality of music remains high.

“Free is one of my favorite words,” he said, but Hufnagel wouldn’t flinch at paying a fee to get into the festival.

Pam Urquhart of Greene had listened to the festival on Maine Public Radio in past years, but attended this time on her way home from her family’s camp near Baxter State Park.

“Cajun and blues, those are my favorites,” she said.

Urquhart would also pay to get in “if it’s not exorbitant.”

Regina McCombs, 47, of Lincoln has been to all three festivals and will return next year “in a heartbeat,” she said.

The music is the draw for McCombs.

“There’s lots of unreconstructed folkies in the state,” she joked. “We come out of the woodwork.”

McCombs thinks the festival should feature a slice of Maine folk music and perhaps Maine storytellers.

“I think they missed out on that,” she said.

McCombs has attended the Lowell Festival, which grew out of the National’s stop in that Massachusetts city.

“This is nicer than Lowell,” she said. “It’s more spread out. And you’re closer to the music.”

The Bangor festival “has sort of a Common Ground Fair feel to it,” which she believes is important to preserve.

Danya Klie, 61, of Belfast has attended all three years.

She likes “the variety of music” and enjoys the fact that most everyone else attending seems to be there for the music.

Rick Tanney, 56, and his wife attended the first year and this year and expect to return. The couple are familiar with many of the performers at the festival, having heard them on CBC radio from their home in Trescott near the Canadian border.

His wife is particularly passionate “about all things Acadian,” he said.

The couple enjoyed the music of Vishten from Prince Edward Island and Solas.

Scanning the program, Tanney concluded that music from every continent – with the possible exception of South America – was well-represented at the festival.

“It’s a pretty good diversity of different folk cultures,” he said.

Adding a “name” performer or two, such as Steeleye Span, the McGarrigles, Joni Mitchell or Arlo Guthrie, might enhance the festival, Tanney said.

Ian Ramsey, 28, of Portland attended last year for the first time and returned this year. He plans a return visit next year.

A music teacher at North Yarmouth Academy who leads student Celtic and steel band groups, he loves the music, but also the atmosphere.

“I think the scale of it is done pretty well now,” Ramsey said.

In addition to those quoted above, the Bangor Daily News conducted a random survey of 10 others attending the festival Saturday:

. Two had attended just one of the previous festivals, one was attending for the first time, while seven were attending for third year.

. All said they will or will probably attend next year.

. All said the number of performers and diversity of music was just right.

. Seven said adding regional and local performers was not important, while three favored adding that element.

. All but one said having a big-name performer was not important.

. Everyone said the length of time musicians performed – an hour – was just right. The sets were long enough to represent the band’s sound, yet not so long as to tax attention spans, they said.