Folk College: May 23-25, 2025

Folk College

Workshops โ€ข Concerts โ€ข Coaching Sessions Jamming โ€ข Singing โ€ข Dancing

โ€ข A fun & friendly weekend of playing & hearing folk music
โ€ข Warm, welcoming, and fun
โ€ข Pick up an instrument and rekindle your love of music
โ€ข Plenty to do for musicians of all levels
โ€ข Lots for non-musicians too
โ€ข Located on a beautiful college campus in the mountains of Pennsylvania

A Truly Special Weekend

Folk College was founded to help more people learn to play music together. It is a non-competitive environment where you can kindleโ€”or rekindleโ€”your love of playing through folk music. Each year the staff includes nationally known musicians and wonderfully nurturing teachers from a broad spectrum of folk styles. Within one weekend, youโ€™ll have a choice of workshops ranging from old time to Celtic to blues to international, and youโ€™ll get to sing, dance, play, and listen.

Easy to Participate

Many workshops, with subjects like โ€œLearning to Jam,โ€ โ€œTunes that are Cooler Than They are Hard,โ€ and โ€œHow to Play by Earโ€ are designed to encourage musicians who have been โ€œstuck in their living room,โ€ havenโ€™t picked up their instrument since high school, or maybe just wanted to play an instrument but never dared!

Non-Musicians Welcome

From โ€œTry a Banjoโ€ and โ€œTry a Fiddleโ€ to โ€œBeginning Harmonicaโ€ and โ€œBeginning Jaw Harpโ€ and โ€œFun & Easy Percussionโ€, there are workshops designed for the total non-musician in mind

Our Faculty

This yearโ€™s faculty of musicians includes host band Simple Gifts,ย the music of South & North Americas with Acoustic Nomads, the English, Celtic & Baroque music of The Chivalrous Crickets, the progressive acoustic bluegrass sound of High Horse, the country blues sound of the Piedmont Bluz Acoustic Duo, singer, songwriter,ย  humorist Jamie Anderson, and the fusion of traditional fiddle tunes, jazz, tango, classical, and more with Midnight on the Water, and more.

For a full list and complete descriptions, check out the faculty page.

Folk College Concerts

The Folk College concerts are open to the public with tickets available in advance and at the door. ย The concerts take place at Halbritter Center for Performing Arts on the Juniata College campus in Huntingdon, PA.
(All Folk College participants have FREE entry to the concerts.)

This is your opportunity to see national talent in our area.

Friday, May 23, 2024 Concert

7:00 p.m. Faculty Concert

Simple Giftsโ€จ
The Chivalrous Crickets
Piedmont Bluz Acoustic Duo
High Horse

Saturday, May 24, 2025 Concert

7:00 p.m. Faculty Concert

Jamie Anderson
Midnight on the Water
Acoustic Nomads

Sunday, May 25, 2025

2:30-4:30 p.m. Student Bands Concert
A key part of the weekend is the Student Bands where Folk College participants have a chance to work with a small group in a band setting. Each band is coached by a professional staff member. The Student Bands are a showcase for unique band combinations, budding talent, and a chance for participants to display new skills learned during the Folk College weekend. The Sunday Student Bands Concert is FREE to the public.

Cost
Tickets for the Friday and Saturday concerts are $20 each ($15 for Huntingdon County Arts Council members).
All Folk College participants have FREE admission.
Tickets are available in advance, at the Huntingdon County Arts Council office at the Huntingdon County Arts Center,ย 313 12th Streetย in Huntingdon, and at the door.

Link to Friday, May 23, concert tickets

Link to Saturday, May 24, concert tickets

Folk College is a project of Simple Gifts and the Huntingdon County Arts Council, supported in part by a grant from Pennsylvania Council on the Arts.


Facebook Posts

Just one of the 19 amazing photos by Matthew Malkiewicz in his exhibit ๐‘ณ๐’๐’”๐’Š๐’๐’ˆ ๐‘ป๐’“๐’‚๐’„๐’Œ ๐’๐’‡ ๐‘ป๐’Š๐’Ž๐’† ๐’‚๐’• ๐’•๐’‰๐’† ๐‘ฌ๐’‚๐’”๐’• ๐‘ฉ๐’“๐’๐’‚๐’… ๐‘ป๐’๐’‘. The exhibit opens TONIGHT, Thursday, May 8, from 6 to 8 p.m.The exhibit is free. The exhibit is on display through Saturday, May 31. The exhibit is at the Huntingdon County Arts Center, 313 12th Street, Huntingdon, and is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.#huntingdoncountyartscouncil #eastbroadtop #photography #artexhibition ... See MoreSee Less
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2 days ago

Huntingdon County Arts Council
๐ŸŽป๐Ÿช•Don't miss the ๐’๐ข๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐ž ๐†๐ข๐Ÿ๐ญ๐ฌ in Concert this Sunday, May 11, at 2.p.m. at the Huntingdon County Arts Center. The concert will be followed by a jam. ๐Ÿ˜€๐ŸŽป๐ŸŽถTickets are $20 for the general public and $16 for current Arts Council members and students (with ID). Children 12 and under are free.๐Ÿ˜€๐Ÿ‘‰Tickets can be purchased at the Arts Center during exhibition hours, or at the door, or online at huntingdoncountyarts.com/product/simple-gifts-concert-saturday-february-8/. ๐Ÿช•๐ŸŽถSimple Gifts is two women plus twelve instruments equals one good time when they take the stage. Drawing on an impressive variety of ethnic folk styles, this award-winning duo plays everything from lively Irish jigs and down-home American reels to hard-driving Klezmer frailachs and haunting Gypsy melodies, spicing the mix with the distinctive rhythms of Balkan dance music, the lush sounds of Scandinavian twin fiddling, and original compositions written in a traditional style. ... See MoreSee Less
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A great new art space in Mount Union, with the grand opening of @Kari Roslundโ€™s Studio. Congrats, Kari! ... See MoreSee Less
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๐ŸŽจโœจ Kids Summer Art Camps Are Back! โœจ๐ŸŽจ WEEK 5Join the Huntingdon County Arts Council for 5 weeks of creativity and fun this summer! Each week is a unique adventure with a different art theme โ€” perfect for young artists of all skill levels.๐Ÿ—“๏ธ Mondayโ€“Friday | 9 AM โ€“ 12 PM ๐Ÿ’ต $100 per child, per week ๐ŸŽญ Sign up for one week or all five!Spaces fill up fast โ€” register today and let your childโ€™s imagination shine! ๐ŸŒ Learn more & sign up: huntingdoncountyarts.com/programs/kids-summer-art-camps/ ๐Ÿ“313 12th Street, Huntingdon, PA๐Ÿ“ž814-643-6220 ... See MoreSee Less
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๐ŸŽจโœจ Kids Summer Art Camps Are Back! โœจ๐ŸŽจ WEEK 4Join the Huntingdon County Arts Council for 5 weeks of creativity and fun this summer! Each week is a unique adventure with a different art theme โ€” perfect for young artists of all skill levels.๐Ÿ—“๏ธ Mondayโ€“Friday | 9 AM โ€“ 12 PM ๐Ÿ’ต $100 per child, per week ๐ŸŽญ Sign up for one week or all five!Spaces fill up fast โ€” register today and let your childโ€™s imagination shine! ๐ŸŒ Learn more & sign up: huntingdoncountyarts.com/programs/kids-summer-art-camps/ ๐Ÿ“313 12th Street, Huntingdon, PA๐Ÿ“ž814-643-6220 ... See MoreSee Less
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