2026 Festival Schedule!
(scroll to bottom for workshop schedule!)
Thursday 2/12
Kick Off Jam (Free)
6pm-9pm Ilk Lodge Brewery (Downtown Olympia)
9pm until it ends Mossy Bottom Records (Downtown Olympia)
6pm-9pm Ilk Lodge Brewery (Downtown Olympia)
9pm until it ends Mossy Bottom Records (Downtown Olympia)
Friday 2/13 |
Saturday 2/14 |
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Daytime Workshops (Free)
1 1/2 hour long workshops, scroll down for workshop details Daytime Workshop Locations 12pm-4:30pm Arbutus Folk School 12pm-4:30pm South Bay Grange Friday Evening Events
(get tickets here!) Lounge Acts South Bay Grange 5pm-6pm Mississippi Hotdogs 6pm-7pm Dear Crow Main Concert South Bay Grange 7pm-10pm Squirrel Butter Golden Shoals Alum Ridge Boys and Ashlee Square Dance South Bay Grange 10pm-12pm The Tallboys Reunion! Caller: Connor Maguire Jamming throughout and late, late at Grange |
Daytime Workshops (Free)
1 1/2 hour long workshops, scroll down for workshop details Daytime Workshop Locations 12pm-4:30pm Arbutus Folk School 12pm-4:30pm South Bay Grange Saturday Evening Events
(get tickets here! Lounge Acts South Bay Grange 5pm-6pm The Tallboys Stringband 6pm-7pm Tradwife Stringband Square Dance South Bay Grange 7pm-9pm Alum Ridge Boys and Ashlee Caller: Charmaine Slaven Honky Tonk Dance 9pm-11pm South Bay Grange Mississippi Hotdogs Line Dancing South Bay Grange 11pm - until it ends! Jamming throughout and late, late at Grange |
Sunday 2/15
Crankie Show (Free)
1pm-3pm South Bay Grange
What is a Crankie?
A crankie is a centuries-old art form and story telling tradition that brings together music, lyrics, and art. It consists of a box with two scrolls of paper or some other material that is "cranked" to reveal images that are set to music and lyrics. If you have never seen a crankie show you are in for a treat!
Our crankie show will feature performances by Sue Truman and the Crankie Factory (with W.B. Reid and Jerry Gallaher), Zoe Leger, and the Oly Old Time Festival crankie (made during Friday's crankie-making workshop).
1pm-3pm South Bay Grange
What is a Crankie?
A crankie is a centuries-old art form and story telling tradition that brings together music, lyrics, and art. It consists of a box with two scrolls of paper or some other material that is "cranked" to reveal images that are set to music and lyrics. If you have never seen a crankie show you are in for a treat!
Our crankie show will feature performances by Sue Truman and the Crankie Factory (with W.B. Reid and Jerry Gallaher), Zoe Leger, and the Oly Old Time Festival crankie (made during Friday's crankie-making workshop).
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2026 Workshop Schedule!
Workshop Locations:
Click HERE for directions to workshop venues
Workshops run from 1.5 - 2.5 hours (note the times for each workshop)
Note the location: South Bay Grange or Arbutus Folk School
Yellow indicates especially family or kid friendly
Click HERE for directions to workshop venues
Workshops run from 1.5 - 2.5 hours (note the times for each workshop)
Note the location: South Bay Grange or Arbutus Folk School
Yellow indicates especially family or kid friendly
Friday Workshops |
Saturday Workshops |
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12pm - 1:30pm
Old Time Fiddle (all levels) South Bay Grange Hall Charlie Beck Play some fun and accessible old time fiddle tunes. Charlie will teach the particulars and then you'll take 'em for a spin together. Questions and participation will be welcome. 12pm - 2:30pm (note this is a 2.5 hour workshop) Community Crankie Making (all levels) South Bay Grange Lounge Emily Teachout and Shanty Slater Illustrate a tune or ballad on a scroll of paper, then perform it by illuminating it from behind and rolling it by in time to the music. Emily and Shanty will demonstrate a crankie they've already made and then the class will make one together. Bring yourself and your creativity. All supplies provided. There may be an opportunity to perform the crankie later in the week! 12pm - 1:30pm Old Time Mandolin (Intermediate) Arbutus Folk School Front Room Andrew Small Tune up the old 8-string and explore all things mandolin! Spend time covering useful shapes, chord voicings, and other repeating patterns that will expand your facility on the instrument and can add variety and color to your playing. We'll consult recordings of mandolin masters who demonstrate a variety of approaches to using the instrument in a traditional context. Along the way, we’ll hammer home the three T’s - Tone, Taste, and Timing (although not necessarily in that order). If you love the mandolin, this is the class for you! 1:30pm - 3:00pm
Cajun Accordion (all levels) South Bay Grange Hall Paul Denison Come learn the basics of playing cajun ornamentation on the one row button accordion. All experience levels are welcome! Paul will have accordions in C and D. 1:30pm - 3:00pm Upright Bass (intermediate) Traditional Bass Playing Arbutus Folk School Front Room Rina Rossi Bass players don’t usually play tons of notes per measure in an old-time setting, so it’s how you play each note that counts. We'll dig into how to be a bumping bass player. We’ll start with some basics like technique, tone, attack and length of sustain, and go over chords/bass notes in the keys of G, D, A, and C. We’ll then move on to pushing and pulling the beat, note choices, strategies for playing by ear in jams, basic theory/chord patterns that you see in traditional music, and getting comfortable backing up tunes at medium speeds. 2:30pm - 4:00pm
Fiddle Luthier South Bay Grange Lounge Anna Sandys Does your fiddle need some care and feeding? Come visit with Anna Sandys a luthier from Portland, Oregon. Anna draws from her expertise as a violin maker and fiddle refurbisher to help you troubleshoot issues, and learn to maintain your instrument in peak condition. 3:00pm - 4:30pm
Hoofin' it! Flatfoot Dance (all levels) South Bay Grange Hall Charmaine Slaven Learn to accompany old-time music with rhythms you create with your feet. We'll cover introductory steps, and then explore interesting rhythms that intermediate dancers can add to their repertoire. 3:00pm - 4:30pm Fiddle (Intermediate) Intuitive Bowing Arbutus Folk School Front Room Joe Fulton Joe, fiddler in the Mississippi Hotdogs, and formerly of the Tallboys, will lead a workshop on intuitive bowing. Joe's known for his driving and danceable tunes so his insights are bound to enhance your playing. |
12pm - 1:30pm
Harmony Singing with Andrew Small and Ashlee Watkins South Bay Grange Hall (all levels) Andrew Small and Ashlee Watkins Delve into the nitty gritty details of harmony singing through the traditional song repertoire of SW Virginia. Ideas covered will include shaping a harmony line, stacking different parts, and settling on the right key. Discuss stylistic choices involved in designing a harmony line as well as how to achieve a good vocal blend through phrasing, pronunciation, tone, and intonation. Bring your voice and all of your questions about harmony singing. Recording devices are welcome and encouraged! 12pm - 1:30pm Crankie Factory (all levels) South Bay Grange Lounge Sue Truman Crankies are a 19th century stortelling art form involving a long scroll that is loaded into a viewing box and usually set to live music. In this workshop, you can make a matchbox crankie with The Crankie Factory! Take home an adorable crankie along with a folkart bottle cap pie, miniature rolling pin and tiny felted pumpkin! You will have your own analog entertainment center! You can color an illustrated scroll or create one of your own design. All materials provided. 12pm - 1:30pm Fiddle C-Tunes (Intermediate) Arbutus Folk School Front Room Amy Alvey Old time fiddlers are often intimidated by the key of C, but they can be tons of fun! Let’s learn a couple of C tunes to expand our repertoire and demystify common phrases. 1:30pm - 3:00pm
All Ages Jam (all levels family friendly) South Bay Grange Hall Sam, Charlie and Greta Sam, Charlie and Greta, of Portland's Triple File, will lead a kid-oriented jam with familiar tunes. All acoustic instruments welcome. All interested youngsters are welcome to participate. It's helpful if there is some willingness to try picking up tunes by ear. The focus will be on familiar, accesible tunes. 1:30pm - 3:00pm Ragtime Jam (all instruments all levels) South Bay Grange Lounge Anna Sandys Play county rags along with friends. We'll explore the keys of C,F and Bb! All instruments welcome! 1:30pm - 3:00pm Guitar (intermediate) The Groove is in your Hands! Arbutus Folk School Front Room Mark Killanski Guitar is the glue of a string band’s collective rhythm. We’ll explore many elements of this broad style, including timing, tone, chord choices, bass runs, jam etiquette, practice techniques, and more. We’ll listen to a wide array of approaches to guitar across the Old Time genre and discuss this world of possibilities, as well the history and development of the music. 3:00pm - 4:30pm
All Ages Dance (family friendly) South Bay Grange Hall Caroline Oakley calling Caroline will teach all the necessary moves in a fun and gentle way to include all levels and ages. Live music from the Shnoll Family Band plus Greta! The Schnoll Family Band features brothers Sam and Charlie, along with their parents Kate and Steph and they're joined by their pal Greta. You can bet on this dance being a blast. This is a square dance that is especially geared towards inclusion of youngsters. 3:00pm - 4:30pm Clawhammer Banjo (intermediate) Backing Up the Singer on Clawhammer South Bay Grange Lounge Charlie Beck Banjos are a joy to play and sing with. This workshop will use some great, old time-y songs to peek at the banjo's many plucky possibilities. With an emphasis on creating solid grooves, you'll delve into the interplay between the banjoist and the singer and other instrumentalists. Learn specific clawhammer techniques like the bumditty, along with drop-thumbing, and explore ideas for playing up the neck. Also chords will be shown, scales will be revealed, soloing will be explained, songs will be sung and banjo jokes will be shared. 3:00pm - 4:30pm Intro to Mandolin (beginner) Arbutus Folk School Front Room Jack Dwyer Whether you are new to music entirely or just new to the mandolin, this is the place to get you on your way. The mandolin can be either a lead or chord instrument so we'll focus on a little of both. |
