The Mountain Dance and Folk Festival returns to Asheville this weekend! The festival was founded by Bascom Lamar Lunsford as a means for people to share and understand the beauty and dignity of Southern Appalachian music and dance traditions.
Bascom saw the Mountain Dance and Folk Festival grow to be the oldest gathering of its kind in the nation and it continues in this way, a platform for the talented of the high country lying between the Great Smoky and the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Since 1928, the Mountain Dance and Folk Festival has served a crucial role in raising awareness and understanding of the vitality and importance of Southern Appalachian culture throughout the region, nation and world. Bascom Lunsford’s mission was to present the finest of the Appalachian ballad singers, string bands and square dance teams for education and entertainment. The songs and dances shared at this event echo centuries of Scottish, English, Irish, Cherokee and African heritage found in the valleys and coves between the Great Smokies and the Blue Ridge Mountains. Lunsford’s was the first dubbed a folk festival, and he later consulted with many communities across the country interested in organizing similar festivals.
If you like Shindig on the Green, you’ll love the Mountain Dance and Folk Festival!
Ticket prices are $50 for a three-night package; $25 for an adult single-night ticket; $10 for a student single-night ticket; and $5 for a child single-night ticket.
Tickets can be purchased at Shindig on the Green, at the door, and are available online at Folk Heritage’s website.