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UPCOUNTY TRADFEST

MARCH 29, 2025

Straw Rugs

Celebrate Maryland traditions through music, art, and dance! This one-day festival will include an artisan market, student performances, folk music and dance workshops, a free square dance, and an evening double-bill performance with acclaimed folk musicians Charm City Junction and Jocelyn Pettit & Ellen Gira. 

Thank you to our event sponsor!

“Folklore Society of Greater Washington (FSGW) was established in 1964 to further the understanding, investigation, and appreciation of the folk arts in the DMV area. Today FSGW accomplishes this goal by programming annual events for the community, offering financial and marketing aid to local programs, and advertising events for the general public.”

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PLAN YOUR DAY!

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2:00 PM - 6:00 PM

Artisans Market

The BlackRock Center for the Arts Artisan's Market is back! With your favorite vendors who specialize in hand crafted, jewelry, candles, and more, you can join us monthly for your handmade fix. Shop local, shop small, shop art!

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4:00 PM

Square Dancing w/ Devil in the Mill & Janine Smith

Devil in the Mill brings the pulsing groove of Appalachian music to center stage. Weaving together fiddles and voice, supported with banjo, guitar and percussive dance, Devil in the Mill lifts up dancers and listening audiences alike. From haunting ballads to driving fiddle tunes, original music and traditional pieces reimagined, Devil and the Mill leaves audiences inspired and ignited after every show.

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2:00 PM - 4:00 PM

Student Performances

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7:30 PM

Charm City Junction w/ Jocelyn Pettit & Ellen Gira

From dance inducing Old Time rhythms and foot stomping Irish melodies to hard-driving Bluegrass, Baltimore-based acoustic roots quartet Charm City Junction creates a fresh soundscape that keeps listeners on the edge of their seats wondering where they'll go next. Featuring fiddle, clawhammer banjo, button accordion and upright bass, this quartet isn’t afraid to take roots music to new places — but always with an eye on tradition. Joining forces in Glasgow in 2018, Jocelyn Pettit & Ellen Gira were already two well-established musicians, who found together a kindred musical spirit. With Jocelyn on fiddle and Ellen on cello, they push boundaries between traditional and contemporary genres to create a powerfully uplifting and soulful performance. On stage, their instruments weave a rhythmic, textured sound with nuanced fiddle-cello interplay. Complemented with vocal harmonies and lively stepdancing, they bring life and fire into original tunes, and high-energy repertoire from Scotland, Ireland, North America, and Scandinavia. FolkWorld Magazine calls them “A dazzling duo!”. Jocelyn & Ellen have been gracing stages and delighting audiences in North America and the UK with their album, All It Brings. Awarded 2024 "Traditional Album of the Year" at the Canadian Folk Music Awards, FolkWales Magazine calls the album “Wonderful, captivating... the most joyous and uplifting album in the entire galaxy.”

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