THE YOUNG TRADITION WEEKEND

'Festival jeunesse des arts traditionnels'

The Young Tradition Weekend featuring young singers, players and dancers in folk and traditional styles will be presented the weekend of Friday May 15th through Sunday May 17th 2009 in Burlington. Included will be a Friday night contra dance at St. Anthony's Parish Hall, workshops, the 5th annual contest at Waterfront Park as part of Kids Day, a reception/awards presentation, and an evening concert on Saturday, and a Sunday morning sing at Waterfront Park.

The weekend is a presentation of Events for Tom and Burlington Parks and Recreation with support from Ben & Jerry's, the Country Dance and Song Society and the Quebec Government Office in Boston and partnerships with Big Heavy World, Celebrate Champlain, the Champlain Valley Folk Festival, Festival Memoire et Racines, Fiddleheads, Lake Champlain Access TV, the Middlebury Festival on the Green, the Quechee Balloon Festival, Queen City Contras, the Radiator, Three Tomatoes and others.

Several things motivated the start and continuation of Young Tradition. A lot of the traditional and folk music we listen to and enjoy was made when many inspirational musicians and singers were in the their teens and twenties..... Robert Johnson, the Skillet Lickers, Hank Williams, Bob Dylan, Michael Coleman, Amede Ardoin, Denis McGee, the Carter Family, Pete Seeger, Muddy Waters, Woody Guthrie and many others. Our mission is to ensure there are opportunities for young players, singers and dancers to be supported, have opportunities to learn and perform with minimal intervention (interference?), and develop and experiment as part of a living tradition passed down from previous generations. The performers are young in age, but 'old souls', the latest in a long line of tradition bearers at the intersection of the past and the future. The showcase is not so much about featuring the 'stars of tomorrow', although that may well be the case (past performers have included Anais Mitchell, David Boulanger now with La Bottine Souriante, Nicolas Pellerin now with Le Vent du Nord, Duncan Yandell now a soloist with the Vermont Youth Orchestra, Zack Warshaw who competes in Ireland in dancing contests, etc.) ...... it is more about ensuring the health and vitality of the next link in the chain.

Dozens of singers, players and dancers will featured, including past contest winners and special guests Avi and Celia, Joanne Garton, Cynthia MacLeod, Owen and Elly Marshall, Mayfly, Pale Fire, Colin Savoie-Levac and Beatrix Methe with Friends, the Strawberry Hill Fiddlers, Rebecca Lay, and many others. Participants in the Saturday afternoon contest will feature over 30 acts featuring dozens of performers, including Tessa and Ella Bangs, Gabriel and Alexis Campagne, Alexis Chartrand, Roland Clark, Hannah Beth Crary, Jaden Gladstone, Becca Hanley, Nathan Harrison, Henry Jamison-Root, Lake Champlain Waldorf Fiddlers, Lisa Mackey, Jan Monteagudo-Meese, Heather Morris Celtic Dancers, Les Poules a Colin, Wil Raymond, Elly Valastro and others. Audience favorites from the Saturday afternoon contest will be awarded cash ($500 for 1st place, $250 for 2nd, $125 for 3rd), gift certificates to Burlington Guitar and Amp and Vermont Violins, and other prizes, including a slot in the evening concert and showcase performances throughout New England and Quebec.

An award will also be presented to Larry Gordon, founder and director of Village Harmony, someone over 30 years of age who is making significant efforts to support children, youth and young adults as they learn and explore folk and traditional music and dance. The awards will be presented during a reception from 5pm to 6:30pm at Waterfront Park (poor weather site is City Hall).

For more information contact www.myspace.com/youngtradition or event coordinators Mark Sustic at mrksustc@together.net or Julia Wayne at juliamwayne@gmail.com

The weekend will be an Events for Tom presentation. Proceeds benefit the Tom Sustic Fund, supporting families with children with cancer. For more general information about the series and the Tom Sustic Fund, contact Mark Sustic at 802-849-6968 or mrksustc@together.net

For Schedule for weekend go to www.myspace.com/youngtradition.