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By renting a Vacation rental in our rural Madison County community during these festivals and events, you’re not only immersing yourself in the beauty and hospitality of the area but also directly supporting local families and businesses as we recover from Hurricane Helene. Check out Places to Stay Nearby
Using split kudzu vines, you will sew them back together again in a coiled basket.
Cherokee cultural stories told and discussed.
Don’t miss a one-of-a-kind evening of roots music. Rachel Sumner & Traveling Light, fresh off a first-place win at the Telluride Bluegrass Band Contest, bring their musical finesse and Rachel’s lyrical bite to the farm. Sharing the bill is acclaimed songwriter Erik Koskinen—praised as “the real deal” by the Minneapolis Star Tribune—with plainspoken poetry and a genre-defying sound.
Join us for a daylong, hands-on workshop with multi-media artist Primrose Coke as we dive into the fascinating world of Crankies—a centuries-old storytelling tradition experiencing a vibrant revival! Beginners welcome.
The Swan and the Loon is a multimedia performance that was born in the wake of Hurricane Helene. The story is told through stunning art, puppetry and music, and centers around holding together the griefs too big to hold on our own.
Our Bandaloop Tiny Music & Story Festival brings magic and story woven with music and dance. Friends of the Hot Springs Library will receive 50% of the net proceeds from this event. Lineup: Rosali, Sluice, Angela Autumn, Lou Hazel, Anjimile, Brittany Ann Tranbaugh, Magic Tuber Stringband, Primrose Coke + Nature Journaling w/ Spencer Beals, Body Art w/ Jane Sleeper, Baba Yaga’s Photo Hut
Our second annual free community concert and potluck in response to our resilient community. Hilary Rose, Liliana Hudgens, and Cole Pulice. Made possible by the generous support of Jazz Foundation of America.
Learn songwriting with Sparrow Smith. No musical experience necessary, beginners welcome.
Sparrow Smith will celebrate her new record, a love letter to Madison County, with a concert and songwriting workshop at Rare Bird Farm. On Saturday evening, Sparrow will play the new album in its entirety, plus some other select tunes, with a 5-piece band. Sweet Megg opens. Workshop on Sunday. SONGWRITING WORKSHOP WITH SPARROW OFFERED SEPARATELY.
Have you ever wanted to carve your own eating utensils, but didn't know how to start? Come learn how to carve a spoon from green wood! We'll start at the very beginning, learning about the kinds of wood that are good for carving and how to select a piece to work with. Then we'll learn how to use basic hand tools to turn that piece into a beautiful, functional spoon that you can take home and use!
Willy Tea Taylor was Michael Gardner’s favorite musician. Michael Gardner (1991–2024) was our dear friend and neighbor, Megan Gardner’s devoted brother and uncle to her three children. Mike was also a distinguished American alpinist, mountain guide, and big-mountain skier, celebrated for his pioneering spirit and significant contributions to the climbing community. Willy Tea Taylor is a singer-songwriter whose music embodies the raw storytelling and heartfelt simplicity of folk and country traditions. Also on the same weekend:
A guided painting session with Sarah Mathilda Stewart of Rattlesnakes and Rainbows. Sarah will provide all the necessary materials and instruction and guidance on how to interact with plants and sacred geometry as muse. Beginners welcome.
Step into a world of haunting ballads, old-time harmonies, and soul-stirring melodies as Elizabeth LaPrelle and Brian Dolphin weave together the deep traditions of Appalachian music with a global folk sensibility. HARMONY SINGING WORKSHOP
Lemonbalm is experimental dream harmony folk trio based out of Sandy Mush, NC.
We will bring you a few different songs in dense and beautiful harmony from places we've spent a bunch of time, likely including one from Southern Appalachia and one from Ukraine. Elizabeth is a world-renowned ballad singer and scholar from rural Virginia and Brian is an ethnomusicologist and choir director has studied folk music all over the world.
Rare Bird’s signature summer festival, Lightning Bug, is a multi-genre celebration of music, art, inclusivity, and the magic of fireflies. This vibrant event bridges artists and music lovers of all abilities, highlighting and supporting performers and attendees with disabilities while fostering an inclusive community. With dynamic musical acts, immersive experiences, and a mission-driven focus, Lightning Bug benefits the Rare Bird Theatre Camp and welcomes all to share in the wonder of music and connection.
Join us for an unforgettable night of raw emotion, dynamic soundscapes, and genre-blurring folk rock as Squirrel Flower, Free Range, and Styrofoam Winos take the stage. With ethereal intensity and a voice that cuts through like a storm, Squirrel Flower delivers haunting, atmospheric indie rock that lingers long after the last note. Free Range brings introspective songwriting and lush, understated arrangements that feel both tender and expansive. Styrofoam Winos round out the night with their off-kilter harmonies and effortlessly cool blend of alt-country and lo-fi charm. Three boundary-pushing acts, one night of beautifully unfiltered music—don’t miss it! Also on the same day - Cherokee Basket Weaving Workshop
Learn weaving and wisdom from National Treasure, Nancy Basket. Weave a small freeform laundry basket with split kudzu while hearing Cherokee stories and wisdom.
Join us to view a documentary of Katherine's journey to grow her own burial shroud from flax seed and reconnect her mortality within nature's cycles. She will speak to how this practice has sparked a community movement to reclaim home-based death and grief care—rituals that root us more deeply in connection to each other and the earth. Filmmaker Charly Louise of Venus Rising Media will join us for discussion and questions. We’ll close the gathering with a participatory song circle led by Danny Blose & Lucy Perry, where we’ll learn songs to offer to our dying—growing the generosity and care within our end-of-life spaces.
Experience an unforgettable evening where the past and future of Appalachian music intertwine. The Cultural Crossroads Series brings together tradition-bearers and an innovator, weaving a rich musical conversation between heritage and evolution. This edition features the deeply rooted harmonies and fiddle-banjo interplay of Maddy Mullany & Clarke Williams, whose devotion to Appalachian traditions captures the heart of old-time music. Joining them is Sarah Kate Morgan, a visionary dulcimer player whose innovative techniques and emotive storytelling push the boundaries of mountain music while honoring its deep legacy. WORKSHOPS OFFERED SEPARATELY.
A survey of some of the fiddle players in the lineage of J.D. Harris (Osey Helton, Bill Hensley, Manco Sneed, Marcus Martin, etc) and the banjo playing styles of the region (up-picking, 2 finger, etc).
Experience an unforgettable evening where the past and future of Appalachian music intertwine. The Cultural Crossroads Series brings together a revered tradition-bearer and a bold innovator, creating a rich and dynamic musical dialogue. This edition features the masterful Stuart, Spence & Shebbish, keepers of time-honored melodies, alongside the genre-defying rhythms of Nathan Bowles, whose fresh perspective breathes new life into Appalachian soundscapes. WORKSHOP OFFERED SEPARATELY.
Rare Bird’s signature spring festival, Doggett Gap, celebrates Appalachia’s rich and evolving traditions through a dynamic blend of music, folklife, and craft. This intimate, family-friendly event brings together tradition-bearers and innovative artists for a day of inspiring performances, hands-on folklife workshops, and immersive craft experiences—all honoring the region’s living heritage.
Join us for a much-needed break—enjoy live music, share a meal, and connect with friends. We all deserve a moment to step away from our individual and collective grief and stress in the wake of the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene.
CANCELLED- Refunds will be issued ASAP!
CANCELLED - Refunds will be issued ASAP!
Sunday, September 29th, at 2 PM at Aldridge Hall in Christmount Conference Center, 100 Magnolia Rd., Black Mountain, NC. This special matinee will showcase the talents of 15 campers with intellectual and developmental disabilities, along with 24 volunteer artists and two professional teaching artists, who will come together to create an original musical in just two days as part of the Rare Bird Inclusive Theatre Camp.
Chris Wilhelm is known for bringing positive vibes and an uplifting message to his audience. He plays Americana, folk rock originals that are infectious and insightful, and sprinkles in covers too.
Madtom & the Chubs is a bluegrass band hailing from Boone, NC.
Hannah Kaminer is an artist and singer-songwriter writing songs about love, loss, and home. Raised in small towns in Western North Carolina, she fuses echoes of Appalachian and country traditions with wistful, Americana-style songwriting.
Matthew Clark Pike is a seasoned bassist/carpenter/father, and a budding singer and songwriter, born and raised in Winston-Salem, NC, and currently living in the rural outskirts of Asheville, in Marshall, NC.
Together, the two form a sound that is warm and inviting, atmospheric and playful. Each is a well developed songwriter with a distinctive voice, and their songs range in style from classic to quirky. Lyrics-driven and intellectual with a keen ear for arrangement, they make music perfectly suited to a listening room or a pair of good headphones.
With a sound that moves between folk, rock, and alt-country, Kelly McFarling’s vocals are the throughline: warm, assured, and often breathtakingly strong. She has been releasing music in the Bay Area independently since 2010.
Former founding member of Hiss Golden Messenger, Scott Hirsch’s collaborations include Alice Gerrard, William Tyler, and audio work on films by Rick Alverson, Lucy Walker, and Kelly Reichardt. He owns and operates the post-production and music production studio collective Echo Magic.
Jane Kramer has deep roots in the musical traditions, culture and lore of her beloved Appalachia, her songs are introspective, gracefully gritty and fiercely memorable.
Hearts Gone South plays original, classic style country and honky tonk full of heart and soul, laced with wit and woe. They bring fire and feeling to the age old stories of loss, love, heartbreak and victory for the underdog.
Folk. Folk Rock. Americana. Poet from Chicago, rambled out to Montana, cut a banjo from a tamarack, strings across the country, foot like a freight train, voice rushing down over lush Appalachia, sings a thrush tune through the rush hour and into your long-forgotten prairie dreams.
Ryan Taylor Price is a singer/songwriter in Asheville, North Carolina. Price was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest and cut his teeth on Seattle’s dynamic music scene, where he was a founding member of successful bands Human Ladder and Alkai Diggins. Those rock n roll roots fuse his music with a fantastic raw energy, even as he leans into the imagery and storytelling of American Roots music.
Born in the foothills of the Sauratown mountains in Stokes County, North Carolina, Tyler Dodson's musical journey has been a tapestry of sounds and stories as eclectic as the South itself. From the soulful, country hymns of his uncle’s Baptist church, to the Old-Time and Bluegrass that were ever-present in his hometown, to the Rock and Soul records that echoed through his formative years, Dodson draws from a deep well of tradition and innovation. In his distinctive style of Americana, one can hear echoes of the past, the pulse of the present, and the promise of the future, all mingling together in a blend that is uniquely his own.
Jennifer Jane Niceley, Feathered Mason, & Jason GoForth are an incredible trio with an ethereal and expansive sound. Click on link to read more and register.
Cat Clyde’s two shows SOLD OUT!
Jackson Grimm is an accomplished and respected multi-instrumentalist and teacher in the Asheville music community. His songs marry folk pop melodies with the lonesome sound of traditional Appalachian music. In a region with a strong music culture, it is no surprise that Grimm's songwriting is representative of his musical birthplace: Asheville, NC. Grimm studied Traditional Music at Warren Wilson College under the tutelage of great players like Wayne Erbsen and Kevin Kehrberg.
