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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
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 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.
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.
Learn weaving and wisdom from Cherokee elder and National Treasure, Nancy Basket. Weave a small freeform laundry basket with split kudzu.
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
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.
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.
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
April Wilson is experimental dream folk music. Based out of Sandymush, NC.
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.
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:
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!
Deep Blue Time is a contemplative workshop for all writers at any level. We will slow the world down with writing exercises designed to help us develop, strengthen, or return to a writing practice that relocates meaning in compassionate conversation with others.
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.
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 band. Special Guest TBA. SONGWRITING WORKSHOP WITH SPARROW OFFERED SEPARATELY.
Learn songwriting with Sparrow Smith. No musical experience necessary, beginners welcome.
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 with acclaimed songwriter Erik Koskinen—praised as “the real deal” by the Minneapolis Star Tribune—bringing his plainspoken poetry and genre-defying sound to the stage. Sharing the bill is Rachel Sumner & Traveling Light, fresh off a first-place win at the Thomas Point Beach Bluegrass Festival, whose lyrical bite and musical finesse push the boundaries of modern folk. Also on the same day: KUDZU BASKET COILING WORKSHOP
A wink to author Tom Robbins, our Bandaloop festival brings magic and story woven with music and dance.
Our second annual free community concert and potluck in response to our resilient community. Details and lineup TBD.
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.
Sounding Arrow with opener, Caitlin Krisko & The Broadcast (acoustic duo).
Sounding Arrow is the first solo project from Scott Kinnebrew, singer and lead guitarist of roots rockers Truth & Salvage Co., and former ringleader of Smoky Mountain indie faves Scrappy Hamilton.
Caitlin Krisko and The Broadcast is a powerhouse soul rock band hailing from Asheville, North Carolina. Krisko captivates her audiences, bringing the perfect blend of power and vulnerability throughout her shows. The acoustic duo is Caitlin Krisko (vocals) and Aaron Austin (guitar) with Krisko’s songs and storytelling.
Krista Shows returns with her deep and soulful sound – a combination of folk, R&B, and country music –her music is rooted in her Mississippi home with a raw honesty straight from the gut.
Alice Bradley is an Asheville-based singer-songwriter and musician whose original songs weave together imagery from the natural world and potent storytelling to evoke life's wild twists and turns.
Life Like Water is the creation of multi-instrumentalist and singer/songwriter, David Matters and started in the direction of folk and Americana music, but things inevitably began to change when he met his bandmates, Megan Drollinger (violin/vocals) and Charles Furtado (percussion). Today, LLW creates a unique ethereal and worldly sound with the collective talents and chemistry of the group.
Minor Gold are the new Americana-Folk duo featuring ARIA nominated artists Tracy McNeil & Dan Parsons. Having shared hundreds of stages together for the better part of a decade as respective songwriters and performers, ‘Minor Gold’ is the first official glimpse of this new bonafide songwriting team.
Bailey Bigger bringing with her deep Arkansas roots and emotional depth. Bigger displays a beauty and grace reminiscent of Joan Baez and a unique sound with a hint of Jonie Mitchell.
Pat Byrne, skillfully blending contemporary influences with his rich Irish heritage.
ORDINARY ELEPHANT Mesmerizing folk duo Ordinary Elephant has spent the better part of the last decade on a never-ending tour that’s earned married couple Crystal and Pete Damore widespread critical acclaim and made fans of luminaries like Tom Paxton and Mary Gauthier. In 2017, the pair took home the International Folk Music Award for Artist of the Year on the strength of their breakout album, Before I Go, and two years later, they returned with the similarly lauded Honest, which the Associated Press hailed as “one of the best Americana albums of the year.”
TIM EASTON A mainstay of American roots music for more than 20 years, Tim Easton crafts songs that blur the lines between folk, blues, and workingman’s rock & roll.
This special event is a collaboration with the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area (BRNHA), showcasing talents from the BRNHA Fine Tuned program alongside other regional and national acts deeply rooted in Appalachian and Americana music. Immerse yourself in a full day of musical delight at Rare Bird Farm, with camping options and onsite catering available. Fifty percent of event proceeds will support the BRNHA Fine Tuned Program.
Experience a blend of traditional Old Time music and contemporary Americana, featuring a cross-creative pollination of artists that promises an intimate and distinctive musical journey. Seating is limited to 100 tickets, ensuring an unforgettable experience you won't want to miss.
A Grisman + Garcia Experience with Dirty Dawg to follow Farmer Social & CAN Relaunch
Henry Toland is an itinerant singer-songwriter and carpenter from Florida.
Marc Delgado is coming back to perform at Rare Bird Farm and we could not be happier! Marc is a traveling solo performer. His songs are eclectic & unexpected & portray characters trying to make sense of The American Landscape.
Sam Lewis isn't just a musician. He's a weaver of tales, capturing the essence of human experience in every note and lyric. Chris Stapleton calls him "a modern Townes Van Zandt," and with good reason.
Fwuit is an Asheville-based retro soul band consisting of members of the band MOVES and Holy Ghost Tent Revival. Dulci, Kevin and Ross play a mix of original music and carefully chosen covers, highlighting beautiful two-part harmony atop the deepest pockets of groove.
Clare Elich is a singer, songwriter and clawhammer banjo player creating new acoustic music in Denver, Colorado. She’s coming to Rare Bird with her band
Rachel Sumner & Traveling Light are shaking up the bluegrass world with their fresh take on traditional music. Led by Lennon Award-winning songwriter Sumner, the string band's dynamic sound showcases bold chord progressions, unforgettable stories, and mesmerizing harmonies…
Asheville NC's Dirty Dawg are an acoustic trio, recreating the sound and spirit of Jerry Garcia & David Grisman's work together. They play songs from the Grateful Dead and Jerry Garcia set-lists, using unique instruments like flute and violin in addition to their guitar duo set-up.
