Co-artistic directors of the National Folk Festival, Chris Stone and Holly Downes have something to crow about, with the announcement that the National Folk School will return to Canberra after a long hiatus.

The three-day school, to be held at the ANU School of Music from March 23 to 25 next year, will bring six international musicians and dancers together with participants from across Australia for an intensive learning experience before they move directly into the Folk Festival itself.

The Folk School has a history stretching back more than 25 years, beginning as the Pre-Easter Music School in 2001.

Tutors for 2027 will be English harmonica virtuoso Will Pound, Scottish guitarist Jenn Butterworth, Canadian clawhammer banjo specialist Allison de Groot, American old-time fiddler Sami Braman, Canadian guitarist Quinn Bachand and Irish-American percussive dancer Nic Gareiss, lauded as a virtuoso in Irish step dance and Appalachian flatfooting traditions.

The school will focus on learning by ear, with participants then able to take what they have learned into the Festival’s sessions.

Downes commented, “The National Folk Festival has always been about more than who is on stage,” she said, while Stone added that the Folk School would provide an opportunity for traditional knowledge to be passed directly between generations.

The return of the school also strengthens the festival’s longstanding partnership with the ANU School of Music, which was further developed through the residency of Finnish trio T3HO in 2026.

The National Folk Festival will be held at Exhibition Park in Canberra from March 25 to 29, 2027.

– HELEN MUSA

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