When it comes to music festivals, you have got options. There are the big ones (Coachella, Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza), the historic ones (Newport Folk), the marathon ones (CMJ, SXSW), among many, many others. Some boast novelty locations (on an island! on a boat!), others VIP perks, babysitting or beyond-music entertainment options (film screenings! cooking classes!). Having first impressed with the Winter Hoot weekend in February, Hoot and the Ashokan Center are throwing their hat into the ring a second time with a summer showcase August 23-5.
The Summer Hoot, held in Olivebridge in New York’s Catskill Mountains, is a nature and local talent-centric festival, offering both camping and indoor lodging options and plenty of regional food and beer. Not to mention a variety arts and crafts activities through the Ashokan Center, specifically: birding, hiking, blacksmithing, broom-making, jam sessions, and square-dancing, among others. In addition to being “at the crossroads of music and nature,” the weekend is a fundraiser for The Ashokan Center’s outdoor programs for children. Says Ruth Unger of the folk duo and festival presenters Mike + Ruthy, the performers (themselves included), “draw great inspiration from their work and from the majestic beauty of the 374 acre site.” More inspiration and attraction can be found in the personal history so many attendees share with the site, “I know they don’t attend because of a genius marketing ploy,” Ruthy goes on, “it’s because they have been coming every year since they were little – it’s tradition! They wouldn’t miss it because their friends are there and they love the scene. That’s why we’re all about making The Hoot as family friendly as possible!”
A full list of the performers (and where they hail from) is available below, with early bird weekend passes for sale here through the Summer Hoot site and children’s admission (12 and under) is free.
Artists performing at Summer Hoot 2013:
AC Newman (Woodstock, NY), Kristin Andreassen (Brooklyn, NY), Dan Bern (Los Angeles, CA), The Big Takeover (Poughkeepsie, NY),Robert Sarazin Blake (Bellingham , WA), Burnell Pines aka: Jeremy Bernstein (Catskills), The Cupcakes (Woodstock, NY), Death Vessel (Providence, RI), The Dirt Farmer Band (featuring Larry Campbell, Teresa Williams, Amy Helm, Byron Isaacs and Justin Guip) (Woodstock, NY), Mikhael Horowitz & Gilles Malkine (Woodstock, NY), Greg Humphreys (New York City), The Ivy Vine Players (Woodstock, NY), Natalie Merchant (Hudson Valley), Chris Merenda (Becket, MA), Mike + Ruthy (Woodstock, NY), The Murphy Beds (Brooklyn, NY), Adrien Reju (Woodstock, NY), Elizabeth Mitchell (Woodstock, NY) & Dan Zanes (Brooklyn, NY), Pete Seeger (Beacon, NY), The Stacks(Hudson, NY), Richie Stearns & Rosie Newton (Ithaca, NY), Story Laurie and Friends (Catskills, NY), Happy Traum (Woodstock, NY), Uncle Rock (Catskills, NY), Jay Ungar & Molly Mason(Saugerties, NY), Lindsey Webster (Woodstock, NY), The Wiyos (Cold Spring, NY) and Zucchini Brothers (Saratoga Springs, NY).