NEW CD RELEASE at LEAF Saturday night!!!
Somewhere between a bohemian carnival and a backwoods hoedown lies the purely unique sound of Acoustic Syndicate. This captivating quartet has been churning the soil between well-worn bluegrass paths and acoustic exploration since their inception on the family farm more than a decade ago.
www.acousticsyndicate.com
Performing on Saturday

African Rhythms & Blues. Corey and Darrell traveled this years as US Music & Cultural Ambassadors to Guinea & Sierra Leone. Corey Harris always knew that Africa lay behind the music he grew up loving: R&B, funk, reggae, blues, & ˜the whole ball of wax he thought of as “black music”. In Africa, Harris explored language, social reality and music in a complex, post-colonial setting. “Blues was what I understood deepest in myself” says Harris. 6 albums and many trips to Africa later, he's an established star who writes songs merging blues, African pop, rock and electronica into brilliant originals. Darrell, Traditional African Percussionist Master, has performed and toured with the Neville Brothers, King Sunny Ade, Jimmy Cliff, and Corey Harris. Kurt an avid west African drummer & musician. A powerful trio!!
www.coreyharris.com
Performing on Friday and Saturday

Uniting eastern dance, world music, theatre, ceremony, and the Fire Arts with enchanted audiences. Baraka Mundi is a live music and dance ensemble inspired and informed by the cultures of India, North Africa, the Middle East, and beyond.
www.barakamundi.com

Wizard of Woo keyboard genius who is best known as one of the architects of the modern funk genre. His work with George Clinton, Parliament & Funkadelic, spawned such legendary releases including One Nation Under a Groove. As a producer, arranger and performer, Bernie has worked with dozens of artists, including Herb Alpert, Bootsy Collins, Black Uhuru, Keith Richards, and he performed as a member of Talking Heads. In 1997, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
www.bernieworrell.com

"Shaver shows he’s got the goods to make soulful country music with a rock edge.” —Rolling Stone
A living lightning rod for the blues, Billy Joe Shaver is one rough 'n' rowdy Texan. Like Hank Williams, Woody Guthrie, and Jimmie Rodgers, Billy Joe has lived the songs he sings. Legendary singer-songwriter Billy Joe Shaver has one foot in the honky-tonk and the other in Hollywood with a budding acting career. He was in Robert Duvall’s 1997 The Apostle, and will appear in The Wendell Baker Story, which will hit theaters fall 2004.
www.billyjoeshaver.com
Performing on Friday

Kids love it, adults love it, old folks love Billy Jonas! Very danceable, mostly percussion, great lyrics ranging from poignant to amusing to laugh out loud funny. Clever funky infectious musical FUN! LEAF in Schools & Streets Artist.
www.billyjonas.com
Performing on Sunday

Long time member of the Green Grass Clogger Professional Road team, toured nationally & internationally performing at most of the major folk festivals, in 2 Emmy Award winning tv shows, and at Lincoln Center. As a solo she's performed and recorded with Dick Tarrier, many old time bands and currently performs with fiddler Roger Howell. Carol's appeared in BBC documentaries, the movie Songcatcher and with numerous awards for dance, music and vocals. She's devoted to making old time traditions fun and easy to join in on. A journalist who has written for the North American Folk Alliance Conference, Acoustic Guitar Magazine and more, she is currently an entertainment columnist for the Asheville Citizen Times and Assistant Producer of LEAF.
Performing on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday

Long time jazz aficionado, and blues historian, Chuck Beattie fronts a Chicago-Style Blues band and is a member of the North Carolina Jazz Ensemble. "Dr. Blues" is a dynamic, high-energy act. Couple Beattie's commanding voice with guitar, drums, bass, keyboards and a killer band and you have a superb sound that does the slow burn as good as the boogie.
www.ChuckBeattie.com
Performing on Saturday

Cinema in the Park at LEAF. Outdoor large theater merged with live musical performances. The performers craft merged with technology creates a visually sensational evening event.
www.gidayu.org
Performing on Friday

Appalachian Mountain-Style Fiddler leads string band jams and teaches fiddle tunes in the Old-Time style. Bring your fiddle, banjo, guitar, mandolin, or string bass - all skill levels welcome. If you don't play, feel free to come and listen.
www.oldtimemusic.com

Get your Sunday morning with singing and playing at the Southern Gospel Brunch.
Performing on Sunday

Ambassadors for modern native American ways of life and Tuscarora Indian traditions, they make the music and dance charming, funny, mysterious, graceful and participatory. Pura Fe is a Singer, Composer, Teacher, Poet, Dancer, Actress, Lion Tamer & smoke dancer who studied with the American Ballet Theatre & Martha Graham, a member of Native American Women's trio Ulali, and been in several Broadway productions. Together with her son, they are the Deer Clan Singers, presenting music and dance of the Tuscarora Native Americans of Robeson County, NC.
Performing on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday

Fiddle Master from the Red Clay Ramblers.
www.redclayramblers.com

Fire performance to enchant your senses. Djinntana brings the dangerous world of fire into a tamed realm in which the senses are enlightened and enchanted. These talented performers bring fire alive with grace, control, and agility. A unique experience not to be missed whether you are young or old!
www.djinntana.com
Performing on Saturday

Piedmont & Texas style BLUES. John Dee Holeman was born in Orange County, NC in 1929. A storyteller, dancer and a blues artist that played with musicians who had learned directly from Blind Boy Fuller. He possesses an expressive blues voice and is a wonderful guitarist incorporating both Piedmont and Texas guitar styles. A recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage fellowship and NC Folk Heritage award, John Dee has toured the U.S, Europe and Asia. John recently retired from a career as a heavy machine operator and continues to sing the BLUES. Thanks to the Music Makers for making this possible!
www.musicmaker.org/artistroster
/johndee holeman.htm
Performing on Saturday

Energetic and off the wall, fun and games for one and all! What do whipped cream; parachutes and donuts have in common? Denisa’s tools of the trade for kids and Families to engage in exuberant play. As a children’s crafts & games specialist, Denisa has been the Children's Program coordinator/teacher for Swannanoa Gathering for 10 years. At LEAF Denisa enjoys causing giggles and laughter as she leads wild and wacky games for all ages.
www.swangathering.com

"Fiddle-Pick" Applachian Dulcimer master & Tai Chi teacher. For over 30 years Don delights audiences with his unique "Fiddle-Pick" style. Rhythm and melody match the fiddles, up to speed, note for note, creating an ancient sound. He has won over 30 1st place awards. Don appears in "Songcatcher" and "The Journey of August King" and hosts "Close to Home" on WCQS.
www.donpedi.com

Funky and danceable with a message of tribal philosophy and celebration, Donna the Buffalo's music is a unique blend of reggae, rock, country, zydeco, Cajun, and folk traditions. The dual vocals of Tara Nevins and Jeb Puryear provide a hypnotic quality to the melody, adding to the band's unusual instrumentation and original sound. While their swirling music ensures that audiences will be up and dancing, Donna's pointed lyrics issue moral challenges. Topic material moves effortlessly between political, historical, personal, and spiritual themes, with ideas of social and moral responsibility that spring from the band members core beliefs.
www.donnathebuffalo.com

Hot contra dance duos. Dancers respond: “I can’t believe there’s just 2 people making all that music!” Mara Shea on fiddle and Roger Gold on acoustic guitar and foot percussion, produce tunes made to make you dance by weaving traditional and original music, modern rhythms and a fusion of styles, into finely crafted arrangements - invoking dreamy to electrifying dance experiences.
www.elftones.com
Performing on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday

Playing in the Old Time Music group "Too Hot To Cook" for the past 20 years & teaching mandolin at The Blue Ridge Old Time Music week for the past 5 years. Timing is everything is what Elizabeth Ann subscribes to along with a good old time dose of fun while students swiftly learn to play a fiddle tune.

Playing familiar songs and tunes that have been heard on Appalachian Farms for more than 200 years, She’ll lead pickers in old time slow jams. Elizabeth plays fiddle and Appalachian Mountain Dulcimer with her band, The Butter Holler String Band, as well as playing mandolin, dulcimer or guitar with other local Old Time bands.

3-person, song-and-dance group comprised of life-long folk musicians. They impersonate (with full white jumpsuits) the Elvis impersonators and perform on the eastern seaboard, from Greenbrier Hotel to colleges, with a base at Warren Wilson College. One of the Elvi composed two songs recorded by the King. They are accompanied by 2 highly regarded Nashville studio musicians, including a former Kenny Rogers back-up vocalist. An over-the-top performance!
Performing on Saturday

One of the most influential groups to emerge the UK in the past three decades. Dirty Linen calls them "the band that invented English folk-rock." Fairport Convention's discography is extensive. Fairport Convention XXV release in February 2002 by Compass Records is their 35th anniversary release. "Fairport" have always been a flexible group. Twenty plus members have passed through their ranks, including Ian Matthews, Sandy Denny, Richard Thompson and Dave Swarbrick - to name only a few. The current line-up present audiences with a rocking tour de forces.
www.fairportconvention.co.uk
Performing on Friday

Red hot & swingin! Roots of jazz with a youthful vigor that breaths new life into an old genre. Early New Orleans jazz and Dixieland as well as other 1920‚s and 30‚s period pop, paying homage to such greats as Jelly Roll Morton, Louis Armstrong and Bix Beiderbeck. These guys can rock out old school parlors and punk rock clubs alike- “thanks to the spontaneous, Mardi-Gras-type atmosphere the group generates through determined showmanship”. (Tom Kerr). Je Widenhouse on cornet & trumpet (Squirrel Nut Zippers), Joe Edel on sousaphone (Scrappy Hamilton), Bill Smith on drums (Stephanie Morgan Quartet), Jason Krekel on banjo (Snake Oil Medicine Show & Larry Keel Experience) and Reese Grey on piano (Asylum Street Spankers). Also Earl Sachais on trombone (Sammy Davis and Barbara Streisand) and Steve Davidowski on clarinet (of the original Dixie Dreggs).
Performing on Saturday

Spiral's energetic and ecstatic hoop dance, combining athletic tricks with graceful, fluid dance style, will blow your definition of "hula hoop" out of the water. She'll be leading hoop playshops on the waterfront to teach the basics of hooping. These hoops are handmade to be bigger and easier than the ones you remember, so come give this fun, groovy workout a try!
www.spiralhoopdance.com
Performing Friday, Saturday, Sunday

Celtic-Rock! “Casualties of Retail” Now Available- a strong 4th album and a sound that ETH call their own! The result is Something For Everyone: catchy bluegrass-fusion singles, driving Celtic-rock instrumentals, traditional Irish reel …a fusion of Celtic, bluegrass and rock, however, elements of Latin, blues and funk can be heard. Since 1996, Enter the Haggis (ETH) has built an international touring and recording career based on its unique approach to Celtic-based music and high-energy performances.
www.enterthehaggis.com
Performing on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday

The Funky Monkeys have been bringing a fun and diverse array of activities for LEAF kids (and a short break for LEAF parents) for the past three years. This troupe of kid loveing parents entertain wide-eyed youth with anything from nature hikes, to puppet shows, to story time, to instrument making, while parents look on, or enjoy an hour to themselves at the festival. The focus is on fun, imagination and silliness. Come see what kind of kid fun is worth "hanging around" for!

“. Countless haunting melodies..capable of transporting a listener back 200 years." Time Magazine
Celebrating Over 25 Years As International Performing Artists. Offering a History & Heritage Presentation of African-American Culture, and continuing the tradition of their ancestors with chants, work songs, games and gospel songs.
Gullah Language Demonstration - Beating The Rice - Plantation Demonstration - - The Rice Dance - Slave Games - Georgia Sea Islands Work Songs - Sea Chanties - Call & Response -The Shout - LEAF in Schools & Streets Artists
www.georgiaseaislandsingers.com
Performing on Sunday

GoGo Girls Its all about Fun and lots of pink!
www.gogogirlieaction.com
Performing on Saturday

Inspiring and soul-stirring Sunday morning gospel singing and dancing. This 8-12 men ensemble are authentic and the real thing and you will feel it in their music and message.
Performing on Sunday

A veteran of the old-time music and dance scene, Gordy is known for his distinctive clawhammer style on the fretless banjo and his masterful rhythmic footwork as a clogger and buckdancer. He plays banjo with the New Southern Ramblers and a mainstay of the Green Grass Cloggers.
www.swangathering.org

Valerie Ann will read and discuss her debut novel, BETTER HOMES AND HUSBANDS. Leff is co-founder and co-director of the Great Smokies Writing Program. Her stories and essays have appeared in magazines and literary journals like The Antioch Review, Chelsea, Carolina Quarterly, Lilith, The South Carolina Review and The Sun.
Performing on Friday

Hanimation games and fun for kids.

An Irish step dance troupe committed to the poise of the traditional style of Irish dance. Former students of the Tighe School of Irish dance in VA; the group is entering its 7th year performing. All members pursue other forms of music and dance yet remains united through their love of Irish culture. "Humorous Abandon" was originally a nickname for the ceili dance called "Humors of Bandon," and it describes the dancers' approach towards life and performing.

The Cosmic Cowgirl will get your toes rocking to her head music with original tunes and sounds for the soul. Currenly working with Ilya Toshinskiy of Bering Strait in the studio.
www.redstarr.net

Powerful, innovative, contest winning banjo, including 1st place at Appalachian String Band Music Festival. A fine guitarist, fiddler, and singer as well, Joe plays with the band Big Medicine.

Katuah Capoeira Angola has been lifting spirits and shaping bodies since 1996. Capoeira is a rich folkloric Brazilian artform unlike any other in the world, interweaving music,dance, oral history and martial arts into a multi-dimensional game of strategy and liberation. Brazilian Capoeira is the fastest growing martial art in the world!
www.ncangola.com

The release of Kellin's 1st independent CD, Paper Bird, marks a shift in the musical tide for the 20 year old singer/song-writer. Kellin creates an amalgam of musical genres and styles to develop her own unique sound. Blending blues, folk, jazz, rock, and pop with smart, honest lyrics, she etches a place for herself within the music world. Call it what you will. Catchy but three-dimensional, Kellin's music is undeniably listen-able.
www.kellinwatson.com
Performing on Friday

Featuring several of LEAF’s awesome staffers…this 5 piece band plays original songs with a sound hard to categorize, so the band to made up the new genre: Electracoustafolkafunky.

Waltz music.