There have been a couple of firsts for the Alaska Folk Festival in recent years. Last year was the first time it’s been canceled, due to COVID. This year, it’s the first time the festival has gone completely virtual.
With COVID restrictions making the typically Juneau-based gathering too risky, festival organizers got creative. They tapped long-time Folk Fest participants Caitlin Warbelow and her partner Chris Ranney to help. The pair developed a company called Tune Supply after their show business gigs dried up due to the pandemic lockdown.
Tune Supply takes individual video recordings and assembles them into a long virtual stream. Artists from around the state, country, and globe were able to submit videos to be part of this year’s lineup.
Juneau musician Taylor Vidic who has performed all over the state including Skagway is one of the emcees for the streaming show.
“I was given a mega script of the evening. And throughout the first hour and a half or so I’m introducing some 25 acts,” said Vidic.
Skagway’s New Twin is booked for Friday, April 9’s show. They’re performing a brand new song: All Night Forever.
Also sharing the virtual stage is Skagway’s Adelia Deach; The Sundews from Hoonah, bands from Arctic Circle, Fairbanks, Anchorage, all over the lower 48 ; and Aldyn & Julius — a duo that’s part Juneau and part Sweden. Technology makes their performance possible.
“What’s so cool is they found a way for people to perform together. And so you see, folks they’ve recorded their set or their pieces with headphones in because they’re listening to their counterpart play their part from wherever else they are in the world. And then toon supply has put the two videos together. So we have collaborations happening all over the world,” said Vidic.
One act Annie Hopper from Black Rapids in Interior Alaska played an original song in an ice cave in the Eastern Alaska Range during Thursday night’s performance. She’s booked for a second performance during Saturday’s show.
“We were watching and we’re like, is that a backdrop that can’t be real. She has a microphone with a cord. How’s she getting power? What? And then what’s fun is that while you watch the concert on YouTube, there’s a live stream of the comments off to the right. in tune supply chimed in and I said, Oh, she’s absolutely in an ice cave near her property,” exclaimed Vidic.
Thursday night’s show is available for viewing on the YouTube channel, one of the highlights of that show for the Upper Lynn Canal was Skagway’s Pink Bandera and the D.
The weekend festival runs from 9 a.m. to 9:30 pm on Saturday and from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Sunday. The daytime broadcasts will feature guitar and dance workshops with concerts starting at 6:30 p.m. You can download a program of events at Akfolkfest.org which has links to the YouTube channel that can be streamed at any time.
The shows are free, and there is a link for donations on the festival home page.
