The three-day Brooklyn Folk Festival, happening Friday, April 8, to Sunday, April 10, at St. Ann & the Holy Trinity church in Brooklyn Heights, hosts 30 bands representing American genres including bluegrass, ragtime, jazz, country, gospel and blues music, as well as traditional styles from all over the world, like Arabic maqams, flamenco and music for Afro-Colombian percussion and Ethiopian krar (a type of lyre). Between afternoon and evening sets, attendees can join in on the fun with activities like square and swing dancing, and workshops to learn to play ukulele, banjo and fiddle. Those who already know a few licks can try their luck in the harmonica-playing contest. And no musical training is required for the banjo toss, wherein participants throw the stringed instrument, tethered to a rope, as far as they can into the Gowanus Canal. If you’re worried about canal goo, don’t—tossers are given plastic gloves to stave off any communicable diseases, and the winner gets their very own non–canal-drenched banjo to take home! As you prep your banjo-tossing arm, here are the acts you won’t want to miss at the festival.
RECOMMENDED: See our full guide to the Brooklyn Folk Festival
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