Sea Music Festival at Mystic Seaport

Musicians from around the world will come to Mystic Seaport to celebrate the musical traditions of the Golden Age of Sail at the 38th annual Sea Music Festival, Thursday through Sunday, June 8-11. The Festival is the premier sea music event in North America.

This year’s roster includes musicians from Great Britain, France, and Australia, along with singers from across the United States. The weekend’s festivities include daytime and evening concerts, special performances for children, instructional workshops, a scholars’ symposium, and a unique opportunity to witness sea music at work aboard the Museum’s historic vessels.

More than 15 individuals and groups will be featured at the Festival representing the gamut of traditional and contemporary sea music. The French group Nordet will perform their blend of a cappella working songs with masterful modern compositions. The Sydney-based group Roaring Forties is renowned for the powerful impact they make singing unaccompanied folk songs. Rhode Island’s Vox Hunters will present an exciting repertoire of driving dance tunes blended with an unorthodox collection of interesting songs.

Visitors may also take in performances from The Chanteens, Larry Kaplan, Jerry Bryant, Atwater/Donnelly, Sparky and Rhonda Rucker, Dick Swain, Tom Lewis, The Johnson Girls, and the Mystic Seaport Chantey Staff, including Geoff Kaufman, Craig Edwards, Denise Kegler, and Don Sineti.

New to the lineup this year is Anayis “AJ” Wright, a traditional folk musician who came to sea music through the Chantey Skills class at the Williams-Mystic undergraduate program at the Museum. She performs as a solo vocalist, and plays cello and concertina.

All workshops and daytime concerts in the Festival are included in regular Mystic Seaport admission. Special tickets are required for evening concerts and can be purchased online, in person at the Museum’s entrances, or by calling 860.572.0711. Weekend passes are also available. College students will be admitted into the Festival for the youth rate upon presentation of a current student ID.

As part of the Festival, Mystic Seaport will also host the annual Music of the Sea Symposium Friday and Saturday, June 9-10. The Symposium, co-sponsored by Mystic Seaport, Williams College, the Williams-Mystic Program, and the University of Connecticut at Avery Point, features presentations of themed papers by some of the country’s leading maritime music scholars and explores subjects from history and folklore, to literature and ethnomusicology, along with many other related topics. Admission to the Symposium is free on Friday; Museum admission is required on Saturday.

For more information, including ticket packages, musicians’ bios, and a schedule of performances, visit www.mysticseaport.org/seamusicfestival

This event is made possible by the Friends of the Sea Music Festival, who raise funds each year to generously support sea music at Mystic Seaport.