PREVIEW: The Old Songs Festival: Swapping the Midway for Melodies
06/26—06/28 @ Altamont Fairgrounds
“A chance to celebrate old music and musical traditions in a way that pays respect to the fact that no matter their age, they will never stop existing as living and breathing pieces of culture.”
Upstate New Yorkers know the Altamont Fairgrounds.
We know, or at least recognize, the machinery of it all: the late-summer flood of cars, the vendors in trucks making all types of food, the rides lit up after dark, the animals, the dust, the kids dragging their parents from one carnival game to the next.
It really is one of those regional staples that’s built into the calendar, one of those things you never question the origins of because it's been passed down by repetition. You go because you went last year, you go because your parents took you, you go because, at some point, tradition stops needing to explain itself.
But before the midway takes over the grounds, before the fair arrives with the rush of lights, noise, and sugar, another tradition settles into Altamont.
The Old Songs Festival of Traditional Music and Dance is quieter than the fair in some ways, but it holds onto that all too familiar sense of repetition and lineage. The fest’s traditions are carried through fiddles, voices, dance steps, workshops, choruses, jam sessions and the music that is intertwined with history. It’s a chance to celebrate old music and musical traditions in a way that pays respect to the fact that no matter their age, they will never stop existing as living and breathing pieces of culture.
This year, the three-day Festival will run from June 26–28 at the Altamont Fairgrounds, bringing three days of folk, Celtic, Quebecois, Roots, Americana and World Music to a space that perfectly reflects its mission.
The fairgrounds become a meeting place for music from England, Scotland, Canada, Appalachia, New England, the Cape Verde Islands and beyond, and there are evening concerts each night, with main stage performances beginning at 6:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 3:30 p.m. Sunday. A rain site is also provided for the evening concerts, because we all know that upstate summers like to keep everyone humble.
During the day, the grounds fill with more than 100 workshops, dances, performances and participatory sessions. Festivalgoers can listen, sing, dance, learn, wander into a jam, bring an acoustic instrument, try sacred harp singing, take part in learn-how sessions or just explore and dip their toe into the things that intrigue them.
The grounds strip all judgment away and become a space for exploration and curiosity. You can be a lifelong musician, a family looking for something beautiful to do on a June weekend, a curious listener, a dancer, a camper, a kid with an instrument, or someone who just wants to sit in the grass and let the day happen; you’ll be welcomed in with open arms regardless.
This year’s lineup stretches widely across traditional and contemporary music. Guy Davis, Crys Matthews, Jake Blount Band, Trout Fishing in America, Christine Lavin, Reggie Harris, Skye Consort and Emma Björling, Maria Zemantauski, Magpie, and many more scheduled to perform.
It’s a huge bill, but that’s pretty fitting for a festival that’s all about the spirit of tradition. Musically, traditions can take shape as ballads, dance tunes, protest songs, a single harmony, a touching story, a familiar rhythm, a memory or a completely new discovery. Old songs and traditions come in all sorts of forms and the festival reflects that.
Traditions sometimes start young, as does a love for music, and the festival knows that. So school-age children who play an instrument or sing can participate in the Great Groove Band, learning from music coaches during the festival before performing on the main stage on Sunday.
Kids can also spend time with Roger the Jester, learn hands-on maritime skills with the Dirty Blue Shirts, enjoy face painting, work with clay and yarn loops and take in all of the musical programming designed for families.
There will also be craft, food and instrument vendors throughout the festival, along with on-site camping for those making a full weekend of it.
The Altamont Fairgrounds are already a place where the region gathers around memory, seasonality and return. Old Songs simply arrives first, but carries a different kind of fairground magic, swapping the midway for melodies.
June 26, 27 & 28, 2026, at the Altamont Fairgrounds. Gates open at 1 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m. Saturday and Sunday.
Tickets are available now at festival.oldsongs.org, by phone at 518-765-2815 or at the festival gate.
The festival is brought to you by Old Songs Inc, a not-for-profit organization built around keeping traditional music and dance alive through festivals, concerts, dances and hands-on programs.
