The Best Summer String Festival You Haven’t Met Yet
Words by Ryan St.Onge, Photography by Jay Strausser Visuals
For those traveling to and from the Mt. Washington Valley this summer or for those who live and play locally, there is no shortage of things to do and see in our northern neck of the woods. From pristine rivers to rugged mountains to a vibrant downtown, the North Conway and surrounding Valley area is bursting at the seams with potential happenings and adventures to experience.
What some people may not realize is that within a short 40- to 45-minute drive, you can also experience a yearly and week-long rural educational and collaborative string camp and weekend summer music festival that boasts some of the highest-tier bluegrass, folk, jazz, Americana, and international music around! Past national stars have included Billy Strings, Chris Stapleton, and the SteelDrivers, or the Wood Brothers, to regional acts such as The Bagboys, Buffalo Rose, or Uncle Jake & the 18 Wheel Gang, there is sure to be a style or genre for everyone in your group at the Ossipee Valley Music Festival.
This grassroots festival begins with String Camp on July 21 through 25, and transitions to the Ossipee Valley Music Festival on July 25 through 28.
Or perhaps you’re more interested in learning a new instrument and want to associate with like-minded individuals? That’s also their “jam!” This grassroots festival begins with String Camp on July 21 through 25, and transitions to the Ossipee Valley Music Festival (OVMF) on July 25 through 28, and is located just a quick drive from downtown North Conway in the beautiful country setting of South Hiram, ME, offering both education and entertainment in one fun-filled week. There is something for everyone, and this festival prides itself on being very family-friendly, with a safe and enriching environment.
I took some time to speak with a few of the members of the North Atlantic Arts Alliance, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization with a nine-person board of directors that organizes and hosts the festival. I spoke first with Molly Griffin McKenna, co-executive director. She began volunteering in 2011; she then moved to the area in 2013 to work alongside founder of the festival, Bill Johnson, who is also co-executive director of the Alliance. According to McKenna, the festival was founded in 1999 by Bill Johnson to give an opportunity for rural Maine residents to experience life-enriching music and music education. Throughout the years, the festival has grown considerably and offers five varying stages of music, as well as week-long string instrument programs and weekend camping, food and merchandise vendors, collaborative music sessions, workshops, access to rural nature, and a swimmable river.
Each stage has a different location on the property and offers its own scheduling lineup. Here is a list of the stages and who you may find performing on them, in past years. (See below for a 2024 line up)
Main Stage: Offering Grammy-, IBMA-, Juno award-winning, world-renowned and ascending artists. Past performances include Sierra Ferrell, Billy Strings, and The Wood Brothers.
Stage TOO!: Intimate shady grove stage for Original and Local/Regional Showcase. Past performances include The Infamous Stringdusters, The California Honeydrops, and The Bagboys.
Brews and Bluegrass Stage: Offering regional and local acts in a 21+ beer-tent-style stage. Previous performances include various local regional acts.
Dance Barn: Various acts, which are often invited impromptu throughout the week based on collaborations,
The Eagle’s Nest (new this year!): Late night jam/party stage.
This festival takes place on the Ossipee Valley Fairgrounds and accommodates approximately 5,000 tickets sold, including multi-day, single-day, after dark, camping, and string-camp/festival packages. Many sites include RV hook-ups and are first-come-first-serve, so get your tickets in advance at www.ossipeevalley.com.
Campfires will be allowed in the recently acquired 30-acre expansion campground, known as the Crooked River, which is adjacent to the fairgrounds. However, fire pits on the fairground property are prohibited due to land-use agreements with the fairground owners/operators.
Although this festival is rural, the North Atlantic Arts Alliance has anywhere from 60 to 100 members at any given time, and these positions range from paid to volunteer. There are program coordinators, instructors, property management teams, day-to-day operations managers, and more. Gretchen Bowder, from Melrose, MA started her festival experience in 1999 as a performing member of The Bagboys band. Since ’99, The Bagboys have had the undisputed honor of being one of the first bands to perform, as well as participate every year since then. She started performing, then became a judge for the instrument-playing contest, then ran the children’s songwriting workshop, and in the last few years has moved to day-to-day operations manager for faculty of the String Camp.
The Ossipee Valley String Camp is a multigenerational community gathering for musicians and students that takes place the week before the Ossipee Valley Music Festival.
String Camp is a workshop that separates particular instrument-specific students into groups. They learn material throughout the week in their respective groups, then collaborate with the other groups to perform a Thursday afternoon String Camper’s concert, thus kicking off the arrival of the weekend festival goers. How incredible to have these two events so marvelously intertwined!
“The Ossipee Festival is the centerpiece of my summer. It’s everything I hope a summer will be. Music, camping, community, and late nights with friends! Happy Ossipee,” says Gretchen Bowder.
Leo Norton, a board member based out of Amesbury, MA, began attending the festival 13 years ago. “We have a cabin in Hiram; we went for my wife’s birthday in 2011, had a blast, and we loved it,” says Norton. He volunteered for a few years following their initial visit as security in the Brews and Bluegrass tent, and was asked to join the board a short time later. Norton is now responsible for booking StageTOO!, which is the regional showcase stage. He says they initially received approximately 60 band submissions to play, but now they need to sort through 100 to 200 submissions each year. Many bands are independent, yet they do receive submissions from production companies as well.
Next, is the not-so-easy task of narrowing down the plethora of entries to just 12 to 14 bands that will grace the stage. This is done by majority vote and generally occurs around April and May before the July festival date. StageTOO! also offers bands that are chosen a unique opportunity to perform on the Main Stage under certain circumstances, allowing for growth and spontaneity for musicians.
With so many music stage options, workshops, camping, collaborations, vendors, and incredible summer activities, all in a one-week package, it’s entirely amazing this festival isn’t already on the same playing field as higher profile festivals such as Bonnaroo in Manchester, TN or SXSW in Austin, TX.
The curators have been so focused on offering high-quality, community and music-based content, that advertising has managed itself—but it’s time to let the cat out of the bag. This festival has what you are looking for. Kids biking around midway while folks hang around the campsite and strum together, old friends reuniting after months apart, stories from the past year of epic jams and immersive storytelling, people gathering and working together to create a welcoming event of strings, friendship, and excitement.
One volunteer, Chris Foster, from Parsonsfield, ME said he’s helped with the festival off and on over the last 15 years, offering trash removal services and anything they need. He, however, has a double interest, as he also performs alongside so many of the musicians in attendance. A fellow musician and upright bass player, Chris has formed a strong bond with the OVMF and has made a point of highlighting this event every summer.
“For me, it’s a picker’s paradise. I gotta see these guys [musicians]. Half of what I learn is at the campsite. Everyone’s rippin’.” – Chris Foster
2024 Line-up
Q&A
Festival Map
Ossipee Valley Fairgrounds
291 South Hiram Road, Hiram, Maine
For additional information about the Ossipee Valley Fairgrounds, tickets, and camping, visit www.ossipeevalley.com.
Tickets prices from $45 to $225 including camping; children 17 and under enter free.
North Atlantic Arts Alliance
The Ossipee Valley Music Festival and the Ossipee Valley String Camp are both presented by our 501(c)(3) nonprofit, the North Atlantic Arts Alliance, based in rural Hiram, Maine. Our mission is to enrich our rural Maine communities by supporting arts performance and education, as well as the values of community, equity, and sustainability.
