The Pine Tree Flyers with the Touring Group at the Young Tradition Festival

Tickets will also be available at the door for a $25 suggested donation. No one turned away for lack of funds.

Four of the finest voices in New England's traditional music scene shine a renewed light on the tunes of the Northeast with excitement and respect. From festival stages and concert halls to raucous August nights at fiddle camp, the Pine Tree Flyers are here to make sure New England music has a seat at the table as a distinct and vital American tradition. All residents of the great state of Maine, Katie McNally (fiddle), Emily Troll (accordion), Benjamin Foss (guitar), and Neil Pearlman (piano) cut their teeth playing for contra dances and learning from the greats. Individually, they've toured the world playing Irish, Scottish, and Quebecois music and they bring this wellspring of knowledge and technical prowess to the American music that was born from these traditions.

The Touring Group is an ensemble of talented teenage musicians and singers from Vermont and Maine, led this year by Ethan Tischler and Elsie Gawler (of Springtide, Gawler Family Band, and their duo, Elsie & Ethan), who are touring New England this April. A program of Vermont Folklife, the Touring Group nurtures youth involvement in traditional music, providing opportunities to learn from and be inspired by tradition bearers, to build strong connections with their peers, and to perform engaging repertoire for communities in Vermont and beyond. This year's Touring Group performances feature an exciting and diverse program showcasing the traditional musical influences of New England, including music rooted in Québec, Vermont, and Maine as well as popular current influences from Scandinavia and Old Time playing. Enjoy energetic reels that will have folks dancing in their seats, many-layered arrangements of fiddle harmonies, and several songs, including one collected by Vermont’s Margaret MacArthur and one by much-missed friend and mentor Pete Sutherland.

To learn more about this group please visit our website. To hear the group in action here, we invite you to check out our YouTube playlist or find a show near you!

The Young Tradition Festival is an annual celebration of young artists and multi-generational relationships in diverse traditional music and dance communities, as well as an opportunity for youth, families, and the greater community to immerse themselves in a wide range of traditional music and dance.

• Performances for Burlington school students and residents at a local retirement community
• 5:30-7:15 - Community Potluck, and dance leader round table - Contois Auditorium
• 7:30-10:00 - Community Dance Party, featuring a medley of dance traditions–including Bosnian, Burundian, Tibetian, and Nepali–taught by local dance leaders. - Contois Auditorium

• 10:00-1:00 - Student/Mentor Showcase at the Burlington Farmers Market
• 2:00-3:30 - Music workshop with the Pine Tree Flyers
• 7:00-9:30 - Evening Concert featuring the Young Tradition Touring Group and the Pine Tree Flyers

Host or Publisher Vermont Folklife Center