13TH ANNUAL
CHICAGO FOLK & ROOTS FESTIVAL July 10 & 11, 2010 Welles Park, Chicago Lincoln & Montrose
SPONSORSHIP INFORMATION
Chicago Folk & Roots Festival, one of the city’s signature summer events, is a joyous celebration that attracts 30,000 people for a spectacular array of world music and dance. The Festival offers two days of music and dance performances from around the globe and around the corner, and includes workshops, exhibitions, children’s activities, and an array of locally owned food, drink, and retail vendors.
www.chicagofolkandroots.org Festival Features Main Stage. International and local performing artists fill the park with a unique blend of world music and Americana. Past Performers have included Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears, Richard Thompson, Patti Smith, Ozomatli, Thomas Mapfumo, Tinariwen, Otis Clay, Alejandro Escovedo, Irma Thomas, Refugee All Stars of the Sierra Leone and many more. Dance Tent. Festival goers can jump right into learning dance styles such as square dancing, West African dance, salsa, cajun, hula, and many more. The Dance Tent features live musical accompaniment and workshops designed to promote the participation of everyone, regardless of age and ability. Nuestra Música: Latino Chicago is the result of an extensive research project developed for the 2006 Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington DC. Nuestra Música features performances, artisan demonstrations, and other culturally-related events by and for our diverse Latino communities. Staff & Student Stage. The Old Town School employs 220 faculty members who teach music, dance and arts classes seven days per week. In addition, many of our front desk, music store, café, and administrative staff are also talented artists who regularly perform throughout Chicago and beyond. With so many great musicians under one roof, the Staff Stage is a popular destination. Kids Tent. Sing-along and dance-away with some of the Old Town School’s finest children’s instructors and local and touring performers. Kids and families will share popular tunes, learn some tap steps, watch student performances, and rock out to Live Music Karaoke. Kids’ Art Tent. Drawing on the Old Town School’s popular visual arts education programs, children can take some time out from singing and dancing to create their own masterpieces that can be easily shown-off around the festival. Instrument Petting Zoo. Ever want to try out a banjo, fiddle, conga drum, or accordion? Children of all ages are invited to strum or bang away on a variety of instruments straight from School’s full-service music store. Gazebo. The Gazebo features workshops and song swaps with Old Town School faculty. Get into the groove with drum circles, harmonica lessons, and demonstrations by a variety of student ensembles. The Gazebo is located directly outside the grounds where the public can access music without entering the gates, and provides a place for those who wish to bring dogs. Vendor Row. Delicious food, beer, crafts, souvenirs, artwork, sponsor information, and other items can be found along Lincoln Avenue, adding another destination to the festival experience.
The Festival is free to the public with a $8 suggested donation, $4 for children and seniors.
www.chicagofolkandroots.org
2010 Sponsorship Opportunities Chicago Folk and Roots Festival sponsor benefits include: •
Prominent association with one of Chicago’s most unique arts institutions.
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High visibility through a range of print, electronic, and on-site promotion.
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Connection to an educated, loyal and diverse audience base, and much more.
Chicago Folk & Roots Festival is one of the most anticipated neighborhood festivals of the summer and has built a solid reputation for artistic quality, audience response, and community visibility. Sponsorships come with a range of benefits including broad recognition, on-site information distribution, and other opportunities for sponsor participation. Festival passes and backstage invitations provide easy admission for both days, free food and beverages, comfortable shade, and close proximity to the Main Stage. Sponsor benefits can also be tailored to your company’s specific goals.
Sponsor options Festival Sponsor: Exclusive title sponsorship throughout. Dance Tent: Dance Instruction with live musical accompaniment. Staff Stage: A broad range of faculty, staff, and student performances. Artist Merchandise Tent: Highly visible, located next to the main stage. Kids Music Tent: performances by visiting artists, faculty and students. Nuestra Musica Tent: an array of local, Latino-based music, arts and craft activities. Sound Tent: The most important element of the festival after the artists, and located right in the center of the grounds. Gazebo: percussion, guitar, and ensemble classes. Kids Art Tent: art projects for the whole family. Instrument Petting Zoo: A range of instruments for kids to try out. Media and In-Kind Sponsors: Support for advertising, catering, etc.
For Sponsor rates and details on recognition and benefits, please contact Eric Delli Bovi, Director of External Affairs, at 773.751.3431 or edellibovi@oldtownschool.org
www.chicagofolkandroots.org
What the Critics’ Say “A young band that channels Brown and classic Stax R&B may not be everyone's definition of folk music, but for the Old Town School of Folk Music, the festival's sponsor, the term encompasses nearly any genre that can claim its own history and community. The festival, which continued through Sunday, reflected that vision, including Indian ragas spliced with electronic dance music, polka and Latin dance lessons, and student ensembles playing songs by the Beatles and Grateful Dead.” - Kevin McKeough, Chicago Tribune. 7/13/09 “Old Town School Folk & Roots festival one of season’s best.” -Jim DeRogatis, Chicago Sun-Times. 7/11/08 “Shows you can’t miss: In a city glutted with summer festivals, the 11th annual outdoor party hosted by the Old Town School of Folk Music wins the diversity prize.” -Greg Kot, Chicago Tribune. 7/11/08 “Top live shows: Don’t try to detect a prevailing theme at Old Town’s annual block party. Befitting the institution’s increasingly eclectic purview of all things folk, the roots at this year’s fest are more tangled than ever.” -Craig Keller, Time Out Chicago. 7/10-16/08 “Kinky caps global vibe of pumping folk festival.” -Benjamin Ortiz, on review of festival closing act Kinky. Chicago Tribune. 7/15/08 “Old Town fest succeeds by doing what it does best.” -Aaron Cohen, Chicago Tribune. 7/17/08 “Folk & Roots Festival a treat: Diverse crowd of all ages turns out for 2-day lineup.” -Aaron Cohen, Chicago Tribune. 7/11/06 “Folk & Roots Fest runs gamut. This weekend’s Chicago Folk & Roots Festival ranges from the mesmerizing music of African nomads to horn-powered R&B.” -Robert Loerzel, Glenview announcements. 7/7/05
www.chicagofolkandroots.org Audience Profile
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www.chicagofolkandroots.org
www.chicagofolkandroots.org
ORGANIZATIONAL SNAPSOT Mission: Old Town School of Folk Music teaches and celebrates music and cultural expressions rooted in the traditions of diverse American and global communities. Founded in 1957, Old Town School of Folk Music provides a wide range of music, dance, theater, and visual arts courses to people of all ages, abilities, and backgrounds. Whatever one’s interest, Old Town School provides broad access to over 650 class offerings, private lessons, and workshops that span a wide range of artistic genres. Old Town School is nationally accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Community & Precollegiate Arts Schools, one of only a dozen accredited community arts schools in the nation and the only one dedicated to teaching traditional and popular art forms from around the world. The School’s critically acclaimed concerts showcase some of the finest and most diverse local and touring artists in our intimate and acoustically superb hall. Ticket prices remain among the most affordable in the city and special events like the Chicago Folk & Roots Festival and World Music Wednesdays make music accessible to all with free and reduced-priced programs. Old Town School has grown to become the largest independent community arts school in the United States with 300 staff and faculty members who serve an average 6,000 students per week, and is supported by 3,000 members, 400 active volunteers, and an events audience of 85,000 per year. Outreach programs serve 2,000 children in 20 public schools and care facilities across Chicago, and field trip concerts attract 9,000 students and teachers annually with interactive and educational performances. Old Town School owns and operates two facilities situated in Lincoln Square and Lincoln Park that include 425-seat and 150-seat concert halls, 47 classrooms, two music stores, café, and resource center. Children’s classes are also held at three suburban satellite locations. Plans for an expanded, state-of the-art education facility are underway across the street from the main location in Lincoln Square to address continued demand, with groundbreaking scheduled for summer 2010 and the grand opening scheduled for late 2011.
Old Town School breaking the world record for the Largest Music Lesson with 1,377 participants on August 7, 2007.