The Boston Globe cites lack of "corporate sponsors" as a cause, but as one who has been close to the festival for the past seven years, as well as in tune with WUMB's format changes (from roots and folk to AAA), I suspect other factors are at work.

For the last few years the festival has been on the decline, shrinking from two days to one, creating an unfriendly "us and them" vibe by catering to "VIP's" with private concerts and providing high backed chairs down front, eliminating the dance stage two years ago and the workshop and busker stages last year), a scarcity of vendors, running the main stage as a workshop stage, and following the Duncan Donuts Festival's lead by headlining country and pop artists in place of folk artists.

News of the Boston Folk Festival's demise reached me via Google alert at 2:12am that "hit" this Boston Globe gossip column story.
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Yet another victim of tough economic times, next year's Boston Folk Festival has been canceled. Pat Monteith, executive director of the event and general manager of sponsoring radio station WUMB, says organizers decided it wouldn't be fiscally responsible to have one in the fall, especially with no corporate sponsors on board. Now in its 11th year, the festival - which has featured such headliners as Emmylou Harris, Richard Thompson, and Suzanne Vega - could be revived, but Monteith is hesitant to say when or how.

Quite possibly the most prestigious musical event today, the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival has hit the big 4-0 and in turn, has outdone itself in booking nothing less than the cream of the crop. The 2009 lineup is incredibly diverse, both stylistically and chronologically, and will take music from jazz, pop, rock, soul, gospel, folk, salsa, blues, R&B, funk, and lots of music rooted in Louisiana, such as Cajun and zydeco. The event is scheduled to take place the weekends of April 24-26 and April 30-May 3 and it's a wonder how they've managed to cram hundreds of artists into a mere seven days. There are so many artists that one wouldn't know where to start unless they have a specific genre in mind. So for now, let's extract some of the rock bands that will be playing.

Although an official schedule has yet to be released, the lineup has been broken up between the two weekends. During the first weekend, Dave Matthews Band will be featured as one of the headliners (sadly, sans the original sax player). Wilco, who strangely drew in a larger crowd than Rage Against the Machine at Lollapalooza, will undoubtedly be received with open arms.  Read more »

Stephen Rehage lost thousands of dollars in the making of the first New Orleans Voodoo Experience, the outdoor music festival he first produced in 1999 that only drew about 8,000 people.

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There has always been a special link between John Steinbeck and Woody Guthrie—two American originals who wrote about the common man and promoted social activism during the middle decades of the last century. Now Live Nation is making that link explicit with a event September 20 in Concord CA that celebrates the legacy of both artists.

This Land Is Your Land is a mini-festival of music, art and spoken word performances that the producers says will honor "the American spirit of resilience and resolve" that characterized both men's work. The performers are Sheryl Crow, Cat Power, Henry Rollins, Mike Ness, Son Volt and Sarah Lee Guthrie & Jimmy Irion, chosen because of their dedication to social activism and human rights, according to the promoter.  Read more »