Often near the top of my list of “Things I Love Most About The Ann Arbor Music Scene” is…. The Ark.
The Ark is a nonprofit listening room dedicated to the preservation and celebration of music-as-tradition. It’s a place that can demonstrate the power music can have to enrich a community and bring people together. Established several decades ago primarily as a home for folk music, its yearly programming has expanded to include blues, bluegrass, Americana, and a few inclinations into the realms of rock and jazz. More than anything, it’s a place where roots music, world/ethnic music and folk music, are held sacred. It can feel like a community center, a club house, even a Church.
The 41st annual Ann Arbor Folk Festival is Jan 26 & 27, featuring Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit, Aimee Mann, John Prine, Chastity Brown, JJ Grey & Mofro and many more!
The Ark consistently demonstrates its support of local musicians with monthly album release parties, open mic opportunities, and more! The Ann Arbor Folk Festival is the Ark’s big party of the year, where luminaries from the national scene, big names from the big stages, come to Hill Auditorium, where the dedicated team from The Ark serve as host inside a comparably bigger room than, to encourage all music fans to continue supporting this community venue on Main St.
The doors will open at 6 p.m. each night (Music starts at 6:30 p.m.) You can buy tickets online for a single night, or combine it for a weekend pass.
You can read an interview with The Ark’s Program & Marketing Directors, here, from last year…
Jeff covers music for Current, posting weekly show previews and highlighting new bands in the area.
