The 2026 New Jersey Folk Festival Returns Saturday August 29, 2026.
The 51st New Jersey Folk Festival (NJFF) returns to Davidson’s Mill Pond Park, South Brunswick, NJ, Saturday, August 29, 2026, 11 AM – 5 PM. At this year’s event, NJFF is proud to feature dozens of artists and performers, including many honored by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts’ New Jersey Heritage Fellowship.
The New Jersey Folk Festival is an annual celebration of folk music, arts, and traditions that brings together performers, artists, communities, organizations, and vendors to highlight the historical, modern, and diverse folklife and folk arts from around the state and beyond.
Founded in 1975, the event attracts over 5,000 attendees from New Jersey and neighboring states. The festival features four entertainment stages, a family activities area, food vendors, a cultural heritage demonstration area, as well as tours of the Parks and Gardens. The event continues to be a hallmark arts event and destination experience celebrating the Garden State.
The New Jersey State Council on the Arts’ New Jersey Heritage Fellowship is awarded semiannually as the highest honor for folk and traditional artists in the state. NJFF is thrilled to include the following NJ Heritage Fellows in this year’s artist lineup:
Yang Yi & Tang Liangxin present a workshop on their signature instruments, the guzheng and pipa. Yang Yi was the 2026 Recipient of the NJ Heritage Fellowship; she is a master performer of the zheng (publicly known as guzheng, a 21-stringed Chinese zither), Her long-time collaborator, Tang Liangxing, of Somerset, New Jersey received the 1993 National Endowment for the Arts’ National Heritage Fellowship as a master Pipa player.
I Giulullari Di Piazza features 2026 NJ Heritage Fellow Allessandra Belloni; Belloni showcases Southern Italian Folk Music and Dance on the Pinelands Stage and in the Heritage Area.
2026 NJ Heritage Fellow Neelima Raju leads Rangamandala in a Kuchipudi dance performance on the Shore Stage. The Nrithyanjali Dance Ensemble showcases Bharatanatyam on the Shore Stage under the leadership of 2026 Heritage Fellow Ramya Ramnarayan. Emerging artists from the ensemble share their talents on the Gateway Family Stage and in the Heritage Area.
The Next Generation of Irish Music is organized by 2024 NJ Heritage Fellow Kathy DeAngelo for an interactive performance on the Gateway Family Stage. DeAngelo also performs with NJFF crowd favorite McDermitt’s Handy on the Shore Stage.
2024 NJ Heritage Fellow Nelson Baez leads a performance by Cimarrones, an Afro Puerto Rican Bomba and Plena Ensemble on the Shore Stage. 2024 NJ Heritage Fellow and musical storyteller Valerie Vaughn performs on the Gateway Family stage.
Also in the Festival’s Heritage Area, 2024 NJ Heritage Fellow Mary May shares demonstrations on traditional coastal farm baskets while 2024 NJ Heritage Fellow, Ylvia Asal shows visitors Oya Turkish lacemaking and papercraft. 2026 NJ Heritage Fellow and griot Omar Edwards will showcase his renowned African American tap traditions and stories for audiences to enjoy and 2026 NJ Heritage Fellow Pepe Santana shares Andean Music Traditions in the Heritage Area.
The New Jersey Folk Festival is part of FolkLIVE, a project of the Regional Folklife Center at the Arts Institute of Middlesex County with support from the Middlesex County Board of County Commissioners. The Regional Folklife Center at the Arts Institute of Middlesex County is a project of the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.
NJFF is operated by a 501(c)3 non-profit organization (New Jersey Folk Festival, Inc/ EIN 22-3590399) and with generous public and private funding. Founded in 1975,the New Jersey Folk Festival is an annual celebration of folk music, arts, and traditions that brings together performers, artists, communities, organizations, and vendors to highlight diverse arts from around the state and beyond. For more information on the festival and to explore the full performers line up, visit the NJFF website: https://njfolkfest.org/
