Turning Tides Music Foundation, a promoter booking acoustic music in the Eugene area, presents the new daylong Turning Tides Folk Festival, Sept. 19, at Island Park in Springfield. Headliners include the Carsie Blanton Band, Crys Mathews and Alice DiMicele. Local acts, including Llorona, Larry Pattis and more, join the bill. The festival also features ecstatic dance with craft and food vendors. In 2025, Blanton, who grew up in Eugene, spent nearly a week in an Israeli prison as part of the Global Sumud Flotilla, attempting to deliver humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip. The International Folk Alliance awarded her the 2026 International Folk Music Performer of the Year. Matthews, based in Nashville, won the same honor last year. “The Turning Tides Music Festival is the culmination of 45 continuous years of acoustic music concert productions and public radio DJing as a volunteer,” says Mike Meyer of Turning Tides Music, adding that the organization recently became a nonprofit. “Turning Tides,” according to Meyer, refers to the “natural and community settings,” such as Island Park, where the organization books acoustic music. The name also alludes to “social change through music and community building, fostering lifelong friendships and interdependence,” he says.

Turning Tides Folk Festival is 10 am to 9 pm Saturday, Sept. 19, at Island Park, 200 West B Street in Springfield. Tickets are $47.50 advance, $55 day of show, and available at TurningTidesMusic.org.

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