The Acadia Festival of Traditional Music & Dance is dedicated to building community, celebrating artistry, and carrying forward traditions of primarily Celtic origin for future generations. To fulfill its mission, the Festival relies on the generosity of its supporters.

Please consider making a tax-deductible donation towards our scholarship fund today through our Fractured Atlas page. All donations to Acadia Trad through Fractured Atlas will be used towards need-based scholarships to attend 2023’s Acadia Trad School, as well as travel and other costs for faculty artists to teach in Bar Harbor, Maine for the week.

The festival aims to draw from the very best teachers and performers of trad music in the U.S., Canada and beyond, including instructors of all five “core genres” (Acadian, Cape Breton, Irish, Québécois, Scottish). We strive to include both master tradition bearers and up-and-coming artists, all of whom will engage and inspire students in small classroom settings. We are committed to including participants of different racial, ethnic and cultural backgrounds and students of all generations and ability levels.

It’s not just the tunes, the dancing, the musicians or the traditions – it’s the magic that happens when we put it all together. Young students learn from master tradition bearers, then bring their own unique gifts to the endeavor – thus the traditions are learned, celebrated and they evolve. The traditions are alive.