“Festival on the Erie” Returns to New York State Canal System

Roving Music Festival Takes Place June 21 – 29 from Marcy to Waterford

ALBANY, NY (05/29/2008)(readMedia)-- The New York State Canal Corporation today announced the Third Annual “Festival on the Erie,” a traveling music festival, will once again hit the waters of the Canal System on Saturday, June 21 at Lock E-20 in Marcy and make its way east to Waterford, New York, to entertain crowds at the Farmer’s Market on Sunday, June 29. The Festival is once again being organized by the Boys of Wexford, LLC and will feature the group “Four Shillings Short”, an internationally known folk group that travels the U.S., Ireland and Canada.

Canal Corporation Director Carmella R. Mantello said, “We are pleased to welcome back the Boys of Wexford and the ‘Festival on the Erie’ to New York’s Canal System. Last year’s festival drew large audiences who came out to hear some great regional and ethnic music and learn more about the history and heritage of the Erie Canal and New York State. This year’s festival will once again provide fun-filled entertainment for the whole family to enjoy.”

This year’s Festival will feature Canal ballads, music of the sea, old-time Country, and folk songs from Ireland and Canada. Each show will have a special theme and audience sing-a-longs and instrumental “jam sessions” will make for a memorable evening at each of the stops.

Featured musicians and performers at this year’s Festival will include “Four Shillings Short”, Don Sineti (resident Shantyman at Mystic Seaport, CT), Claudine Langille (member of Gypsy Reel), Sheri Mortimer (a student of Tommy Makem, known for her old-style Irish tunes), as well as many other fiddlers, bones players, banjo pickers and singers.

Date - Location - Time

June 21 - Lock E-20, Marcy - 1:00pm-5:00pm

June 21 - Ilion Marina - 6:00pm

June 22 - Gems Along the Mohawk, Herkimer - 3:00pm

June 22 - North Broadalbin - 7:00pm

June 23 - Utica – 7:00pm

June 24 - Arkell Museum, Canajoharie - 7:00pm

June 25 - Loopies Pub, Tribes Hill - 7:00pm

June 26 - American Legion, Broadalbin – 7:00pm

June 27 - Riverlink Park, Amsterdam – 7:00pm

June 28 - Freedom Park, Scotia – 7:00pm

June 29 - Waterford Visitor Center, Waterford – 11:00am

When it opened in 1825, the Erie Canal had an immediate and lasting impact on the development of New York and the fledgling United States by opening up the vast western territories to trade and settlement. The “Festival on the Erie” recognizes the efforts of the Irish immigrants who dug the original canal by hand, as well as the generations of men and woman who have worked and lived on the Canal throughout its nearly 200 year history. Community members are invited to come out and celebrate New York’s rich Canal heritage at this series of free concerts.

The New York State Canal System is comprised of four historic waterways, the Erie, the Champlain, the Oswego and the Cayuga-Seneca Canals. Spanning 524 miles across New York State, the waterway links the Hudson River, Lake Champlain, Lake Ontario, the Finger Lakes and the Niagara River with communities rich in history and culture.

The Canal Corporation is a proud supporter of the 2009 Hudson-Fulton-Champlain Quadricentennial, a year long celebration designed to commemorate 400 years of progress in the Empire State.

For boating information, vacation opportunities and events along the NYS Canal System, please call 1-800-4CANAL4 or visit www.nyscanals.gov.

NOTE TO MEDIA: To verify arrival times or to schedule interviews with members of the Boys of Wexford LLC or any of the traveling musicians, please contact Mike McGarry at 860-570-1312.

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The New York State Thruway Authority/Canal Corporation offers a free email service called TRANSalert to its customers via email or text messaging to inform them of major incidents and emergencies that may affect travel on the Thruway or navigation on the Canal System. To sign up for the Canal TRANSalert service, customers can visit the Corporation's website at www.nyscanals.gov/tas/. To sign-up for Thruway TRANSalerts please visit the Authority's website at www.nysthruway.gov/tas/.