In 2023, the Smithsonian Folklife Festival will feature the people and culture of the Ozarks, with support from local partner Missouri State University (especially the MSU Library). To get the audience warmed up for next year’s festival, a concert featured two Ozark favorites: square-dance fiddling and bluegrass music. Fiddler David Scrivner (Springfield), banjoist Nathan McAlister (Granby), and guitarist David Cavins (Columbia) played a set of fiddle tunes and were followed by bluegrassers Sylamore Special, a band from Mountain View, Arkansas.

We hope that next summer’s event will include dances and jam sessions, so get your instruments tuned up and your dance shoes polished, and be ready to head to the capitol. See photos from this year’s festival and follow the Smithsonian Folklife Center for information about next year’s event.