(Fantastic Cat, SFF 2024. Photo by Jack Turpem)
Sisters Folk Festival (SFF) is back for its 28th year, transforming downtown Sisters into a music lover’s paradise from Friday-Sunday, September 26-28. The long-running festival continues its tradition of presenting a diverse, multi-genre mix of artists in an intimate, community-focused setting.
This year’s lineup is one of the most wide-ranging and eccentric yet, featuring legendary songwriters, global sounds, boundary-pushing young artists and fan favorites. Loudon Wainwright III, Katie Pruitt, Kyshona (returning by popular demand as a 2024 fan-favorite “encore act”), Martyn Joseph, Grace Bowers (Instrumentalist of the Year at the 2024 Americana Awards), American Patchwork Quartet (2025 GRAMMY contenders for Folk Album of the Year), John Fullbright, Sean Hayes, The Bones of J.R. Jones, Whitehorse, Goodnight Texas, Robert Mirabal and Rare Tribal Mob, Gaby Moreno, Humbird, Tray Wellington Band, Kaleta & Super Yamba Band, Bobby Alu, Mason Via, The Fretless, Max Gomez & Shannon McNally, Cordovas, Joy Clark, Crying Uncle Bluegrass Band, Alysha Brilla, TAE & The Neighborly, Maia Sharp, Seth Bernard, The Faux Paws, Beth Wood, The Rebel Eves, Madeleine Roger, Kora Feder and Sadie Gustafson-Zook are among the nearly three dozen acts performing across seven venues.
The festival is designed with the listening experience at its heart. Performances are spread across downtown Sisters in intimate spaces, ranging from expansive tents and a historic church to local restaurants and the beloved Village Green. Attendees can expect everything from roots and bluegrass to Afrobeat, Latin, indie-folk and experimental fusions for a unique opportunity to discover artists from across the musical spectrum.
This year also marks a new chapter in the festival’s visual identity. After years of collaboration with longtime poster artist Dennis McGregor, the torch has been passed to Bend-based painter Sheila Dunn, who created the 2025 Sisters Folk Festival poster. Her vibrant artwork depicts an unnamed musician set against the backdrop of the majestic Mt. Jefferson, symbolizing both the universality of music and its deep roots in Central Oregon’s landscape.
Best known for her large-scale, vibrant oil paintings, Dunn is a celebrated artist whose work can be found scattered throughout Central Oregon in mural form and sold in many local galleries and shops. Dunn received a BFA in painting and a minor in art history from Colorado State University and was recently selected by the US State Department to be a featured artist in the Art in the Embassies program, founded by the Museum of Modern Art and President Kennedy in 1963. Much of her work explores the fluid relationship between figure and environment with colorful, fractured brushstrokes.
In the tradition of offering free community events, families are invited to join in a full day of music and hands-on creativity at the SFF KidZone, an annual festival highlight designed especially for young and the young at heart. The event includes live music and creativity on Saturday, September 27 from 11am-5pm at Fir Street Park. The musical acts slated to perform are The Rebel Eves, Portland’s beloved children’s songwriter Mo Phillips, and the University of Oregon Roots Music Ensemble, a student group dedicated to preserving and reimagining American roots traditions through string band, gospel and folk performance. Rounding out the celebration will be a lively community dance hosted by the Sisters Middle School Outlaw Strings Club. With interactive art activities, great music and community spirit, the KidZone is like its very own mini festival. No wristband required.
On Sunday, September 28, the beloved SFF Community Celebration returns at 10am at Village Green, led by local songwriter and poet Beth Wood. This gathering offers festivalgoers and community members a reflective, collaborative finale showcasing music by several festival performers in a joyful setting.
The full performance schedule and lineup are available at sistersfolkfest.org. Three-day weekend passes and a limited number of Friday- and Sunday-only tickets are available for purchase at aftontickets.com/SFF2025 The festival is expected to sell out in advance with Saturday-only tickets already sold out.