Cambridge Folk Festival 2026
- Aug 5
- 2 min read
I had absolutely no expectations of what the Folk Festival would be like as I’ve never been before but I definitely couldn’t have imagined how special it could feel.
Finding Clare Hayes (organiser of New Routes) at Base Camp with her beautiful children and surrounded by musician friends … food … wine.. was like walking into a beautiful sunny, green-canopied haven. The trees are stunning! Friday “jam” night was magical and I think one of my favourite moments of the year so far. To sit amongst these incredible talented people who I adore - singing and playing in the glow of fairy lights, the warmth of this amazing summer, and the voices of all of my friends singing incredible songs, the gentle accordion, the double bass, strumming of guitars…. getting darker and darker with the silhouettes of more people gathering around the camp listening, applauding … it was beautiful. This is the magical stuff.
Saturday was more focused and time-driven as it’s the day I’m playing with my band Bête Noire - made up of myself, Fabian Bonner on double bass and Malek Hyde-Smith on Drums/percussion. These are the most incredible musicians and friends. It was wonderful to have a lovely gathering around the New Routes stage and as it was all so brilliantly well-organised it all ran perfectly… fantastic sound lady, honoured to have Max Bianco and Ezio Lunedei to join our set - again another treasured memory to keep. Afterwards it’s a rush to kit-down the stage, regret my keyboard choice, and most importantly get that drink! The rest of the weekend has been spent in a high … reflecting how fortunate to be asked, how blessed to be amongst these beautiful, talented friends and all finished off for me with a gorgeous performance by Suzanne Vega.
I know people have told me that the festival is so much smaller than before and that so much has been stripped back and reorganised. I heard there used to be 14K people and there were only 4K this year. For me - this was perfect…. It was intimate, special - and filled with all my favourite people who are bursting with talent, creativity, class, warmth and modesty. Best festival for me ever.
Angie x
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