TransTrad, a queer traditional-music festival in Olympia this weekend, aims to build solidarity
TransTrad, the queer traditional-music festival happening Friday through Sunday, June 6-8, in Olympia, was conceived as a response to the election of Donald J. Trump.
“It’s a very scary time to be publicly trans in America, even in a state as progressive as Washington,” said traditional musician Alex Sturbaum of Olympia, who organized TransTrad with Hayden Stern of Seattle. The two are bandmates in the all-trans dance band Natterjack.
“We were feeling helpless,” Sturbaum told The Olympian. “We were thinking, ‘What can we do to help? What can we do to effect positive change in our world and in our communities?’ ”
The answer: Organize a festival celebrating trans and gender-nonconforming musicians, raising those musicians’ visibility and building community and solidarity in Olympia’s vibrant folk and traditional music scene.
“At a time when our very existence is propagandized and we are treated as something strange, alien or other, it’s important to build common ground,” said Sturbaum, a singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist and the creative force behind the Olympia Jamgrass Collective. “We want people to come enjoy the festival and jam and play tunes.
“There is an absolute wealth of trans and nonbinary talent in the traditional folk music scene,” Sturbaum said.
Offering three days of concerts, dances, workshops and jam sessions, TransTrad will bring together musicians from the Northwest and beyond, playing in an array of traditional genres including bluegrass, old-time, Celtic and more.
Headlining are guitarist Morgan Harris of Portland and singer-songwriter McKain Lakey of Minneapolis.
“Morgan is absolutely at the forefront of progressive old-time guitar,” Sturbaum said. “She has such a deep well of tradition (and) a style that is thoroughly unique.”
Lakey, meanwhile, attracted critics’ attention with her 2021 album “Somewhere.”
“It’s a great record,” Sturbaum said.
The single “Queer AF” is “playful, proud, and contagiously catchy,” wrote Christopher John Greacy of Country Queer. (Check out the video on YouTube.)
Among the other featured acts are fiddler Laura Reed, traditional dancer Alicia Guinn, Portland duo Lillian Sawyer and Kaden Hurst, singer-songwriter Zeo Boekbinder of Bellingham, Natterjack, the Olympia Jamgrass Collective and Stern’s Scottish Fiddle Collective.
Along with concerts, impromptu jams and workshops, there’ll be a Friday night square dance and a Saturday night contra dance, and a taco truck will be on hand, too.
Sturbaum and Stern are aiming to make TransTrad a regular event.
“This our pilot,” Sturbaum said, adding that the local traditional-music community has been spreading the word and offering support. “People seem really excited about it.”
TransTrad
- What: Olympia’s first queer traditional-music festival — celebrating trans and gender-nonconforming artists and open to all — features concerts, dances, workshops and jams.
- When: 6-11 p.m. Friday, June 6; 10 a.m.-11 p.m. Saturday, June 7; and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday, June 8
- Where: South Bay Grange, 3918 Sleater Kinney Road NE, Olympia
- Tickets: $60-$120 for a three-day pass; $20-$75 for a one-day pass
- More information and full schedule: https://www.transtradfest.org/