"Mitschwimmen" is the German word for letting oneself be carried along with the crowd; literally: to swim with (the current). "Freischwimmen" (dialect: "Freischwimma") is a variation of the word, meaning to swim free. Mitschwimmen is the great tragedy of humankind. One dreams, wonders in silent nights, in moments, but with the waking of morrow oneself and one's dreams float with the current. Hope is postponed to the next day but behind our backs Momo's gray men smoke the time we squandered. In their music Florian Kargl, Marc Bruckner, Alexander Lauscher and Alexander Würrer flee the driving current, they swim free of instead of with it. At the close of this year's festival they invite us to discard society's arm floats and to swim freely.

A common way to speak in band descriptions is to say that a band introduces modern elements into traditional tunes. With the Crossfiedlers it's for a change the other way round. They play modern music with traditional contents that reach back until Walther von der Vogelweide. So, traditional tunes form the core. At these the Crossfiedlers dart helter-skelter, let their fiddles run free, and what emerges is a mix of widely varied influences, something that touches the heart of traditional ways and throbs with the pulse of modern times.

With virtuosity Bilwesz's hurdy-gurdy, bagpipes and harp unfurl in vibrant, invariably surprising arrangements. Dancing we spin under the spell of captivating rhythmic melodies. In a gleeful bounce any lingering melancholy lifts buoyantly floating from us. We take each others' hands, circle around the music, wheel in the wind.

We hope that some of you still have some lingering experience from the Bal-Folk workshops at the first two Wackelsteinfestivals. If not: it is not difficult and heap of fun to learn the few simple steps at first hand.

The close of the festival will once more be traditionally folky with Blackbush, veterans of the Austrian Folk scene. In their 25 year long career they can, among many other things, look back on tours through Ireland, Scotland and Britain. This year we are honored to have them put a healthy dose of Folk into the last day of the festival.