That’s not all, folks

They come from Colville, Wenatchee, Spokane, Sandpoint, Portland and Seattle.

Yet they’re steeped in the traditions of India, Appalachia, Zimbabwe, Scotland, Arabia, Ireland, Japan and the Andes.

These are the 40-plus folk acts of the 13th Annual Fall Folk Festival, the annual two-day celebration of the world’s folk music, dance and arts.

Plenty of the acts fall into Celtic/bluegrass/Americana traditions. There will be no shortage of fiddlers, banjo players and blues guitarists. But make no mistake: This event takes in a broad range of traditions from around the world.

The dance acts alone include styles from South India, Argentina, Thailand, the Middle East, Japan and West Africa. Throw in some cloggers, square-dancers, Celtic dancers and contradancers and performers will be dancing their way, figuratively, around the globe.

And once again, the event is free. The Spokane Folklore Society raises all the money for the event through donations and sponsorships. You can purchase a festival button on-site if you want to help defray some of the costs.

This year, one of the festival’s headliners, Che oké ten (also known as Paul Wagner), keeps alive a tradition that is ingrained deeply in the Northwest: Northwest Native American flute, drumming, singing and storytelling. He’s based in Seattle and is a member of the Coast Salish tribe.

The Fall Folk Festival has long been one of the Spokane arts scene’s unqualified success stories. It started modestly 13 years ago, with attendance of just a few hundred. It leaped in attendance nearly every year. In 2005, it went from a one-day event to a two-day event and attracted 7,500 people.

Expect somewhere around that number for this year’s two-day event.

It’s not unusual for musicians to be performing on a half-dozen stages at once. However, the Fall Folk Festival goes far beyond music.

Here’s what else you’ll find, scattered around The Lair, which is the student center at Spokane Community College:

•Music and dance workshops, for those who want to learn new skills.

•Storytelling sessions for kids and adults.

•Juggling workshops.

•Kid’s arts and crafts activities.

•A musician’s jam-session room.

•Crafts booths.

•Food booths.

In keeping with festival tradition, KBPX-FM (Spokane Public Radio, 91.1) will host a live broadcast from the festival today from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Lair Auditorium. Make sure you get there early enough to get settled in before the broadcast begins.