Everything below reflects a year of CCV’s intentional, hands-on work assisting artists, building trust across communities, and supporting and invigorating cultural traditions.
CCV takes risks alongside artists, responds nimbly to opportunities as they arise, and keeps our work artist-focused and vibrant.
We are so grateful to our many partners and supporters. If you are interested in joining us in championing arts and culture, please support our work.
Here’s a look at at some of our best moments from 2025:
Festivals We Power!
In its second year at the Baltimore Museum of Industry, the Baltimore Old Time Music Festival felt like it settled into a true home, shaped by the artists as much as the setting. Nearly 2,000 people from 26 states and multiple countries gathered not to simply attend but to participate, teach, and join together in music and comradeship.
We also celebrated audiences and artists at the Richmond Folk Festival, where the CCV Stage expanded into the Allianz Amphitheater, honoring tradition while giving artists room to be fully heard. A highlight was the RVA Jams for Justin Golden set featuring dozens of Richmond musicians coming together to help blues musician Justin Golden, whose voice was as powerful as ever.
We are grateful to all the volunteers, staff, sponsors, and especially the audience who make the festival so fun year after year.
Cultural Exchange in Action
This year took us back to the majestic shores of Ireland for the Clifden Arts Festival, where longtime CCV collaborator Danny Knicely brought a powerhouse project bridging Brazilian and Appalachian traditions.
On very different shores in the U.S. Virgin Islands we supported a rare collaboration focused on Black vernacular musical connections in St. Croix and Virginia featuring two NEA National Heritage Fellows: The Legendary Ingramettes and Stanley Jacobs with his Ten Sleepless Knights, keepers of the island’s unique Quelbe musical tradition. In both places, cultural exchange was rooted in shared practice, deep listening, and artists meeting together with respect on equal ground.
Passing On Traditions
One of the founding principles of the CCV is to ensure that treasured artforms from around the world not only survive but remain vibrant and essential. One of the single most effective ways to support community-based traditional arts and practices is through the support of apprenticeships.
This was a landmark year for Khayal music and its most important practitioners, the Saami family of Pakistan, whose vocal lineage spans nearly 750 years. We began 2025 with the Khayal Residency in New York City, bringing khayal into sustained, daily practice with the Saami family working with a dedicated cohort of students. Over more than a month, the work was immersive, demanding, and deeply transformative.
CCV embarked on the first of what we expect to be many master-apprentice relationships in the Cayman Islands. By partnering with local artists and culture bearers, CCV is helping to ensure that Caymanian traditions remain vibrant and valued—not only as a source of identity for the islands’ people, but as a wellspring of creativity and meaning for the next generation.
CCV also provided funding to support the African American Dance Caller Pathways project, re-centering Black leadership within the square dance tradition.
On The Ground and On the Stage: Live Performances
In 2025, we helped bring powerful, living artistry to audiences across the United States. The Saami Family played to packed houses from New York to Washington State, sharing Khayal and Qawwali music rooted in centuries of practice.
Additionally, Pashtun cultural heroes Khumariyaan electrified audiences at Current Space in Baltimore, while Egyptian oud visionary Mohamed Abozekry and his sextet delivered performances of depth and virtuosity. To close the year, Cherokee honky-tonk singer Agalisiga “Chuj” Mackey welcomed new dancers to the floor at the Baltimore Honky Tonk, creating space for tradition to move, breathe, and grow.
Supporting Recording Projects
In 2025, two recording projects we supported in CCV’s early days came to fruition. Tanz, a live recording led by Michael Winograd, reimagines a seminal 1950s Dave Tarras klezmer record through the voices of today’s leading klezmer musicians.
We also supported Tales of the Free Mexican Airforce, which features bluegrass legend Peter Rowan leaning into a deep Tex-Mex conjunto groove alongside Los Texmaniacs and the legendary Flaco Jiménez. Flaco, a dear friend and towering presence in American roots music, passed this year, making this release especially meaningful.
Stories in Motion
Here at CCV we have a deep love for crankies: scrolling hand-cranked panoramas that transform storytelling into a shared, kinetic experience. This year we co-produced Crankies Take New York, a new festival at Flushing Town Hall featuring performances, live music, family programs, and hands-on workshops. We also commissioned a new crankie from Caymanian storyteller and visual artist Nasaria Suckoo. The piece was extraordinary, and its impact continues with Nasaria now teaching crankie-making back in the Cayman Islands. The year closed with our support of Rafter of Crankies at Sandglass Theater in Putney, Vermont. Stay tuned for more Crankies in 2026!
Culture in the Classroom
This year, our World Culture in Context program went public through a major partnership with the exceptional CenterStage Program and the US Department of State. Together we created learning portals connecting students with artists from Pakistan, Ukraine, Indonesia, and Egypt, offering cultural exchange grounded in lived experience. With support from Bloomberg Philanthropies, we expect this virtual, artist-led program to reach many more classrooms in 2026.
Additionally, Cherokee honky-tonk singer Agalisiga “Chuj” Mackey connected with Baltimore students during his concert visit, sharing his story and songs in ways that left a lasting impression. At just 21 years old, Mackey has been captivating audiences across the Midwest with his original country-folk songs sung in the Cherokee language. His deep baritone voice—shaped by years of singing Cherokee ceremonial music—brought a fresh yet timeless sound to his first ever visit to Baltimore.
