A culture’s identity is embodied in its folk music. Communities have invested their genius in this music for generations, across the centuries, and its vitality is our legacy and its perpetuation our responsibility. We are engaged in the transmission of culture.

Founded in 1991, we are Warren Wilson College’s educational program of summer folk arts workshops held on our campus in the Swannanoa Valley. Participants of all ages come from all over the world and all walks of life, including individuals from all 50 states and more than 25 nations. We offer an intimate, supportive community experience for students of all abilities, featuring a staff of some of the finest performers and teachers in the world.

Please visit swangathering.com to register and for more information about the Swannanoa Gathering.

Endowing the Swannanoa Gathering for the Future

After 32 years, the Gathering’s founding director Jim Magill will be retiring. For those fortunate enough to know him, he strikes a chord in all our hearts. Please join us in honoring Jim and his legacy by making a gift to the new Swannanoa Gathering Legacy Endowment.

“Swannanoa Gathering is an incredible experience and the premier program of its kind thanks to Jim’s long and dedicated leadership,” says Dr. Kevin Kehrberg, incoming interim director of the Swannanoa Gathering and associate professor of music at Warren Wilson College. “I’m honored for the opportunity to carry Jim’s success forward and explore ways to expand the Gathering’s model and mesh its programming with our thriving music curriculum.”

The endowment will empower Gathering leadership and enable innovation. It will allow us to recruit and feature exceptional talent as well as provide the necessary tools to update and enhance the systems that produce the Gathering and support participant experience.

Please join us in honoring Jim and his legacy by making a gift to ensure a strong future for traditional music.

Make a Gift