The 2013 Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Festival in pictures

The sun, four verses of the Ode to Newfoundland, and the fluttering provincial flag centered between the emblems of Labrador and the Republic.

The 37th Annual Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Festival may have relocated to the west end of St. John’s, with the grass of Bowring Park giving Bannerman’s a one-year reprieve, but it started much as anything so institutional ought. Which is to say, entirely eclectic – a reminder that folk music means a lot of things here in North America’s oldest city.

The Indy was on hand to take in the tunes and capture a few memorable moments. This daily photo essay is a reminder of what has made this weekend in August so important for the past three and a half decades. Stay tuned for coverage of Saturday and Sunday’s events.

Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Festival – Friday, Aug. 9

: Joel Plaskett and Mo Kenney shared the stage at Bowring Park Friday evening. Photo by Justin Brake.

: Clarenville-based old-time country and bluegrass band Albedo (Christina Cloutet-Bishop, Leeland Wareham, Ches March, and Merrill Rogers) released their debut album in 2011. Their music got some swaying in the twilight as the crowd packed in tighter to the stage and the noise from the beer tent got louder. Photo by Justin Brake.

: By the time Friday evening headliners Bill and Joel Plaskett took to the stage most in the crowd had risen to their feet. Photo by Justin Brake.

: Bill and Joel Plaskett. Photo by Justin Brake.

: Bill and Joel Plaskett. Photo by Justin Brake.

: Joel Plaskett is one of the best at his trade in Atlantic Canada, and his dad is no slouch either. A stripped down duet of “Nothing More to Say” segued into Joel performing a short solo set (including the new singalong “Parkland Avenue Sobriety Test”) before his dad rejoined for the finale, “Wishful Thinking.” Newfoundland has the best singers, he said, and they were clearly all at Bowring Park. Photo by Justin Brake.

: Former Sons of Erin member Chris Hennessey was accompanied by Jody Richardson, Shirley Montague and Tim Baker for a songwriter’s circle on the main stage. Photo by Justin Brake.

: The festival moved from its home in Bannerman Park downtown to Bowring Park in the city’s west end this year. Photo by Justin Brake.

: Joel Plaskett joined Kenney on stage for a couple of tunes. Photo by Justin Brake.

: A singer-songwriter needs something special to win a crowd with just an acoustic guitar, and Waverley, Nova Scotia’s Mo Kenney isn’t admired by Joel Plaskett for nothing. She’s got the chops to hold the stage on her own, which she proved as she performed songs from her 2012 self-titled debut. Photo by Justin Brake.

: The Ode to Newfoundland. Photo by Justin Brake.

: Anita Best of the Folk Arts Society presents Ray Walsh with the Lifetime Achievement Award. “I hope they’re not suggesting my life is over, or my achievements are over,” a humbled Walsh announced to the crowd. The Bay de Verde accordionist has been performing for nearly 50 years, and as Tom Power said, “He’s wicked, he’s the best.” Photo by Justin Brake.

: The late Peter Narvaez’s quirky ‘Airport Blues’ got the swinging stringed trio The Low Yo Stuff started. There’s a good chance you recognize Steve Hussey, Brad Power, and Dave Rowe from other bands around St. John’s, and as a former backing band for Narvaez, who passed away last year. Their jazzy, old-time country style, with a New Orleans via Harbour Grace vibe, had a familiar groove with some musical education. Photo by Justin Brake.

: “Sorry b’ys,” Hey Rosetta front man Tim Baker joked about the minor chord moodiness of his new song ‘Cathedral Bells’, as Hennessey, Richardson and Montague look on. Photo by Justin Brake.

: Ilia Nicoll and her band (Steve Pike, Jake Nicoll and Noah Bender) opened the folk festival Friday evening. Having performed in The Newish Klezmer Ensemble and The Hunter Gathers, Nicoll is now working on her debut solo album, the live versions of which were amped up with an electric guitar and an alt-country vibe. Photo by Justin Brake