Porchfest isn’t quite like other music festivals. We don’t need a press kit, we don’t need to hear from your agent. (Yes, we really do get out-of-town bands asking us, as much as a year in advance, how they can “submit” to play Porchfest.) All you need is a porch to play on, and to sign up before the deadline.
Porchfest is primarily a local/neighborhood music festival, and the vast majority of performers are from the Ithaca area and playing on their own porch, or a friend’s. It’s intended to be a showcase of our amazing creative community, not a tour stop for bands from other cities / states. There are plenty of other festivals that do that, and do it well. If you know someone who lives in the Fall Creek or Northside neighborhoods, you can certainly ask them if you can play on their porch.
Signups happen over the summer, and our email list, website, and social media channels are the best places to watch for info about when they begin and when the deadline will be. Performers sign up with the address where they’ll play; the organizers of Porchfest do not match bands with porches. We welcome all kinds of music at Porchfest, as long as you sign up and agree to our rules about volume and other considerations.
Please do not just show up and play, without signing up first. An immense amount of work goes into arranging the schedule so there aren’t bands playing too closely to each other. Very frequently, bands that just set up and play without being scheduled wind up drowning out someone else nearby.
If you have questions, let us know!