September Revival Month: Celebrating Harvard Square's Art and Culture

This September, the Harvard Square Business Association is sponsoring a month-long celebration of Harvard Square's artistic and cultural heritage called "Revival Month"."Harvard Square used to be a place where people used to come together [and] play music, and it was such a wonderful celebration of folk music and tradition," said Denise Jillson, Executive Director of the HSBA.

"Cambridge continues to be a very welcoming place for musicians" continued Jillson. Indeed, “Revival Month” is very much about the continuity between Harvard Square’s past cultural legacy and current artistic community. The month-long celebration is named in honor of the newly-released novel "Revival", by Boston writer Scott Alarik. The novel, set in modern-day Cambridge, is a romantic drama about two struggling folk musicians. A folk artist himself, Alarik is known for his performances on NPR and his two decades of journalistic coverage of folk music for the Boston Globe.

Noteworthy among the performers is Bread and Puppet Theater, a theatrical group that combines eclectic acts and instruments with biting political satire. The group has its own strong historical heritage, having staged mass pageants and processions during the Vietnam War. They return to Cambridge after having launched the inaugural “Revival Month” last year.

Upcoming highlights:

September 8th

Novelist Scott Alarik will give a free performance and read from his book “Revival” as part of Club Passim's outdoor concert series

Where: Palmer Street

When: 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM.

September 10th

Boston musician Alastair Moock will give a free performance accompanied by local artists to celebrate his new children's music album, "These Are My Friends"

Where: Club Passim, 47 Palmer Street

When: 10:30 AM and 3:30 PM

September 23rd

4th Annual RiverSing, a colorful parade of Choral Groups, puppets, and members of the Cambridge community, will walk through the Square to the Charles River

Where: Begins in Winthrop Park

When: 5:00 PM

October 2nd

The grand finale of the festivities will be the HONK! Parade and 34rd Annual Oktoberfest celebration. Over 30 HONK! bands (street bands who perform using horns, bikes, stilts, and non-traditional instruments) will lead a family-friendly parade through Harvard Square. The parade will include local New Orleans-style jazz bands, folk musicians, and a variety of cultural organization based in Cambridge.

Where: Oktoberfest in Harvard Square, parade departs from Davis Square

When: Oktoberfest 12:00 PM - 6:00 PM, Parade at 1:00 PM