Scythian rides high hosting Appaloosa festival

Brothers Danylo and Alexander Fedoryka are helping to recreate their hometown’s reputation for good music by running the two-day outdoor Appaloosa Roots Music Festival each Labor Day weekend.

“Front Royal, Virginia, used to be known for music, a lot of the Appalachian bluegrass music, but the music theme died,” Alexander said. “We weren’t exposed to a lot of live music growing up. We listened to a lot of bluegrass tapes.”

The brothers, who front the Americana/Irish band Scythian, will host the ninth Appaloosa festival this year, which will feature 30 bands.

The festival is held on a horse ranch in the Shenandoah Valley in northern Virginia near Scythian’s Front Royal base. One goal is to make the festival appealing to families. That means all children 12 and under are admitted for free, and workshops cater to young people curious about music. The Fedoryka brothers also carefully vet the bands they invite to perform, getting to know them on the road before inviting them.

“I have about 30 nephews and nieces who come to that festival,” Danylo says, “so we’re very careful with the bands we bring in. They don’t have to be Christian, but they have to be trying to live a good life.”

The result is a weekend of what the Fedorykas call “joyful music.”

That approach doesn’t suppress quality, either. The festival has hosted such future stars as bluegrass guitar virtuoso Billy Strings and recent Grammy winner Molly Tuttle.

“We got them before they got big,” Danylo said.

The Fedorykas also want to promote the same kind of positive music they perform.

“Music is such a big player in the culture, we feel like we want to introduce people to uplifting, wholesome music that’s energetic, that will appeal to their loves and likes, their energy,” Alexander said. “We want to influence the culture in a positive way, where they're not listening to nihilistic lyrics, drawing them to abuse of alcohol or drugs. We feel like you can really open the world to teenagers through these workshops.

“My brother and I have a responsibility. We want to win souls for Christ as well, and the music field is a major area for that.”

The presence of so many young people—at least a thousand a day, the brothers estimate—affects the behavior of adults.

“People hold themselves to a higher standard when children are present,” Alexander said. “If you want a place where you can bring your kids, camp for a weekend, listen to bluegrass, to old Irish music, have good food and community, we would love to have people come out to that.”