PR: WASHOUGAL SONGCRAFT FESTIVAL LAUNCHES “NORTHWEST SONGCRAFT”

For Immediate Release
October 7, 2025
Washougal, Washington

WASHOUGAL SONGCRAFT FESTIVAL LAUNCHES “NORTHWEST SONGCRAFT”
Arts Group to Support Songwriters and Cultural Development Throughout the Region

For three years the fledgling non-profit Washougal Songcraft Festival has brought together regional songwriters and audiences in the City of Washougal. The group’s mission has been to both foster the performing arts scene of their town and to support the art of original songwriting.

With the formation of Northwest Songcraft as a new registered business identity (or ‘DBA’), the non-profit plans to expand its activities, and to more generally support original songwriters throughout the region.

While specific programs are still in the planning stages, the creation of Northwest Songcraft was authorized at a Washougal Songcraft Festival board meeting in August where many ideas were proposed. Activities of the new venture will likely include producing and promoting songwriter concerts in other cities and communities in the region, including ticketed performances at established performing arts venues. The group will also look to form relationships with other non-profits, festivals, and venues for potential collaborations in other locations, in parallel with continuing offerings in Washougal. Depending on funding availability, Northwest Songcraft may also consider offering grants directly to songwriters developing their own audiences in their local communities.

As a first step in expanding the non-profit’s reach, founders Christopher and Stephanie Corbell will be attending this weekend’s FAR-WEST conference in Vancouver, Washington. They hope to connect to other regional resources, collaborators, and artists at the conference. FAR-WEST is a regional division affiliated with Folk Alliance International.

In a blog post on the new Northwest Songcraft website (https://northwestsongcraft.org), founder and President Christopher Corbell writes about the values that motivate the expanded venture:

“I’m deeply fascinated by, and devoted to, what happens when cultural treasures are not stripped from their region, re-engineered for novelty and stretched as far as they can go as consumer products, or condescendingly placed in an academic encyclopedist’s framework. Like the ecosystem of an old-growth forest, I believe that the deepest, richest, most meaningful and most sustainable culture comes about when a people in a region invent it for themselves, attending to creativity where they live and engage. Much like farm-to-table and regional craft beverages improve our local food culture, Northwest Songcraft is about recognizing and developing deeply original music culture directly and locally.”

The new venture will not change the branding around Washougal Songcraft Festival, the flagship summer concert series which will return to downtown Washougal in August 2026.

For more information contact Christopher Corbell through the Nortwest Songcraft contact page at https://northwestsongcraft.org/contact/.