Festival creative director shifts role

Brad Tisdel will be leaving his current role as full-time creative director with SFF Presents (SFFP) at the end of the year. Tisdel has formed a company that will be hired to coordinate talent booking for both of the group's annual music festivals, the Sisters Folk Festival and Big Ponderoo.

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Brad Tisdel, long-time creative director with the Sisters Folk Festival organization, will step back and take a different role with the organization.

Tisdel has been instrumental in the success of SFFP (formerly SFF, Inc.) since he joined the organization in its early stages in 2000. His dedication and visionary leadership were critical in co-founding and establishing the innovative Americana Project at Sisters High School, creating and running the Americana Song Academy, co-writing and implementing the five-year Studio to School OCF grant in partnership with Sisters public schools, and growing SFFP to a year-round cultural arts organization.

He was a key member of the Connected by Creativity capital campaign committee that concluded in 2019 and helped SFFP raise funds needed to purchase the Sisters Artworks Building and adjacent land, which serves as their headquarters, community space, and a music and event venue.

Tisdel has been the artistic/creative director of the organization since 2003, while also serving as the executive director from 2008-2014. During his tenure, the SFF grew to include 11 venues, with the moniker "All The Town's A Stage," a model he helped create with the SFF board, staff, and key community partners. The festival has garnered national and international recognition in large part due to the musical lineup that is carefully curated by Tisdel for artistic excellence.

Tisdel was the co-founder of the 20-year music and arts fundraiser, My Own Two Hands, and helped launch its replacement event in 2023, the Big Ponderoo Music + Art Festival.

Through his new company, Tisdel will continue to serve as a contracted talent buyer for the folk festival, Americana Song Academy, and Big Ponderoo.

"Going into my 25th year, the timing is right for me to take a step back from my full-time work with SFF Presents," Tisdel said. "The effort needed to facilitate the organization from a two-day event into a year-round cultural arts organization has been an immense, and ultimately very rewarding, experience. I also want to pursue new opportunities to expand other interests in my life that have been put aside for a long time. After pouring my heart and soul into SFF Presents, it's important I make this move at a time when the organization is strong, and there's a talented and capable staff in place that can carry on the work we do in the community for years to come."

Executive Director Crista Munro said, "It's been rewarding to work alongside Brad for the past five years and witness firsthand his passion and joy for what we do. He will leave our team with a deep legacy of community-building and a creative vision that will help carry SFF Presents far into the future. I'm pleased we were able to retain his services as a talent buyer to help ensure there's no disruption to the high artistic quality that our patrons have come to expect."