The MerleFest 2009 lineup is out, jam-packed as usual with acoustic talent, and including some interesting new configurations but relatively few fresh faces. All told, more than 90 acts are on the bill for the April 23-26 festival, to be held for the 22nd year at Wilkes Community College in Wilkesboro NC. There is also a tentative schedule posted for the Watson Stage, the festival's main venue, and on first glance most of headliners are also festival regulars or semi-regulars, though there is one important TBA remaining to be filled as the Sunday night closer.
Possibly the most interesting headline act is Travis Tritt and Jerry Douglas, who are scheduled to close the Watson Stage on Thursday evening. The festival has a penchant for booking the occasional mainstream country star, and Tritt certainly fits the description, but they try to present such performers in an acoustic context. I'm fairly sure Tritt has not played the festival before, and pairing him with festival favorite Douglas promises to yield the kind of chemistry MerleFest likes to produce. Read more »
One of the most talked-about sets of the roots festival year, the Levon Helm Band performance at MerleFest 2008, is now available for paid download from FestivaLink.net. There were many reasons I was sorry to have missed the festival, but not hearing the comeback performance by the one-time vocalist/drummer/mandolinist of The Band topped the list. Sad to say, I also missed his only other 2008 festival performance in August at Newport Folk.
Now I can enjoy the live MerleFest performance in its entirety thanks to the lovingly produced downloadable recording from FestivaLink. I have written before that live festival sets are not always unique enough to merit paying for. This one is — without question. Read more »
MerleFest attendees who are scrutinizing the newly announced 2008 lineup will find little to suggest any kind of shift in the festival's programming. Some people, including this blog, expressed concern that management changes earlier in 2007 could result in a change in artistic direction. See our earlier coverage here and here.
A first perusal of the lineup suggests a 2008 program that will be right in the mainstream of the festival's Americana focus of recent years. Artists like Sam Bush, Tim O'Brien and Peter Rowan anchor the proceedings in the progressive bluegrass mainstream. All the regulars from Doc Watson on down are in place. Read more »
From Ted Lehman
"I dropped by the Merlefest site (www.merlefest.org)last evening to take a look at their forum, which I try to follow and contribute to, and found a template for a new site to go live on August 31st. This struck me as a good idea, since they've had basically the same site for several years. No links on it are currently alive, but something did catch my attention. Read more »
By Dan Ruby
MerleFest maintains its commitment to presenting music that fits Doc Watson's definition of "traditional-plus," said MerleFest executive director B Townes in an exclusive interview with Festival Preview.
Townes would not give away any names of artists who have been booked for 2008. The lineup is scheduled to be announced toward the end of September. "Rest assured it will be the best ever," Townes said.
Following the departures of three key staff members, long-time MerleFest attendees are expected to closely scrutinize the lineup when it is released, looking for signs of changes in artistic direction. Read more »
The consolidation of power by MerleFest executive director B Townes raises concerns about the festival's future as an artistic beacon, says a long-time festival supporter who does not wish to be identified.
In an interview with Festival Preview, the source charged that Townes and managing director Ted Hagaman are more committed to making money for Wilkes Community College than they are to the audiences that have supported the festival since 1988. The source worried that the feel of the festival on the ground will become increasingly "sterile" as management overlooks the interests of patrons and ticket buyers. The festival should belong to the people who pay their money year after year and to the artists as much as it does to the college, according to the source. Read more »
By Dan Ruby
Note: This is an updated version of an item originally posted on July 24, based on corrected information from several sourcers.
Posters on the MerleFest discussion board are raising alarms about the future direction of the 20-year-old festival in the wake of recent departures by three key staff members. Since the most recent MerleFest last April, artistic director Claire Armbruster, marketing director Art Menius and volunteer coordinator Nancy Watson (no relation to festival godfather Doc Watson) have each left the organization, possibly less than willingly.
MerleFest is owned and operated by Wilkes Community College in Wilkesboro NC, which is also the site of the festival. The festival was founded in 1986 by Frederick B Townes, then a horticulture professor at the college and now its director of development. Townes is also the executive director of MerleFest. Read more »
MerleFest kicked off Thursday afternoon and evening with main-stage sets from the Steep Canyon Rangers, Waybacks, John Cowan Band, Cherryholmes, and a kickoff jam featuring Cowan, Uncle Earl, Pete Wernick and others.
Our bloggers on site are sending in photos and reports as they are able to snag Internet connections. We'll post things here as they come in and update as the festival moves along. This first batch of photos comes from LuAnna Peck with some commentary by her and by Abduhl Mashoon. Read more »
Merlefest!! For music lovers of a certain type, the name raises hopes and challenges the imagination. Ask someone along the festival trail if they’ve ever been to Merlefest and more often than not you get a response that suggests wonder, a little fear, concern about th
e crowds, concern about the expense, eagerness to attend. More people have heard about Merlefest than have attended it. Merlefest 2007 will be our fifth consecutive Merlefest. It represents the single most expensive and engaging week in our entertainment calendar. Each year we are introduced to musicians we have never heard of or never seen and reunited with some of our favorites. Unlike smaller, more intimate and informal festivals we attend, there is much less opportunity to interact with the performers. You don’t get a chance to hang out with people artists you’d like to know better. All that being the case, we still purchase our tickets the day they go on sale and plan our travel year around Merlefest.
The festival announced today that the home-improvement retailer Lowe's, based in MerleFest's home town of Wilkesboro NC, will be the "presenting sponsor" for next year's event, scheduled for April 26-29, 2007.
“Wilkesboro is not only where Lowe’s got its start, but is also a place where bluegrass music has deep roots,” said Bob Geller, Lowe’s senior vice president of marketing. “Many of our customers are music lovers, and we’re proud to support the passions of those customers, as well as support the culture and heritage of this world-class music event in our back yard.” Read more »
