Guest Author - S. P. Gass

The Mid-Atlantic is a hotbed for live bluegrass music, featuring tight harmony singing on top of virtuosic acoustic guitar, bass, banjo, mandolin, and fiddle. Attending one of these exciting events is a splendid way to enjoy a weekend.

Background

From the sounds of Scotch-Irish fiddle tunes mixing with the influence of African-American blues elements, bluegrass music was born. The name of the genre comes from Bill Monroe’s Blue Grass Boys who became popular in the 1940s, especially after banjo picker Earl Scruggs joined the band with his rolling three-finger technique. While bluegrass bands were once predominantly made up of men, stars like Lynn Morris, Rhonda Vincent, Alison Krauss, and other women have emerged. The 2000 film ‘Oh, Brother Where Art Thou’ sparked renewed popularity for bluegrass and the public’s appetite for bluegrass has been growing ever since.

Concerts and Festivals

The Washington DC Bluegrass Union maintains a bluegrass calendar, which lists annual bluegrass festivals and other performances throughout the area. Thanks to the volume of concerts and festivals, fans can enjoy bluegrass events during any weekend of the year.

Bluegrass festivals typically include outdoor seating in a beautiful country setting where the audience brings their own blankets and/or lawn chairs to sit in front of the stage. Aside from the main stage music, most festivals offer on-site vendors selling food, clothing, and crafts. Most multi-day festivals also have overnight camping areas and there is usually just as much music being played by bluegrass fans in the campground as there is on stage. In Virginia, I have especially enjoyed the Central Virginia Bluegrass Festival and Ralph Stanley’s Memorial Bluegrass Festival. I would also highly recommend the Arcadia Bluegrass Festival in Maryland.

Sitting back, relaxing, and listening to pure mountain music under the sun and stars… it doesn’t get much better than that.

Related Links

DCBU Bluegrass Calendar

Arcadia Bluegrass Festival

Central Virginia Bluegrass Festival

Ralph Stanley’s Memorial Bluegrass Festival

Bluegrass in Port Deposit, Maryland

BellaOnline's Folk Music Site