I was quite honored to be asked to do a couple of family shows at this fairly prestigious folk festival. Like the Philly Folk Fest, the invitation is worth as much as the gig.
Even as I walked to the site of the children’s stage,I ran into folks I knew, especially friends from the Lehigh Valley. I was welcomed to this new arena right away.
I set up in a sawdust floor pavilion for the kids area. Bleachers were positioned a little too far away, but it was a reasonable venue, with sound. I was scheduled for two shows at 1 and 3 pm with a good storyteller in between. Normally, there would be more kids but the early school schedules before Labor Day prohibited a bigger audience. So it goes. I work with what I got.
The first set was good with some intelligent kids interacting with me, some toddlers doing some free-form dancing, and moms, grandmoms, dads and kids getting loose. A good session. I went with the good stuff up front.
The second session was fun. A couple of musicians I know stopped by to see me do my work. Again, good interaction with kids and their families, including some tweener girls who I picked on early and eventually committed to getting up and dancing. All in all, it was two good sets of engagement. The festival folks were quite pleased with what I did and I hope to return next year.
It was a pleasure to be involved with a high class and comfortable festival like this. I wish I could do this all the time.
I bought a new mandolin with my pay.