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FORT FAIRFIELD – Bluegrass is coming to the green fields of Aroostook County.
As part of the 56th annual Maine Potato Blossom Festival, organizers have scheduled the three-day County Bluegrass Festival that will run from Friday, July 18, through Sunday, July 20, at Heritage Park on Murphy Road.
The Potato Blossom Festival has always tried to have a fairly well-known performers for entertainment, but in the last few years, “we weren’t really getting the draw,” Charles Cormier, a member of the potato festival’s entertainment committee, said Monday. “It just hasn’t panned out.”
He said only about 60 people attended last year’s performance by country singer Jenny Paquet.
It was by accident, Cormier said, that he “stumbled” onto bluegrass. After a little more research, he found that the folksy music style fit perfectly with the family-oriented tone of the potato festival.
“We were looking for a form of entertainment for all ages,” he said. “It’s got the right flavor.”
Performing in Fort Fairfield will be: Bob Paisley & The Southern Grass from Landenberg, Pa.; Wildfire from Knoxville, Tenn.; White Mountain Bluegrass from Madbury, Vt.; The Seth Sawyer Band from Bellows Falls, Vt.; Blistered Fingers from Waterville; Close To Home from LaHave, Nova Scotia; The Foster Sisters from Brunswick; Erica Brown & The Bluegrass Connection from Lewiston; and Fred & Floss from Cornwall, Prince Edward Island.
“Most of these bands have their own following,” Cormier said, adding that it’s not uncommon for fans to travel long distances to hear their favorite bands.
The venue for the County Bluegrass Festival is a 35-acre former farm. An 80-foot-by-200-foot pole barn on the site will be used for performers, rain or shine, but Cormier expects that there will be music outside.
“A lot of people never approach the stage,” he said. “They just field pick.”
Cormier admits that bluegrass is new ground for the Potato Blossom Festival, but he said committee members feel it has potential for the region and would like to make it an annual event.
“This is going to bring new people to the area,” he said. “It seems to draw the right crowd.”
The cost of admission for all three days is $30 per person, which includes on-site camping. Daily rates are $10 per person for Friday or Saturday evenings and Sunday, and $15 per person for Saturday.
More information about the festival, including where to buy tickets, can be found on the Web at www.potatoblossom.org/bluegrass.
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