The Lowdown with Matt Munoz / 2015

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The Bakersfield Californian Thursday, January 8, 2015

Eye Street The Lowdown

Bluegrass jam: Go and banjo Festival features pros and amateurs alike Matt Munoz

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here will be no strings left unstrung when the Great 48 bluegrass jam picks its way back to the DoubleTree Hotel this weekend. Now in its sixth year, the popular four-day festival will stick to its tradition of non-stop music and jamming for everyone in attendance. From the professional to the novice, it’s one of the few music festivals where hands-on participation is encouraged. “The first few years we had several hundred people, and it’s never stopped growing since then,” said Gary Young, bluegrass music aficionado and co-organizer of the Great 48 with the California Bluegrass Association. “I think a big part of that has to do with the schools and colleges going back to the guitar, mandolin and banjo sound, and more students taking those instruments up.” Bluegrass was invented by the working poor in rural Appalachia for communal gatherings like dances, family reunions or just hanging around. Yet despite those humble roots, the music is revered by purists and musicians, who consider it among the hardest techniques and styles to master. Bluegrass’s distinct sound comes from its primary instrumentation: banjo, fiddle, mandolin, guitar, dobro, guitar and stand-up bass. After enjoying a major resurgence by the college crowd in the 1960s, bluegrass was reintroduced to a younger generation over the past decade by artists like Old Crow Medicine Show, Punch Brothers, Rhonda Vincent, performers

The Great 48 bluegrass weekend DoubleTree by Hilton, 3100 Camino Del Rio Court; for tickets and information: cbaonthewab.org Today: Showcase Showdown contest at 7:30 p.m. Free admission. Friday: Jamming throughout the day. Free. Concert featuring Michael Cleveland and Flamekeeper at 8 p.m. $25 at the door. Can be purchased at Rosedale Music (10715 Rosedale Highway) or by calling 979-0786. Saturday: Jamming throughout the day. Free. Various instrument instructional workshops midafternoon; bluegrass band scramble and open mic starting at 7:30 p.m.

who have added a “hip” factor to the music’s hallowed traditions. “There’s definitely a resurgence happening in this area, especially with guitar players seeking to learn bluegrass-style playing to what they do,” Young said. The weekend begins early, this afternoon, when the festival’s guests begin checking in and strolling through the lobby with instrument in hand. By early evening, the assigned wings of the DoubleTree become ground zero for all things bluegrass before Bakersfield’s Barton Brothers face off in an onstage competition with a visiting act to be announced in the hotel’s Presidential Suite. The competition show is one of many free events offered during the Great 48. “This has always been primarily for people who want to come out and jam,” Young said. “Our regulars help spread the word about how things run. Everyone shows

PHOTO COURTESY OF MICHAEL CLEVELAND

Award-winning bluegrass quintet Michael Cleveland and Flamekeeper will be performing during the Great 48 bluegrass jam on Friday night.

up ready to go.” Following tonight’s fiery jamfilled welcome, the music and festivities continue Friday as soon as the sun rises or another cutting session kicks off. In between playing time, a number of workshops will be held throughout the hotel, aimed at musicians of every skill level to get instruction from some of the best players in the current bluegrass scene. “We’ve been finding a lot of young groups along the coast at schools like Cal Poly and we’d really like to see the same type happen here,” Young said. “Everyone who stops in will find something to enjoy.” Friday evening, the weekend’s featured concert, Michael Cleveland and Flamekeeper, will take place in the hotel’s main ball-

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PHOTO COURTESY OF MILLIONAIRES

Electro-dance duo Millionaires headlines at Jerry’s Pizza on Friday.

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TICKETS AVAILABLE AT THE FOX THEATER BOX OFFICE, EMPORIUM WESTERN STORE, HEAVEN’S SCENT FLORAL SHOP, 661-322-5200 - 888-825-5484 • VALLITIX.COM • FOXTHEATERONLINE.COM


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