Banjo virtuoso Bela Fleck’s first-ever appearance at the historic event was just the icing on the cake for the 40th Wheatland fest, drawing 10,000-plus people to rural Mecosta County for folk and roots jams. (Photo gallery, video)
Banjo Prowess: Bela Fleck, at right, with Abigail Washburn entertained a huge crowd from the main stage Saturday at Wheatland. (Photo/Anna Sink)
“Happy Wheatland!”
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Happy, to be sure. It’s literally impossible not to find happiness – happy people, happy music – and hear that traditional greeting from passersby at pretty much every turn during this historic Michigan folk music festival in a remote part of Wheatland Township in Mecosta County.
The 40th anniversary edition of Wheatland, a celebration of traditional American music and arts, was perhaps even more smile-inducing than usual with 10,000-plus music devotees drawn this past weekend to stages set amid fields, meadows and woods featuring the likes of banjo phenom Bela Fleck, Abigail Washburn, The Rev. Peyton’s Big Damn Band, The Revelers, The Duhks, The Boxcars, La Bottine Souriante and a host of other renowned purveyors of folk, bluegrass, Cajun, rockabilly, swing, gospel and other roots music subgenres.
Young Buskers: From tots to seniors, musicians filled the Wheatland air with acoustic strains. (Photo/Anna Sink)
West Michigan acts were spotlighted at the Wheatland Music Festival, too, at a variety of stages and tents: Blue Molly, Bennett, Jive at Five, Blue Water Ramblers, Lake Effect, Kinsfolk, Craig Van Otteren, Bruce Ling and many more, flocking to a festival that’s become a longstanding annual tradition for anyone who’s ever played an acoustic instrument.
Michigan talent certainly was in the spotlight on Saturday at the Centennial Stage when Traverse City’s Michelle Chenard, Ann Arbor’s Kitty Donahoe and Cadillac native and now Nashville-ite Rachael Davis (with husband and standup bassist Dominic John Davis in tow) took part in a well-attended, inspiring “Michigan singer-songwriters in the round” performance.
FESTIVAL DREW THE OLD, THE YOUNG AND EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN
Well-organized and far more orderly than most music festivals, Wheatland also is at once older and younger – veteran, gray-haired folk devotees mingle with families with young children and teens, many of whom spent time at the Kid’s Hill and Middle Ground activity areas.
But don’t mistake the laid-back milieu for a lack of intensity: This is a musicians’ nirvana, with top-notch musicianship on stage and off, round-the-clock campsite jams and fervent audiences.
“There’s so much energy. The crowd is amazing,” gushed first-time Wheatie and violinist Nick Rolls from Grand Rapids’ young indie-folk band Bennett, which performed on the Centennial Stage on Saturday night.
FLECK’S FESTIVAL DEBUT IMPRESSED HUGE THRONGS
Hey, even the seasoned Fleck was a first-timer, something singer and fellow banjoist Washburn pointed out from the stage, recalling her conversation with Fleck about this “amazing festival in a field in Michigan.”
Rev. Peyton’s Big Damn Band
For his part, Fleck – known for his work with the Flecktones and a dizzying array of other artists – said he first heard about Wheatland in the ‘80s. “I’ve always wanted to come here, so thanks for having me,” he said, to cheers from the audience.
The sounds of acoustic instruments resonated everywhere across this 160-acre site, from the main stages to the folk and dulcimer tents to the campgrounds where impromptu jams continued well into the wee hours.
Seasoned “Wheaties” proudly displayed T-shirts from festivals past — the 22nd, the 33rd and so on. Vendors displayed handicrafts of every sort: soap, didgeridoos, quilts, tie-dyed shirts, pottery, jewelry, leather goods. Locals sold food that truly was reasonably priced compared to most major festivals.
And everywhere, the grins just couldn’t be contained, and for very good reason: It was another happy Wheatland, indeed.
Check out the Local Spins photo gallery and some video highlights below.
– John Sinkevics
WHEATLAND 2013: THE LOCAL SPINS WEEKEND PHOTO GALLERY BY ANNA SINK (9/7/13)
Email John Sinkevics at jsinkevics@gmail.com.
Copyright 2013, Spins on Music
