Boasting a new Wheatland app for attendees, the much-beloved festival returns to Remus on Friday, with a wide-ranging lineup of national and regional stars. The Local Spins preview.
Fifty Years of Musical Splendor: The crowds return for Wheatland on Friday. (Photo/Anna Sink)
SCROLL DOWN FOR MAIN STAGE SCHEDULE, FESTIVAL PLAYLIST & MORE
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Perhaps it’s the crisp autumn air, or hearing the jolly phrase, “Happy Wheatland,” as those welcoming words make their way across the sprawling, 160-acre festival grounds.
Either way, there’s something magical about one of Michigan’s oldest music festivals.
Ringing in a half-century of communal celebration, Wheatland Music Festival returns to Remus on Friday (Sept. 8) with a lineup of nationally revered artists, educational workshops and a variety of food and craft vendors.
This year’s performers include Ruthie Foster, Sam Bush, Eilen Jewell, Lunasa, Tuba Skinny, Kait Rose & the Thorns, The Gasoline Gypsies, Full Cord and Michelle Held, among others.
Ruthie Foster: Performs Saturday and Sunday. (Photo/Derek Ketchum)
Festival gates open at 10 a.m. Friday with performances beginning at 6 p.m. and carrying on through Sunday. Although the festival is sold-out, Sunday tickets are available for purchase at the gate for $50 starting at 8 a.m.
J. Oscar Bittinger, social media and web consultant for the Wheatland Music Organization, called the Sunday pass “a terrific way to see most of the headlining acts on the main stage if you didn’t get the full weekend ticket, don’t care for camping or just want a more mellow festival experience.”
Starting out as a series of fund-raising parties in the early ’70s, Bittinger said the rootsy, folk-oriented Wheatland “has grown into a 50-year continuous event of staged shows, workshops, dances and campground jams” creating “a great tradition of traditional and contemporary acoustic music.”
Performances will occur across five eclectic stages, including Main Stage, Centennial Stage, The Song Stage, The Dance Pavilion and TYhe Rhythm Stage. Scroll down for the Main Stage schedule, with the full schedule online here. And for the first time this year, the Wheatland Music Organization offers an app for mobile devices that features the schedule, a map and more information for festivalgoers.
Each performance space offers a unique experience. Main Stage showcases the very best in traditional bluegrass and folk. Centennial Stage curates a lively, upbeat roster. The Song Stage welcomes a cast of song-slinging troubadours. The Dance Pavilion fuels swaying hips with soul and traditional cajun music. Meanwhile, The Rhythm Stage enlists eager audience members to participate in percussive play.
Josh Rose: Plays an album-release set at 6:30 p.m. Saturday on the Centennial Stage. (Photo/Bryan Bolea
This year’s workshops include “Fiddle with Bruce Bauman,” “Bongos with Cory Cole” and “Jay’s Jaw Harp with Larry Gephart.”
Another highlight includes the Dulcimer Tent, a corner of the festival dedicated to the demonstration and instruction of traditional folk instrumentation.
To celebrate its 50th anniversary, the festival also is selling a 100-plus-page souvenir book. Get details here.
“As soon as you walk onto that field, you can feel an incredible vibe,” said West Michigan singer-songwriter Josh Rose, who plays the Centennial Stage at 6:30 p.m. Saturday. “Music and fellowship are the stars of the show. It’s an instant positive community.”
Cultivating a family-friendly atmosphere remains an important element of the weekend, with dedicated activities and areas for the younger crowd, including Kids’ Hill, Tot Lot and Middle Ground.
That’s not to mention the handful of unscripted moments that make this festival a memorable experience. For one, there’s the meal-time performers who serenade the ears while an efficient kitchen crew satiates the palate. Then there’s the migrating drum circles that tend to multiply by the hour.
Of course, it’s the spontaneous late-night jams, found only by following the faint sound of a mandolin through the cool evening air, that deservingly steal the show. The scene typically involves a night-owl audience huddled around an acoustically clad outfit of musicians.
Ambient lighting (or often the moon) illuminates the silhouettes of an ephemeral community, brought together by the universal language of music.
WHEATLAND MUSIC FESTIVAL 2023
WHEN: Friday-Sunday (Sept. 8-10)
WHERE: 7251 50th Ave., Remus, Mich. 49340
WEBSITE: https://www.wheatlandmusic.org/
QUOTE: “I’ve been going to Wheatland every year since 2005. Wheatland is a coming together of many different groups of people — friends, family, musician colleagues, etc. — that I know and love for one weekend where we create an intentional community based around music and relationships. I’m thrilled to be able to share my music this year and to be teaching a workshop on songwriting with Kait Rose.” – Singer-songwriter Eric Engblade (who plays the Schafer Song Stage at 7:40 p.m. Friday and again as part of “Michigan Songwriters in the Round” at 4:10 p.m. Saturday.
TICKETS: Weekend passes are sold out; Sunday tickets, $50, available at the gate starting at 8 a.m. Sunday.
WEATHER FORECAST (as of Sept. 5):
Friday – High of 65 degrees, cloudy
Saturday – High of 72 degrees, partly sunny and pleasant
Sunday – High of 72 degrees, sunny
LOCAL/REGIONAL PERFORMERS: The Gasoline Gypsies, Samuel Nalangira Trio, Full Cord, Planet D Nonet, Sean Miller, Gerald Ross & Frank Youngman, Annie Bacon, Audra Kubat, Jim Bizer, Eric Engblade, Ralston Bowles, Caroline Barlow, Scott Cook, Andy Baker, Blue Water Ramblers, Hawks & Owls, Dave Boutette & Kristi Davis, Claudia Schmidt, Round Creek String Band, Kait Rose & The Thorns, Nicholas James Thomasma, Michelle Held and more.
WHEATLAND MUSIC FESTIVAL 2023: A Top 10 Playlist
WHEATLAND MUSIC FESTIVAL 2023: Main Stage Schedule
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