Merlefest Revisited
The Donald and I went to Merlefest on Saturday and managed to see Doc Watson in performance on three occasions.
At 84 years of age Doc is beginning to look a little frail. But he can still flat play that guitar of his.
That's the good news.
The bad news is that, after a run of 20 years, Merlefest has become entirely too large.
Oh, it's still well run. And you can still walk by jam sessions like this one where complete unknowns make beautiful music. But, the guy loading and unloading the buses shuttling folks to and from the parking lot said they loaded and unloaded 74,000 people on Friday. And Saturday is the BIG day!
At the main stage on Saturday night, we needed binoculars to see the faces of performers on the stage. And, there were many, many more in the audience behind us.
I am reminded of the Union Grove Fiddler's Convention. When I first attended it in the 1950's, it was held in the Union Grove School gymnasium without any amplification. The last time I went in the early 70's it was like, well, Merlefest these days. Way too big and impersonal.
If you have never been to Merlefest, do go at least one time. It's still worth the effort.
As for me, however, I'm more inclined to listen to the live broadcast on XM radio.
At 84 years of age Doc is beginning to look a little frail. But he can still flat play that guitar of his.
That's the good news.
The bad news is that, after a run of 20 years, Merlefest has become entirely too large.
Oh, it's still well run. And you can still walk by jam sessions like this one where complete unknowns make beautiful music. But, the guy loading and unloading the buses shuttling folks to and from the parking lot said they loaded and unloaded 74,000 people on Friday. And Saturday is the BIG day!
At the main stage on Saturday night, we needed binoculars to see the faces of performers on the stage. And, there were many, many more in the audience behind us.
I am reminded of the Union Grove Fiddler's Convention. When I first attended it in the 1950's, it was held in the Union Grove School gymnasium without any amplification. The last time I went in the early 70's it was like, well, Merlefest these days. Way too big and impersonal.
If you have never been to Merlefest, do go at least one time. It's still worth the effort.
As for me, however, I'm more inclined to listen to the live broadcast on XM radio.
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