APRIL 30, 2009 ISSUE
More Than 70,000 Festivalgoers Converge on MerleFest 2009
More than 70,000 festivalgoers, including plenty of kids, poured onto the campus of Wilkes Community College last weekend for the 22nd annual MerleFest. Americana music lovers sang, danced and picked all weekend long as nearly 100 acts scrambled between 15 different stages. One of the weekend’s most lauded sets was the Saturday evening performance by songstress Emmylou Harris, who appeared for the first time since 2006. Photos by Kent Kessinger
The economy may be down and the sun was scorching at times, but more than 70,000 music lovers basked in the glorious spring weather at Wilkes Community College during last weekend’s 22nd annual MerleFest.
According to a press release, attendance on Thursday was the fifth highest on a Thursday in the festival’s history. The festival’s Friday crowd was the fourth highest, while Saturday’s numbers matched last year’s Saturday attendance. Sunday’s final numbers were not available at press time.
A significant part of MerleFest’s mission is to give back to the community. In that spirit, the outreach program took place on Thursday, with more than 25 of the artists at MerleFest giving performances at local schools, churches and community centers. In addition, on Friday morning, over 3,000 school children from Wilkes and surrounding counties were invited to attend the festival and flooded the event grounds.
Volunteers are integral to the success of MerleFest. More than 500 individual volunteers, 150 volunteer stagehands and more than 35 volunteer groups, including college and community organizations, helped to make the festival a success. Also, each food vendor at MerleFest supports a local nonprofit, with proceeds going to further their work and mission.
“We are grateful to all of our volunteers, many of whom have given their time each year since the festival began,” said festival director Ted Hagaman. “MerleFest wouldn’t be possible without their support.”
MerleFest 2010 will take place from Thursday to Sunday, April 29 to May 2.
Songwriters Take Home Top Honors at Chris Austin Songwriting Contests
The 17th annual Chris Austin Songwriting Contest, held during MerleFest 2009, is proud to announce this year’s winners. The following six writers have now joined an elite group of previous winners that include Gillian Welch, Tift Merritt, Michael Reno Harrell, Adrienne Young, Martha Scanlan, David Via and Johnny Williams:
Bluegrass Category
“Love Gone By” by Carol Hausner and Colin McCaffrey (Montpelier, Vt)
Country Category
“Man of Few Words” by Dennis K. Duff (Kuttawa, Ky)
Gospel Category
“Beyond the Rain” by Brink Brinkman (Pickerington, Ohio)
General Category
“Unmarked Pavement” by Miles and Letha Costin (Raleigh, NC)
Three finalists were chosen in each category, out of more than 840 entries received this year. All finalists performed their songs on the Austin Stage on Friday, April 24, before winners were selected. Second and third place winners in each category were awarded performance slots on the Friday night Songwriters Coffeehouse, as well as cash prizes, D’Addario strings and Acoustic Guitar subscriptions.
Songs were judged by a volunteer panel of songwriters, publishers and other music industry professionals including singer-songwriter and former CASC winner Tift Merritt, Leonard Podolak of The Duhks and John Lohman, Program Director of the Virginia Folk Life Program at the Virginia Foundation of the Humanities, under the direction of this year’s volunteer contest chairperson, Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Jim Lauderdale. Judging was based on a song’s originality, lyrics, melody and overall commercial potential.
Net proceeds from the Chris Austin Songwriting Contest support the Wilkes Community College Chris Austin Memorial Scholarship. Since its inception the scholarship has awarded more than $25,000 to 68 deserving students.
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