Friday, February 22, 2008

Jamming at Joe Val


Our friend Lisa G, who blogs at Festive Living, filed a report and photo gallery from last weekend's Joe Val Bluegrass Festival in Framingham MA.

Here's a great excerpt about the elevator jams at the festival. Go here for the full report and here for the images.


When one thinks of elevator music, it usually brings to mind some bland, boring background music meant to relax, but invariably having the opposite effect (at least to me). But at the festival this past weekend in Framingham, MA , the term "elevator music" took on a whole new meaning.

As you ride the elevator between floors, you can hear the sounds of banjos and mandolins getting closer and closer and then surprise! The doors slide open to a pickin' party. Don't care for that rendition of "Old Home Place"? Step back in, go up or down a floor and find another group playing "Foggy Mountain Breakdown".

This is what turns a 3-day concert into a real bluegrass festival, since bluegrass is a type of music where a high percentage of the audience are musicians themselves. You can just travel between floors listening to or taking part in endless jams all weekend.

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