Local Talent Shines at BACCA Bluegrass Fest

Beautiful music and beautiful weather marked the ninth annual BACCA , held at the week before hit .

“It’s started off a bit slowly, but it picked up a lot," said Jim McGarrity, treasurer of the .

"The performers are great. I always used to think it was fast country music, but I realize that the roots are in Celtic music,” McGarrity said.

The origin may be Celtic, and the sound of bluegrass may bring the Appalachian Mountains to one‘s mind, but on musicians and bands from all over the country - such as Free Grass Union, The Special Consenus and Foggy Mountain Hilton, among others - joined local bluegrass legend and event organizer Buddy Merriam for a day of energetic sets, "jamming" and musical workshops at a festival that's become a local tradition. 

The family event featured a puppet show stage that delighted  youngsters who were invited to make their own puppets.

Musicians who attended the festival took part in lively, informative LITMA workshops offered by some of the accomplished members of the groups on the bill. Lessons in bluegrass principles like technique, timing and composition were appreciated by players at all levels.

Local musicians in the crowd, including members of the Bluegrass Club of Long Island, even launched into small "jam sessions" in between the sets on the main stage, adding to the fun.

The mood of the day centered on the joyful combination of solos and musical interplay that seemed to be the foundation of all of the groups and players who took to the festival stage. 

Irish native Vincent Cross, now a staple of the New York folk and bluegrass scene, opened the day, then Long Island-based banjo picker Maria Fairchild got the crowd going with her rhythmic playing style.

The crowd swelled to include more than a thousand music fans, and many arrived to the sounds of flat-picking guitarist Mike Burns’ smooth baritone.

The event coincided with what would've been the 100th birthday of Bill Monroe, and a group of players celebrated the milestone with a  tribute set to one of the fathers of bluegrass music.

Members of locally based Free Grass Union lent not only musicianship to the event, but also provided some sarcastic levity. “I think I lived on Long island for 20 years before I found out what a mandolin was,” joked Greg Butler, the group’s mandolin player.

Buddy Merriam followed Free Grass Union’s set. Merriam's not only the "founder of the musical feast," he's also been a staple on the local scene for 35 years. The crowd greeted him and his band, Back Roads, with thunderous applause.

Foggy Mountain Hilton offered a traditional set, reminiscent of the Soggy Mountain Boys of O Brother Where Art Thou fame. The band's hysterical original composition Bluegrass Music Has Ruined My Life was a highlight.

But the consensus of the crowd that stayed to enjoy the evening’s closing set by The Special Consensus seemed to be that it's truly one very special bluegrass act.

Founding member Greg Cahill explained the group's had numerous members pass through during its 30-plus year history, but its tight cohesion, humorous interplay and musicianship sent a happy crowd home looking forward to next year's festival.