With the super Harvest Moon rising full this weekend, don’t let the patchy sky fool you. This Sunday’s Highlands Bluegrass Festival at Harmony Hall should get you out under sunny skies for some down home roots music. The event takes place September 7 from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. on the Great Lawn at Sloatsburg’s Harmony Hall, so bring a blanket and pull up a chair.
The Ebony Hillbillies bring their brand of Americana bluegrass to Sloatsburg for the Highlands Bluegrass Festival.
The Ebony Hillbillies are coming from New York City as one of the festival’s featured bluegrass bands, off the busk and summer circuit to play a special blend of toe-tapping bluegrass. The Hillbillies are a seasoned string band proficient in rootsy Americana that incorporates bits of jazz and other musical flavors all mixed together into an old-timey twang that’ll make you move.
Dogs Like Us play everything from Appalachian tunes to bluegrass and pop standards.
Henrique Prince leads the band with his expressive violin and vocals. The group includes Norris Bennett (banjo, mountain dulcimer, guitar, vocals), William ”Salty Bill” Salter (acoustic bass, vocals), Newman Taylor Baker (washboard, percussion, vocals), and Gloria Thomas Gassaway (bones, vocals).
Look for Dogs Like Us to open the festival and let loose some local Appalachia ramble and bluegrass stomp onto the stage. The Dogs are scheduled to play at or around 1 p.m.
Former National Banjo champion Jeff Scroggins will display his chops with his band of players pulled together especially for the occasion. Scroggins is known for his wide knowledge of banjo and bluegrass and has played with many top players across the country.
The Highlands Bluegrass Festival is co-sponsored by the Town of Ramapo and The Friends of Harmony Hall and helps raise funds and awareness for the renovation of the Jacob Sloat House in Sloatsburg, NY, a Ramapo National Historical Registry treasure.
The festival includes select craft and food vendors and typically draws an audience from across Rockland and the Hudson Valley.
Folksinger and jewelry designer Mara Levin is known for creating rich tapestries of sound and emotion.
The green Great Lawn at Harmony Hall (also known as the Jacob-Sloat House) provides the perfect backdrop for the Highlands Bluegrass Festival, with Torne Mountain and Liberty Rock visible in the distance. The event is free, with free parking.
