Pagosa Springs: From Indie Fest to Folk ‘N Bluegrass Festival
by Kathy Foster-Patton
Dan Appenzeller is the event director and the president of Folk West, the non-profit corporation that puts on Folk ‘N Bluegrass and the Four Corners Folks Festival in Pagosa Springs. Appenzeller gets so excited when talking about his upcoming event in June that you can almost picture him jumping up and down. He gives a rundown on the background of the festival. “The history is that we wanted to do a different festival. We wanted to just book independent artists because during that time of the year there was already a big festival that was booking less independent artists, so to speak. So we came up with this concept called ‘Indie Fest.’ Well, I did that for three years and that just didn’t catch on. We were able to cross over a bit and were going to do bluegrass and world beat and all sorts of things and have more of the open genre thing. There was a lot of great world beat stuff I wanted to book and rockabilly and stuff—and you could get a little bit more electric. It didn’t catch on. So we decided we’d do a more traditional event and make it real educational and have more workshops. 2008 was the first year for Folk ‘N Bluegrass. This is our second year of that but our 5th year of doing a festival the second week in June.”
Appenzeller is the event director and the president of Folk West, the non-profit corporation that puts on Folk ‘N Bluegrass and the Four Corners Folks Festival over Labor Day weekend. He handles site logistics, booking, artists, and production. He is over the moon as he describes the lineup he has in store for the lucky folks attending the festival. “The lineup is spectacular. We’ve been wanting to get swing music as well as bluegrass and we’re trying to get some of those newer names out there, that are brilliant but just need to come forward a bit. The John Jorgenson Quintet will be playing this year. We have a band called the Belleville Outfit which is this band that just got signed by one of the major booking agents. They are really breaking through—they are just playing amazing swing. They steal every show they go to!”
Appenzeller is just getting started with his overview. “Bearfoot Bluegrass is doing the Bearfoot Bluegrass camp this year and they’ll be doing it from now on. We’re going to be expanding the kids camp because it sold out. Also performing will be Tony Furtado and his trio. It’s a killer trio—Tony only plays with great people. I really like Tony; I just think he’s incredibly innovative. Sweet Sunny South is playing (spps partner page). They’re so fun. They just have that sound—they’re very compelling—they bring you into it. They sing about neat stuff and they don’t take it too serious. Then, we got this band coming in called the Boston Boys. That’s a bunch of sort of prodigy kids that go to the Berklee School of Music. One of them is Sam Grisman, Dave’s son. They’ve come up with this whole unique sound. They’re going to be playing my free show, too, on Friday. They are absolutely a ball. They’re in their early 20’s. They are the latest greatest.”
He takes a big breath and continues. “Also Missy Raines and the New Hip. She’s got four new players and went to festivals and got these new guys who are a brilliant band. We are so fortunate to get her out. Also coming is Sarah Jarosz. Sarah just got signed by Sugar Hill. So she’s going to perform on Saturday. I think this festival is just unreal!
Badly Bent is a regional band out of Durango and they are absolutely great. Mark Epstein is the banjo player who sort of leads that band and he is a heck of a player. They played last year and they were just tight as a drum. You know the Infamous Stringdusters (spps partner page), of course. They are like six of the best players alive! Then we booked a band called Frank Solivan—you know Country Current—the U.S. Navy Band ? Frank was the front guy on that. He got out of the Navy and he formed his own band. Then, the Expedition Quartet (spps partner page) from Boulder—they’re like the brain trust out there—remarkable. Also, the Jeff and Vida Band (spps partner page). They come from Nashville. A killer band!”
Folk ‘N Bluegrass will take place on June 5, 6, and 7 at Reservoir Hill Park. Appenzeller describes the location. “The acoustic stage is just green fields surrounded by trees and the forest. The site is just remarkable–120 acres. It is a plateau of forest that sits right above and in the middle of Pagosa Springs. The site itself overlooks the range of the San Juan Mountains. It’s funny, you’re isolated in this festival world. If you want to go into town—you can—we have a shuttle service that runs for free, that starts on Saturday. It’s just amazing. Right down below we have the world’s deepest and nicest hot springs. Right beside the main venue is a good 60 acres of just forested camping, all big huge ponderosa pines. Now with that you can’t have huge RV’s up there, so we’re limited on the RV side. We also have camping on the river—offsite spots that are incredible. But onsite is where it’s at, ‘cause the picking is the thing, there. It’s always been a great picking festival. It draws those people who don’t even leave the campground—they just play.”
Something new for 2009 is the Bearfoot Bluegrass Camp for Kids on June 3, 4, and 5, prior to the festival. The camp is open to young people ages 5-17, and includes all bluegrass instruments and ability levels. The Bearfoot band from Alaska also teaches the Kid’s Camp at the prestigious RockyGrass Academy.
There are lots more great aspects to the festival. There will be free concerts on Friday, June 5, in the evening at the Pagosa Springs Town Park Gazebo. Once the festival kicks off, the agenda includes workshops, late night shows, campfire jams, and a free kids program. The kid’s tent is set to be the site for recycled crafts. They will make jewelry, creative instruments, and other projects using recycled CD’s, oatmeal containers, paper towel tubes, and other items along with feather, glue, paints, glitter and more.
Appenzeller is the first to admit that he could not put on this festival without his skilled staff members. He describes some of their contributions. “Crista Munro is the executive director—what that says is that she’s everything. She’s in charge of real marketing and making sure I don’t overspend everything and keeps me grounded and keeps us all flowing. She’s the true manager of all of us. The number two guy on site is Brian Smith. Brian Smith’s been with us for as long as the festival. He’s the site manager. He manages everything up there during the festival. He’s got a huge job. He’s a remarkable guy.”
Over the years, Folk West has accumulated many local supporters for their events. Appenzeller explains. “The town loves it. We have 400 volunteers for Four Corners and about 200 for Folk ‘N Bluegrass. They’re all wonderful people, happy to do it.” He is a big fan of his typical audiences, as well. “It’s a remarkable crowd. What we think we’re good at, is the connection between artist and audience is nowhere better than at the Folk ‘N Bluegrass festival. That means you get right up close. You have a real theater experience up front.”
Over time, Folk West upgraded their site, moving around power and rearranging the vendors to better accommodate the musicians. They replumbed the water for better access for the campers. Appenzeller said they became smart as they gained experience and learned how to delegate. He closes with some last words about his event. “I’m happy with our direction. I’m incredibly happy with the audience that shows up. We’re working with the best folks. When we came up with the idea for this festival, we wanted to do the kind of festival that we would go to ourselves.”
Sounds like Pagosa Springs is the place to be in early June. Get your tickets soon for Folk ‘N Bluegrass at their website at folkwest.com
