Sponsored by Wisconsin Public Radio and Washburn Family Dentistry
Join us for our 5 th Annual singer / songwriter festival, a 3-day focus on songwriters and songwriting. The celebration consists of performances, workshops and a songwriting competition. Topping off each night is an open mic session where anyone can try their hand at being a performer.
* Previously Celebration of the Song
Schedule- August 23-25, 2012 3-DAY GROUNDS PASS = $ 68 GENERAL ADMISSION SEATING Performances
Thursday, August 23, 7:30 pm
Meg Hutchinson
Opening Set by Barbara Jean Johnson Tickets: $ 28 /$ 24 /$ 20 She has won numerous songwriting awards in the US, Ireland and UK, including recognition from John Lennon Songwriting Contest, Billboard Song Contest and prestigious competitions at Merlefest, NewSong, Kerrville, Falcon Ridge, Telluride Bluegrass and Rocky Mountain Folks festivals. In 2004 she was signed by Red House Records( Greg Brown, John Gorka, Tom Paxton …) where she has released 2 albums to date. The Philadelphia Inquirer calls Hutchinson“ a folkster made of sterner stuff.” Barbara Jean Johnson was the winner of our songwriting competition last year with her haunting bluegrass tune“ The River.” Sponsored by Washburn Family Dentistry and Wisconsin Public Radio
Friday, August 24, 7:30 pm
Jesse Winchester, Rad Lorkovic and Blue Canvas Orchestra
Tickets: $ 28 /$ 24 /$ 20 Jesse Winchester is a graceful, soulful vocalist, as memorable a singer as a songwriter. His light southern tenor drawl, warmly wrapped in country / bluegrass / folk arrangements, can gently ascend to the heavens a la Roy Orbison, dish some sly, wry dirt or knock a listener’ s heart senseless with one deflyturned phrase. Jesse had to cancel his 2011 Big Top debut due to medical issues – we’ re lucky that he’ s fully mended and ready to sing for us. Rad Lorkovic is the extra-terrestrial from Planet Piano – a master on piano, accordion and voice. Blue Canvas Orchestra, led by our Musical Director Ed Willett, brings their favorite tunes from the singer / songwriter realms. A packed night of stellar entertainment! Sponsored by Washburn Family Dentistry and Wisconsin Public Radio
Saturday, August 25, 7:30 pm
John Hiatt
Opening Set by Singer / Songwriter Competition Winners Tickets: $ 70 /$ 60 /$ 50 John Hiatt’ s career as a performer and songwriter has spanned more than 30 years and his work has been covered by everyone from Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, BB King, and Bonnie Raitt to Iggy Pop, Three Dog Night and The Neville Brothers. In 2008, Hiatt was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame and was honored by the Americana Music Association with their prestigious“ Lifetime Achievement in Songwriting Award.” Dirty Jeans and Mudslide Hymns, his latest album was released in 2011 and is his twentieth solo album following his acclaimed 2010 release, The Open Road, which the Los
Angeles Times heralded as a,“ bluesy, heartland-soaked musical excursion,” while the Buffalo News declared it“ a classic for the future.” Sponsored by Bob Breunig and Kelly Nelson
Songwriting Competition
Friday, August 24, 1:00 pm Competitors are pre-qualified finalists. Our top winners, chosen by a panel of celebrity judges, will receive the title of Big Top Chautauqua Singer / Songwriter of the Year and will be offered an opening set on the John Hiatt performance. This event is free and open to the public.
Open Mic
Thursday and Saturday in the T-Bar following the shows. Friday night on the big stage with full sound system. Times approximately 10:30 – 12:30. Open to the public.
Workshops
All workshops are free. Sign-up is appreciated and recommended at 715-373-5552 to ensure space.
Thursday, Aug. 23
Danielle Nepstad, 1:00, Just Starting Out Have you ever thought that maybe you have what it takes to be a songwriter? Do you notice interesting phrases, revel in song lyrics, or maybe experiment with your own poetry? This workshop is for those of you who want to learn more about the art of songwriting from the very start of the process. How does an idea get from your mind onto paper – and then how does that lyric or that melody fuse with a structure that turns it into a song? Danielle is a young singer / songwriter from Washburn that has performed all over the area and was the winner of the first Big Top Idol in 2010.
Radoslav Lorkovic, 2:30, Learning the Trade of the Traveling Minstrel Rad is the consummate musical road warrior. He performs all over the country in at least 150 performances per year. In this session Rad provides loads of useful information about optimizing tours on extremely tight budgets. In recent years, Rad has transitioned from putting mega miles on his car – to finding cheap flights and amazing rental car deals. He also calls himself“ The Prince of Priceline.” Come learn from the master.
Joe DeLucia and John Higgins, 4:00pm, Recording on the Fly How time flies, and with it technology changes in the blink of an eye. Remember when any demo not recorded in a proper studio made you sound like an amateur? Remember those crackly, one-dimensional, far-away voices on cassette tapes? These days, anyone with a cell phone and a computer can record a demo, market it and send out samples electronically. Bring your instrument and we’ ll make some demos.
Friday, Aug. 24
Jesse Winchester, 11:00 am, People I’ ve Stolen From Bob Dylan says of Jesse“ You can’ t talk about the best songwriters and not include Jesse Winchester.” As a prolific songwriter whose works have not only stood the test of time, but have been recorded by more people that we can list( ala Joan Baez, Waylon Jennings, Jimmy Buffett, John Denver, Emmylou Harris …) Quite humbly, Jesse takes little credit for his talent, but chalks his songwriting ability up to“ borrowing” styles and phrases from other songwriters, politicians, celebrities and even news stories. Hear from Jesse how he sews his quilt of music with patches from many people’ s influence.