Headliners Announced for Florence Winter Music Festival, Taking Over Central Oregon Coast in Jan

Published 9/29/24 at 5:45 a.m.
By Oregon Coast Beach Connection Staff

(Florence, Oregon) – Once again, the final weekend in January gets particularly hot in Florence.

The central Oregon coast town and its Florence Events Center just announced the headliners for the Florence Winter Music Festival. Seven smokin' bands bring in a heaping helping of incendiary bluegrass, foot-stompin’ Americana and cajoling folk music, happening January 23 through 25.

On top of all that, eight workshops are given for musicians, covering topics like performance and songwriting.

Among the highlights are the full two-day passes, still going for $109 for a little (though usually $129.)

Ticket prices include the workshops.

The first day – Thursday, January 23 – starts off with the Take the Stage open mic, with free admission. This always entertaining community open mic event will be unleashed from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m.

“It’s a good ol’ fashioned hootenanny with a two-song limit - all acoustic, no electric instruments or amplification,” said festival organizer Rachel Pearson. “Come sign up, sing, play, collaborate, and have fun cheering on your friends and neighbors on the Florence Events Center flat floor stage. As a bonus, professional musicians will be on hand to accompany those who wish backup. The hootenanny is free and open to the public, and musicians of all ages and abilities are encouraged to participate.”

On Friday, the central Oregon coast fave kicks off with a free concert by Portland's Tony Furtado, a virtuoso multi-instrumentalist adept on banjo, cello-banjo, slide guitar, and baritone ukulele.

Kristen Grainger & True North is a bluegrass-leaning Americana powerhouse of terrific songwriting, lush vocals and crazy-good instrumentalists. Kristen has collected accolades and awards at Telluride Bluegrass Festival, Wildflower Arts & Music Festival, Merlefest, Kerrville; and, together with Dan Wetzel, at Wintergrass. Kristin also won Common Ground‘s 2022 Acoustic Roots Songwriting Contest, and 2019 Roots Northwest songwriting competition.

When they take the stage, True North weaves captivating stories, mind-bending harmonies, and electrifying instrumentals that leave audiences spellbound. As Folk World (UK) aptly put it, “What comes over loud and clear is that one is in the presence of some seriously talented musicians.”

Henhouse Prowlers

Henhouse Prowlers are on at 8:30 p.m. They return to Florence by popular demand and command the stage with their high-energy, eclectic servings of bluegrass flavored by music from all parts of the world. These official Cultural Ambassadors for the US State Department show the world what American bluegrass is all about.

On Saturday, the fun begins with Whiskey Deaf Bluegrass Duo at 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. They perform bluegrass, old-time and early country, mostly drawn from early pioneers in the music. They bring to the stage many years of professional experience and skill. Their shows are always spontaneous, entertaining, joyous, and feature exciting instrumental work amid a unique repertoire of interesting songs and an unforgettable on-stage presence.

Thunder & Rain 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. Thunder and Rain is a newgrass band based in Nashville. They weave together bluegrass instrumentation with award winning songwriting inspired by pop, country, classic rock and old time. Three-part harmony and sing-along choruses support image-rich lyricism and thunderous banjo / fiddle drive. In their decade-long career, the band has shared the stage with Billy Strings, Krueger Brothers, Peter Rowan, AJ Lee and Blue Summit and Brothers Comatose. “Run With You,” a single released in 2020, was selected for the IBMA Songwriter Showcase 2023.

Tony Furtado with Luke Price perform at 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. Luke Price is a multi-instrumentalist performer, composer, and studio musician based in Portland, Oregon.

Crying Uncle Bluegrass Band 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. Coming off an amazing 2024 Florence Winter Music Festival performance, brothers Miles and Teo Quale with bassist Andrew Osborn and guitarist Ian Ly have been invited to an astounding number of important festivals and gigs, including The Grand Ole Opry. With their vibrant mix of Bluegrass, Dawg (David Grisman style), Jazz, and original acoustic sounds they have become instant fan favorites.

Della Mae

Della Mae is the headliner at 8:30 to 9:45 p.m. They are an all-women string band featuring founder and fiddle player Kimber Ludiker, lead vocalist/guitarist Celia Woodsmith, guitarist Avril Smith, and bassist Vickie Vaughn.

Workshops began Friday morning and continue through Saturday afternoon. Anyone with a ticket to any main stage show during the festival may attend all workshops with no additional fees. Workshops are also available to those without concert tickets for a recommended $10 donation to the nonprofit FACE (Florence Arts, Culture & Entertainment), the festival’s producers.

See WinterMusicFestival.org and at facebook.com/WinterMusicFestivalFlorence.

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Andre' GW Hagestedt is editor, owner and primary photographer / videographer of Oregon Coast Beach Connection, an online publication that sees over 1 million pageviews per month. He is also author of several books about the coast.

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