Author Archives: Rachael Gabriel

PERFORMER SPOTLIGHT – ALASDAIR FRASER & NATALIE HAAS

The musical partnership between consummate performer Alasdair Fraser, “the Michael Jordan of Scottish fiddling”, and brilliant Californian cellist Natalie Haas spans the full spectrum between intimate chamber music and ecstatic dance energy. 

Photo Credit Irene Young

Fraser and Haas “[…] make the fiddle and cello – or as Alasdair puts it ‘wee fiddle’ and ‘big fiddle’ – sound like they were made for each other.” – Dave McNally, KLOF Mag

Fraser has a concert and recording career spanning over 30 years, with a long list of awards, accolades, radio and television credits, and feature performances on top movie soundtracks (Last of the Mohicans, Titanic, etc.). In 2011, he was inducted into the Scottish Traditional Music Hall of Fame. Haas, a graduate of the Juilliard School of Music, is one of the most sought after cellists in traditional music today. She has performed and recorded with a who’s who of the fiddle world including Mark O’Connor, Natalie MacMaster, Irish supergroups Solas and Altan, and many more.

Over the last 20 years of creating a buzz at festivals and concert halls across the world, they have truly set the standard for fiddle and cello in traditional music. They continue to thrill audiences internationally with their virtuosic playing, their near-telepathic understanding, and the joyful spontaneity and sheer physical presence of their music.

Alasdair Fraser & Natalie Haas will join us at Strawberry on Friday, October 17 at 5:45 pm. Listen and learn more here!

TICKET UPDATE: FALL 4-DAY SOLD OUT!

FALL 4-DAY CAMPING TICKETS ARE SOLD OUT!

Worry not! We still have other ticket options available, including 4-Night, 3-Day/Night, and 2-Day as well as ALL 1-Day tickets! Get yours HERE 24/7 or call us at (209) 984-8630, M-Th, 10:00 am-3:00 pm.

Please note that our 4-Day Camping Ticket is the earliest admittance available for Fall and is also the most limited in quantity. The next in arrival time and quantity is the 4-Night. As a reminder, the 4-Day arrival time for pre-banding is 10:30 am and the entry time is NOON, while the 4-Night arrival time for pre-banding is 1:30 pm and the entry time is 3:00 pm. Both the 4-Day and 4-Night Camping Tickets are guaranteed entry on Thursday, October 16.


PHOTO CREDIT: Shelby McAuliffe

PERFORMER SPOTLIGHT – LAURIE LEWIS & THE RIGHT HANDS

Laurie Lewis has carved out a unique, superlative niche in American roots music occupied by almost no other musicians or creators. A multi-GRAMMY nominee, Lewis is a forebear and contemporary of so many bluegrass, old-time, and folk greats. Over more than fifty years in music she has established herself as a truly singular voice, instrumentalist, and frontwoman in genres that lionize tradition, “authenticity,” and emulation. 

“Bay Area music icon Laurie Lewis has been captivating her fans for the last five decades. With timely and timeless tunes, her voice and songs have captured moments in time of lives well lived and challenged, beauty in nature that is changing all around us, and a spit and fire that rises up and denies victory to opposition.” – Brenda Hough, California Bluegrass Association

Her latest album, Trees, finds Lewis’s music-making rooted in the natural world – as on many past recordings – with a measured and often melancholy view of life, loss, and grief that’s resplendent and complicated. 

“Lewis’s lyrical ear is evident, whether catching songs from other songwriters or collecting lines for songs of her own. Music lovers, particularly John Prine fans, will find “Why’d You Have to Break My Heart So Early in the Day?” […] poignant, inspired by a comment from the late singer-songwriter as Lewis exited the stage after a morning set at the Strawberry Music Festival. The line eventually found its way into a song after she heard the news of Prine’s death on a morning years later.” – Nancy Posey, No Depression

An avid walker, Lewis is both an urban explorer and a wilderness wanderer – plus a self-taught naturalist and conservation activist. Her skillset in songwriting and recording is usually looking outward, text-painting to evoke the landscapes she adores and to relay their speaking to us. On Trees, Lewis looks inward instead, utilizing all of the literary and naturalist skills at her disposal to observe and process seasonal, organic, inevitable life changes. 

Please join us in welcoming back the incomparable Laurie Lewis & The Right Hands. Already performing with phenomenal musicians Brandon Godman, George Guthrie and Hasee Ciaccio, Lewis will now be joined by special guest Sam Reider as well! Don’t miss them on the Main Stage at 9:00pm on Saturday, October 18th.

LOW INVENTORY: 4-DAY CAMPING TICKETS

Fall 4-Day Camping Tickets are almost sold out!

Please note that our 4-Day Camping Ticket is the earliest admittance available for Fall and is also the most limited in quantity. 

Luckily, we still have other ticket options available, including 4-Night, 3-Day/Night, and 2-Day as well as ALL 1-Day tickets! Get yours here 24/7 or call us at (209) 984-8630, M-Th, 10:00 am-3:00 pm.

FALL 2025 LINEUP ANNOUNCEMENT

Please give a warm welcome to Poi Rogers! They will join us at the Sunday Morning Revival on October 19th.


Somewhere in-between the tropical lounges of 1930s Los Angeles and the honky tonk beer joints of rural 1950s California, you’ll find Poi Rogers. Hailing from Santa Cruz, CA, the duo performs original and vintage American roots music, with Gerard Egan doubling on acoustic guitar and triple neck steel and Carolyn Sills on standup bass, their timeless harmonies anchoring the show.

What began as a fun way for the couple to explore the vintage musical styles they love turned into an in-demand touring act, with Poi Rogers ‘accidentally’ playing almost 200 shows since 2023. Their debut album, Twilight Blues, is out in June of 2025, a collection of eight songs that are both cinematic snapshots from Gerard and Carolyn’s life together and witty odes to their antiquated passions.

Listen and learn more here.

PERFORMER SPOTLIGHT – BROKEN COMPASS BLUEGRASS

From the moment they take the stage, it’s clear that Broken Compass Bluegrass is something different. Their live performances are characterized by tight harmonies, truly impressive solos, and an undeniable joy that permeates with every note they play. As they weave intricate melodies and harmonize with ease, creating a wall of sound that transports fans to a place where tradition meets innovation, the energy of Broken Compass Bluegrass is palpable.

“With their abilities as vocalists, instrumentalists, and lyricists, Broken Compass Bluegrass is continuing to explore varying musical territory and break new ground in the process, a combination that will further cement their place in the jamgrass world.” — Braeden Paul, Bluegrass Today

Broken Compass Bluegrass is leading the way in the contemporary bluegrass revival, combining tradition with innovation in a way that appeals to longtime fans and new listeners alike. Whether you’re a die-hard bluegrass aficionado or just looking for some foot-stomping fun, Broken Compass Bluegrass is sure to leave you spellbound and inspired.

Based in Northern California, BCB includes Kyle Ledson (mandolin/guitar), Django Ruckrich (guitar/mandolin), Mei Lin Heirendt (fiddle), and Sam Jacobs (bass). Catch them on the Main Stage at 5:45pm on Sunday, October 19! Listen and learn more here.

CBA FATHER’S DAY BLUEGRASS FESTIVAL

If you’re looking for another joyful weekend of music, community, and camping under the pines — we’ve got just the thing!

Our friends at the California Bluegrass Association are celebrating 50 years of the Father’s Day Bluegrass Festival this June in Grass Valley! Three stages of music, featuring The Travelin’ McCourys, AJ Lee & Blue Summit, The Gibson Brothers, Rob Ickes & Trey Hensley, Junior Sisk Band, Laurie Lewis & Kathy Kallick, and so much more!

It’s a golden year for this beloved tradition, and we know you will feel right at home in the harmonies. Enjoy nonstop jamming, square dances, youth programs, free workshops & family fun for all. Find out more at fathersdayfestival.com.

WE CAN’T WAIT TO SEE EVERYONE!

Our wonderful volunteers are hard at work setting up the Spring 2025 Strawberry Music Festival! We are so excited to welcome you all to the Nevada County Fairgrounds on May 21–26, 2025!

2-Day, 3-Day/Night, 4-Day/Night and Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday tickets available at the gate.

VIDEO, PRODUCTION, EDITING: Mike Merritt

SONG CREDIT: “Starlet Iris” by East Nash Grass