Pickin' and grinnin'

 By MARTY FINLEY

mfinley@thenewsenterprise.com

VINE GROVE – Vine Grove will sound off with fiddles and banjos this weekend.

The city will be welcoming the ninth annual Bluegrass festival Friday and Saturday at the Ewart Amphitheater at Vine Grove Optimist Park. Two-day tickets will be available in advance or on Friday for $25 and a single-day ticket can be purchased for $15. Children under 12 who are accompanied by an adult get free admission

The Vine Grove Bluegrass Festival Committee, who is hosting the event, raised the price of tickets this year for the first time in several years, but said the sponsors worked with the committee to keep prices lower than they would have been otherwise.

The event will open both Friday and Saturday with a performance by the Valley View Quartet from Valley View Baptist Church, said Ann Ewart, secretary for the committee. Vine Grove Bluegrass Express will then follow at 5 p.m. on Friday, followed by two performances each from Mike Webb & Charlie Collins, Billie Renee & Cumberland Gap and Sammy Adkins & Sandy Hook Boys.

The opening ceremony begins noon Saturday with prayer and another performance by the Valley View Quartet, followed by the Vine Grove Bluegrass Jammers at 12:20 p.m. The day will be filled with music, featuring performances from bands like Bluegrass 101, James King Band and Tommy Brown & the County Line Grass, followed by a cloggers performance.

Ewart suggested that spectators bring chairs for accommodation, and said the festival will feature door prizes and food vendors. Raffle tickets can also be purchased for a chance to win a Martin guitar or #5 of 100 Case commemorative pocket knives. Ewart said they also will auction off the #1 pocketknife. Proceeds from the raffle will benefit the Hardin County Backpack Program, which is part of America's Second Harvest.

Campers can enjoy a free show Thursday with the bluegrass band scramble, which will divide different bluegrass bands into new pairings and give the freshly formed bands 15 minutes to practice before an impromptu performance.

Ewart said it’s a way to give campers something to do as they wait for the festival.

“It’s really interesting,” she said.

Marty Finley can be

reached at (270) 505-1762.