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Mainline Express plays modern material while preserving the essence of  traditional Bluegrass.  Like a streamliner locomotive, these musicians have unified their talents into a driving style of American music with original and traditional material, building a quality final product. Jesse Brock and Gary Filgate found equaled passion for their music the day they met in 1989, joining forces in the Stonewall Bluegrass Band.  Years later, Gary brought John Miller and Jesse together at Thomas Point Beach Bluegrass Festival, Brunswick, Maine, circa 2004.  Within hours, the three knew a connection had been made and Mainline Express was conceived.  Soon after Rob Ravlin joined the group and the quartet was complete. For the past 15 years, Mainline Express has been a group of friends, playing for the pure love of the music.  Once or twice a year, they would meet up for a weekend tour, a sort of friends reunion.  Now, in 2019, the four friends are ready to get on board as a full-time touring band. Mainline Express is a presentation of Bluegrass music which appeals to all ages.  Under it all, Rob's solid tone and impeccable timing lays the track for the locomotive to move out of the station, while  Jesse, Gary, and John synchronize to create a groove that is right in the pocket like a well oiled machine.  Add the vocals and harmonies, and the engine is humming, taking us on a ride through the musical landscape of a genuine American art form. Band website back to schedule

It was actually at the Joe Val Bluegrass Festival that five veteran players from up and down the East Coast found they enjoyed playing together so much that it was time to make it official.  With a unique range of vocal colors and exciting solo work on fiddle, dobro, mandolin, and banjo, Level Best has that soulful polish, earned with years of playing bluegrass and country music.  Wally, Lisa Kay, James, Terry, and Celia are delighted to bring the eclectic sound of Level Best to you.

Shawn Lane is three-time GRAMMY Nominee and 28-time IBMA Award winner.  Shawn is also a respected songwriter, was nominated as 2015 IBMA Songwriter of the Year, and has penned iconic songs such as the high octane title track of Blue Highway’s heralded 2014 album, “The Game,” a song co-written with Barry Bales which sent the album soaring to #1 Shawn is as explosive on Guitar as he is on Fiddle and Mandolin.  He is a co-founder of the band, Blue Highway. He also does some selective tour dates with his family and has a 3rd solo release soon to come in support of that lineup.  Shawn will also tour in 2019 as a duo act with Richard Bennett in support of a duet EP called “Land & Harbor “ that’s set for a March, 2019 release on Bonfire records. Richard Bennett has worked with JD Crowe and the New South to release an album that garnered two Grammy nominations. Also during the 90s, he toured with musical partners such as Jimmy Gaudrea, Mike Auldridge, and Wyatt Rice. He has done Grand Ole Opry appearances with Bobby Osborne, and is currently working with the Flashback Band, as well as touring with Shawn Lane.

​Bend In The River features 2 young up-and-coming bluegrass pickers playing both traditional and new bluegrass music. The combination of the sibling harmony of Clara Guilmette and Evan ​Guilmette, with Clara's crisp rolling banjo and Evan's rhythm guitar, and the solid bass of Dave ​Casali makes audiences want to stop and listen to this dynamic trio. Band website Band Facebook page Back to Schedule

Traveling freely between the genres of bluegrass, swing, Celtic and jazz, a Too Blue performance is a dynamic dose of serious fun.  Smooth harmonies and adventurous musicianship bring stellar arrangements to life and leave the listener anything but “blue”.  Their album, Trouble With the Grey, produced and engineered by Bob Harris of Ampersand Records, has received national radio airplay and enthusiastic reviews from Bluegrass Today and Bluegrass Unlimited. Seamlessly blending their vocals are guitarist Betsy Rome and banjoist Joan Harrison.  Mandolin powerhouse Michael Sassano astounds and entertains, while jazz bassist Jamie Doris brings a creative and unique perspective to the band.  Together, Too Blue makes exciting bluegrass that swings and entertains. Band website Band Facebook page Back to Schedule

As Appalachian Road Show, Barry Abernathy and Darrell Webb envision a collaborative journey that explores and celebrates the musical history of the Appalachian Mountain people. Through Civil War battles, from coal mines to logging camps, church house quartets to minstrel and medicine shows, and including the expressive stylings of enslaved African peoples, the region grew rich in a unique musical history that defines its very soul. Abernathy and Webb seek to explore those traditions which have been passed down throughout the region from generation to generation. Band Website Band facebook page back to schedule

High Fidelity formed in early 2014, and they received their first achievement in February 2014 when they took first place in the International Band Championship at the 40th Annual Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music of America (SPBGMA) Awards. Their brand new debut record, which was recorded live and in one room with minimal isolation, has been critically acclaimed. The band consists of five stellar musicians and singers who are steeped in the sounds of tradition and outstanding in their field. Jeremy Stephens is the guitarist and lead vocalist for the group. He has worked as guitarist and singer for the world famous gospel group The Chuck Wagon Gang, as a multi-instrumentalist on the television show Ray Stevens’ Nashville, and most recently as a banjo player and singer with Jesse McReynolds & the Virginia Boys. Corrina Rose Logston is the fiddler and first harmony vocalist. She has worked as fiddler and singer with a who’s who of today’s traditional-based bluegrass performers, including David Peterson & 1946, Jesse McReynolds & the Virginia Boys, Chris Henry & the Hardcore Grass, and Jim Lauderdale. Kurt Stephenson handles the banjo duties and second harmony vocals. He is the 2010 National Bluegrass Banjo Champion at the Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield, Kansas, and is a staple performer of the greater west Tennessee area both as a sideman and with his own band, Stone County Connection. Vickie Vaughn is the bassist for the group. She has worked in recent years with Patty Loveless, The David Mayfield Parade, Valerie Smith & Liberty Pike, and she also fronts her own group, The Vickie Vaughn Band. Daniel Amick plays mandolin. He has won numerous contests and has worked most recently with Kody Norris [...]

Tony Trischka is considered to be the consummate banjo artist and perhaps the most influential banjo player in the roots music world. For more than 45 years, his stylings have inspired a whole generation of bluegrass and acoustic musicians with the many voices he has brought to the instrument.  Tony is not only considered amongst the most innovative of banjo players, he is one of its most respected and sought after instructors creating fifteen instructional books as well as a series of DVDs. Heralded as “a leading light of the New York bluegrass scene” by the New York Times, Michael Daves has garnered attention for his work with Chris Thile, Steve Martin, Tony Trischka, and Rosanne Cash in addition to his solo performances.  Daves is also an in-demand teacher and noted booster of NYC’s thriving bluegrass music community. Kenny Kosek is an American fiddler who plays bluegrass, country, klezmer, folk music and roots music. In addition to his solo career, he has performed with many other well-known performers and contributed to film and television soundtrack music. Don’t miss these three great musicians together.   It will be a great event.

The Highland Travelers are a group of musicians and friends that share a common love of the traditional sounds and styles associated with the first and second generation of the legendary bluegrass artists. While there is an immense respect for the pioneers and legends of this music, they strive to advance the genre with original material and arranging ideas. Band Website  

Carolina Blue is a Brevard, NC based band whose roots run deep in the tradition of Bill Monroe. The band was formed in 2007 after the release of the album "Nothing So Blue" by Bobby Powell and Tim Jones. Carolina Blue won the South Carolina state bluegrass championship at RenoFest in 2011. They also received their first Vocal Group of The Year Nomination at the 2018 SPBGMA Awards Show. They have appeared on the hit TV show “Song Of The Mountains” as well as “The Bluegrass Trail” series on RFDTV. The band's repertoire consists of original songs (including Tim Jones' "Spring Will Bring Flowers", which was recorded by 2014 IBMA entertainers of the year Balsam Range), many bluegrass favorites, and gospel too, all done in the traditional style. Band members are Bobby Powell on guitar and vocals, Timmy Jones on mandolin and vocals, Reese Combs on upright bass and vocals, James McDowell on banjo and vocals, as well as American and Canadian Grand Master Fiddle Champion, Aynsley Porchak on fiddle, who is recipient of the 2018 International Bluegrass Music Association’s Momentum Instrumentalist Award.​ Band Website Band facebook page back to schedule