Two members of the Tally-ho family spent the Labor Day weekend at music festivals, but they couldn't have been more different. Dearest Partner and I crossed the Delaware to attend the annual Delaware Valley Bluegrass Festival, and the Young Relative (and, he estimated, half the UHS senior class) crossed the Schuylkill to attend the Made in America fest on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway.
The Y.R.'s high-decibel fest was skewed toward young people, who generally don't worry about protecting their hearing and getting home at a reasonable hour. A master of understatement, he suggested that the event was "a tad rowdier" than our fest. I concurred: a woman a few seats away from us fell sound asleep in her chair at about 7:30 p.m., and the emcee repeatedly warned attendees against loud talking in the concert area.
"People are here to listen to music," she said sternly. "Visit with your neighbors back at the campsite!"
I doubt that similar sentiments were expressed from the stage in Philadelphia.
I would venture to suggest that there were many more gospel songs performed at the bluegrass fest. The Y.R. said it was unlikely I would recognize any of the performers at Made in America (he was right), but then again he's probably never heard of John Reischman and the Jaybirds, Darin and Brooke Aldridge, Danny Paisley, Ricky Skaggs or Tuba Skinny. The latter was a New Orleans jazz band, quite a change of pace from the classic fiddle/banjo/mandolin/upright bass combos on the schedule. I thought they were terrific, but a few seconds into their set I overheard one woman say, "That's not bluegrass!" She walked off in a huff.
The Y.R. and I agreed on one commonality: both fests offered excellent people-watching opportunities.
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