When Rockford-based artist Jerry Berta first started selling his work at the Wheatland Music Festival, he was delighted upon learning of the event’s standard greeting: “Happy Wheatland,” emblematic of the festival’s warm, welcoming nature.
“From that point on, it was like ‘I wish the world worked this way,’” he said.
As the Remus festival gears up for its 52nd season Sept. 5-7, Berta will return for his third year, joining nearly 40 juried arts and crafts vendors and more than 50 musical acts, plus dance performances, workshops, demonstrations and jam sessions.
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“I just see it as a weekend filled with wonderful music, friendship, community and inspiration,” said Lola Tyler, executive director of the Wheatland Music Organization, the festival’s parent organization.
While the festival originated as a bluegrass festival and continues with a focus on folk and traditional music, it offers a variety of genres, which also includes pop, rock and blues. This year’s musical line-up includes AJ Lee & Blue Summit, Solas, LADAMA, The Revelers and The Gibson Brothers, among others.
Tom Ball, who is on Wheatland’s planning committee, said two of the highlights will be the festival debuts of Italian rock, country and blues singer/songwriter Cristina Vane and Steve Poltz, a Canadian American folk singer/songwriter known for his collaborations with singer Jewel, including her 1996 hit “You Were Meant for Me.” More than just a talented musician, Poltz is an incredible entertainer and storyteller, Ball said.
“[He’ll] probably hold the entire audience in the palm of his hand within the first 10
minutes …,” he said. “Whenever I see him, I just can’t keep my eyes off of him, because he’s so engaging.”
Ball’s own band Crazy Chestur will also be making its Wheatland Music Festival debut. He described the band as having an Americana style and offering a mix of original material and covers.
The festival’s arts and crafts vendors will feature a variety of handmade goods that
include, jewelry, clothing, glass, clay and mixed media art.
Berta, who specializes in ceramics, will be offering a series of social justice-themed
mugs and whimsical pieces, like the four Beatles in four Volkswagen Beetles and
miniature neon diners.
Berta is a vendor at art fairs throughout the country but said Wheatland is special with a distinct community atmosphere.
“It’s so welcoming, and it is just a break from our world,” he said.
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Peggy BrisbaneFestival goers practice clogging at last year's event.More than putting on entertainment, the Wheatland Music Organization also focuses on giving back to the community, which has been part of its mission since its beginning.
The event started as a fundraiser for the Mt. Pleasant Food Co-Op when members
began offering free concerts throughout the community. They eventually gathered
enough support for a one-day festival, opening Aug. 24, 1974, as the First Wheatland Bluegrass Festival.
Since then, it has grown into a multi-day event and expanded to offer additional festivals and community programming throughout the year as the Wheatland Music Organization, supporting a range of community organizations.
“Our mission to preserve and present traditional music and the arts, and that is the way that we do it, through our community involvement and through our festival,” Tyler said.
Tyler said the organization serves more than 30,000 people a year through events,
workshops, lessons and presentations. They raise money for scholarships that support music and arts education for children and adults and are annual sponsors for the Lakeview, Mecosta, and Howard City summer music and concert programs.
They also have a community education program where they offer music education and performances to local libraries, schools, senior centers and other community hubs, which serve around 4,000 people annually, Tyler said.
One of those hubs is the Mecosta County Commission on Aging. For more than 20
years, Wheatland has been bringing musicians to the senior center meal site to
perform for seniors at lunchtime.
Beth Whyte, who manages the organization’s Meals on Wheels program, said they bring in performers about twice a month, who are extremely popular.
In addition to being entertaining, the performances encourage socialization among seniors, which is important for their well-being, she said.
“One of the hardest things that homebound people are missing is that socialization
with other people,” she said. “So, it’s very important that we can get people to come out and partake of the entertainment.”
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Peggy BrisbaneA Cajun music jam.More recently, the center has used the festival as a fundraiser as well, raising money for its Meals on Wheels program, which brings meals to homebound seniors. The Commission on Aging serves as a food vendor during the festival, preparing a variety of options including coffee, cinnamon rolls, biscuits and gravy and barbecue ribs and will be introducing mostaccioli this year. Whyte said they raised $10,000 for the program last year.
Tyler said arts and music access is limited in their eight-county area, and bringing
programs into the community – especially into schools – is important.
“A lot of kids in the schools, the only exposure they ever get to live music is what they get from us in the schools,” she said.
Ball said the event is all about fun and community.
“I look at it as a giant family reunion,” he said. “Some people come just to see their
friends, they don’t necessarily even come to see the music, they come because it’s an annual tradition for them … I really think it’s just a big social gathering which people just love to come to.”
Erica Hobbs is a writer based in Detroit with a passion for arts and culture and travel. She has reported for numerous news outlets including the Detroit News, Fodors, Business Insider, Reuters, WDET and AnnArbor.com (now the Ann Arbor News), among others.