Dahlonega, GA -- HemlockFest's eighth year of education and entertainment to save Georgia's disappearing hemlock trees will showcase another stellar line-up of musical performers. Headliners for the 2012 event-which returns to Starbridge Sanctuary near Dahlonega this November 2, 3 and 4-include Colonel Bruce Hampton & the Realms of Ventilation, Ralph Rodenberry Band, Saint Francis, the Donna Hopkins Band, and Deep Blue Sun. Sunday's line-up will be highlighted by the Kenney Blackmon String Band.
Playing on the Planet's tapestry of modern acoustic music, Insonnia's intricately crafted world music, and BlueBilly Grit's rootsy bluegrass - which won them the 2012 Telluride Bluegrass Band Competition - will again fill the air at HemlockFest in 2012. Unifire Theatre will return with their unforgettable and stunning fire arts show.
The Rosin Sisters, three fiddlers who have played traditional music in the area for more than twenty-five years, will make their HemlockFest debut on Sunday. This year's bill includes other first-time HemlockFest performers, including Last Plane Out, who deliver an eclectic, high-energy mix, and Jesse Mariah Williams, a young musical prodigy who impresses audiences with astonishing talent for a fourteen year-old.
Dahlonega's own prized talents will abound this year and include Lara Polangco, Emerald Rose, Barry Bailey, and The Three Arrows returning as crowd favorites. Carly Gibson, a singer/songwriter prodigy from Lumpkin County who completed programs at the prestigious GRAMMY Camp in Los Angeles, will return for her second HemlockFest performance. Also returning to Hemlockfest, The High Mountain Ramblers and Frankly Scarlett (previously 710 South), both of which delight audiences with the music of the Grateful Dead.
HemlockFest is an unparalleled musical experience in a peaceful and beautiful setting just outside of Dahlonega. This all-ages, eco-friendly event features three days of live music, primitive camping, educational exhibits, arts and crafts vendors, a kid's nature village, rustic living demonstrations, great food, and free canoeing. Both day and weekend passes are available, and admission is free for kids (ages 15 and under with a supervising adult ticketholder). Discount tickets are available online now through September 15.
HemlockFest proceeds aid efforts to minimize the impact of the non-native hemlock woolly adelgid parasite, which is devastating the hemlock trees of North Georgia at an alarming rate. HemlockFest has affected the raising of more than $100,000 to support predator beetle rearing labs at area colleges and universities. This effort to introduce predator beetles, which feed on hemlock woolly adelgids and are a safe and effective biological control, may help to save our native forests and preserve our quality-of-life.
Visit the website at www.hemlockfest.org or call the Hemlock Hotline at (706) 867-5157 for more information about HemlockFest, the hemlock crisis, or to volunteer.
The Lumpkin Coalition is a 100% volunteer non-profit 501(c)3 charitable organization formed to facilitate projects that benefit North Georgia, Lumpkin County, its residents and visitors. The Lumpkin Coalition is dedicated to preserving quality of life for all those who share it. To this end, it supports the preservation of a clean and healthy environment, responsible living, and responsible growth.
