Fiddle Festival to return for 35th year with new, local food options
Festival goes green, adds new, local food options
It’s the end of Styrofoam cups at the Lyons Fiddle Festival and the beginning of a greener grass roots music festival. There is an added bonus of being able to take home a keepsake cup.
The Festival is on Sept. 16 from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Admission is a $5 donation per person and children 12 and under are free. Parking is by donation and helps HOBOS (Helping Others Before Ourselves) and the Lyons Fire Company Truck Crew.
Getting rid of Styrofoam cups was a decision favored by committee members to find ways to leave a greener footprint. Other eco-friendly changes will be the addition of recycling barrels, and discontinuing food tickets.
“We did this to be environmentally friendly,” said Larry Ross, co-chairperson and stage manager.
Wait, no more food tickets? That’s right. No more waiting in line to get food tickets, which only end up in trash at the end of the day. The perk here is that there will be new foods from popular food trucks. Yes, the Lyons Fiddle Festival will be bringing in new food vendors. Now you can enjoy ice cream from Pop’s Malt Shoppe of Kutztown, coffee and baked goods by The Sally Breidegam Miksiewicz Memorial Foundation, breakfast, soups, and more by The Lyons Fire Company, fries and baked potatoes by Penn Werner Hotel of Wernersville, and fresh fruit cups by KAHS Field Hockey Team.
With so much planning that goes into the Lyons Fiddle Festival and aging committee members, it was time to think of new ways to streamline the food process and be environmentally conscious. The decision to bring in more food vendors gives festival attendees a variety of favored foods with the added benefit of no more standing in lines for tickets and then again at the food stands.
The move towards greener grass is only topped by the great entertainment lined up for this year’s festival including Berks County Sacred Harp Shape Note Singing, The Lyons Fiddle Festival House Band, Uncle Jake and the 18 Wheel Gang, Beatrice Ferreira and Band (Beatrice is a three-time grand champion of the LFF and currently works as a Montreal-based composer and violist), Bill Jester Duo, and The Buffalo Mountain Bluegrass Band.
It’s a full day of music including on-stage fiddle competition, jamming in the park, opening ceremonies, and Fiddlemania, as well as crafters.