Pickamania 2024
September 6, 7 & 8, At the Black Range Lodge, Kingston, NM
Tickets Fri. $20 / Sat. $35 / Sun. $20 / 3-day Festival Pass $60
Advance ticket sales: www.sierracountyarts.org
Contact: cat@blackrangelodge.com 575-895-5652
From its origins in the mid-1980s as a backyard party hosted in a garlic shed, Pickamania has evolved into an annual festival celebrating the love of acoustic music of all genres. Pickamania 2024, on September 6, 7 and 8, will feature a talented line-up of bluegrass, Americana, and folk musicians at the Black Range Lodge in Kingston, NM. Sponsored by the Sierra County Arts Council, admission is $20 for Friday, $35 for Saturday, and Sunday $20. A 3-day Festival Pass is $60 per person. Tickets are available at the door and online at www.sierracountyarts.org/.
Pickamania will kick off on Friday at 6pm with high-energy Americana originals from Pint & ½ (Tami & Duke Sheppard), a duo from Salida, CO. They’re followed by John & Jean Ronstadt of Tucson, AZ, who entertain with ballads, blues and canciones.
On Saturday at 3pm, Truth or Consequences pop singer Burt Ferguson opens with country rock and folk ballads. He’ll be followed by songstress Wil Maring and her partner, guitar and fiddle virtuoso and Nashville session musician Robert Bowlin, who’s repertoire ranges from traditional country, to blues, folk and bluegrass. www.wilmaring.com. Next, the duo of flat-picking guitar champion Peter McLaughlin and Chris Brashear (fiddle and mandolin) will offer an original blend of “southwestern” bluegrass music, shaped by the landscapes and legends of the west. www.petermclaughlin.info. Saturday evening will culminate as Pickamania’s all-star musicians combine their talents in an audience-pleasing “Super Jam”.
Sunday music will begin at noon, with John & Jean Ronstadt reprising their Friday evening performance of folk, Americana and Mexican ballads. They’ll be followed by Santa Fe’s High Desert Rangers, a high-energy group of legendary musicians (David Thom, mandolin, Ben Perea, banjo, Zeke Severson, upright bass
Jon Graboff, guitar) who perform traditional bluegrass tunes highdesertrangers.com.
The outdoor pavilion and shady landscape at the Black Range Lodge offers a pleasant environment for music and mingling. On Saturday, refreshments will be available throughout the afternoon and evening, including home-made apple pie, with fruit from the local Kingston orchard. Black Range Vineyards will also be on hand to provide New Mexico wine and beer for purchase throughout the festival. blackrangevineyards.com
Since 2017 Pickamania has been held in the mountain community of Kingston, once a rich silver mining town, now a quiet hamlet surrounded by the Gila National Forest, about 30 minutes west of I-25. Come earlier on Saturday (10am-2pm) for a community-wide yard sale and tours of the Kingston Ghost Town Museum, the Victorio Hotel and Historic Percha Bank. Fresh-picked organic apples and fresh squeezed apple cider will also be for sale at the Kingston orchard.
This event is sponsored by the Sierra County Arts Council (SCAC). The SCAC is supported by a grant from New Mexico Arts, a division of the Department of Cultural Affairs, and by the National Endowment for the Arts. For more information call the Black Range Lodge at 575-895-5652, or visit www.blackrangelodge.com.
Content for this article was provided by the organizers.