By Jennifer Eisenbart
Editor
For a man preparing for a two-day music festival this weekend, Patrick Sullivan admitted Tuesday that he felt “really good.”
“This is the least amount of anxiety I’ve had leading into one of these,” said Sullivan, referring to the third annual Tall Tales Music Festival, set for Friday and Saturday on the block of East Chestnut adjacent to The Coffee House at Chestnut and Pine.
“I think that’s because of how the community has started to embrace it, and how other people have jumped in,” Sullivan added.
With numerous sponsors getting behind the festival, Sullivan felt it had become a community event.
“Not just to bring people in from Milwaukee, Chicago to listen,” said Sullivan. “That’s great. But it brings the community together – food, fun stuff for kids.”
The festival begins Friday evening with a pair of performances, and continues all day Saturday with both music and children’s workshops.
Food and beverages will be on sale all day at the Coffee House, including the special brew that the Coffee House commissioned from Anodyne Roasting Co. – Tall Tales Blend.
“We sold out,” said Coffee House GM Carly Hurley of the coffee’s debut last year. “And people remembered it.”
Already, she said, people are ordering the blend, which has a smoky, chocolate flavor. “Inspired by stories we share around the campfire,” the label says.
Like the coffee, the lineup of music is also a special blend. Leading off the event Friday evening at 6:30 p.m. will be “Local Songwriters in the Round.” A collection of talent that includes regulars at the Coffee House’s weekly open mic event, the first performance will feature – among others – Eric Erickson and Tim Merkel.
Erickson will also be the master of ceremonies for the festival itself. Following at 8:30 p.m. is Christopher Paul Stelling.
Workshops for children will begin at 10 a.m. Saturday, with the main stage performances to follow. The schedule includes:
- 1 p.m., Duke Otherwise (concert for kids)
- 2:30 p.m., Ladders (from Milwaukee)
- 3:45 p.m., Anna Vogelzang (from Madison)
- 5 p.m., Hayward Williams (from Milwaukee)
- 6:30 p.m., Smooth Hound Smith (Nashville)
- 8 p.m., Steelism (Nashville)
- 9:30 p.m., Kristin Diable (New Orleans)
Sullivan said the idea was to bring together a unique group of musical talent.
“We try to find the music that, one, they’re emerging artists (who) I feel they have the potential to be significant talents,” explained Sullivan.
“Secondly, from a genre perspective, it’s music that doesn’t necessarily fit into a specific category,” he added. “It resonates with people. There’s no magic formula. We just stick with what we feel works.”
New this year is an arts and crafts fair that will run side-by-side with the children’s workshops.
“We want to make sure there’s plenty of activity to keep the day moving,” Hurley said.
Parents can register children for the music workshops by visiting the website, talltalesfestival.com.
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