The Great Blue Heron Music Festival is an annual festival held the first or second weekend of July in Sherman

Sherman (town), New York

Sherman is a town in Chautauqua County, New York, United States. The town is an interior town in the county, west of Chautauqua Lake. As of the 2000 census, the town population was 1,553...

, New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

, a small town in the Amish

Amish

The Amish , sometimes referred to as Amish Mennonites, are a group of Christian church fellowships that form a subgroup of the Mennonite churches...

 country side of Western New York

Western New York

Western New York is the westernmost region of the state of New York. It includes the cities of Buffalo, Rochester, Niagara Falls, the surrounding suburbs, as well as the outlying rural areas of the Great Lakes lowlands, the Genesee Valley, and the Southern Tier. Some historians, scholars and others...

. The Great Blue Heron Music Festival, or simply Blue Heron, as it is known, draws several thousand visitors throughout the course of three days. The Blue Heron presents over 20 musicians and bands between the Main Stage and Dance Tent throughout the festival. Genres represented among the musicians include bluegrass

Bluegrass music

Bluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and a sub-genre of country music. It has mixed roots in Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish traditional music...

, Cajun, zydeco

Zydeco

Zydeco is a form of uniquely American roots or folk music. It evolved in southwest Louisiana in the early 19th century from forms of "la la" Creole music...

, African

Music of Africa

Africa is a vast continent and its regions and nations have distinct musical traditions. The music of North Africa for the most part has a different history from sub-Saharan African music traditions....

, reggae

Reggae

Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...

, Americana

Americana (music)

Americana is an amalgam of roots musics formed by the confluence of the shared and varied traditions that make up the American musical ethos; specifically those sounds that are merged from folk, country, blues, rhythm and blues, rock and roll and other external influential styles...

, old-time music

Old-time music

Old-time music is a genre of North American folk music, with roots in the folk music of many countries, including England, Scotland, Ireland and countries in Africa. It developed along with various North American folk dances, such as square dance, buck dance, and clogging. The genre also...

, Irish music

Music of Ireland

Irish Music is the generic term for music that has been created in various genres on the island of Ireland.The indigenous music of the island is termed Irish traditional music. It has remained vibrant through the 20th, and into the 21st century, despite globalizing cultural forces...

, jam band

Jam band

-Ambiguity:By the late 1990s use of the term jam band also became ambiguous. An editorial at jamband.com suggested that any band of which a primary band such as Phish has done a cover of be included as jam band. The example was including New York post-punk band Talking Heads after Phish performed...

, and more.

The first Blue Heron was held in 1992
The festival is a gathering of people who come together to form a harmonious community over the course of 3 days in the summer. Western New York provides the setting for such a festival, with any July heat being moderated by Lake Erie, sometimes referred to as a natural air conditioner.

Artists that have performed

According to the Roster of Past Performers, the following artists have performed:

• 10,000 Maniacs
  10,000 Maniacs
  10,000 Maniacs is a United States-based alternative rock band, which formed in 1981 and continues to be active with various line-ups.-1981–1993:...
  
  
• 2 Cow Garage
• Alison Pipitone
• Allegany River Indian Dancers
• Armor & Sturtevant
  Armor & Sturtevant
  Armor and Sturtevant were an American husband and wife musical and recording artist duo that existed from 1991 to 2005. They lived and were based in Erie, Pennsylvania.-Musical genre and instrumentation:...
  
  
• Atica
• Balfa Toujours
• Barton Barton Liuzzo & Ward
• Barton Liuzzo & Ward
• Barton-Johnson Band
• Big Blow & The Bushwackers
• Big Leg Emma
• Bill Kirchen & Too Much Fun
• Blue Sky Mission Club
• Bobby Henrie & The Goners
• Bollo Mah Kissy
• Bombadil
• Boojum Twist
• Boy With A Fish
• Bruce Peterson Blues Project
• Bubba George Stringband
• Buffalo Zydeco
• Chanka Chank
• Circus Of Dreams
• Colorblind James
• Connell Bros Band
• Cornerstone
• Cowpoke Willis
• Cri Du Bayou
• Crow Greenspun
• Dan Berggren
• David Devine
• Djava
• Doctor Zoot
• Donna The Buffalo
  Donna the Buffalo
  Donna the Buffalo is a band from Trumansburg, New York. They play both originals and covers....
  
  
• Edna's Driveway
• Eight Naked Buddhas
• Entrain
• Finn & The Sharks
• Five Cubic Feet
• Fred Eaglesmith / Flying Squirrels
• Gandalp Murphy & The Slambovian
• Gary Belloma & The Blue Bombers
• Gokh-Bi System
• Good Dog Bad Dog
• Halley Devestern
• Hank Roberts
  Hank Roberts
  Hank Roberts is an American jazz cellist and vocalist. He plays the electric cello, and his style is a mixture of rock, jazz, avant garde, folk and classical influences...
  
  
• Hillbilly Fun Park
• Hillbilly Idol
• Holly Figueroa
• Hypnotic Clambake
• Inner Orchestra
• Inner Visions
• Jamie Notarthomas
• Jeff & Susie Goehring
• Jenn Wertz & Lovechild
• Jennie Stearns Band
• Jim Donovan
  Jim Donovan (musician)
  Jim Donovan is a professional drummer and percussionist, a recording artist, writer, teacher and lecturer. He is best known as the drummer and one of the founding members of the band Rusted Root. He plays both standard drum kit and African hand drums such as the djembe, ashiko and talking drum...
  
  
• Jimmyjohnnyjoe
• Joe Thrift & Man Alive
• John & Mary
  John & Mary
  John & Mary is a U.S. based folk music duo featuring John Lombardo and Mary Ramsey who have had a long-time close association with alternative rock band 10,000 Maniacs.-1989-1993:...
  
  
• John & Mary & The Valkyries
  John & Mary
  John & Mary is a U.S. based folk music duo featuring John Lombardo and Mary Ramsey who have had a long-time close association with alternative rock band 10,000 Maniacs.-1989-1993:...
  
  
• John Brown's Body
  John Brown's Body (band)
  John Brown's Body is a reggae band from Boston, MA and Ithaca, NY that tours the world performing what the group calls “Future Roots Music”. The sound is rooted in reggae rhythms and blended with a variety of other styles including dub, electronic, funk, ska, hip-hop, and dubstep.Originally...
  
  
• John Specker
• Johnny Dowd Trio
• J-San & The Analogue Sons
• Kate Jacobs
  Kate Jacobs
  Kate Jacobs is an American singer-songwriter.-Biography:Jacobs wanted to become a ballet dancer. Her father was in the United States Foreign Service, and she moved to Austria when she was eleven....
  
  
• Kathy Ziegler
• Keith Lovett
• Keith Secola & Wild Band Of Indians
• Kelley And The Cowboys
• Kilbrannan
• Kinfolks
• Lejeune Jones
• Leroy Thomas / Zydeco Roadrunners
• Lightnin' Wells
• Liz Berlin Band
• Los Straitjackets
  Los Straitjackets
  Los Straitjackets is an American instrumental rock band that formed in Nashville, Tennessee in 1988. Originally comprising guitarists Danny Amis and Eddie Angel and drummer L. J. "Jimmy" Lester under the name The Straitjackets, the band split up soon after forming and reunited as Los Straitjackets...
  
  
• Mamma Tongue
• Martin & Jessica Simpson
• Mecca Bodega
• Mercy Creek
• Mojo Hand Blues Band
• Moot Davis & The Cool Deal
• New Nile Orchestra
• New Paradigm
• Oculus
• One World Tribe
• Organic Groove Farmers
• Paso Fino
• Peacefield
• People of Earth
• Pine Ridge
• Plastic Nebraska
• Ploughman's Lunch
• Preston Frank
• Psoas
• Rasta Rafiki
• Redheaded Stepchild
• Ritual Space Travel Agency
• River City Slim / Zydeco Hogs
• Roy Carrier & The Night Rockers
• Rusted Root
  Rusted Root
  Rusted Root is a band from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania known for their unique fusion of acoustic, rock, world and other styles of music, with a strong percussion section that draws from African, Latin American, Native American, and Indian influences...
  
  
• Sankai
  Sankai
  is a generic term that refers to any Japanese regional yōkai that is given birth by a pregnant woman. When due care is not given during pregnancy, it is said that a sankai would emerge instead....
  
  
• Say Zuzu
  Say Zuzu
  Say Zuzu is a roots rock band originally based in Newmarket, New Hampshire. The group was formed in 1992 by brothers Jon and James Nolan, and their longtime friend Cliff Murphy...
  
  
• Scott Carpenter & The Real Mccoys
• Shoot The Moon
• Sim Redmond Band
• Slobberbone
  Slobberbone
  Slobberbone is an American alt-country band from Denton, Texas that formed in 1994. Slobberbone toured across the United States many times. The best-known line-up consisted of Brent Best , Jess Barr , Brian Lane , and drummer Tony Harper, although their lineup changed over the years...
  
  
• Slo-Mo
  Mike Brenner
  Philadelphia musician Mike "Slo-Mo" Brenner is the veteran of many bands and has recorded tracks on over 100 CDs of both independent and major label artists....
  
  
• Smackdab
• Southern Culture On The Skids
  Southern Culture on the Skids
  Southern Culture on the Skids, also sometimes known as SCOTS, is an American rock band that was formed in 1983 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina...
  
  
• Steel Pan Alley
• Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys
• Stewed Mulligan
• Sunny Weather
• Tara Nevins & Friends
• The Avett Brothers
  The Avett Brothers
  The Avett Brothers is a folk rock band from Mount Pleasant, North Carolina. The band is made up of two brothers, Scott Avett and Seth Avett, who play the banjo and guitar respectively, and Bob Crawford who plays the stand-up bass. Joe Kwon, cello, and Jacob Edwards, drums, are touring members of...
  
  
• The Big Wu
  The Big Wu
  The Big Wu is a rock 'n' roll jam band from Minnesota. The group is composed of Al Oikari, Andy Miller, Chris Castino, and Terry VanDeWalker. The band made a mark on the jam band scene with a reputation for hook-oriented songwriting and as one of the earliest jam bands from the Midwest to achieve...
  
  
• The Bill Ward Band
• The Blazers
• The Blue Grasshoppers
• The Blues Jumpers
• The Bruce Peterson Blues Project
• The Buddhahood
• The Burns Sisters
  The Burns Sisters
  Folk, pop and rock are given a Celtic slant by Ithaca, New York-based vocalists the Burns Sisters. Accompanied by Rich DePaolo's guitar, Eric Aceto's fiddle and their own guitar and mandolin, the three sisters—Annie, Marie and Jeannie—harmonize with heartfelt spirit...
  
  
• The Buvas
• The Campbell Brothers
  The Campbell Brothers
  The Campbell Brothers are an American Sacred Steel gospel group from Rush, New York composed of three brothers and one son.The ensemble features prominent pedal steel guitar and began as the house band for a House of God Keith Dominion congregation. The pedal steel player, Chuck, uses his own...
  
  
• The Carpetbaggers
• The Chicken Chokers (Reunion)
• The Creole Cowboys
• The Crumbles
• The Darlin' Clementines
• The Dashboard Saviors
• The Delaney Brothers
• The Derbines
• The Drummer & The Dancer National Tour
• The Earthworms
• The Freewill Savages
• The Funnest Game
• The Goodfellas
• The Groovemongers
• The Heartbeats
• The Hickory Project
• The Hindu Cowboys
• The Hix
• The Homewreckers
• The Horse Flies
  The Horse Flies
  The Horse Flies are an American alternative rock/folk band, founded in the late 1970s under the name 'Tompkins County Horseflies' by husband and wife Jeff Claus and Judy Hyman, along with Richie Stearns and John Hayward.- Background :...
  
  
• The Knuckleheads
• The Lonesome Sisters
• The Low Road
  The Low Road
  The Low Road is a 2007 Ned Kelly Award winning novel by the Australian author Chris Womersley.-Awards:*Victorian Premier's Literary Award, Prize for an Unpublished Manuscript by an Emerging Victorian Writer, 2006: shortlisted...
  
  
• The Macgillicuddies
• The Mighty Wallop
• The Mollys
  The Mollys
  The Mollys are an American folk-rock quintet influenced by Celtic and Tejano music. They are based in Tucson, Arizona, and their members are Nancy McCallion, Catherine Zavala, Kevin Schramm, Dan Sorenson and Gary Mackender.-Discography:...
  
  
• The Naked Apes
• The New Alien String Band
• The New Dylans
• The Overtakers
• The Red Hots
• The Red Stick Ramblers
• The Sim Redmond Band
• The Steam Donkeys
• The Talk To Me's
• The Tarbox Ramblers
• The Town Pants
  The Town Pants
  The Town Pants is a Celtic rock band from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, formed from the remnants of The Van Demons by brothers Dave and Duane Keogh...
  
  
• The Woodshed Trio
• The Woodticks
• Tiger Maple Stringband
• Tim O'Brien
  Tim O'Brien (musician)
  Tim O'Brien is an American country and bluegrass musician. In addition to singing, he plays guitar, fiddle, mandolin, banjo, bouzouki and mandocello...
  
  
• Tin Roof
• Ti-Ti-Chickapea
• Tom Stahl
• Tonemah
• Tony Vacca
• Trevor Macdonald & Silver Bird
• Turku
• Turtle Island Dream
• Viva Quetzal
• Vox Lumina
• Wicked Natural Stringband
• Willis Prudhomme W/ Redline Zydeco
• Xalat
• Y'all
• Yankee Zydeco Company
• Yves Jean Band
• Zekuhl
  Zekuhl
  Atna Jean Emmanuel Njock, aka Zekuhl, is a singer, guitarist, percussionist and a songwriter of world music. He presents a Bolbo-Jazz style....
  
  
• Zeta Cauliflower
• Zydeco Experiment
  Donna the Buffalo
  Donna the Buffalo is a band from Trumansburg, New York. They play both originals and covers....
  
  

External links

• Official Site