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Bluegrass Jam at Garrison Players Arts Center
Written by Karen Marzloff

The sound of bluegrass will be drifting out of the Garrison Players Arts Center on a regular basis with the addition of a monthly bluegrass jam.

Musicians and fans are welcome to attend. A workshop and jam takes place from 6 to 7:30 p.m., and a coffeehouse-style performance begins at 7:30 p.m.

The seeds started with a trio that formed to play for Saturday night services at the First Parish Church in Dover.

“Each of us had a love for bluegrass, but not much experience playing in a band,” says Mark Wiley. “As we continued to play and practice for the church services we realized how much fun we were having and decided we wanted to get a little more serious about it.”

The group played at the Stone Church in Newmarket, home to a bluegrass jam on Tuesday nights at 7 p.m., and at a coffeehouse gathering in Wakefield.

“We enjoyed it, learned from it, and decided to find other opportunities to play and perform. Unfortunately, those kind of opportunities don’t exist much outside bar environments, which don’t allow for jamming and much exchange between the musicians,” Wiley says. He thought back to his days on the board of the Garrison Players Arts Center, and knew that the former Grange Hall “would make a fantastic venue for bluegrass musicians to get together, jam, share songs, and then perform in a great hall for other bluegrass lovers.”

The group made a deal with the board of the Garrison Players—they would try to raise enough money through the modest ticket price of $3 to cover the cost of using the venue for the evening.

Upcoming dates: Sept. 12th; Oct. 17th; Nov. 14th; Dec. 11th; Jan. 16th; Feb. 13th; Mar. 20th; Apr. 17th; May 15th; June 19th