Springtime in the Black Forest...

... and the 16th International Bühl Bluegrass Festival will be taking place in south-west Germany on 11-12 May 2018, thanks to the city of Bühl, which has presented it since 2002. Thanks also to our good friend Patrick Fuchs, festival director, for sending the lineup, programme, and booking details.

On Friday 11 May the evening concert (8.00-11.30 p.m.) is designed for a younger (standing) audience. The venue is the premises of the Josef Oechsle company (a major sponsor of the festival) at Robert-Bosch-Straße 12d. Doors open 7.00 p.m.; tickets €17 (in advance), €20 (on the door). Food and drink are on sale. The featured artists are Pert' Near Sandstone (USA); and Murder Murder (CAN), who played several dates in Ireland in May 2016.

Saturday 12 May begins with two sets (free of charge) at the open-air stage on the Johannesplatz in the city centre, with St. Beaufort (D/CAN/USA) - who played two shows in Ireland in October last year - from 11.30 a.m. to noon, and the award-winning Norwegian band Ila Auto from 12.30 to 1.00 p.m.

Sierra Hull

The main concert takes place on Saturday evening (5.00-11.30 p.m., with interval for evening meal etc.) at the Bürgerhaus Neuer Markt in Europaplatz, the city's state-of-the-art concert venue. The lineup is St. Beaufort, Ila Auto, Sierra Hull (USA), and Peter Rowan (USA) backed by one of Ireland's favourite Continental bands, Red Wine (I) - who, incidentally, had a very successful Ninth Red Wine Bluegrass Party in Genoa last month. All bands will join in the finale.

Seats are numbered for the main concert; doors open at 4.30 p.m.; and tickets are €35 (advance) and €39 (on the door). Special evening tickets (€25) are available on the door from 8.00 p.m.

Update 21 Dec.: Patrick's father Walter Fuchs, doyen of German country music historians, veteran radio presenter, and director of the Bühl festival up to 2015, has a weekly radio show, 'Country Club', which can be heard on FM in many cable networks, over the whole of Germany in digital Radio DAB+, and worldwide on the internet (www.schwarzwaldradio.com) each Sunday from 7.00 to 8.00 p.m. (Central European Time), repeated on Tuesdays from 9.00 to 10.00 p.m.

Peter Rowan (photo: Amanda Rowan)