This past Saturday at Historic Wahconah Park in Pittsfield, MA marked the first hopefully many years of strong women in music coming together. The Berkshire Women's Muse Fest pulled together artists including Melissa Ferrick, Cheryl Wheeler, Nervous but Excited, SONiA from Dissappear Fear, Catie Curtis (filled in for Lindsay Mac), Gretchen Peters, Amy Petty, Pamela Means, Sarah Bettens, and the legend Suzanne Vega for a day long music festival that rivaled all folk festivals.

For those in attendance it was certainly a special day. Vendors varied from Clothing to organic diapers, and guitars or hand made drums from BuildaDrum.com. Being the first annual event, it had it's share of growing pains, but overall it was certainly worth the drive and the admission.

The day kicked off at 12pm with the edgy, yet perfect vocal harmonies of Sarah and Kate of "Nervous but Excited", which seems quote appropriate for the first act. The crowd was enamoured by thier passion, charm, and witty performance. It also turns out that they are two of the nicest musicians ever. Be sure to check out more of their show dates at http://www.nervousbutexcited.com.

As the day went on we were met by some incredibly hot weather, but the crowd stayed loyal. As each artist took the stage the excitement grew. Kudos for the event coordinator and sponsors who set up the stellar lineup.

The last three performers of the day really got the crowd going. Melissa Ferrick opened her set with a gracious hello and thank you. She then followed it up with her raw vocal ability and unique songwriting. In between songs she shared her tips on internet video-chat dating and gave the crowd some sound advice......don't do it.

Then the always imitated and always incredible Cheryl Wheeler hopped on stage 2 and performed a full set. Her demeanor was unassuming, but the set was full of old favorites and unrecorded songs. She is certainly an artist you need to see at least once to appreciate.

The final artist is most famous for her song, "Tom's Diner", otherwise referred to as that "do do doo doo, do do doo doo song." Suzanne Vega proved yet again why she has the staying power by playing a perfect blend of sweet melodies and intriguing arrangements. She was the only artist to my knowledge backed by a full band and it was great to see her rounding out this day of empowering women.

 If you were one of the unlucky who missed this incredible folk music festival, fear not. In the short term you can catch the "Move the Muse Festival" in Brockton MA on August 22nd at 12pm. More information is at www.MovetheMusefest.com. In the long term, you can visit next year at the 2nd Annual Berkshire Women's Muse Fest.

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