Premieres

Each year, the Freshgrass Foundation several artists to create new music to be premiered at the festival. These premieres have become special and anticipated moments at the festival each year.

Composition Commission

For 2022, we’re thrilled to introduce Bluegrass Concertos, which will feature Jerry Douglas and Sierra Hull! Stay tuned for more details.

Our flagship annual commission is the Freshgrass Composition Commission, where we ask an artist to create roughly an album’s worth of music that somehow pushes the boundaries of roots music. This premier usually kicks off the festival on Friday night and has become a “must-see” event. Past recipients include Kronos Quartet, Bill Frisell, Sarah Jarosz, and Rhiannon Giddens

FreshScores

Each year, we ask 3-4 artists to compose an original score to a silent film of their choosing, typically 10-15 minutes in length. All of the films and music are premiered live at the festival, usually on Sunday afternoon. These have become standing-room-only events full of beautiful and unexpected musical moments as the artist interprets a completely different art form. Past recipients of the the FreshScores commissions include Aoife O’Donovan, Alison Brown, Maine Minch, Anna & Elizabeth, Leyla McCalla, Dom Flemons, Stephen Wrembel, Natalie Prass, and many others.