Family Affair
Mayville Bluegrass Festival returns Aug. 15
From left are The Doerfel Family in 2005 at the Mayville Bluegrass Festival: Kimberly, Tom, Ben, Cheryl, TJ and Ed Doerfel.
Top, from left, are Jakob, Callie and TJ Doerfel. Bottom is Ben Doerfel.
From left are The Doerfel Family in 2005 at the Mayville Bluegrass Festival: Kimberly, Tom, Ben, Cheryl, TJ and Ed Doerfel.
Top, from left, are Jakob, Callie and TJ Doerfel. Bottom is Ben Doerfel.
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MAYVILLE – Chautauqua Rails to Trails will present the Mayville Bluegrass Festival on Saturday, Aug. 15, from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. at Big Inlet Brewing in Mayville.
The full-day celebration of bluegrass music will bring together an outstanding lineup of regional talent, highlighted by the Doerfel Brothers & Family - An MBF Reunion, along with performances by Beard and the Bird, Doug Yeomans & Mountain Run, New Dawgs, Old Tricks, Creek Bend, Sally Schaefer and Tyler Bagwell, The Bluegrass Session Band, Water Horse, Bill Ward and Friends, Blue Mule, and the CR2T Bluegrass All Stars.
The Doerfel Family was a staple of the early bluegrass festivals in Lakeside Park in Mayville. A family bluegrass band, then led by parents Tom and Cheryl Doerfel, it included virtually every member of the family, at times numbering into the double digits.
On June 19, 2004, 15-year-old TJ and his 8-year-old guitar-prodigy brother, Ben, stepped onto the stage at the Mayville Bluegrass Festival. After years of using their family coffee table as a stage, they were finally playing a real festival alongside their parents and siblings.
That performance sparked a 20-year journey. The family eventually sold their upstate New York farm, toured the country out of a bus for four years, and spent nearly a decade playing weekly at iconic Key West spots like Sloppy Joe's. By 2017, the band landed a management contract and relocated to Nashville, Tenn., to focus on original music.
While known as proficient genre-hoppers, TJ and Ben Doerfel are coming back to their Bluegrass roots in Mayville. Joining them on stage are TJ's teenage children, Jakob on mandolin and Callie on bass.
"I’m really excited to bring my talented kids to the event that started it all for me," TJ Doerfel said.
Festival goers can enjoy a relaxed outdoor atmosphere with food trucks on site and camping available. Coolers are not permitted. The event is family-friendly, with free admission for children under 12.
In addition to Saturday's festivities, attendees are invited to return for a free Bluegrass Sunday show on Aug. 16.
Presale tickets are available for $30 and can be purchased at Big Inlet Brewing, 6169 Elm Flat Road, Mayville, or online at cr2t.org.
Proceeds from the festival support the ongoing work of Chautauqua Rails to Trails, helping to maintain and enhance local trail systems while fostering community engagement through events like the Mayville Bluegrass Festival.
For more information, visit cr2t.org. or call 716-753-2800.