On this page: The story of the festival in La Roche - Learn to play at La Roche - Festival Values
Bluegrass: history, culture & specific features
“Bluegrass in La Roche is, and will always be, free because we believe that culture and the arts should be open and accessible to all” - Didier Philippe, co-founder and head of operations.
We aim to make the festival experience unforgettable for musicians, volunteers and visitors.​
Every year we sit down with our teams ​and review every aspect of the festival to see what can be done to make this festival the best of its kind for musicians and spectators.
Click on the link to see our FAQs for visitors to the festival, where we hope you will find answers to most of your practical questions about attending the festival.
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security at the festival
 In line with measures taken throughout Europe on safety in public places, all people accessing the site will be required to present their bags to our security staff. 
​We thank you for your cooperation and your understanding.
On the site, a team of trainee security guards from the Sainte Famille High School are on duty at all times. This is part of their training and they are under supervision.
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Access to site
Access to the festival is free. There is therefore no need to show tickets. However, in line with ongoing security measures in France, everyone is required to go through a control point and bag check when accesssing the site
Information on site
Immediately after the entrance is the information chalet and festival shop. Our volunteers will answer all your questions, give out programmes and sell you any festival merchandise you may want to buy. 
Paying with €uroches on the festival site
To avoid having cash at too many points around the festival, all food and drink must be paid for using our own local currency the €uroche. These may be obtained at the cashpoint "caisse" chalet at the exchange rate of 1 €uro to 1 €uroche.
Credit and debit cards may be used to buy €uroches and for CD and merchandise purchases.
Market sellers are not subject to festival payment conditions and may accept whatever form of payment they wish.
Food & Drink on site
There is large food court with a wide choice of hot and cold home made food, and beers, wines and soft drinks.
It is located at the far end of the site from the entrance.
​The Champagne Bar is also open to the public.
F&B bars are open at all festival times, including Saturday and Sunday from 11 am to take advantage of the Lunchtime Sessions with prices reduced for "Happy Hour".
Food is sourced locally and prepared on site by our volunteers in accordance with strict French and European hygiene regulations.
Food and drinks at the festival must be paid for with our local €uroche currency available from the cashpoint chalet (CAISSE) on site.
Food menu
HOME MADE DISHES
Jambalaya - Chilli con Carne - Croziflettes - Sausages in Wine Sauce
Fried Rice (V) - Salads (V)
FESTIVAL FARE
Burgers - Veggie Burgers (V) - Sausages - Merguez - Spit Roast Ham
Best Fries on the festival circuit
DESSERTS
Crêpes - Ice Cream - Fruit - Popcorn
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Drinks menu
BEERS
Mont Blanc Lager , White Beer, Red, Green (made with Genepi, mountain flower)
Mont Blanc Brewery has won international awards at beer festivals in Europe and the USA
WINES
Champagne  - Sparkling wine
Red - White - Rosé
Cider
SOFT DRINKS
Sodas - Juices
Coffee - Tea
Festival for sale
The festival has a collection of tee shirts, caps and other merchandise for sale from the information tent by the entrance to the site. 
To see our catalogue of products, see this page
Festival market
Independent market stalls are open throughout the festival along the access route and around the perimeter of the site.
​They sell a variety of arts and crafts, clothing, head wear
Band merch for sale
​Nearly all bands performing at the festival have music (CDs, Vinyls) and sometimes other merchandise for sale in the chalet next to the stage.
After their set, bands will go to the tent between the CD chalet and the Information chalet to meet and greet, sign CDs and take photos.
Luthiers expo
Master instrument builders from Europe and the USA show their products for anyone to try and buy. What could be better than dealing direct with the luthier? 
​There is also a musical accessories stand in the luthiers hall.
Instrument check
There is an instrument check in the gymnasium behind the stage (entrance to the left of the stage next to the Red Cross. This is a free service open to all, performers and spectators.
The instrument check opens one hour before the festival starts each day and closes half an hour after the last band finishes playing.
​Instruments not checked out will be locked away for the night.
Seating
Seats are available in front of the stage. There is no reservation and seats cannot be retained by leaving possessions on them. 
There is also plenty of free seating with tables available around  the site, mainly next to the food court and the Champagne bar.
The Environment
As far as we can, we try to be environmentally friendlyl. Our food and drinks are, where possible, sourced locally. We use recyclable plates and festival goers are asked to use (and re-use) our festival drinking beakers. These may be taken on deposit (1 euro, given back at the end of the festival).
Please try to respect the waste sorting system when throwing anything away.
What to wear
La Roche sur Foron is 600 m (2000 ft) high and the festival is outdoors. It can get very hot during the day and quite cold at night.
You will need sun cream and a hat in the day, and a fleece jacket for the evening.
You may also need rainwear as we nearly always get some rain - usually a light shower or a short, spectacular mountain storm (we only had to cancel a show once in 15 years).
There are areas that are protected from the elemnents by tents, parasols and trees, and the ground is tarmac (no mud) but most of the site is exposed so please come prepared.
Wheelchair access
Access to the site for wheelchairs is possible as there are no stairs or steep climbs to get in and the entire festival site is tarmac.
There are blue badge parking spaces in town. We cannot guarantee they will be free during the weekend of the festival.
The lunchtime stage converts to a wheelchair viewing platform for evening concerts. It is next to the sound engineers.
Toilets reserved for diabled users are on the ground floor behind and to the left of the food court.
Toilets
Public toilets are available on the first floor of the new school building behind the food court.
Toilets reserved for the disabled are on the ground floor.
Emergencies
A Red Cross tent is staffed permanently throughout the festival in case of sickness or injury. It is located in the gymnasium behind the stage. The entrance is to the left of the stage.
Children
There is a children's play area on the balcony of the new school building behind the food court. 
Children should be supervised by a parent or guardian at all times.
Dogs
Dogs are permitted on the festival site provided they are kept on a lead. Owners are asked to clean up after them and keep them muzzled according their category as defined by French law.
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If you would like to ask a question or send your feedback about the festival, use the form below. We would love to hear from you. ​Thank you for your time.

the story of Bluegrass in La Roche 

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In 2004, Christopher Howard-Williams went to see Roland Jobard, then cultural attaché on the Town Council, and asked if La Roche-sur-Foron would like to host a Bluegrass festival.
Roland looked across  his desk and said "Why not? What's Bluegrass?" - in that order!
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They say that success is often about the right people meeting at the right time, and this was such a story.
In 2004 Moonshine Bluegrass Band (FRA) played a show in the town square of La Roche sur Foron. On mandolin and guitar that day was Christopher Howard-Williams, a resident of La Roche since 2000. A few days after the show he went to visit Roland Jobard, cultural attaché to the mayor of La Roche sur Foron, to ask if the town could be interested in hosting a Bluegrass festival.
"Why not?" replied Roland. "What's Bluegrass?"
After the split with EBMA, Dennis Schutt's EWOB event had moved to Germany and then Czech Republic. Dennis was looking for a new location to host the event. Christopher agreed to try at La Roche for two years. Roland gave Christopher a cautious green light and suggested he go see Didier Philippe, director of the Tourist Bureau.
Didier was actually looking for an event to promote in the summer months to attract more visitors into the town. He had never heard of Bluegrass Music.
A meeting was soon called with Roland, Didier, Christopher and representatives of the town's social, cultural and economic communities.
Mayor Michel Thabuis gave the group one instruction: "Make it work!"
The first questions they had to consider were when and where to host the festival - and how much to charge for tickets
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The first issue was to decide where to hold the festival. 
Not expecting to get more than 200 or 300 people to come to a Bluegrass festival in the French Alps, Christopher believed the local cinema Le Parc would be big enough. In those early meetings Gérard Bugnon, with experience of organising country festivals around France, saw big and encouraged the group to imagine a large event ("we don't want to organise a village fete!" was his rallying cry). They settled on the courtyard of the local junior high school, a large, open space in what used to be an abbey. Fortunately the school principal, Sebastien Maur*, also thought it was a good idea.
The next issue was to decide how much to charge for entry. The date for the festival had been set for the first weekend of August based on other festivals and events in the region, so there would be lots of holiday makers in the area. After a lot of discussion back and forth, the committee decided to make entrance to the event free on the grounds that people may not be prepared to pay for a festival of music they had never heard of, but if it was free they may be curious enough to go and see, risk free. We gambled that if they got in for free, they may be more willing to spend money in the festival on food and drinks.
And that was it: the business model for La Roche Bluegrass Festival was born. 
​La Roche sur Foron has a large pool of volunteers who jump in to help out with anything the town organises and they keep the social life of the town ticking. It says a lot for the spirit of La Roche that 80 people volunteered to work for the festival that first year even though they knew nothing about Bluegrass. Christopher made it his business to introduce them to the music, its history, its culural specificities and its unique ability to mix professionals and amateurs on the same stage and in the same jam sessions.
* Sebastien Maur became mayor of La Roche sur Foron from 2016 - 2020
Follow the link below to see a complete pictorial and video history of the festival, and a list of every band to have played at La Roche.

learn to play bluegrass at la roche

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​​La Roche Bluegrass Camp is a 3-day workshop before the festival, designed to help you, whatever your level, improvise and take part in a Bluegrass jam with autonomy and confidence: "learn to play without being tied to tablatures!"
​Workshop "band labs", formed during the workshop and coached by one of the tutors, kick off the festival on the main stage on Thursday.
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​This camp is for  you if ...
  • ... you have recently started playing a Bluegrass instrument, are comfortable playing the basic major and minor chords and/or know how to play a few standard Bluegrass songs that will be used for tuition and during workshop jam sessions;
  • ... you can already play your instrument in other musical genres and you want to learn the specific left and right hand techniques for playing Bluegrass;
  • ... you are an accomplished Bluegrass musician and want to take your playing to new levels and in new directions;​
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What will I learn?
The workshop is organised around 4 main teaching elements
  1. Work on your Primary Instrument (3 full mornings)
  2. Work on an optional subject: accompanying yourself or other musicians (singing or playing lead); singing class; kids class; using blues, jazz or rock in Bluegrass; more work on your primary instrument if perferred
  3. Supervised jams with at least 1 tutor on different themes: traditional, modern, swing, fiddle tunes, slow jam (for elementary players)
  4. "Band Labs" are formed on site and coached by a tutor to perform one or two songs on the main festival stage on Thursday evening
Altogether you will spend up to 20 hours of tutored instruction on your main instrument, in an optional class, in a supervised jam and in a band lab. 
How will I spend my time?
The three days are organised as follows:
Time
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Morning
Closed
Instrument Class
Instrument Class
Instrument Class
Afternoon 1
Closed
Singing class
​Playing in a band
Singing class​
Playing in a band
Band Labs final rehearsal
Afternoon 2
Arrivals & Registration
Supervised / Open Jam
​Band Labs
Supervised / Open Jam
​Band Labs
Play the Festival
Evening
Welcome Dinner
​Open Jam
Supervised / Open Jam
​Band Labs
Visit the Street Festival in town
Festival
Who are the teachers this year?
Teachers in 2022 will be the musicians of Rapidgrass: Mark Morris (guitar), Charlie Mertens (bass), Coleman Smith (fiddle), Alex Johnstone (mandolin), Billy Cardine (dobro)  and Kyle James Hauser (banjo).
They will be working with our experienced team of French musicians: Philippe Checa and Jimmy Josse (guitar), Raphaël Maillet (fiddle), Claude Rossat and Pierre Bastide (banjo), Dorian Ricaux (mandolin)
Faculty coordinator: Pierre Bastide
Where will I stay?
The workshop is fully residential. All classes and meals take place in Lycée Sainte Famille (High School) of ESCR, the La Roche Catholic School Association.
Students sleep in the residential part of the school (2-5 to a room with shared bathrooms) or at the ENILV school next door (the National Agriculutral College for the Milk and Meat Industry).
Both schools are partners of the festival. ESCR also runs Sainte Marie Junior High School, which hosts the festival itself.
Students may also choose to sleep elsewhere and take only meals in the school dining room.
For more information about where the school is or where to stay, see the maps of La Roche and where to stay.
wifi is available on the ground floor of the main Sainte Famille building
How much does it cost?
Tuition fees (2018 prices)
  • Standard price - €210
  • Early bird price - €180 (enrollment before June 15)
  • Junior price - €150 (under 18)
Board and Lodging
  • Nights - €36 for 3 nights (Monday to Wednesday inclusive) with breakfast.
  • Lunch and dinner - €10 per meal.
    Sign up on enrolment
  • Extra nights during festival weekend are €12 per night per person, with breakfast. Sign up on enrolment
What is my playing level?
The table below is a rough guide to help you identify your level and is not an official musical ability scale!
0. Beginner
Not admitted in the workshop
1. Elementary
Minimum requirement for Workshop
Knows the main major and minor chords, knows some songs (preferably Bluegrass standards), has some (even limited) experience playing with others.
2. Intermediate
Plays confidently in the basic song formations (rhythms and some simple solos), has some experience playing with others in a band or jam context, and lacks confidence to improvise on unknown songs and unfamiliar chord sequences
3. Proficient
Is comfortable playing rhythm or simple instrument back up on most standard songs with unknown players and wants to build confidence taking breaks on unfamilar songs
4. Accomplished
Standard playing on the instrument is mastered, even on unfamilar song and unfamiliar chord shapes, and wants to take personal knowledge to new levels in new directions in order to enhance personal fulfilment on the instrument
5. "Rapidgrass!"
You should be teaching the workshop!
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    workshop contact

Bluegrass in La Roche festival values

Authenticity: 100% hand made, acoustic music played on guitars, banjos, fiddles, mandolins, dobros and with impeccable harmony singing, passed down through the generations in family and community jam sessions.
Talent: Bluegrass music may look easy superficially, but it takes great talent to hit the sweet spot with no artefacts or electronic enhacements. Top Bluegrass players are genuine virtuosos.
Innovation: In constant evolution, with roots and branches, Bluegrass grew out of the traditions of Appalachian mountain music and continues to grow creatively absorbing influences from jazz, rock, reggae and even classical music.
Sharing: The “jam session” remains an important feature of Bluegrass culture, where professionals and amateurs share their music in improvised playing sessions long into the night, well after the "show" is over!

bluegrass : ​music made in america

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Bluegrass has a rich musical heritage, often mixed with the social and economic development of the times. 
Bluegrass grew out of the rural communities in the Appalachian Mountains where music was the only leisure activities for the hard working farmers who played for the local barn dances.
It developed with the growth of radio as bands with "names" started to tour, and evolved as rural families migrated to the cities or to find factory work or to the West to find a new life.
It nearly died as Rock'n'roll swept across the country in the 1950s but found a new audience with the 1960 folk revival.
Bluegrass festivals emerged in the 1970s bringing fans and musicians together where ideas were exchanged and new influences absorbed from rock, pop and jazz.
Today, Bluegrass is a vibrant musical form with exponents across the whole world.