[Harp-L] Story on John Hall & Bean Blossom

["M. N." <mnessmith@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

There's a nice write-up on John Hall (of Harp Depot .... and Harp-L ..... 
fame) and his Bean Blossom festival in the Indianapolis Star 
(www.indystar.com/articles/4/177383-9884-062.html)! I've pasted the text 
below. Good luck this weekend, John!
MN


Founder of music festival keeps harpin' on the blues

By Jason Thomas

September 10, 2004
Ê
NEW PALESTINE, Ind. -- Crammed between stacks of harmonicas, John Hall 
unsheathed a shiny silver model and effortlessly blew a few bars of the 
blues.
It didn't matter that Hall was in his garage, a far cry from the Slippery 
Noodle Inn, where he first heard the blues harmonica 14 years ago, while 
walking down the street with his father.
Now Hall has his own line of harmonicas and is founder of one of the area's 
most popular music festivals. The sixth annual Bean Blossom Blues Fest will 
be held today through Sunday at the Bill Monroe Music Park in Brown County.
Hall, now 40, launched Harp Depot, an Internet-based harmonica store, in 
1996.
After a successful first couple of years, Hall decided to host a customer 
appreciation celebration, initially dubbed "a jam in the woods," in Brown 
County.
"At first, the public was not let in," Hall said from the garage of his 
home, which doubles as Harp Depot headquarters. "Then we said it would be 
foolish to not let the public see it."

Expecting 10,000
This year, 10,000 people are expected to attend the event, a weekend-long 
concert and jam session in which festivalgoers play music around campfires 
long into the night.
"I think the appeal is that this is rockin' blues in the country," Hall 
said. "People can go there and feel comfortable to come in and play their 
own instruments."
This year's headliner, guitarist Walter Trout of Canned Heat fame, who also 
toured alongside John Mayall, the godfather of British blues -- can't wait 
to arrive in Indiana.
"We had great attendance last time," said Trout, who played the fest three 
years ago. "It's a very responsive crowd."

Homage to Monroe
While on the Bill Monroe stage, Trout said, he might pay homage to the 
bluegrass great.
"Even though we're considered a blues-rock band, there's a good possibility 
we may have to do at least one Bill Monroe song," he said with a laugh. "I 
can't help it. I'm very much a closet bluegrass fan. I have been all my 
life."
Hall calls Trout his favorite guitarist. With posters of blues gods and 
goddesses plastered on the walls, and with his shirt bearing rock icons like 
Jimi Hendrix and Mick Jagger, it's hard to believe Hall has just one.
The music's been in his blood since he was 5 years old and began playing the 
harmonica.
"It's always been something I've loved," said Hall.
Each year at the fest, Hall hosts what he calls the world's largest 
harmonica contest, drawing up to 40 entrants in three age classifications. 
Some of the world's top players, including Chicago-based Joe Filisko, are 
judges.
"I don't ever want somebody to feel bad about how they play their music," 
said Hall, adding that each entrant receives a prize.
"There's never a loser."
Hall's own line of harmonicas, called Bushman -- a homonym of the original 
harmonica, spelled Buschmann -- is crafted in Klingenthal, Germany, and 
wrapped in newspapers from the small town.
While Hall sells harmonicas and a wide range of other instruments 
year-round, he can't help but look forward to a certain weekend each summer.
"What makes it special is that it's a getaway," he said of the fest. "You're 
camping, you feel relaxed, and it's all about the music.
"It's just a really cool weekend."