Winnetka Music Festival

July 12, 2019

In three short years, the Winnetka Music Festival (Winnetka, Illinois, home to the “Home Alone” house and other points of interest) has established a reputation for great acts and a great time for all ages. Created by Winnetka natives Val Haller and Scott Myers, this year’s festival featured 60 acts performing across four stages and additional venues, along with good food and a little crowd surfing by musician Spencer Ludwig.

Shooting for Winnetka Living, I was able to attend only briefly but captured some good stuff. (It helps to have a stage pass – thanks, Winnetka Music Festival folks!). Here are some featured images of Moon Taxi, Dorothy, John Splithoff, Dylan LeBlanc and The Last Bandoleros. Check out the tunes at www.valslist.com or on the Spotify playlist “Valslist: Taste of Winnetka Music Fest 2019.”

Dorothy Martin, lead singer of Dorothy, an LA-based rock band.

Rockers and indie rockers of all ages.

Dylan LeBlanc. Singer/songwriter Dylan LeBlanc and his band cast a spell with some really fabulous songs. He strikes me as a Ryan Adams/War On Drugs fusion yet original to his alt rock/folk/blues/rock calling. Check him out on iTunes, Spotify or elsewhere. Really great stuff.

The music has a dreamy, driving, sometimes dreary and sad, sometimes drug-induced feeling of sorrow and happiness. Many in the crowd responded.

The Last Bandoleros were pretty cool. They serenaded Friday’s crowds and, again, you can find their stuff online at iTunes and Spotify. I confess I’m least aware of these guys but enjoyed their tunes.

Again, the crowd was moved by the fun, upbeat songs byThe Last Bandoleros.

Chicago-raised, NYC-based John Splithoff was a crowd favorite. He was really good, sharing soulful rock music and occasionally effortlessly hitting lead guitar. Some in the crowd knew him and were rooting him on.

Dorothy. Uh, so I got pretty stoked visually and aurally by the band Dorothy. Dorothy Martin, the band’s lead, is a visual feast. The group is hard-rocking and a great show. I shot them with modern 16-35mm and 135mm lens, as well as a vintage Canon FD 55mm 1.2. Fun!

above: Dorothy shot with a 1971 Canon 55 1.2. A fabulous singer, a visual feast. Goodness me.

Above: Dorothy drummer Jason Ganberg lets loose.

Moon Taxi. The closing act was Moon Taxi, an indie-alt rock band based in Nashville. They were really uplifting, upbeat and solid. Again, go check ’em out. Their lead singer Trevor Terndrup was a lot of fun, he made eye contact a few times seeming to say, “Dude, shoot away, it’s all good.”

Thanks for your time. You can find out more about me on this website. I’m Scott Edwards, a hybrid (digital, modern and vintage lens, and a little bit of film) photographer who shoots portraits, lifestyle, commercial and fine art photography. I gladly shoot for individuals, families, businesses and organizations.

Attention all bands: Happy to do album covers and go on tour. 🙂

Winnetka Music Festival

All images copyrighted. (C) Scott Edwards, 2019.