How Can 1+1=3?

March 20th, 2025

Dearest Festivarians,

On this day, the spring equinox, we find ourselves thinking back to 2021, a time of uncertainty in our world. We watched the sun, wondering if it would ever shine on a festival again. On stages left silent, fields left fallowed. But the sun is a patient teacher, and silence always bends toward song in the end.

Exactly four years ago, Chris Thile kicked off the return of live music on Planet Bluegrass with words that have stuck with us ever since. 

"I feel like I have always known how special this place is. And how special you are to me. That has always anchored my life. This place, here, Telluride, y'all... We feel this way about this together. And if we already knew that about ourselves and about all of these people, how much more do we know it now?"- Chris Thile

Gathering together to enjoy live music may just be one of life's most beautiful and transcendent experiences. A look to the left and then back to the right reminds us how fortunate we are to share in these moments. As our energy builds, emotions percolate through our collective souls, culminating in what we can only imagine to be the purest form of joy one can experience: that which comes from the experience of music in it's rawest form. To witness this artistry, spontaneity, and community blossom all around us is the greatest privilege we could imagine. And to share it with so many? That might just be magic.

This summer solstice, we’ll stand shoulder-to-shoulder under the same sun that once held its breath with us. And in that circle, something impossible will happen: 1 + 1 will equal 3. Strangers will turn into neighbors. Notes will become lifelong memories. And every “you” and “me” becomes a "we" that is greater than the sum of its parts.

But, the equation only works if you join us... and we can't wait!

Love,

Your Friends on Planet Bluegrass