What We Love about Carolina in the Fall: Behind the Scenes of the Wilkesboro Music Festival

What We Love about Carolina in the Fall: Behind the Scenes of the Wilkesboro Music Festival

In 2015, a new music festival was born along the streets of downtown Wilkesboro. It all started with Dale Isom, talking about a way to support local musicians. Dale started out hosting concerts on a small stage at Talia’s and the 1915. Eventually the Kruger Brothers asked Dale how he felt about reviving the Carolina in the Fall festival they had hosted years ago at the Shepherd Farm. The town of Wilkesboro jumped on board and the first Carolina in the Fall Festival was held on a temporary stage built on North Street. It rained from start to finish, but the weather didn’t dampen the spirit of Wilkesboro’s enthusiastic music fans.

This year’s festival in September 2022 marks the sixth year of Carolina in the Fall after a two-year hiatus. Wilkes Tourism had the chance to sit down with Michelle and Dale Isom, the festival organizers, for a behind the scenes look at what makes Carolina in the Fall so special for them.

The opportunity to work with family. Putting on the Carolina in the Fall Festival takes hard work from a lot of people, but at the helm is the Isom family. Dale and Michelle Isom are joined in their efforts by their children, Caitlen and Daniel. Caitlen takes care of organizing and lining up all the vendors – food and crafts -- while Daniel takes care of the grounds and helps Michelle research new music. “There are very few times when families can work together like this on a project, and I count us as part of the lucky few,” Dale says. “We go through all the ups and downs together, the joys and the disappointments, and I love that it brings our family closer together.”

Working with the Kruger Brothers. As hosts of the music festival, all three of the band members, Jens and Uwe Kruger and Joel Landsberg, take their responsibility seriously. They work closely with the Isoms through the year on planning, and during the event they not only perform both Friday and Saturday night, but they’re also found out talking with fans and making sure everyone has a good time.

This year, the partnership between the Isoms and the Kruger Brothers went a step further. Michelle and Dale commissioned a song that will have its world premier on the stage Saturday night, when the Kruger Brothers perform their original composition “Moonshine Sonata,” with the Kontras Quartet. “The piece is a tribute to the moonshine culture of Wilkes County, the struggles our families faced to put a roof over their heads and the many contradictions that came along with it,” Dale says. “Michelle and I are excited to hear this piece, as we’ll be in the audience and hearing it for the first time along with everyone else on Saturday night.”

Providing a stage for local talent. “One of the most exciting things about this festival is all the great musicians we get to work with,” Michelle says. Longtime friend of the family, Pressley Barker, has practically grown up on stage at Carolina in the Fall. “When we started in 2015 Pressley was just 10 years old. He was up on stage performing and I turned to the lead singer of a band from Nashville that was in the line-up that year and said, ‘Did you play like that when you were his age?’” Dale says. “He looked at me and said, ‘I don’t play like that now!’”

This year Pressley is joined in the line-up by another young, rising star – Paige King Johnson. Currently the ambassador for Got to Be NC, this young woman’s beautiful voice and stage presence is sure to win over plenty of new fans at Carolina in the Fall.

Meeting and building friendships with so many talented people. From Diamond Rio to the Kontras Quartet and all the other great bands scheduled to perform at this year’s festival, the Isoms have the chance to work with them above and beyond their performance on the stage. Coordinating travel, making sure everyone is comfortable, and arranging for rehearsal opportunities all take lots of communication and leads to lasting friendships. “So many times the bands that we bring here in the fall will also come back in the spring to play at Merlefest, and since we’ve already built those connections it’s like a mini-reunion,” Michelle says.

This year, the festival is free! The Kruger brothers and the Isoms always had the music community at heart when organizing the Carolina in the Fall Festival. The goal wasn’t to make money, but instead to foster a place for local talent to have a chance to perform on stage, to encourage networking opportunities among musicians, and to bring old favorites and up and coming artists to an avid fan base of music lovers here in Wilkes County. While ticket prices have always been low, this year the public can attend the entire Carolina in the Fall Festival for free. The event was made possible by selling a number of VIP tickets, as well as generous sponsorships, including presenting sponsor Window World.

Event Information:

Music begins at 5:00 p.m. on Friday night, September 23.

Saturday, September 24 the bands start at 12:00 p.m. and run through the jam session, 9:30-11:00 p.m.

Click here for the full schedule.