Festival provides something for all

If you haven’t had a good weekend in a while, it’s time to pack up and head to Live Oak for three days of showcased independent films and the best in music rendered by more than 300 bands.For the second year, the Florida Music and Film Harvest, presented by GAMA Productions, will fire up an eclectic and eventful weekend.The festival’s gates will open today, welcoming between 15,000 to 20,000 spectators to lounge and experience three stages of sound including The Roots, The Wailers and Tanglewood. For those who want to “get on up,” the “Godfather of Soul” himself, James Brown will add some funk to the festival.”It’s the largest musical event in north Florida,” said Mickey Abraham, a bluegrass guitar instructor and employee at Gordon’s Guitar Shop. He said between the diverse mix of music and vendors, there is something for everyone.But that’s not all the festival offers, said Barry Sides, a blues musician and marketing assistant for GAMA.”There’s going to be over 100 acts, featured artwork and for the first time we’re going to have a films,” Sides said.The film pavilion will feature independent films from across Florida.GAMA Concert and Festival Productions has put on youth and family-oriented productions for nearly eight years. The Harvest has run for six years at Gainesville’s Alachua County Fairgrounds.”It got so big to where we had to change venues,” Sides said.With the new location of the Spirit of Suwannee, viewers and listeners get to camp on the banks of the music park.”Now we’ve got three stages: a main stage, an amphitheatre and an acoustic stage. And its all on the Suwannee River, it’s beautiful,” Sides said. Joycelyn Hall remembers the Harvest last year. She said it was nothing like she had seen before.”You’ve got all these people camping out, eating and listening to music, and the scenery is incredible,” Hall said. Gordon encourages everyone to experience the festival. Three-day passes are on sale on the GAMA Productions website for $85, and one-day passes for $45. For more ticket information, call (352) 336-8360 or visit GAMA Productions Web site at www.musicharvest.com.