It’s Vintage Fest in Sonoma!

Which event occurred in 1897?

A. A woman is elected to the U.S. Senate for the first time

B. First indoor fly casting tournament opens in Madison Square Garden

C. The Valley of the Moon Vintage Festival is founded

D. Jack London sails to the Klondike

Easy-peasy… all of ‘em. But the one pertinent to us this weekend is C, the launch of the Valley of the Moon Vintage Festival.

California’s oldest festival, the Valley of the Moon Vintage Festival is being held this weekend at the oldest plaza in California, Sonoma Plaza. Since 1897, the VOMVF has been celebrating and benefitting the citizens and surroundings of Sonoma Valley. This year, 16 local nonprofit organizations will share the love, and monies, generated.

The schedule of events this year is jam-packed with typical festival offerings, like face painting and corn dogs. Not to be outdone by all the upstart festivals in the Golden State, our festival also has a 5K and 12K road race, a “Get Your Glow On” nighttime parade, grape stomps, tastings of world class wines, and the beloved firefighter water fights.

The water fights get a little noisy, what with blasting that poor little beer keg around with those high pressure hoses. Thankfully for the water table, that event is over fairly quickly. The equally audible live music offerings last much longer. This year the festival presents 10 bands, beginning Friday night and concluding Sunday afternoon.

Friday’s Opening Night Gala features Riptide, a very popular cover band from San Francisco. The set list of Riptide is decidedly rock ‘n’ roll. Playing the hits, they will have the crowd at the Sonoma Barracks dancing.

The Saturday music lineup features local and regional bands and will surely please the music lovers who spread themselves out a blanket to enjoy the tunes. Sebastopol’s Washington Hill gets things going at 11 a.m. Sonoma’s newish Long Story Short plays at 12:15 p.m. The Frankie Bourne Band, a Bay Area combo, tunes up for a 1:30 p.m. slot. Sonoma’s own Scarlett Letters plays at 4 p.m., and headliner Commander Cody and his Western Airmen close it out, starting at 5:30 p.m.

On Sunday, we get to sleep in another 30 minutes. The first band, Cheeky Blue, doesn’t start until 11:30 a.m. The Big Fit (formerly Frobeck) from Petaluma, fills a 12:45 p.m. time slot. Danny Click and the Hell Yeahs are the headline act. Click hails from Indiana but was reared in Austin. Click said this about the VOMVF, “It is one of the funnest – and most rockin’ - of all the festivals we’ve played.” Click and his band will be playing songs from their new album, “Holding Up the Sun.” Their start time Sunday is 2:30 p.m.

The musical lineup on Saturday alone includes about 25 musicians involved in the six bands. There are only four women included: Dallis Craft of the New ?Copasetics, Kerry Daly and Leta Davis of Long Story Short, and Sue Albano of Scarlett Letters. Each of them is a focal point of their respective bands. Each has interesting things to say about their experiences in the dynamic setting of a band, and of playing to a crowd.

Craft, of Novato, plays the keyboard and sings (“my first instrument”) with the New Copasetics.

“Playing and singing in the New Copasetics have given me a chance, not only to have fun in a kick-ass band, but also a chance to attempt to rise to the level of musicianship that each of these players has,” she said. “This has been a wonderful learning experience and will continue to be, which is why I find it very fulfilling.”

Daly, a long-time Sonoma resident, says, “The Vintage Festival has always been my favorite Sonoma festival, so to be part of it is really special.”

Speaking of her role as a featured vocalist, Daly adds, “Performing is such an emotional experience for me. I love interacting with the audience. It’s going to be so much fun.”

Violin player Leta Davis, who also teaches violin to little fiddlers in the Valley, comments on the rich musical undercurrent present here.

She says, “Behind our great wine is an invisible world of music making – we know who we are – that most Sonomans don’t know about. Performing really is utterly simple: be present, listen and love the one you’re with.”

Vocalist and bass player Sue Albano fronts Scarlett Letters, another fairly new Sonoma band. Albano says that she loves relating to the crowd in personal ways.

“Eye contact, shout outs and observing dance styles… and really telling the story of the song’s lyrics,” she said. Of performing, she says, “Music is an escape, a lifeboat, and mood changer, a savior.”

The Vintage Festival has been around 121 years for good reason. So, grab a hat, a blanket, and some sunscreen and head out to have your mood changed.