The 2023 Florida Fiddle Convention will be held October 27-29th at Mike Roess Gold Head Branch State Park @ 6239 State Rd 21, Keystone Heights, FL 32656 Phone: (352)316-4286
The Special Guests for this year will be Tricia Spencer and Howard Rains, from Lawrence, Kansas.
There will be workshops, jams, concerts and a string band contest on Saturday. Pick-up bands (thrown together at the last minute) are encouraged for the contest and a homemade pie is the contest entry. Last place in the contest gets first choice of pies! It’s a fun and delicious way to honor our history of string band music in Florida. All are invited and welcome to attend! If you have any special needs, please let us know at least 2 weeks prior so that we can plan for your needs. Attendees are encouraged to register in advance if possible!
The Florida State Fiddlers Association will not be providing lodging or meals for this event, so please plan for your own needs! The state park is not far from Jacksonville or Gainesville, so you could commute easily. All attendees must follow the state park’s rules at all times.
There are also a number of hotels located nearby in Starke, Waldo, Keystone Heights and Middleburg. Any of these towns are minutes away from Gold Head and would make for a convenient commute.
We have reserved the primitive camping area within the park for anyone who wants to come, but wasn’t able to secure a regular camp site in one of the loop camps. Bear in mind, this is primitive camping with no hookups or nearby facilities, and it’s not particularly close to the Rec hall, however, it is very affordable, 5$ per night for adults and 1$ per night for kids. If you are taking advantage of this option, there is no need to call the park, as FSFA has reserved the area. You will still need to register for the convention either in -advance or once you’ve arrived at the park.
Convention Registration Information:
Members – Individual – $45, Family – $90
Non-member – Individual – $55, Family $100
Day pass – Individual – $25, Family $50
Concert only – $10
2023 Florida Fiddlers Convention Schedule
Friday:
2:00-3:30 – Registration
4:00-5:00 – Fiddle Workshop
5:00 – 6:00 – Jam with the Instructors
(dinner on your own)
7pm – Concert (FL Masters will open for the guests)
Saturday:
9:00-10:30am – Fiddle Workshop
10:30-Noon – Accompanying Fiddle Tunes worksho
(lunch on your own)
1:00 – Florida Youth Jam presentation and Awards ceremony
2:00pm – String Band Contest
4:30-5:30 – Tea Party and group picture! (BYO “tea” and snacks to share, wear a fun hat or crazy tie and mingle!)
5:30-6:00 – FSFA Meeting/Elections (all are welcome)
(dinner on your own)
7:00 pm – Concert (FL Masters will open for the guests)
Sunday:
10:00-Noon – Fiddle Workshop
You can remain in the park and jam all day in the public areas if you want! All events and registration will take place in the Recreation Hall. Jams will occur everywhere informally and we encourage folks to be welcoming to others and to put together a “pick-up band” and enter the string band contest! We will not have use of a cafeteria at all so plan for your own needs as far as food, ice, refrigeration, cooking, utensils, coffee, water, etc!
*Special thanks to Fiddlershop and Southwest Strings for their generous donations to the FSFA
Here is the Link To Pre-Registration Form
Below is an image of the Gold Head campground. Please ignore the orange marker. Sites nearest to the Rec Hall will be best suited for folks camping who want to be close to the epicenter of goings-on. Turkey Oak and Sand Hill camp areas appear to be the closest.
The Florida Fiddlers Convention is funded in-part by:
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Florida Fiddlers Association 
Where is the info for the Fall 2022 Fiddler’s Convention? I’m having a difficult time getting gathering information on time to plan and make reservations.
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It’s in the forthcoming newsletter and I’m about to add it to our website
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