ALAMOSA — Society Hall has a lot to celebrate this year.

Ten years of bringing an array of truly remarkable talent to their Alamosa stage where audiences are consistently treated to not-soon-to-be-forgotten performances. Serving as home base where a number of community gatherings and celebrations have been held. And now, a newly remodeled front porch and entryway that give Society Hall the graceful face it has always deserved.

Continuing with their annual tradition, Society Hall is hosting a combination free outdoor anniversary celebration and fundraiser to celebrate all that has happened in the last ten years and hopefully raise some money to help pay for the remodel that will take Society Hall into another decade and beyond.

“It's going to be a great day of music and fun out on Fourth Street by Society Hall,” says Ruthie Brown, board president. “Admission is free, and we'd love to have you with us to help us celebrate.”

There will be a bunch of great music, food, drink, fellowship and community.

Valley favorite Fred Hargrove will kick off the music at 4:00 PM, followed by The Rifters from 5:00 to 6:30, with Michael Hearne and South by Southwest from 7:00 to 8:30.

Society Hall will host a soup potluck – anyone who is able to bring a pot of soup is encouraged to call Ruthie Brown at 719-580-7838. There will be beer, wine and soft drinks available. There will be tables and some covered seating set up, but folks are also encouraged to bring lawn chairs just to be sure.

And Society Hall will be collecting donations to help pay for the newly remodeled front porch and entryways, and of course showing off all the work to anyone who is interested in getting a closer look.

Artists performing for the celebration include Valley favorite Fred Hargrove, who is well known to area audiences, both from his years as emcee and entertainer on the Rio Grande Scenic Railroad, and from his many local shows around the valley. His rich baritone and engaging stage presence seem to make everyone feel at home such that strangers feel like old friends.

Hargrove has also toured nationally, often opening shows with Michael Martin Murphey. He began his professional performing career in 1992, and has played many western music festivals and cowboy poetry gatherings throughout the years. He’s recorded six CD's, the last three being with Don Richmond at his Howlin’ Dog Records Alamosa studio.

In 2010, the Western Music Association nominated "My Sacred Ground", as Album of the Year.  In 2011, an original song on that album, "Code of the West", was nominated for Song of the Year.

The Rifters are one of the most popular “Southwest Americana” bands in their home range of Colorado, New Mexico and Texas. The Rifters are Rod Taylor (guitar, mandolin, vocals), Don Richmond (guitar, mandolin, fiddle, banjo, pedal steel guitar, dobro, harmonica, vocals), and Jim Bradley (bass, vocals). \

Putting out more music than it seems should be right for three guys on stage, the Rifters employ a wide range of acoustic and electric instruments, combined with soaring three-part harmonies, to provide a mesmerizing variety of music from driving blue-grama-grass to ethereal desert beauty. The years of playing to the dance crowds in their northern New Mexico homeland has given their music a toe-tapping rhythm that is engaging and undeniable.

The Rifters have released 8 CDs – The Rifters, The Great River, Live at the Sagebrush, Architecture of a Fire, Live at Uptop, Passes and Peaks, The Enchanted World, and Heroes and Friends. Their songs include co-writes with legendary writers such as Chuck Pyle and Waddie Mitchell, and have been covered by iconic artists such as Michael Hearne, Shake Russell, and Bill Hearne.

The band celebrated their 20th year together in 2022, and as they have been known to say, “We ain't dead yet!”

Michael Hearne and band South by Southwest basically founded their own genre of music in northern New Mexico, sometimes called “Southwest Americana”, taking elements from folk, country, Texas singer-songwriter, bluegrass and western swing and melding it all together in a smooth blend that goes down like good whiskey, warming you all the way down to your toes.

Hearne is one of the most beloved artists in the Southwest, with an immediately recognizable voice and style. He is also the host of the immensely popular Big Barn Dance music festival in Taos every year, which takes place the weekend after Labor Day.

Hearne has recorded numerous albums over the years, both with his band and as a solo artist, and has spent time in the music centers of Nashville and Austin.

He’s written songs recorded by Jerry Jeff Walker, Gary P. Nunn, Johnny Rodriguez and Bill and Bonnie Hearne. He also toured extensively in his younger years with Michael Martin Murphey. He and his wife now split their time between their home in San Marcos, Texas and northern New Mexico.

The board of Society Hall, a 501c-3 non-profit organization, invites you to help them celebrate their 10-year anniversary and newly remodeled front porch with a great day of music, friends, fellowship, fun (and, of course, soup) on Saturday September 20th. Music starts at 4:00 PM.

Society Hall – Where Community Celebrates!