High Sierra’s Next Chapter: David Margulies on Moving the Music, Not the Magic
Some festivals pass through your life, and others stay with you. The High Sierra Music Festival earned that kind of loyalty over more than three decades, drawing people back each July for something that feels both familiar and new. It stands as a place where music, community, and discovery come together in a way that keeps people returning.
This year, that experience moves to a new setting. The festival relocates from Quincy to the Nevada County Fairgrounds in Grass Valley, a site known for its shaded grounds, scenic lake, and walkable layout across nearly 90 acres. Festival director David Margulies made the decision with a clear goal, which was to keep the festival thriving while improving access, lodging, and overall comfort for attendees.
“It was a very difficult decision,” he says. “Quincy will always hold a special place in our hearts, but we have to be in a location that offers patrons a variety of lodging options.”
Margulies frames the move as necessary, as he faced the limits of the Quincy location and then acted to secure the festival’s future. The Grass Valley site sits adjacent or close to nearby hotels, short-term rentals, expanded camping, RV hookups, and more convenient access to and from major airports.
“We just couldn’t sustain it any longer in a place where there were no places for people to stay,” he says. “Our only way to survive was to move it.”
Margulies approaches the new site with a focus on continuity. He longs for attendees to recognize the festival they love the moment they arrive, even as the environment offers more shade, space, and amenities. He seeks to keep the familiar flow intact while improving comfort and accessibility.
“We’re not missing a beat at all,” he says. “We’re actually adding another stage.”
The 2026 festival will feature five daytime stages and three nighttime venues, including the troubadour sessions where songwriters perform in a circle and trade songs. Late-night sets, expanded viewing areas, and improved stage layouts give artists and fans more room to move during the event. The grounds will support signature experiences like parades, yoga, vendor villages, and late-night performances that will stretch well past midnight.
Festgoers can celebrate a band list that keeps High Sierra Music Festival connected to today while giving respect to the elders. Major acts like Steel Pulse and The Word sit at the top, alongside Don Was & The Pan Detroit Ensemble performing The Grateful Dead’s Blues for Allah. Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe will deliver a Jimmy Cliff tribute, while Dumpstaphunk anchors the New Orleans contingent with a Sly Stone tribute, as both bands will also play late night funk sets. Groovers will embrace both Cymande and Eggy, two bands bringing their funk and soul sounds to the fest.
Bluegrass and roots music keep their traditional position of prominence on the festival lineup. Mountain Grass Unit returns with a fast-rising profile, while Magoo brings a newer edge that reflects the genre’s next wave. Hot Buttered Rum adds a longtime West Coast presence, and Lebo & Friends features George Porter Jr. alongside players from across the jam and roots spectrum.
“We feel like we’ve built trust with our audience,” he says. “That they can come to High Sierra year after year and they’re gonna leave with a handful of new favorite bands that they’d never heard before.”
And beyond the headliners you’ll find worldwide talent. Artists like Anders Osborne, The Rumble, Holly Bowling, Scott Pemberton, Pink Talking Fish, The Breaks, Judith Hill, Marty O’Reilly, Steve Poltz, and River Eckert fill out a schedule that rewards movement between stages. Acts such as Rose City Band, Cassandra Lewis, Dylan LeBlanc, Boy Golden, and Minor Gold extend the Americana thread, while bands like Steely Dead push toward more experimental territory.
The crowd makes this thing go, plain and simple. People come back every July like it’s a standing date and bring someone new with them each time. Margulies knows that’s the engine, not advertising, just people pulling more people into it with the promise of a good time and a memorable weekend.
“We have lifers, we have people who’ve been coming for 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 years to High Sierra,” he says. “We need those people to be ambassadors to the High Sierra Music Festival and bring their friends.”
That sense of community extends beyond the stages. High Sierra offers daily parades, yoga sessions, sunrise kickball, craft vendors, food and beverage offerings, and immersive programming that fills the entire weekend. The expanded grounds in Grass Valley give these elements more room to grow, including a larger Family Village and additional gathering spaces.
“These are all programs that have just become more and more refined and honed over the years,” he says. “They all just happen really organically.”
Families remain a core part of the festival’s identity. The Rockin’ Nannies program provides professional childcare, allowing parents to move freely between sets while their children take part in structured activities. These features reflect how the festival has evolved alongside its audience while maintaining its core identity.
Margulies also points to the playshops as a defining feature. These sessions bring artists together for collaborations, tribute performances, and unique interpretations that happen only once. They give audiences a chance to see musicians step outside their usual roles and create something new in real time.
“The play shops are these like one-of-a-kind performances that are either collaborations or tribute sets or album recreations,” he says. “And they’re all one of a kind.”
As the festival enters this new phase, Margulies focuses on maintaining balance. He wants to welcome new audiences while preserving the experience that longtime attendees expect. That balance guides how he allocates resources, builds programming, and shapes the overall event. But Margulies understands that the festival’s identity depends on more than its lineup or location. It comes from the people who attend, perform, and contribute to the experience. That shared energy defines what High Sierra continues to be.
“Everybody at High Sierra brings the best of themselves to the event,” he says. “And that’s what makes High Sierra really special.”
As July approaches, Margulies looks ahead to the new event location with a clear sense of responsibility to both the festival and the fans. The move to Grass Valley improves access, comfort, and infrastructure, but the true measure of success will come from how the festival feels once it begins. He wants attendees to continue to embrace the experience that delivers on its promises, with this year's promise of conveniences raising those expectations. But Margulies isn’t worried. He’s looking forward to the familiar smiles.
“I’m excited to see how much people are gonna enjoy this new facility,” he says. “They’ll experience High Sierra in a new way but with the same sort of familiarity.”
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