The Forgottonia Concert

The Western Illinois Museum is relaunching its Home Grown: Celebrating the Family Farm initiative with a performance by Macomb Artist Chris Vallillo. On Saturday, June 12^th, he will perform at 6:30 pm at Hickory Grove Farm in Colchester, Illinois. There is a suggested $5 donation at the gate. Watch short video. 

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Singer-songwriter and roots/folk musician, Chris Vallillo will give a rare performance of all original songs and instrumentals that he is calling The Forgottonia Concert. The concert will be held outdoors at Hickory Grove Farm, a few miles from where many of the songs were written. This long-time family farm is just a fifteen-minute drive west of Macomb, and with the old Hickory trees as the backdrop, it promises to be a magical summer evening of gathering together, sharing food, and music. Guests are welcome to arrive at 4:30 pm to tour the farm and stroll through the orchard. You are invited to bring a picnic supper to enjoy while listening to music which starts at 6:30 pm.

Vallillo has spent the past 35 years writing songs that capture the people, places, and stories of West Central Illinois, the fabled Forgottonia area of our state.  Vallillo, who came to Western Illinois as an archaeologist in 1976, witnessed the diminishing state funding to the region that launched this satirical protest movement. During this time, rural Illinois would become the primary focus of his writing, documenting this movement as well as long-time agricultural practices as they too were fading away. In many ways, Western Illinois would become his artistic muse. “When I first came to this region, it had a timeless quality to it that just resonated with me, working its way into my songs,” says Vallillo.

The Forgottonia Concert was inspired by a song Vallillo began writing in 1984 and finished in 2019 titled Forgottonia, 1984 that captured the last of Western Illinois in all its small-town glory. “For years I’ve been called a prairie poet songwriter and looking back at this collection of songs, I’d have to agree, it’s an apt description. And it’s still a fascinating musical subject.”

Guests are asked to bring their chairs or blankets, and refreshments. Drinking water will be available. The event will be held in a pasture. Porta-Potties will be available. For more information, contact the Western Illinois Museum by phone at 309.837.2750, by email info@wimuseum.org or text 309.837.2613. Hickory Grove Farm is located at 7185 N 1235th Road in Colchester, Illinois. More information about Hickory Grove Farm can be found on their website https://hickorygrovefarm.weebly.com/

This program is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Art Council Agency.

Funding for Home Grown: Celebrating the Family Farm has been provided by Compeer Financial Fund for Rural America.  With an office in Macomb, Compeer Financial is a member-owned, Farm Credit cooperative providing agriculture with loans, leases, risk management, and other financial services.