Joliet winery to host ‘Nashville on the Hill’ concert series

A Joliet winery is adding a touch of Nashville this summer with a new concert series: “Nashville on the Hill.”

The concerts will be at 2 p.m. Sunday, July 21 and Sunday, Aug. 18 at Bishops Hill Winery, 310 Bridge St. in Joliet. Two Nashville, Tennessee-based musicians will perform their original music and select covers on the winery’s lawn at each two-hour show. Performances will move inside during inclement weather.

Sunday’s performers are International Songwriting Contest winner Katie Pederson and 2024 Bonnaroo Festival stage host Bonner Black, organizer Tim Placher of Joliet said.

We just feel you can never go wrong with quality music.”

—  Damon Zdunich, co-owner of Bishops Hill Winery in Joliet

Other musicians for the series include Laney Jones, who has performed at New York’s Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., and been featured on PBS’s “Great Performances;” Derek Luttrell, lead singer and songwriter for the touring band Texas Chain Store Managers; Robby Hecht, who composed 60 songs recorded by other artists and amassed 25 million streams of his own releases; and Grace Pettis, winner of NPR’s Mountain Stage New Song Contest, a Buddy Holly Foundation grant recipient and an official showcase artist at 2024′s Folk Alliance Conference in Kansas City and South By Southwest in Austin, Texas, Placher said.

“Several of the musicians have played in town before,” Placher said. “Their experience in Joliet has been so positive [that] they are eager to come back, especially when I sent them pictures of the buildings.”

Damon Zdunich, co-owner of Bishops Hill, said he wants to build on past live music events at the winery and Joliet’s historical “big music bent.” Zdunich referenced Joliet Jam on May 19, 1994, when the Beach Boys and Bachman Turner Overdrive played at Joliet Memorial Stadium and area nightclubs.

[ Artworks: Photographer Bob Campbell gets his start at Joliet Jam ]

He also referred to venues such as the Croatian Club in Joliet that have traditionally hosted polka musicians, as well as the popularity of nightclubs in Joliet during the 1960s and early 1970s.

“We just feel you can never go wrong with quality music,” Zdunich said, adding that he wants to “offer something special” to patrons.

“About 60% of our customer base is outside of Joliet,” he said. “They come in for the music, the history, the atmosphere of the place and just to listen and to enjoy.”

Placher and Zdunich said they met at the University of St. Francis in Joliet, from which Placher is an alumnus. Placher brought a Nashville songwriters show called “The Pindrop Series” to the university. Zdunich attended and approached Placher about bringing musical programs to Bishops Hill.

So Placher said he created a stand-alone show for Bishops Hill on Aug. 18 to follow Placher’s Porch & Park Music Fest on Aug. 17 in the Cathedral-area neighborhood. That led to developing a monthly summer series, Placher said.

He reached out to musicians who would be on the road and in the upper Midwest at that time or people who might be able to come up from Nashville.

“It really worked out for everyone involved,” Placher said.

Placher said he is “happy to help” make great musical events happen.

“As a lifelong Joliet resident, I want to see good things happen for my city,” he said, “especially in the neighborhood I grew up in and spent the bulk of my young life.”

Tickets are $60 for the series or $25 per show. Each ticket includes a glass of wine per show. Charcuterie boards, salsa and chips, and a variety of Bishops Hill’s wines will be for sale.

Patrons can park adjacent to the “castle” building of Bridge Street or in Bishops Hill’s lot on Summit Street.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: “Nashville on the Hill” series

WHEN: 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, July 21 and Sunday, Aug. 18

WHERE: Bishops Hill Winery, 310 Bridge St., Joliet.

ETC.: Katie Pederson and Bonner Black (June 30), Laney Jones and Derek Luttrell (July 21), and Grace Pettis and Robby Hecht (Aug. 18)

TICKETS: $60 for the series or $25 per show. Each ticket includes a glass of wine at each show.

INFORMATION: For tickets or information, visit bishopshill.com or call 312-320-1610.