On August 4th, downtown Nazareth will be celebrating its 11th annual, Martin on Main festival. The event was first created to promote interest in its iconic instrument maker, Martin Guitars, which has been around for an astounding 185 years. The festival brings local music, food, art, and fun to the downtown area of Nazareth.
Starting at 1pm, the event will feature three stages with live entertainment, local food, artisans, and of course, beer and wine. This downhome celebration highlights the local side of world-renowned instrument maker, and Nazareth resident, Martin Guitars.
Famous for their high-end, 3D sounding acoustics, Martin Guitars have become a standard amongst professional musicians. Some of the most famous Martin players have included Elvis Presley, Paul McCartney, Tom Petty, and Eric Clapton. Modern artists, such as John Mayer, Ed Sheeran, Colbie Caillat, Elle King, James Valentine of Maroon 5, Sam Hunt and countless others still continue to use these instruments in both recorded and live performances. In fact, most top-of-the-line professional recording studios will have a Martin guitar available for musicians. The premier quality of the instruments have made Martins the top-of-the-line acoustic guitar standard in the music industry. Martin Guitars has also influenced many different musical genres, from classical, to pop, to folk, to rock, to blues, since their founding in 1833.
As a result of being a prominent guitar maker since Andrew Jackson was President, and the USA was home to only 24 states, Martin Guitars survived through both World Wars, The Great Depression, the roaring 20s, the Vietnam War, the technical revolution and is still flourishing as a prominent member of modern music today. Respected as one of the oldest American guitar makers, Martin Guitars’ continued relevance, standard and value in today’s music scene is unparalleled by any other domestic instrument maker.
With their factory, visitor’s center, and historic museum located in Nazareth, Pennsylvania, Martin Guitars is firmly rooted in Nazareth and has been helping to host the free, local, Martin on Main festival for the past 11 years as a way to celebrate food, artisanship and of course, great music.
Featuring a large selection of acoustic performers, Martin on Main brings the strings back to the streets to celebrate the local Nazareth scene. Martin Guitars usually features a booth that displays the history of the company and has Martin products available for sale. Last year, Martin donated a guitar to be raffled off with proceeds going to a nonprofit organization.
So, Saturday, August 4th, be sure to come out to the 11th annual Martin on Main festival and experience this years celebration of one of the world’s most renowned guitar makers, right here in their own backyard!