Thousands of bluegrass music fans from around Colorado, the United States and the world assembled in Town Park in the Telluride valley to celebrate 50 years of one of the most iconic music gatherings.

The 50th Telluride Bluegrass Festival opened Thursday, June 15 with a mix of new and veteran artists from Bella White to Del McCoury to Béla Fleck and the Flecktones to Colorado’s own the String Cheese Incident. Other notable Telluride favorites like Sam Bush sat in with various groups during the afternoon.

As fresh snow fell on the towering peaks of the San Juan Mountains overlooking the valley, opening day weather saw sporadic rain showers mixed with short periods of sunshine as temperatures barely cracked 50 degrees. It was certainly different in past years where hot, sunny days brought thousands of music fans twirling around Town Park. The four-day 50th Telluride Bluegrass Festival runs through Sunday.