Singer and guitarist Bill Hart of local Cajun dance music band U.P. Gumbo performs Saturday afternoon for the Winter Roots Festival. The festival, which is the brain child of the director and curator of the Beaumier U.P. Heritage Center Dan Truckey, celebrated its first year with musical workshops and performances throughout the community. Folk and traditional music groups from around the U.P. performed at The Peter White Public Library, Ore Dock Brewing Company, Marquette Commons and Kaufman Auditorium. “Music in general brings people together, it's a shared experience,” said Carolyn McManis, PWPL programming coordinator. “Usually this time of winter people need something to deal with the grayness of winter, so we thought we'd have something in the winter comparable to what they do in the summer with Hiawatha (Music Festival).” (Journal photo by Trinity Carey)

Multi instrumentalist and singer in U.P. Gumbo Warren Hantz plays the keyboard during the band’s Winter Roots Fest performance. (Journal photo by Trinity Carey)

U.P. Gumbo performs. (Journal photo by Trinity Carey)