The full line-up for Hardly Strictly Bluegrass has been announced, and, as is often the case, featured among the performers are a number of artists familiar to readers of the Nonesuch Journal: Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell, Punch Brothers, Conor Oberst, and Kronos Quartet. The free, annual outdoor music festival returns for the 15th year to San Francisco's Golden Gate Park, in the Hellman Hollow (named after the festival's late founder, Warren Hellman), and will take place October 2–4, 2015.

Conor Oberst, continuing a tradition from last year's festival, headlines a packed stage for a special set aptly titled Conor Oberst Brings Friends For Friday, featuring Johnathan Rice, Jessica Pratt, The Felice Brothers, Laura Marling, and M. Ward. Oberst will tour the West Coast with M. Ward and The Felice Brothers in late September and early October.

Punch Brothers return to the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass stages as part of their US fall tour, which kicks off this Friday at the Fresh Grass festival at MASS MoCA and includes newly added dates in December.

Kronos Quartet, which began its own fall concert season with a residency at The Arts Center at NYU Abu Dhabi this week, performs in its Bay Area backyard at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass in a chamber orchestra conducted by the one and only Van Dyke Parks. It's part of a special performance of Big Star's Third by an all-star band and other special guests including Steve Earle and Robyn Hitchcock.

Emmylou Harris is a Hardly Strictly Bluegrass mainstay, having performed at each of the festival's 15 years. She returns to Hellman Hollow this year with her fellow traveling kind, Rodney Crowell, as part of the pair's own extensive North American tour performing songs from their two duo albums, The Traveling Kind and Old Yellow Moon, and much more.

For more information on the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival, including the complete list of announced artists, head to hardlystrictlybluegrass.com.