2010 Appalachia in the Bluegrass

The John Jacob Niles Center for American Music, a collaborative research and performance Center of the UK College of Fine Arts, School of Music, and University Libraries, is delighted to host an annual series of concerts “Appalachia in the Bluegrass” that explores old time and bluegrass music of the Appalachian region. Full schedule... 

The concerts represent a diversity of traditional musical expression from the authentic old time sound of mountain banjo player Lee Boy Sexton to the blues-infused style of Sparky and Rhonda Rucker to the innovative artistry of the Nick Stump Trio. This musical series focuses on the many faces of our indigenous American folk music, celebrating its roots in old time music, sampling its relationship to university education, reveling in a bounty of virtuosic performers, wallowing in the delights of song, and feasting on the uncommon wealth of the Commonwealth.

The concerts at the Niles gallery are all free and open to the public.

All concerts take place in the Gallery of the John Jacob Niles Center for American Music located in the Lucille C. Little Fine Arts Library on the central campus of the University of Kentucky.

Contact:
Ron Pen, Director of the John Jacob Niles Center for American Music
(859) 257-8183
Ron.Pen@uky.edu

Erica Rumbley, Assistant Director of the John Jacob Niles Center for American Music
Erica.Rumbley@uky.edu

September 3        Karly Dawn and Little Sarie
Karly Dawn Higgins and Sarah Wood,sometimes called the sister sisters, entertain with a unique blend of vocal harmonies and banjo/guitar picking. Both East Kentucky natives, Karly Dawn and Sarah have ties in Morehead, Kentucky and up the Kentucky/Ohio River Valley. Coming from a mixed musical upbringing rich in bluegrass and old country traditions, this duo was formed from the mutual love of old time music and singing. Their music is influenced by the greats such as Hazel and Alice and The Carter Family and also local legends like George Gibson and Jesse Wells. They draw their inspiration from the people they love, the trials they endure, and the beautiful land they call their home. Performances by the duo include festivals such as: Berea's Celebration of Traditional Music in Berea Ky, Morehead Old Time Fiddlers Convention in Morehead Ky, MARS Festival in Whitesburg Ky, Chocolate Festival in Old Washington Ky. The singing pair are often joined by some great musical friends such as Jesse Wells, Anna Roberts Ge alt, and many others.

September 17        Rich and Po' Folks
“Rich and the Po' Folks dates to the spring of 2006 when a group of friends got together with a common goal....to build a band on their shared love for the traditional music of east Kentucky and southwest Virginia. Taking their inspiration from some of the jewels of Appalachian music--fiddlers, banjo players, singers, songwriters-- Rich and the Po' Folks take the work of Old Time giants such as Art Stamper, Ed Haley, Charlie Osborne, George Gibson, Addie Graham, and John Morgan Salyer and use fiddle, banjo, bass, mandolin and guitar to kick it up as only a string band can!” More...

September 24         Sparky and Rhonda
“Sparky and Rhonda Rucker perform throughout the U.S. as well as overseas, singing songs and telling stories from the American folk tradition. Sparky Rucker has been performing over forty years and is internationally recognized as a leading folklorist, musician, historian, storyteller, and author. He accompanies himself with fingerstyle picking and bottleneck blues guitar, banjo, and spoons. Rhonda Rucker is an accomplished harmonica, piano, banjo, and bones player, and also adds vocal harmonies to their songs.” More...

October 1        Lee Sexton with John Hayward
"An American Banjo player from Letcher County, Kentucky. He began playing the banjo at the age of eight and is proficient in the two-finger picking and "drop-thumb" traditional styles of east Kentucky. He also sings. His Whoa Mule album includes recordings from a 1952 home recording with fiddler Fernando More...Lusk to recordings made in 2001." More...

October 8        Don Pedi and Bruce Greene
“Bruce Greene and Don Pedi share tunes, songs, and stories passed down "by ear" from one generation to the next, dating back to before the Civil War. Old-Time Waltzes and Marches, Toe tapping dance tunes, as well as secular, sacred and humorous songs and stories of mountain life are presented in a light hearted and informative manner by two of America's leading folk musicians.” More... 

October 15        Larry Webster and the Mule Band
Larry Webster,lawyer, raconteur,newspapercolumnist, formerpolitician, andmusician has been aprominent andarticulate voice for East Kentucky’s mountain music heritage. The force behind the Old Time Gazebo during Pikeville’s “Hillbilly Days,” Webster mixes and matches musical talent on stage like an artist at work with his palette. The Mule Band with a history of thirty years of continuous performance is perhaps the longest running old time string band in the Commonwealth and is one of the oldest in the entire Appalachian region. Band members include: Earl Holbrook, Bill Brooks, Deborah Brooks, Barry Bowersock, Eddie Robinette, Cheryl Webster (Larry’s beautiful bride), and Larry Webster. The Mule Band specializes in the mountain style of “party songs”; the dance tunes and jolly songs that drove the frolics, cabin raisings, quilting’s, corn huskings, and other traditional celebrations.

October 22        Nick Stump Trio
During the band's heyday, they played the Lonesome Pine Specials at the Kentucky Center for the Arts, the Waterside Festivals and Mountain Stage in West Virginia, which was broadcast over public radio. Nick enjoyed those experiences, as they could spend time with other musicians on the show, including Son Seals and Paul Geremia. The band's first two LP recordings, Life of the Party (1986) and Trying Times (1988), were issued on the June Appal label in Whitesburg, Kentucky. Life of the Party was recorded live at Breeding's in Lexington and Trying Times introduced pianist Caroline Dahl.

October 27        Alan Jabbour and Ken Perlman
“Alan and Ken have redefined that great American invention, the fiddle-banjo duet, and brought it to new heights of complexity. Their performances testify to the grace, beauty, and power of Appalachian music.” www.kenperlman.com www.alanjabbour.com

October 29        Ada and Jimmy McCown
Jimmy McCown grew up in a musical family on Pond Creek in Pike County, KY In the late 1940s the area was filled with accomplished banjo players, many of whom played the clawhammer style, a form that plays an important rhythm role in old-time music. After serving in the U.S. Air Force, Jimmy went on to master the three-finger bluegrass banjo style. Jimmy and Ada married and Jimmy taught Ada to play guitar. They had their own Bluegrass band from 1968 – 2003 recording 6 albums and touring the U.S. and Canada.

November 5        Julie Shepherd and Adrian Powell
Award-winning musical duo, Adrian and Julie Shepherd-Powell of Lexington, Kentucky perform old-time fiddle and banjo music tied to Southwest Virginia, Western North Carolina, and Southeast Kentucky.

November 12       Clodhoppers
The Kentucky Clodhoppers are an old-time style dance band from Clark and Estill Counties in east-central Kentucky. They play a repertoire of old tunes that were indigenous to the area in the days when square dances were the preferred form of popular entertainment for all ages.

November 19      Jesse Wells and the Kentucky Center for Traditional Music MTS Old Time band
“Located in the heart of the Bluegrass State of Kentucky, where so much bluegrass, old time and country music history has occurred, The Kentucky Center for Traditional Music preserves, teaches, helps develop and celebrates our rich mountain heritage.” More...

December 3        TBA

December 10      Red State Ramblers
“The music of the Red State Ramblers features native and adopted Kentuckians playing Kentucky tunes and songs that resonate with the truth of life lived close to the font from which this music springs.” More...