The annual Tommy Jarrell celebration — to commemorate the life and music of the influential native musician, is ready for Feb. 24-Feb. 26 on the Historic Earle Theatre in Mount Ethereal.
The celebration contains live shows, a youth competitors, workshops, and a movie screening. The favored competition has one thing for each old-time music lover. The yearly occasion celebrates the music and teachings of Surry County native and old-time music pioneer and icon, Tommy Jarrell, who lived from March 1, 1901 to Jan. 28, 1985.
Most of the actions are scheduled on the Outdated-Time Music Heritage Corridor on the Historic Earle Theatre at 142 North Primary Road.
On Thursday, Feb. 24 there are free youth classes. Flatfoot dance is at 4:30 p.m., fiddle classes are at 5:30 p.m., adopted by guitar, banjo, and mandolin classes at 6:15 p.m. The music classes are taught by Jim Vipperman, Brown-Hudson Folklore Award recipient as a standard musician and instructor. These classes are sponsored partially by a TAPS grant from the Folklife Division of the North Carolina Arts Council, a division of the Division of Pure and Cultural Sources.
The Southeast Sirens Tour will hit the stage at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday. The tour is introduced by The Surry Arts Council and Pine State Advertising and options Caitlin Krisko & The Broadcast and Abby Bryant & The Echoes. Tickets are $15.
Friday at 7 p.m. is the free screening of “You Gave Me A Track,” a movie about Alice Gerrard. The movie presents an intimate portrait of old-time music pioneer Alice Gerrard and her outstanding, unpredictable journey creating and preserving conventional music. A query and reply session with Director Kenny Dalsheimer and Gerrard will observe the movie.
A brief efficiency by Gerrard accompanied by Tatiana Hargreaves and Reed Stutz will observe the Q&A. This movie and occasion are made potential partially by means of important help from Presenting Sponsor The North Carolina Division of Pure and Cultural Sources as a part of their “She Modified the World: NC Ladies Breaking Boundaries” and “Come Hear NC” applications.
In a profession spanning greater than 50 years, Gerrard has made an indelible mark on the historical past of conventional music. Her groundbreaking collaboration with Appalachian singer Hazel Dickens through the Nineteen Sixties and ’70s produced 4 traditional LPs (lately reissued by Rounder) and influenced scores of younger girls singers. Her subsequent 4 solo albums together with Bittersweet, produced by Laurie Lewis, and Comply with the Music, produced by Mike Taylor of His Golden Messenger — additional showcased Gerrard’s many skills: her compelling, eclectic songwriting; her highly effective, hard-edged vocals, and her instrumental mastery on rhythm guitar, banjo, and old-time fiddle. Gerrard’s 2015 album, Comply with the Music was nominated for a Grammy. Her most up-to-date launch, Sing Me Again House: The DC Tapes 1965-1969 on Free Grime Information, has discovered essential approval for its intimate peek into beforehand unheard Hazel and Alice follow tapes.
Gerrard has appeared on greater than 20 recordings, together with tasks with many conventional musicians corresponding to Tommy Jarrell, Enoch Rutherford, Otis Burris, Luther Davis, and Matokie Slaughter; with Tom Sauber and Brad Leftwich as Tom, Brad & Alice, with the Concord Sisters, the Herald Angels, Beverly Smith, and with Anna Roberts-Gevalt and Elizabeth LaPrelle.
Outdated-Time workshops are on Saturday from 1:30-5:00 p.m. on the Earle. The workshops are $25 per individual and individuals could register on-line www.surryarts.org or rj@surryarts.org or name 336-786-7998. Via lessons, shows, workshops, and performances individuals will be taught from a number of the most esteemed and revered musicians within the discipline: Chester McMillian, Martha Spencer, and Emily Spencer.
The workshops will happen within the Historic Earle Theatre and can embrace fiddle, banjo, guitar, bass, singing, and dancing – no matter individuals wish to be taught. Martha Spencer is a singer-songwriter, mountain musician, and dancer from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. She grew up within the musical Spencer household and realized to play a number of devices (guitar, fiddle, banjo, bass, dulcimer, mandolin) and flatfoot/clog at a younger age. She has performed exhibits, festivals, and led workshops throughout the US, Australia, UK, and Europe. She simply launched a solo album and has been included in articles corresponding to Rolling Stone Nation, No Melancholy, Huge Open Nation, Cowboys & Indians Journal, Americana Highways, and PopMatters.
Emily Spencer is an authorized PK-12 instructor and has taught fiddle, banjo, guitar, mandolin, dulcimer, and bass within the colleges and at Wilkes Group Faculty and Wytheville Group Faculty. Since childhood, she has performed music and began taking part in with the Whitetop Mountain Band within the Seventies with Thornton Spencer and continues with the band at this time.
Chester McMillian was born in Carroll County, Virginia, right into a musical household and group. He has performed conventional Outdated-time Spherical Peak type music since childhood. By the point he was 11 or 12 years previous, he was dwelling in Surry County and taking an energetic half within the Spherical Peak music group. In 1962, Chester married into Dix Freeman’s household, and the 2 started taking part in a number of music collectively. Chester performed guitar with Tommy Jarrell for fifteen years, and he developed his guitar type particularly to play with Tommy. He has additionally performed and recorded with Dix Freeman, Kirk Sutphin, and Greg Hooven, with whom he based the group Backstep.
On Saturday the WPAQ Merry-Go-Spherical begins at 11 a.m. with workshop instructors and individuals adopted by bands together with Grace ‘N Grass.
Lew Bode and Jim Vipperman will preside over the Tommy Jarrell Competition Youth Competitors on Saturday at 3 p.m. within the Andy Griffith Museum Theatre under the Andy Griffith Museum. Classes embrace fiddle, clawhammer banjo, guitar, vocal, dance, and different (which incorporates all different devices and bands), in two age ranges: 5-12 and 13-18. Contestants could have three minutes to carry out and may have one accompanist, although no recorded backup is permitted. Contestants could register on the occasion, there is no such thing as a price for competing, and trophies are awarded following the competitors.
Whitetop Mountain Band will take the stage on Saturday at 7 p.m. for the Tommy Jarrell Birthday Live performance and Dance, hosted by Lew Bode. The Whitetop Mountain Band is a family-based band from the very best mountains of Virginia. Recognized for his or her excessive power and charisma on stage, Whitetop Mountain Band is among the hottest dance bands of the Appalachian Mountains. They’ve carried out in any respect kinds of venues all through the US and overseas together with the Smithsonian Folklife Competition, Nationwide Folklife Competition, World Music Institute, Carter Household Competition, Dock Boggs Competition, World Truthful, Virginia Arts Competition, Floyd Fest, Ola Belle Reed Competition, and Merlefest. Tickets are $10.
For added info or to buy tickets, go to www.surryarts.org or name the Surry Arts Council at 336-786-7998. Tickets may also be bought on the door earlier than every present if they’re out there. Choose Tommy Jarrell Competition occasions are supported partially by the North Carolina Arts Council, a division of the Division of Pure and Cultural Sources.
