News & Events
News Articles
MARS HILL COLLEGE READIES FOR THE 43RD ANNUAL BASCOM LAMAR LUNSFORD FESTIVAL
“Old Harmonies, New Harmonies” will be the theme for the 43rd annual Bascom Lamar Lunsford “Minstrel of Appalachia” festival, to be held on the campus of Mars Hill College October 2.
This all-day festival celebrating regional music and dance traditions is the second oldest folk festival in western North Carolina and was named in honor of cofounder Bascom Lamar Lunsford. Lunsford, a musician and folklorist, dedicated his life to collecting and promoting the music of the Southern Appalachians, and through his work he became known as the "Minstrel of the Appalachia."
This festival, held at Mars Hill College, Mars Hill, North Carolina, showcases the talent and traditions of the region’s finest musicians and dancers.
This year’s Lunsford Festival is the largest in a lineup of programming in conjunction with “New Harmonies: Celebrating American Roots Music,” a Museum on Main Street traveling Smithsonian Institution exhibition which will be in Weizenblatt Gallery at Mars Hill College from September 25 – November 6, 2010. Additional information including hours, directions and a community calendar of music events related to the exhibition can be found at www.mhc.edu/newharmonies.
Performers scheduled for this year’s Lunsford Festival include: Arthur Jenkins, the Bailey Mountain Cloggers, Betty Smith, the Cole Mountain Cloggers, Don Pedi, the Doug Phillips Family, Joe Penland, Phil and Gaye Johnson, Roger Howell and Kathryn Parham, Sam Adams and Family, the Stoney Creek Boys, The Pegtwisters, the Trantham Family, and many more.
Daytime activities are free and will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. A main stage on the upper quad of mars Hill College will feature over 15 performances during the day; the Bailey Mountain Cloggers will perform in the upper quad amphitheatre at 10:30 am; a traditional ballad and story swap will take place in Peterson Conference Room (Blackwell Hall) at 1.30 pm; and impromptu jam circles and dancing are a common occurrence at the festival. At 4 pm, there will be a showing of a tribute video titled “Award Winning Musicians from Madison County” in Peterson Conference Room.
An evening concert featuring performances by the region’s best ballad singers, dancers, and string bands will begin at 7 p.m. in Moore Auditorium and will cost $10 for adults and $5 for children under 12 (Tickets can be purchased at the event or in advance through the Mars Hill College Bookstore.)