Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country
Founded 05-05-05

February 1, 2007 issue

Picking Up On Old-Time Traditions

Junior Appalachian Musicians Program Makes Learning Traditional Music Fun

Story by David Brewer

It’s somewhat of an unlikely scene, really. Watauga Arts Council Folklorist Mark Freed greets excited young music students by name on a frigid Thursday night as they shake off the cold and enter the warmly lit Jones House shortly after 6:00 p.m.

Though they might not realize it, the enthusiastic youngsters represent a link from the past to the future; they are studying old-time music and enjoying it.

The world is becoming smaller each day. Because of incredible technological advances, someone across the world who is completely unfamiliar with the Blue Ridge Mountains can not only listen to old-time music, but can also learn the history, download songs and become an overnight expert, all with the touch of a button. And while that is exciting in many ways, it does not constitute heritage.

With many of those same thrilling technological advances competing daily for the often-short attention spans of children, many older musicians are worried that youngsters won’t be interested in learning the songs and skills of their ancestors. Fortunately, the Watauga Arts Council is reeling them in with the highly successful Junior Appalachian Musicians program.

Started in 2000 by Alleghany County Schools guidance counselor and fiddle champion Helen White, the JAM program teaches children the finer points of old-time musicianship. With initial encouragement coming from the National Endowment for the Arts and current funding by provided by North Carolina Arts Council, the JAM program has spread to nine counties across Western North Carolina, getting started last October here in Watauga.

Currently 28 students between third and eighth grade, several of them home schooled, are studying music on guitar banjo and fiddle as a part of the JAM program at the Jones House. The lessons cost $3 per week. Rental instruments are available to students for $2 per week.

Instructors at the Jones House include Cecil Gurganus on fiddle, Randy Sheets on banjo, Amanda Wright on guitar and Josh Hayes on guitar and vocals, as well as Freed filling in occasionally on banjo.

“Basically the idea is to just pass the traditions on to kids and give them a chance to play,” said Freed. “We want to try to expose them to a variety of mountain music.”

Though many of the programs are operated on an after-school basis, Freed said that choosing just one school to host the program proved problematic. Instead, the folklorist decided to host the JAM program at the Jones House, a central place where old-time musicians already gather each week to swap tunes, stories and techniques.

To further encourage and expand their repertoire, Freed and the students have created a CD library. Students can borrow from the library, learning tunes from old-time masters at home while preparing for weekly practices.

Though the students work hard during lessons, the group has been treated to educational performances by skilled old-time musicians including Wayne Henderson and Herb Key, as well as Randy and Deborah Jean Sheets.

“[The music] is such fundamental stuff; they could just use it to go on and play anything,” said Freed. “My hope is that once these kids learn, they’ll stick around for the community jam and play a bit.”

Many parents have listened to their children toil away in their rooms, trying to read the notes on the page while willing their fingers into the proper positions. Though it may be true that practicing young musicians can sometimes drive even the most patient parents to plug their ears, learning music has consistently proven to be a positive experience.

The Jones House parlor is no exception. Hayes performs the dual role of referee and guitar teacher. After finally calming down the boisterous group, the guitarist starts them on learning the familiar chord structure of traditional mountain song “Tom Dooley.” A similar scene plays out upstairs as anxious fiddle students practice their fingerings on “Old Joe Clark” between the inevitable sword fights with fiddle bows.

Studying guitar through the JAM program, 11-year-old Maura Shawn Scanlin already plays fiddle and piano. Scanlin is a member of local fiddle trio The Forget-Me-Nots.

“She’s hoping to learn the basic chords and some songs she can sing,” said her mother Charlene Trestain. “She wants to learn more about the old-time music.”

Alexander and Christine Clymer, ages 12 and 10, are studying fiddle and banjo respectively. With music running through the family, Cindy Fuentes, the children’s mother, saw an ad for the program in the paper and encouraged them to give it a try.

“I’ve wanted them to do this for a long time,” said Fuentes. “They have an opportunity to hear other music, which is great. The kids are excited to come every week and they practice together.”

To Freed’s delight, local children aren’t the only ones wanting to get in on the musical action. Several adults have inquired about the program, hoping that something similar to the JAM program might be offered for older students. Freed noted that a slowed-down jam for beginners is held upstairs during the weekly Thursday old-time jams at 7:30 p.m.

If the program continues to grow, Freed said that other satellite programs for younger students could be a possibility. Currently a few spots are still open for guitar and banjo students.

With this semester’s practices ending at the beginning of the summer, Freed is planning for the students to perform as a part of the first Watauga Arts Council Concert on the Lawn. For many of the students, the performance will be their first, but hopefully not their last.

While the notes that emanate from the Jones House on Thursday night aren’t perfect, they are the sound of the promise that old songs and styles will not simply fade into the hills, but will continue to be played on the front porches of Appalachia and beyond.

For more info about the Junior Appalachian Musicians program, contact the Watauga Arts Council at 828-264-1789.

 

Arts Council in Search of Acts for Concerts on the Lawn 2007

Story by David Brewer

Though most of the Jones House lawn is still covered in snow, the Watauga Arts Council is already looking for musical acts to participate in this summer’s 15th annual Concerts on the Lawn series. Concerts are held on the front porch of the Jones House in downtown Boone every Friday from June 1 to September 28.

All musicians who would like to apply to perform this summer must submit an application by Thursday, March 15. Past Concerts on the Lawn series have featured a variety of musical styles including bluegrass, old-time, Celtic, reggae, jazz and Americana.

For more information and an application form, call Mark Freed at 828-264-1789 or click to www.watauga-arts.org.