By Whitney Hale
Watch Stephanie Jeter and Andy Duckworth, two members of The High Tops, perform "Red Headed Stranger."
The popular "Appalachia in the Bluegrass"concert series will return to University of Kentucky's campus this fall. The series showcasing the music of Appalachia will open Sept. 6 with a performance by The High Tops.
Concerts presented as part of “Appalachia in the Bluegrass” are free and open to the public and begin weekly at noon on Fridays, in the Niles Gallery of the John Jacob Niles Center for American Music, located at UK's Lucille C. Little Fine Arts Library and Learning Center.
An annual concert series, “Appalachia in the Bluegrass,” celebrates the old-time roots of American folk music, while simultaneously representing a variety of different musical expressions. There will be 12 different performances by noted soloists, duos and groups from Appalachia.
This year's series artists and their performance dates are:
- The High Tops, a quartet of old-time and early country musicians, Sept. 6;
- renowned banjo players Sam Gleaves and Sue Massek, Sept. 13;
- The Zinc Kings, progressive folk and string band from North Carolina, Sept. 20;
- Dulcimer legend Don Pedi, Sept. 27;
- Tall, Dark, and Handsome, Lexington trio known for its jazz and regional music, Oct. 4;
- Sparky and Rhonda Rucker, storytelling and singing duo, Oct 11;
- CornMaiz, Kentucky string band, Oct. 18;
- Mama Said String Band, Oct. 25;
- Paw Paw Pickers, popular Lexington old-time music band, Nov. 1;
- Women’s Suffragist Centennial Chorus, Nov. 8;
- progressive folk band Winterbirds, Nov. 15; and
- Andrew Finn Magill, fiddler with a Brazilian twist, Nov. 22.
The Niles Center is a collaborative research and performance center maintained by the UK College of Fine Arts, UK School of Music and UK Libraries.
For more information on the concert series, contact Niles Center Director Revell Carr at revell.carr@uky.edu or visit the website at https://finearts.uky.edu/music/john-jacob-niles-gallery-and-center-american-music.