Smart Bets: Bascom Lamar Lunsford Festival

Posted on by Edwin Arnaudin

One weekend isn’t sufficient for celebrating the golden anniversary of the Bascom Lamar Lunsford “Minstrel of Appalachia” Festival. Named in honor of the man responsible for documenting Appalachian music and starting the Mountain Dance and Folk Festival, free events on and around the campus of Mars Hill University the week of Monday, Oct. 2, include a lecture by David Whisnant on Lunsford’s life and times, dances by the Bailey Mountain Cloggers and a listening party of vinyl from the Southern Appalachian Archives. The cornerstone evening concert has moved up from its traditional Saturday slot to Friday, Oct. 6, at 7 p.m. in Moore Auditorium. Expect performances by the area’s best ballad singers, dancers and string bands, plus the annual Ballad Swap and more the following day. Tickets for the Oct. 6 concert are $10 in advance/$12 day of show/$5 for children 12 and younger. mhu.edu. Photo by Mike Thornhill/Mars Hill University

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About Edwin Arnaudin
Edwin Arnaudin is a staff writer for Mountain Xpress. He also reviews films for ashevillemovies.com and is a member of the Southeastern Film Critics Association (SEFCA) and North Carolina Film Critics Association (NCFCA). Follow me @EdwinArnaudin
View all posts by Edwin Arnaudin →

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