John Wilson Community Garden in Black Mountain to hold Concert in the Garden

From The Dr. John Wilson Community Garden

Press release

The Dr. John Wilson Community Garden will host a concert in the garden on August 29. The evening will feature Aditi Sethi and Jay Brown with special guests Kiah Abendroth and River Guerguerian. A brief tour of the community garden will begin promptly at 6 p.m. with music starting at 6:30 p.m. Tickets for the event are $20 for adults and $10 for children, and guests need to bring their own chairs or blankets for this open air event.

Event producer and garden manager, Diana McCall, conceived of the idea after hearing Sethi perform. “I was immersed in work in the beauty of the garden and the image of her on stage in the garden came to me,” McCall explained. McCall invited Abendroth and Guerguerian to accompany Sethi and Brown. The four musicians call these mountains home, but their music has taken them around the world.

Sethi, a doctor who specializes in hospice care in Asheville, grew up in the Sikh and Hindu musical traditions of her family. Brown has been playing and recording music his whole life. In addition to a professional career as a hospice music therapist, Brown plays full time with the Lazybirds, and also plays as a one-man band. Brown and Sethi, a couple, have been playing as a duo since 2009 under the name Shantavaani which means “peace through music.” While rooted in ancient Indian music, the couple has pulled from their individual backgrounds to create a sound that combines Indian and Western instruments and influences, exemplified in one of their newest songs, “Freely Given Fruit,” which they will play the night of the concert.

Abendroth is a third generation female trumpet player who moved to the area last year from New York City where she worked as a performer, producer, teaching artist and private instructor. She continues her work in Western North Carolina while also serving as an interspiritual minister. Abendroth believes that music can bring beautiful and positive change for the individual and for the world as a whole.

Guerguerian has been inspiring audiences with his ecstatic and versatile percussion for over 30 years. In addition to being a world-renowned musician he is a local activist for music education for all ages and abilities. Guerguerian’s devotion and attention to the vibrant life of the drum reverberate through the mind and soul of the listener at every performance.

In addition to music the event boasts garden tours, refreshments and visual art. Paintings from plein air painters of the Asheville Urban Landscape Project will also be on display in an outdoor gallery.

Generous sponsorship from local businesses means that the outdoor event will be held under a tent regardless of weather. Support from the following make the event possible: Mellie Mac’s Garden Shack, Roots and Fruits Market, Asheville Rhythm, Solar Powered Sound, and Professional Landscape Solutions.

Proceeds from the concert will support the work of the Dr. John Wilson Community Garden, located at 99 White Pine Drive in Black Mountain, North Carolina. The garden grows more than 12,000 pounds of produce annually and is a program of Black Mountain Recreation and Parks.