With riches of old time mountain, bluegrass and gospel music ringing throughout Appalachians and Blue Ridge Mountains - Virginia offers travelers a melodic journey.
Have you ever traveled through an area and wondered what was its claim to fame?
Thanks to The Crooked Road: Virginia's Heritage Musical Trail throughout several of the state's western counties the reasons remain as clear as a mountain stream. It is all about the music.
For centuries melodies have echoed up and down Appalachian hills and dales winding their way from Scottish and Irish origins, African folk songs and other influences. Native trees have been whittled down to instruments like dulcimers. Traditions continue to be passed along and a rich heritage established and now heralded.
Two hundred and fifty three miles comprise the Trail. From Clintonwood near the Kentucky/Virginia border down to close to Tennessee, skipping around the Blue Ridge Parkway and along the southern tier of the North Carolina section and up to Ferrum near Rocky Mount.
Knowing the difference in the music is essential. Old time mountain music relies heavily on the fiddle as the main melody maker, where as bluegrass made famous by people like Bill Monroe allows many instruments like guitar, bass or banjo to take the lead at various times during a song. Gospel, the backbone of both black and white southern churches produced a legacy of musicians and familiar songs for the entire world.
The Trail meanders along back roads and allows travelers to experience the melodies and harmonies, sometimes in their original birthplaces.
Like visiting the Carter Family Fold in Scott County. A Crooked Music Trail must do!
Back in 1927 A.P., Sara and Maybelle Carter, now called country music’s first family, launched their special brand of mountain music from the Poor Valley and changed the venue forever. Their songs and styles resound with weekly Saturday night concerts. Year-round audiences crowd the rustic theatre, and in the summer spill out to the hillsides.
Galax, nicknamed the “Old Time Mountain Music Capital of the World”, offers Friday night radio concerts from the historic Rex Theater. While the concerts are free donations for the Rex’s upkeep are appreciated.
Cannot wait until Friday? Turn your radio dial to FM 101 and start looking and listening. Several roadside pulloffs on and around Route 58 display the Crooked Road logo. Brief stories and musical snippets of various local musicians are offered – like the sweet tenor of Willard Gayheart and his “Last Train From Poor Valley”.
Galax is additionally the home to the Blue Ridge Music Center. Located off the Blue Ridge Parkway it is run by the National Parks Service and the National Council of Traditional Arts to "preserve, interpret and present traditional music of the Blue Ridge Mountains”. Highlighting primarily string band musicians, the concert series run from June through September.
Mark your calendars for Galax’s biggest event! August 6 –11, 2007 celebrates the 72nd Annual Old Time Fiddler’s Convention. Music from fiddles, mandolins, clawhammer banjoes, guitars and autoharp mix with the flying feet of dancers. Age knows no beginning or end here and awards are given for both young and not too young.
In conjunction with the Smithsonian Institute, The Birthplace of Country Music Alliance is a museum documenting southern Appalachian’s earliest influences to modern day. Located in Bristol Mall of Bristol, Virginia, and across the line from the Tennessee city of the same name, and just off I 81 – the BCMA is easy for just anyone to visit for an hour or the day. It was here, 80 years ago, musicians flocked to the studio of Ralph Peer and first recorded the sweet harmonies for commercial use.
Now devotees no longer have to traverse dangerous mountain paths or roads to hear the melodies. Simply following the Crooked Road Trail brings the delights to you.
For more information see:www.thecrookedroad.org
