“Folk Music as an Expression of Culture: Talks with Acoustic Demonstrations”
Sunday, September 22, 2024, from 2:45-4 p.m.
Herrick Pavilion and Stage, Valle Crucis Community Park (2892 Broadstone Road, Banner Elk, NC 28604)
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BOONE, N.C. — Appalachian State University's High Country Humanities—with support from North Carolina Humanities—is pleased to present “Folk Music as an Expression of Culture: Talks with Acoustic Demonstrations” on Sunday, September 22, 2024, from 2:45-4 p.m. at Valle Crucis Community Park's Herrick Pavilion and Stage, located at 2892 Broadstone Road in Banner Elk. The event is free and open to the public.
Join App State faculty members for folk music demonstrations and listen and learn to identify the defining characteristics of folk genres. Dr. Laurie Semmes will speak about the bandura, the national instrument of Ukraine, and Mark Freed will present on Appalachian folk music. Following these presentations, Dr. Jacob Kopcienski will lead an audience question-and-answer session.
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About Mark Freed
Mark Freed is an adjunct professor of Appalachian music in App State's Hayes School of Music (HSOM), a folklorist for the Watauga County Arts Council and the Director of Cultural Resources for the Town of Boone. He also oversees the Watauga Arts Council's Concerts on the Lawn series and hosts a weekly acoustic jam session at the Jones House Community and Cultural Center in downtown Boone. Freed worked with the North Carolina Folklife Institute to help create the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area's Traditional Artist Directory. He performs with various local and regional traditional mountain music groups and teaches private lessons in a variety of folk music styles. He plays banjo, piano, guitar and mandolin.
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About Dr. Jacob Kopcienski
Dr. Jacob Kopcienski is an assistant professor of musicology in the HSOM. His research and teaching focus on community-engaged music. He is also an accomplished saxophonist and a staff writer for the website I Care If You Listen.
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About Dr. Laurie Semmes
Dr. Laurie Semmes is a professor of ethnomusicology in the HSOM. Her research interests include Ukrainian-American bandura education and performance, the relationship between music and propaganda, Cuban music and culture and exoticism in the musical theatre. Dr. Semmes has presented papers at international conferences in Italy and Ukraine, as well as at national and regional conferences of the Society for Ethnomusicology.
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“Folk Music as an Expression of Culture” is the seventh event in High Country Humanities' ongoing series “Connecting Local and Global Rural Cultures.” This series of talks, workshops, demonstrations and film screenings is supported by a grant from North Carolina Humanities. Each event is designed for general audiences and will help the campus and broader public learn about the stories, histories and traditions of rural communities from our state and around the world.
For more information, contact Dr. Darci Gardner, director of High Country Humanities, via email at GardnerDL1@appstate.edu or by phone at (828) 262-2928.
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About High Country Humanities
High Country Humanities at Appalachian State University aims to foster a greater understanding and appreciation of the humanities across the High Country region of North Carolina. The program supports faculty in their scholarly activities, promotes their collaborations with community partners and organizes events that help their expertise reach the wider public. High Country Humanities is an initiative of App State’s College of Arts and Sciences, with support from the Division of Academic Affairs. Learn more at hchumanities.appstate.edu.
About the Hayes School of Music
The Hayes School of Music prepares young musicians for professional lives as performers, composers, music educators, music therapists, conductors and music industry professionals, ensuring the next generation of musical leadership for the state, region and nation. Noted for quality instruction by national and internationally recognized faculty musicians, the school offers four undergraduate degree programs and three graduate-level programs. Learn more at music.appstate.edu.
July 29, 2024
BOONE, N.C.
High Country Humanities at Appalachian State University
High Country Humanities at Appalachian State University