Photo by Cory Marie Podielski
Continuing with its 100th anniversary celebrations, the John C. Campbell Folk School presents Centennial Sounds, a series of five family-friendly performances on select Mondays at 7 p.m. in the Folk School’s Festival Barn throughout the summer months. Performing are the Tray Wellington Band with the Cherokee Language Repertory Choir (May 18), Amythyst Kiah and OkCello (June 22), Cornbread & Tortillas with Zoe & Cloyd (July 27), the Rebecca Porter Band with The Wilder Flower (August 10) and Jake Blount with Hubby Jenkins and special guest Hannah Mayree, in partnership with the Black Banjo Reclamation Project (September 14).
“The musical groups were chosen to reflect both the deep roots and the evolving future of Appalachian music,” says Lucy Allen, the Folk School’s communications manager. “The lineup includes artists who preserve traditional music, as well as musicians who are expanding and reinterpreting those traditions in exciting ways. Audiences can expect a wide range of sounds throughout the series, from traditional string band music and ballads to contemporary folk, roots and cross-cultural collaborations.”
The artists on the schedule are musicians who are touring and making careers with their music. “Their recent records and performances have shown that their music is connecting with larger audiences and coming into their original sounds,” says Allen. “While growing their fan base, each of the artists brings something new to the roots music world. They were chosen for this special series because they have something to share, something to say. It would be a challenge to not have these performers change your perceptions.”
Besides contributing their individual styles and techniques to the Appalachian music tradition, the musicians play with a larger purpose and a broad community in mind. The Black Banjo Reclamation Project, for instance, seeks to foster healing and a reconnection with their ancestral past by creating spaces for Black artists to teach, learn and craft the banjo as well as to perform on the instrument that dates back thousands of years.
Founded in 2023, the Cherokee Language Repertory Choir performs in the Christian shape note singing tradition, but rather than English, they sing in the Cherokee language. Cornbread & Tortillas brings together Appalachian and Latino artists as a way of building community.
“For Western North Carolina, the series helps celebrate and preserve Appalachian musical traditions while making live music accessible to the community,” says Allen. “It also provides an opportunity for people to connect with the Folk School, experience the campus and celebrate an important milestone in the school’s history.”
Since its founding in 1925, the John C. Campbell Folk School has placed an importance on music as part of the Appalachian heritage it seeks to further. “The school was founded on the Danish folk school model, which emphasized community life, cultural traditions and shared experiences, and music was a natural part of that community,” Allen says.
Tickets are $25 for adults and $5 for youth. Concerts will be held rain or shine in the Folk School’s Festival Barn. Learn more at FolkSchool.org/sounds where you can also keep up with additional concerts, community events and special programs throughout the summer.
