48th Celebration of Traditional Music at Berea College

We hope you can join us for the upcoming 48th annual Berea College Celebration of Traditional Music, October 14-17!

Due to the COVID pandemic, we are presenting a hybrid virtual/live event this year.

This year’s Friday and Saturday night concerts (October 15 and 16) will be streamed (no live audience, (Friday: https://livestream.com/bereacollege/ctmfridayoct15 , Saturday https://livestream.com/bereacollege/ctmsaturdayoct16 ). Concerts will stream at 8:00 P.M. There will be no workshops.

Performers Friday and Saturday include
• Master North Carolina mountain dulcimer players Lois Hornbostel and Ehukai Tevis ( L. Allen Smith performers)
• Walt Michael and Company, hammered dulcimer, bluegrass, and old-time music
• Earl White, dean of African-American string band music
• The Gibson Family from Richmond, KY and their repertoire of religious song
• Elizabeth LaPrelle, Appalachian ballads
• The Lua Project, Mexilachian music
• Theo and Brenna, Berea alumni who are tearing up the bluegrass scene in Nashville
• Special youth performer will be Riley Melton from the Pick’n’Bow program in Hindman, KY.
• Local Hero Award, Warren May
• Lifetime Award Winner, David Holt (in absentia)

In addition to our virtual concerts, we are also presenting some local events:

Our Thursday night, October 14, 8:00 P.M. Stephenson Memorial Concert in Phelps-Stoke Chapel will feature the great John McCutcheon. John is no stranger to CTM; a fine multi-instrumentalist and singer, he has appeared previously at CTM and been nominated for Grammy Awards six times. John is a traditional musician and songwriter whose original songs are deeply rooted in the Appalachian sound. McCutcheon’s compositions include the classic “Christmas in the Trenches,” a moving depiction of the 1914 Christmas Truce during World War I. This concert is open to the public as part of the Stephenson Memorial Concert Series, but proof of vaccination and masks are REQUIRED.

Saturday afternoon at 1:00, Berea City Park – Local folks! Come see a special Berea Story Trail, which centers on Dolly Parton and “Coat of Many Colors.” This beautiful story was put together by Heather Dent. At the start of the trail at 1:00 will be a puppet show by Richard Brown, and the end of the trail at 2:30, the Berea Bluegrass Ensemble will play. Bring a blanket or chair. Open to the public!
Sunday afternoon at 3:00 we hold our second annual Berea College Traditional Ensembles showcase, where the Black Music Ensemble, the Bluegrass Ensemble, the Folk-Roots Ensemble, Mariachi Berea, and the African Percussion Ensemble strut their stuff. The program will be held at Gray Auditorium and is only open to the campus community. Live for the campus community only, masks required; streamed for off-campus audiences. https://livestream.com/bereacollege/ctmsundayoct17 .

Please see the Berea College Celebration of Traditional music web page https://www.berea.edu/appalachian-center/ctm-schedule and “Berea College Celebration of Traditional Music” Facebook page for further information and updates.

Please join us in whatever capacity you can!

Berea College, the first interracial and coeducational college in the South, focuses on learning, labor and service. The College admits only academically promising students with limited financial resources, primarily from Kentucky and Appalachia, although students come from 40 states and 70 countries. Every Berea student receives a Tuition Promise Scholarship, which means no Berea student pays for tuition. Berea is one of eight federally-recognized Work Colleges, so students work 10 hours or more weekly, earning money for books, housing, and meals. The College’s motto, “God has made of one blood all peoples of the earth,” (Acts 17: 26) speaks to its inclusive Christian character.