|
It’s pickin’ and grinnin’
time again in New Albany, specifically at the Union County Fairgrounds as the
11th Down From the Hills Heritage Music and Mississippi State
Bluegrass Championships gets rolling this Friday and Saturday, May 18 -19,
along with music, activities and workshops.
Friday will begin with
workshops for students with Dr. Robert Damm, MSU, and his famous Drum Circle as well
as additional workshops in dancing, folk instruments, folk life and more. Saturday
the competitions begin at 10 a.m. with cash awards for both youth and adult
competitors this year, a departure from past years when the adults
and only the youth fiddle winners receive cash awards. “We wanted to
encourage more of the youths to participate and felt that giving them money for
winning would do that,” said Jill Smith, one of the festival organizers. "So
we are giving more youth categories awards this year. This will also help
us perpetuate the heritage music in the younger generation,” she said. Other
people working locally in the festival organization are Stanley Wise, Bethany
Dalton, Bill Kitchens, Ann Gray and Olivia Miller. The Union County Piecemakers
Quilt Club will have the annual quilt show and the North Mississippi Pony
Pullers will have a pony pull.
The Civil War Band Lost Cause
will entertain at noontime when there will be a break in the competitions.
"We thought that since we are in the sesquicentennial of the Civil War
that this band would be enjoyed," she said. Ben Hall, who is a world
champion guitarist, will also perform, as well as be a judge in the
competition. 
Another
new feature at this year’s festival will be a workshop at 11 a.m. on Saturday
for people interested in learning more about the Suzuki Method
of Music to teach fiddle/violin. Dee Heuer, a Suzuki teacher from the
Memphis area, will give the workshop that will
familiarize people with the method that was developed in Japan following
World War II to give the Japanese children more opportunities. It is now used
all over the world not only teaching violin but other instruments.
Conceived
in the mid-20th century by Shin’ichi Suzuki, a Japanese violinist who desired
to bring beauty to the lives of children in his country after the devastation
of World War II, Suzuki noticed that children pick up their native language
quickly, and even dialects adults consider "difficult" to learn are
spoken with ease by people of 5 or 6 years. He turned that logic to the field
of music and pioneered the idea that pre-school age children could learn to
play the violin if learning steps were small enough and if the instrument was
scaled down to fit their body. He modeled his method, which today we know
as the Suzuki Method. Suzuki believed that every child, if properly taught, was
capable of a high level of musical achievement. He also made it clear that the
goal of such musical education was to raise generations of children with
"noble hearts" as opposed to creating famous musical prodigies.
Along with Suzuki Violin, Heuer will also
demonstrate Celtic fiddle music. A teacher of violin and fiddle for 30 years,
she also has taught in the Department of Music at the University of Memphis.
She is now actively involved in Kinder Music for the very young.
Competitions that will be ongoing throughout the
day except for lunchtime will be in mandolin, dobro, guitar, banjo and
fiddle in both youth and adult. Then a band competition will follow. There will
be approximately $8,000 in trophies and awards. And this year there will be an
extra category for the Senior Fiddler – over 55. “We are expecting competitors
from across the Southeast. Last year we had musicians from several states to
compete,” Smith said.
Hopewell Presbyterian Church will have concessions,
and Stanley Wise says he thinks he will have fresh tomatoes for
sandwiches. The event is partially supported by a grant by the Mississippi Arts
Commission as well as other organizations.
It will end when there are not more competitors. Cost
of admission is $5 for each person over the age of 6. For rules and more information
call 662-538-0014 or 662-534-1916 for information on available campsites; for
information on rules go to www.mississippifiddlers.com .
Photos are Dee Heuer the
Suzuki /Celtic workshop person, The Band Lost Cause and the logo
| 
