Kicking off with Tennessee Songwriters Qualifying Event
Bristol, Va./Tenn. (January 28, 2020) – Congratulations are in order for 13 talented songwriters who will participate in the Tennessee Songwriters Week Qualifying Round at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum in Historic Downtown Bristol on February 1.
Songwriters from across the region have submitted their original songs to the Birthplace of Country Music (BCM) for judging in the first qualifying round for Tennessee Songwriters Week. A few of these artists will be chosen to move up to perform during one of six Tennessee Songwriters Week showcases. Finalists from the showcases get the opportunity to share their music on the historic stage at The Bluebird Cafe in Nashville.
Tennessee Songwriters Week Qualifiers from Bristol are as follows:
- Jeffrey Benedict
- Harold Beverly
- Daniel Davis
- Logan Fritz
- David Gwaltney
- Chance Lawson
- David Ledgerwood
- Stephen Lockett
- Ella Patrick
- Brandon Sexton
- Beth Snapp
- Noah Spencer
- K. T. Vandyke
Everyone is invited to view the competition to be held in the Performance Theater at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum on Saturday, February 1, 2020 at 1:00 p.m. EST. Tickets are $15 to the public and available through the Events page at BirthplaceOfCountryMusic.org.
The 2nd annual Tennessee Songwriters Week will take place February 23-29. For more information about Tennessee Songwriters Week visit tnvacation.com/songwriters-week.
Wayne Henderson & Presley Barker and The Kody Norris Show are slated to perform at Radio Bristol’s Farm and Fun Time live variety show Thursday, February 13 at 7:00 p.m., with a pre-show listening party for the recently restored Farm and Fun Time radio transcription disc scheduled for ticket-holders at 6:30 p.m.
After the museum received preservation support from the Virginia Association of Museums, the Northeast Document Conservation Center has spent the past year engaged in the delicate task of putting a Farm and Fun Time transcription disc back together, using their technology and expertise to extract the songs and sounds of this original live recording of the Stanley Brothers with the Clinch Mountain Boys from the 1940s or 1950s. This will be the first time that this disc has been heard by a live radio audience in a very long time!
Hosted by Kris Truelsen and his house band Bill and the Belles, Farm and Fun Time is a celebration of Appalachian music and culture.
At just 14 years old, Presley Barker is a prodigious guitarist from Traphill, North Carolina, who has performed on NBC’s Today Show with Al Roker, Little Big Shots with Steve Harvey, and the Grand Ole Opry. He joins National Heritage Fellowship recipient and renowned luthier Wayne Henderson on stage for a finger-pickin’ good time!
The Kody Norris Show, the retro-rockabilly ensemble with colorful rhinestone-encrusted suits, will also perform, tipping a hat to vaudeville with humor and the same traditions created by Bill Monroe, The Stanley Brothers, and Jimmy Martin.
Tickets to be part of the studio audience for this February’s Farm and Fun Time are now sold out, but you can tune in to the listening party at ListenRadioBristol.org and watch Farm and Fun Time on Radio Bristol’s Facebook Live.
Musicians of all ages and skill levels will gather at the Museum for a lively Community Jam session on Saturday, February 15 at 2:00 p.m. There is no cost to participate. Later that evening everyone is invited to an old-fashioned Square Dance in the Special Exhibits Gallery with live music and led by caller Tyler Hughes. This is a free event, but those interested in attending are asked to RSVP through the Events page at BirthplaceOfCountryMusic.org. If you would like to have a red carnation corsage or boutonnière for your dance partner (or to treat yourself or a friend!) to make the evening extra festive, Pen’s Floral is offering a special just for our February 15th square dance attendees!
On Thursday, February 20 at 6:30 p.m. the Museum will host a screening of the Smithsonian Channel documentary Legend of Lead Belly as part of its 2020 Film Series. The screening is free and open to the public, but guests are asked to RSVP online through the Events page at BirthplaceOfCountryMusic.org.
Additionally, the Birthplace of Country Music Museum needs YOU to be a volunteer! Several times a year the museum hosts volunteer training sessions so potential volunteers can explore their individual areas of interest. Volunteers are needed in a number of behind-the-scenes and front line roles. The next Museum Volunteer Training session takes place on Monday, February 24 from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. For more information, email volunteercoordinator@birthplaceofcountrymusic.org.