Celebrate the Labor Day weekend at the Museum in the Park at Chief Logan State Park with two outdoor concerts on Saturday, Sept. 3, from 5 - 9 p.m., and Sunday, Sept. 4, from 1 - 4 p.m. The musical events, “Music in the Park,” are free and open to the public.
Logan native Roger Bryant, a gifted musician whose roots are in the old-time and folk music traditions, will serve as emcee. Bryant also will perform as part of the weekend’s festivities. Bryant is the grandson of the folk legend Aunt Jennie Wilson. His career has spanned 30 years and 30 states, and includes almost every phase of the music scene. He achieved national attention in the late 1970s with his song “Stop the Flow of Coal,” and recently completed work on his fourth album, “On the Banks of the Old Guyan.”
Saturday evening’s concert will include Soup Kitchen, an a cappella group from Charleston and Mingo Village that sings songs of enduring world folk tradition and gospel; John and Marvine Loving of Cross Lanes, noted for their folk- and ballad-singing; Jarred Nutter and the Moonshine Monsters, an old-time band that took first place in the recent Appalachian String Band Music Festival’s traditional band contest; The Earl of Elkview, (George Daugherty) a trial lawyer who has travelled the world singing and talking about West Virginia; and the Genuine Junk Band which plays “rock ’n ’roll that grooves, enhanced with touches of jazz, blues and bluegrass.”
The Sunday afternoon concert will feature Bryant, who will open the show; singer Kim Shell of Logan; the All God’s Children Choir; Mystery Mountain Boys, a bluegrass band from Varney that frequently performs at the Delbarton Opry House; Angie Richardson, a traditional contemporary gospel music artist from Dunbar; and Robert Shafer and The Pour House Crew, a country band based in the Charleston area.
Visitors are encouraged to bring lawn chairs or blankets and spread out on the grounds near the stage. There will be bottled water available for purchase, and participants are invited to bring a picnic to enjoy with their family during the concerts. Alcoholic beverages are prohibited.
Visitors also may view the Museum’s current exhibit Snapshot in Time, a photographic history of West Virginia from the West Virginia State Archives collection. In addition, a selection of musical instruments from the West Virginia State Museum Collection, including Aunt Jennie Wilson’s banjo, will be on display.
For more information about Music in the Park, contact Adam Hodges, cultural program specialist for Museum in the Park, at (304) 792-7229 or Richard Ressmeyer, director of arts for the West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History, at (304) 558-0240, ext. 721.
The Museum in the Park is a regional cultural center showcasing the best in West Virginia history and the arts. It features changing exhibits and displays of artwork and historical items from the collections of the West Virginia State Museum and State Archives. One area of the museum is dedicated to local and regional history. It is operated and maintained by the West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History and is located four miles north of Logan on West Virginia Route 10 at Chief Logan State Park.
The West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History, an agency of the West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History, brings together the state’s past, present and future through programs and services in the areas of archives and history, the arts, historic preservation and museums. Visit the Division’s website at www.wvculture.org for more information about programs of the Division. The Department of Arts, Culture and History is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.