August 12, 2010
The 21st Appalachian String Band Music Festival at Camp Washington-Carver in Clifftop, Fayette County, wrapped up Sunday, Aug. 8. During the event, some of the nation’s finest string band musicians and old-time dancers won prizes in four old-time “traditional” contests — fiddle, banjo, string band and flat-foot dance—plus one “neo-traditional” string band contest. In addition, ribbons for best original song and best original tune were awarded in the neo-traditional band category.
More than 2,800 people attended the festival, which began Wednesday, Aug. 4. Visitors from 47 states spanning Maine to California and Washington State to Florida were in attendance as well as folks from as far away as Canada, Sweden, Finland, Australia, Germany and England. The annual gathering features concerts, contests, crafts, dancing, family activities, workshops and master’s showcases. Monetary awards were given in each category to both youth and adult contestants. Next year’s festival will be held Aug. 3 - 7, 2011. Camp Washington-Carver is operated by the West Virginia Division of Culture and History (WVDCH).
The contest winners were:
Banjo
1st place ($400) - Paul Brown, Winston-Salem, N.C.
2nd place ($200) - Corbin Hayslett, Amherst, Va.
3rd place ($150) - Tim Bing, Huntington, W.Va.
4th place ($100) - Brien Fain, Stuart, Va.
5th place ($50) - Walt Koken, Avondale, Pa.
Youth Banjo Honors - 15 years of age and under
1st place ($100) - Edward Bennett, Penzance, Cornwall, England
2nd place ($50) - Victor Furtado, Front Royal, Va.
3rd place ($25) - Grayson Wickel, Asheville, N.C.
Senior Banjo Honors - 60 years of age and over
1st place ($200) - Walt Koken, Avondale, Pa.
2nd place ($100) - Pete Peterson, Oxford, Pa.
3rd place ($50) - Carl Baron, Gwynedd, Pa.
Fiddle
1st place ($400) - Joseph Decosimo, Durham, N.C.
2nd place ($200) - Jake Krack, Westfield, N.C.
3rd place ($150) - Paul Brown, Winston-Salem, N.C.
4th place ($100) - Paul Smith, Hardy, Ky.
5th place ($50) - Lester McCumbers, Nicut, W.Va.
Youth Fiddle Honors - 15 years of age and under
1st place ($100) - William Brauneis, Washington, D.C..
2nd place ($50) - Tristan Dennis, Morgantown, W.Va.
3rd place ($25) - Grayson Wickel, Asheville, N.C.
Senior Fiddle Honors - 60 years of age and over
1st place ($200) - Lester McCumbers, Nicut, W.Va.
2nd place ($100) - Paul Smith, Hardy, Ky.
3rd place ($50) - Harry Liedstrand, Lafayette, Ga.
Neo-traditional Band
1st place ($700) - Haggard Hopefuls, Ephrata, Pa.
2nd place ($400) - E-I-E-I-Ohm, Oberlin, Ohio
3rd place ($300) - Teaspoon and the Whoevers, Charleston, W.Va.
4th place ($200) - The Imploders, Morgantown, W.Va.
5th place ($100) - Up Jumpers, Hummelstown, Pa.
Youth Neo-traditional Band
($300) - David’s Nasty Toenail, Front Royal, Va.
Best Original Song (ribbon and certificate awards)
Teaspoon and the Whoevers, Charleston, W.Va.
Best Original Tune (ribbon and certificate awards)
Red Hen, Havertown, Pa.
Traditional Band
1st place ($700) - Big Foot, Marshall, N.C.
2nd place ($400) - P. D. Smith and the Smithtones, Hardy, Ky.
3rd place ($300) - The Bings on Krack, Westfield, N.C.
4th place ($200) - Red Akers and his Melody Makers, Seattle, Wash.
5th place ($100) - Pauline’s Old-Time Screaming Harlots, Pisgah Forest, N.C.
Youth Traditional Band (NEW CATEGORY)
($300) - Guide Chickens, Washington, D.C.
Old-Time Flat-Foot Dance - 15 years of age and under
1st place ($75) - Rebecca Molaro, Asheville, N.C.
2nd place ($50) - Lulu Furtado, Front Royal, Va.
3rd place ($25) - Victor Furtado, Front Royal, Va.
Old-Time Flat-Foot Dance - 16 years of age through 40
1st place ($75) - Becky Hill, Elkins, W.Va.
2nd place ($50) - Matthew Kupstas, Elkins, W.Va
3rd place ($25) - Ryan Clover-Owens, Ithaca, N.Y.
Old-Time Flat-Foot Dance - 41 years of age through 59
1st place ($75) - Ira Bernstein, Asheville, N.C.
2nd place ($50) - Jay Bland, Kennesaw, Ga.
3rd place ($25) - Jan Scopel, Annapolis, Md.
Old-Time Flat-Foot Dance - 60 years of age and older
1st place ($75) - Tom Ogden, Pittsburgh, Pa.
2nd place ($50) - Mary Butner, Winston-Salem, N.C.
3rd place ($25) - Marilyn Branch, Kalamazoo, Mich.
For more information about the 21st Appalachian String Band Music Festival, contact Jacqueline Proctor, deputy commissioner for the WVDCH, at (304) 558-0220.
A beautiful retreat listed in the National Register of Historic Places and operated by the West Virginia Division of Culture and History, Camp Washington-Carver serves as the state’s mountain cultural arts center. The facility nurtures the cultural heritage embodied in the site since its dedication in 1942 as a 4-H and agricultural extension camp for West Virginia’s African Americans. The camp is located in Fayette County adjacent to Babcock State Park, just off Rt. 60 (Midland Trail) on Rt. 41.
The West Virginia Division of Culture and History, an agency of the West Virginia Department of Education and the Arts, 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. Its administrative offices are located at the Culture Center in the State Capitol Complex in Charleston, which also houses the state archives and state museum. The Culture Center is West Virginia’s official showcase for the arts. The agency also operates a network of museums and historic sites across the state. For more information about the Division’s programs, visit the web site at www.wvculture.org. The Division of Culture and History is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.
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