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Old-Time Music Festival starts today

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The Old-Time Music, Ozark Heritage Festival in downtown West Plains celebrates its 27th year today and Saturday. The annual event celebrates Ozarks’ music and culture. Festival hours are 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. both days and admission to all festival events is free.

For more than 25 years, friends and neighbors have volunteered to bring a celebration to West Plains — a celebration of the distinctive music and folkways of the region. This year’s event is especially meaningful following two years of canceled/modified events and activities, and points to a brighter future.

 

EVENT SUMMARIES

Music on the outside main stage and civic center theater stages begins at noon and runs through at least 9 p.m. The lineup this year promises great performances all day by groups dedicated to their craft. Artist information is available on online at www.oldtimemusic.org, under “2022 Performers.” 

Workshops begin at noon in the Dogwood Rooms. Fiddle, banjo, harmonica, button box and dulcimer are among the offerings this year. Visit the website and click “2022 Festival Workshops” for details. 

Artisans and demonstrators will be located on the west civic center lawn in the Artisan Village. Flintknappers, basket-making, spinning and weaving, gourd art, Native American beadwork and even a rendezvous mercantile are featured this year. Click on “Artisans/Demonstrators 2022” on the website to learn more. 

The Mule Jump Competition will take place on the corner of East Main and Curry streets, with a demonstration planned for 4 p.m. and the competition at 7 p.m. Three categories (sizes) of mules will compete for over $600 in cash prizes. A “Mules of the Ozarks” discussion and storytelling is scheduled for 1 p.m. in the Magnolia Room. To learn more, go to the website and click “2022 Events and Activities.” 

The National Bob Holt Jig Dance Competition will be held in the theater at 2 p.m., with registration open at 1:30. There are four age categories, and each dancer competes to the same tune played by live musicians. Come try out your fancy steps. $400 in prize money, plus gift certificates, will be awarded. Come watch this unique dance style. Visit the website and click on “Jig Dance Competition” to find out more. A special onsite interview with Jig emcee Cathy Marriott will be held at noon in the Magnolia Room.

Traditional square dancing, where the caller is part of the square, will take place both evenings from 5 p.m. till 8 p.m., featuring a great lineup of musicians and hosted by Andy and Jane Elder. Details are on the website under “Square Dancing.”

The Cooking Stage will be located under the Brush Arbor in the civic center circle drive. Opening at 1 p.m. and continuing through 5 p.m., each day is filled with interesting dishes and discussions. The 2022 theme is “Ozarks Comfort Food – Dutch Oven Cooking.” Pie competition entries are due in the Redbud Room between 10 and 10:30 a.m. Results of the judging will be announced at 12:45 at the What’s Cooking Stage, followed by samples. Click on “Cooking Stage 2022” at www.oldtimemusic.org for more information.

Bucket Brigade teams will form and compete at 1 p.m., 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. near the Children’s Activities location on the east lawn. Look for the fire house and line up the teams! Children’s Activities, sponsored by the West Plains Boys & Girls Club, will be 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. Details on the website under “Children’s Activities.”

 

VENDORS AND JAM SESSIONS

More than 80 booths will offer a wide assortment of products, information about local organizations and demonstrations of traditional arts. These include food concessions offering everything from shaved ice to beans and cornbread.

Organizers say they are grateful for the vendors’ participation, and thankful to be able to provide a venue. These past two years, they note, have been especially hard for fundraising — whether for nonprofit groups or those who earn their primary living through festival-type events.

Fiddlin’ spots are available in three locations on the western side of the campus, to avoid conflict with the music on stage, said organizers. Look for the canopies with chairs and straw bales, including the shaded side yard of All Saints Episcopal Church. Open jam times have been scheduled indoors – from 10 a.m. to noon both days in Dogwood No. 1 both days, and at 5 p.m. on Saturday. At 5 p.m. today, there will also be an open jam on the theater stage.

The festival campus runs from St. Louis and East Main streets through the civic center grounds, and includes a block of Curry Street for the mule jump trailers. St. Louis and all other surrounding streets will remain open. There is ample parking in the city lots, note organizers, and golf carts will be working the parking lots to transport anyone needing assistance. Wheelchair-accessible parking is available as marked in the civic center west and north lots.

“Many thanks to the West Plains Daily Quill for preparing a special Festival Tab each year,” organizers add. “Copies were distributed to subscribers, and additional copies are available. More details and photos of artists and events are always included in that Tab.”

 

BROADFOOT COLLECTION ON DISPLAY

In addition to the festival activities taking place downtown, the public will have an opportunity to view the treasured Pioneers of the Ozarks collection of portraits and Ozarks’ landscapes created by historic Shannon County artist, L.L. Broadfoot.

The display is part of the Ozark Heritage exhibit at the nearby Harlin Museum, 405 Worcester St. in West Plains. The exhibit opens at noon today in conjunction with the Old-Time Music, Ozarks Heritage Festival and will be on display in the museum’s main gallery until July 31.

The show features the entire collection of cultural depictions of a bygone Ozarks era and the individual portraits and complete character studies drawn or painted by Broadfoot and included in his book “Pioneers of the Ozarks,” which was first published in 1944. Today, the book is in its fifth-edition copy, having sold hundreds of copies around the world, and is still available for purchase through the Harlin Museum’s gift shop and website, harlinmuseum.com.

Due to the size of the original collection — more than 80 pieces to the “Pioneers of the Ozarks” part of the collection and over 200 pieces to the Broadfoot collection in total— the gallery can only showcase the entire Pioneers-portion during the annual exhibit. Over the years, the museum has been contacted by many individuals who claim to be either a descendant of the artist or of someone who sat for one of Broadfoot’s portraits and wishes to see the work in person. The Harlin encourages all those who wish to view the art to stop in at the museum and take it in, in all its splendor.

Anyone interested in scheduling an individual or group tour can contact the museum at info@harlinmuseum.com or call 417-256-7801. The museum is currently open from noon to 4 p.m. every Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

The Old-Time Music, Ozark Heritage Festival is the signature event for West Plains. The festival seeks to celebrate, preserve, pass on and nurture an appreciation of the old-time music and folk life traditions distinctive to the Ozark Highlands.

2022 festival partners include the West Plains Council on the Arts, the city of West Plains, the Ozark Heritage Welcome Center, West Plains Civic Center, and Missouri State University-West Plains. Partial funding for this event is provided by the Missouri Arts Council, a state agency.

For more information on the festival email info@westplainsarts.org, visit the website at www.oldtimemusic.org, or follow @Old.Time.Music.Festival on Facebook.

Old-Time Music Festival, Ozark Heritage Festival, West Plains, festival


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