Thursday, December 17, 2009

Valerie Smith and Liberty Pike to bring even more bluegrass music into Kentucky elementary classrooms!


Valerie Smith and Liberty Pike will perform concerts in 21 Owensboro, Ky.-area elementary schools during the month of January. The All-School Bluegrass Assemblies are a part of the International Bluegrass Music Museum’s Bluegrass in the School Program (BITS).

The January dates mark Valerie Smith and Liberty Pike’s second term as the featured artists for this presentation. They were the very first assembly program presenters in Owensboro in 2004 and their overwhelming popularity created a successful foundation for a program that is now in its seventh year of implementation.

“Our presentation is about 45 minutes and covers the basics about how and where bluegrass was formed,” says Liberty Pike’s Becky Buller. “Valerie is a former junior high music teacher and has a knack for putting together a program that keeps the students engaged 'til the last,” she adds.

The in-school concerts by national acts are a much-anticipated annual event in the Owensboro area, taking place as part of the Museum’s ongoing educational outreach efforts. Schoolchildren, faculty and administrators, as well as parents who take in the concerts during the school day, often report back that they are the best programs they’ve ever seen in the schools.

“The students seemed to have a lot of fun and were really open-minded to learning about this uniquely American music,” Buller agrees. “I would encourage other bands to look for ways to reach out to students in their own communities with this kind of program. Who knows? They may catch the attention of a kid who will grow up to be one of the next icons of our music!”

The Museum’s BITS program is designed to interest elementary-age schoolchildren in bluegrass music. If—after receiving an eight day, in-depth introduction to fiddle, guitar, mandolin and banjo in their classrooms—they want to learn to play bluegrass, they can then sign up for group lessons at the Museum, with instruments on loan as part of the Saturday Lessons Program.

After four years, 1,711 beginning and intermediate students of all ages have taken group music lessons in this one-of-a-kind, authentic and historic setting. There’s nothing else quite like learning to play bluegrass while surrounded by the actual clothing, posters, photographs and artifacts of Bill Monroe and other greats!

"Bluegrass is one of the few truly American musical genres," Buller says. "The museum is preserving all the wonderful stories of Bluegrass' creators and innovators for not only future generations of musicians, but also for the public at large. By becoming a member, we are supporting the preservation of a national treasure," she says.

Sponsors of the Museum’s BITS program are the Michael E Horn Family Foundation, Lester E. Yeager Charitable Trust, Kentucky Arts Council and the John D’Addario Foundation for the Performing Arts. Participating school systems are Daviess County Public Schools, Owensboro Public Schools and Owensboro Catholic School System.

For more information on the Museum’s educational outreach and lessons programs, call Gabrielle Gray at 270-926-7891 or email her at Gabrielle@bluegrassmuseum.org.

Assembly schedule for Valerie Smith and Liberty Pike:

Jan 11
8 am Foust
10 am Newton Parrish
1 pm West Louisville

Jan 12
8:15 am Cravens
10 am Tamarack
1 pm Country Heights

Jan 13
10 am Sutton
1 pm Meadowlands

Jan 14
8:15 Catholic K-3 Campus
10 am Catholic 4-6 Campus
1 pm Sorgho

Jan 15
8 am Whitesville Elementary
1 pm East View

Jan 19
8 am Mary Carrico Knottsville
10 am Saint Marys of the Woods Whitesville
1 pm Deer Park

Jan 20
8:30 am Estes
1 pm Burns

Jan 21
1 pm Southern Oaks

Jan 22
9:30 Audubon
1 pm Highland

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