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App Summer Fest Popular Music Opens with Kacey Musgraves, Outdoor Fireworks Saturday

kaceymusgraves
Kacey Musgraves

 

Pack your weekend with music, a picnic under the stars and fireworks on Saturday as a performance by country starlet Kacey Musgraves kicks off the season for An Appalachian Summer Festival. Musgraves is one of many big names that will headline the festival’s Schaefer Popular Music Series this summer.

Gates open at 6 p.m. on Saturday at Kidd Brewer Stadium on the ASU campus for the 7:30 p.m. concert. Get your tickets online now or call 828-262-4046. Tickets for the outdoor fireworks concert with Kacey Musgraves are $38 for adults, $33 for Blue Ridge Electric Members and $5 for children ages 6 and under. The concert is sponsored by BREMCO.

Musgraves, a Nashville-based singer/songwriter and Grammy award-winner, broke out with her prized debut album, “Same Trailer Different Park” in 2013, which included her single “Merry Go ‘Round” that won the 2014 Grammy for Best Country Song. She received the

 

She received the award for New Artist of the Year at the 2013 CMA Awards and Song of the Year at the 2014 CMA Awards. Musgraves’ highly anticipated sophomore album, “Pageant Material,” released on Tuesday and pays homage to the throwback sounds of her heroes – including Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn and Willie Nelson.

 

Here’s more about what you can expect from Musgraves in concert and other headliners like The Beach Boys, David Grisman Sextet, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Lisa Fischer and Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox.

 

Brian Stokes Mitchell with the Winston-Salem Symphony, July 11

Named “The Last Leading Man” by The New York Times, Brian Stokes Mitchell has enjoyed a rich and varied career on Broadway, television and film, along with appearances in the great American concert halls. On July 11 at 8 p.m. the Schaefer Center for the Performing arts will welcome Mitchell with the Winston-Salem Symphony, one of the region’s oldest and most respected professional arts organizations.

David Grisman Sextet featuring special guests Bryan Sutton Band, July 17

David Grisman is a long-time legend on the mandolin and a renowned innovator in acoustic musical composition. Dubbed “Dawg” by cherished friend Jerry Garcia, Grisman collaborated with the Grateful Dead on “American Beauty” and later formed Old & in the Way with Garcia. Grisman is known to combine jazz, folk, bluegrass and modern jazz-fusion to create what he calls “Dawg music.” The Bryan Sutton Band, led by sought after guitarist Bryan Sutton with David Grisman’s son, Sam Grisman, will open for David and his sextet. The show will be held on July 17 at 8 p.m. at the Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts.

The Beach Boys, July 18

For over 50 years the Beach Boys’ music has shaped rock and pop culture around the world. After forming in 1951 as a 5-piece American rock band, the group rivaled the British Invasion with their unique vocal harmonies and lyrics reflecting lifestyle on the California coast. Over 80 of their songs have charted worldwide, including popular hit singles “Good Vibrations,” “Surfin U.S.A.” and “California Girls.” The band is comprised of founding member Mike Love, veteran Bruce Johnston, Christian Love, Randell Kirsch, Tim Bonhomme, John Cowsill of The Cowsills and Scott Totten, performing in Holmes Convocation Center at 8 p.m.

“Twenty Feet from Stardom’s” Lisa Fischer and Grand Baton, July 23

The festival proudly presents Lisa Fischer on July 23 at 8 p.m. in the Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts. Fischer is featured in the 2013 production “Twenty Feet from Stardom,” a film that pays homage to unsung heroes of the music industry. Fischer won a Grammy for Best Female R&B Performance for her hit single “How Can I Ease the Pain” and has been on tour with the Rolling Stones, Sting, Chris Botti and Nine Inch Nails. The talented singer has also recorded music with artists including Beyonce, John Scofield and Dolly Parton.

Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox, July 31

Scott Bradlee is an American musician, pianist, arranger and YouTube sensation noted for recording pop hits of the present performed à la pop hits of the past. Miley Cyrus’ “We Can’t Stop” assayed as a doo-wop number; Macklemore and Ryan Lewis’ “Thrift Shop” modified in flapper jazz; Sam Smith’s “Stay With Me” rendered as a 1940s big-band standard. Bradlee manifests postmodernist ideas in his approach to production and business as well as music. The show will take place on July 31 at 8 p.m. in the Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts.

 

Tickets:

With ticket prices ranging from $5-$50, as well as several free events, the festival offers unique opportunities for residents and visitors to create arts experiences suited to their individual artistic tastes and budgets. To purchase tickets, call or visit the Schaefer Center box office at 800-841-2787 or 828-262-4046. Tickets can also be purchased online at appsummer.org.

 

About An Appalachian Summer Festival

An Appalachian Summer Festival is presented annually in July by the university’s Office of Arts and Cultural Programs. Beginning as a small chamber music series, the festival has emerged as one of the nation’s most highly regarded, multi-disciplinary art festivals, designated one of the “Top 20 Events in the Southeast” by the Southeast Tourism Society. True to a university-based arts festival, educational experiences such as lectures and opportunities to meet artists, artistic directors, competition jurors and other experts, have always been an important component of festival programming.

Festival Corporate Sponsors:

Westglow Resort and Spa, Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corporation, Northern Trust, McDonald’s of Boone, Mast General Store, Storie Street Grille, Goodnight Brothers, Boone Area Visitors Bureau, Sky Best Communications, Scholars Bookshop at the University Bookstore, Hotel Equities, Holiday Inn Express-Boone, Nationwide—Charles Eyler Agency, Peabody’s Wine & Beer Merchants, Chetola Resort, Creekside Electronics and Boone Ford-Lincoln.

Festival media sponsors include:

WBTV, WCYB, Charter Media, Winston-Salem Journal, Greensboro News & Record, PBS Charlotte, WNC Magazine, High Country Radio, WHKY AM 1290, WDAV 89.9FM, WFDD 88.5FM, WETS 89.5FM, WASU 90.5FM and High Country 365.