The International Bluegrass Music Museum in Owensboro, KY has opened a new exhibit, Bluegrass Music: a history with many sources. It will run for one year, chronicling the beginnings of bluegrass and pre-bluegrass music.
The focus of the exhibit is the period from the early 20th century through the 1950s, covering the time when hillbilly and mountain music became popular on the radio, and as printed music. Included are songs folios dating back to the 1880s, stage clothes worn by Jimmy Martin and Earl Scruggs, Maybelle Carter’s autoharp, Birch Monroe’s fiddle, and other artifacts of the era.
A special interactive feature is included on buck dancing and flat foot clogging. Paul Anderegg and the Appalachian Step Percussion Services have created a video for the museum which introduces basic steps of these traditional dance styles. Wooden boards are installed near the video for attendees to try out their flat footing right there in the exhibit.
The museum is located in Owensboro, KY and is open Tuesdays through Sundays, with group and guided tours available by request. Full details can be found online.
Museum staff especially thanks Tom T. Hall and his late wife, Miss Dixie, who donated many of the items contained in the exhibit.
IBMM also has a concert with Darin & Brooke Aldridge scheduled for July 26. It is a benefit show for the museum, with proceeds given over to help continue their work of preserving and promoting the music. Ticket information can be obtained by contacting the museum office.
