Somerset —
Musicians often say they spend blood, sweat and tears over their art. At this weekend’s Master Musicians Festival, “sweat” was the operative word.With temperatures steady in the mid- to low-90s — and an oppressive humidity in the air on Friday — music lovers still flocked to Festival Field behind Somerset Community College to see the acts at this 17th edition of the Master Musicians Festival. A two-day annual outdoor event, the festival is under new leadership this year, but it was virtually impossible to tell a difference — it felt like any other MMF of recent years.
“It’s really exceeded my expectations,” said Tiffany Finley Bourne, president of the MMF board, of the way the festival had gone by late afternoon on Saturday. “The weather has been holding out and doing great for us.”Finley Bourne’s expectations were high — she was hoping the favorable conditions (Saturday was hot, but at least festivalgoers were treated to a pleasant breeze breaking through the trees most of the day) would make for a “record-breaking crowd” by the time the biggest acts — Bluegrass masters Dan Tyminski and Ronnie Bowman, and soul slingers Robert Randolph and the Family Band — took the stage Saturday night.
The usual side attractions were present — arts and crafts, specifically by the Sheltowee Artisans, fun workshops for kids (and kids at heart), merchandise tents and delicious concessions — and the performers seemed to be having as much fun as the folks in the crowd. For the members of Reverend John and the Backsliders, who kicked off the festival on Friday, getting on stage as a local band could be considered a bit of a thrill (other local bands “IT” and No Tale Lights also performed on Saturday).“It was a bit nerve-wracking,” said Cory White, a guitarist, keyboardist, and vocalist in the band, “but the crowd was incredible. They made us feel really welcome.”
Ben Sollee, a Lexington singer-songwriter who brought a somewhat unusual instrument to the MMF stage — a cello — finished his set during some of the most sweltering, sweat-inducing weather.“It was hot and spicy up there,” said Sollee after his performance. “The lights on the stage add even more to it, but it was really good. The crowd was really generous.”
Being a Kentuckian, Sollee has plenty of friends and family in this area, and he enjoyed getting to come down and play in this environment for both his fans and newcomers to his unique brand of music, which he said developed “organically.”“Although I studied classically, I’d go home and my dad would be playing guitar, my grandfather would be playing fiddle, so I’d go home and play music with them,” said Sollee. “Incorporating all those techniques brought me to playing music like this.”
Sollee actually did double duty — following his set, Peter Rowan and Tony Rice, two Bluegrass music legends, were supposed to play together, but Rice reportedly injured his elbow and couldn’t go on. Sollee made a surprise appearance next to Rowan on stage — who, ironically, was himself (along with Rice) a replacement for John Cowan, who dropped out of his MMF slot to tour with the Doobie Brothers. Thus, the finished product on the stage around 8:30 p.m. on Friday ended up looking very different from what was originally booked.The heat was also no match for the New Englanders who traveled down to Kentucky — Berklee College of Music alumni Blue Moose & the Unbuttoned Zippers. String players from the prestigious Boston school took the stage on Saturday, and wowed the crowd with new versions of traditional folk and Scandinavian music, including a unique instrument called the nyckelharpa.
“It’s a Swedish instrument,” said nyckelharpa player Bronwyn Bird. “It’s a keyed fiddle, basically. The original one dates back to the 12th century, but the version I’m playing is about 100 years old.”Bird said Boston knows this kind of heat, but not the humidity. Still, “It was so much fun. This is our second time in Kentucky, and we’ve just had a great time so far.”
So to, MMF organizers hope, did those attended the festival this weekend — and those who will attend for years to come.
Local News
Related Photos
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Bronwyn Bird of Blue Moose & the Unbuttoned Zippers plays a Swedish keyed fiddle known as a nyckelharpa during her band’s set on Saturday. Chris Harris Photo
Heat no match for MMF performers
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Big Bang Theory
Pulaski County is not at war. The booming you may hear at dusk is mock cannon fire to scare away birds.
Stuart Spillman, environmental director for the Lake Cumberland Health Department, said at least three cannons are on loan from the department to residents who want to scare away swarms of starlings and blackbirds settling in to roost.
He said a cannon is being used by a resident on Laura Lane off Ky. 39; another is in the Oak Hill Road area and a third is on Ashurst Street in the eastern part of Somerset.
Spillman said a timer on each cannon allows it to “fire” at whatever frequency is desired. The cannons must be used as the birds circle before going to roost. “After they settle in, nothing will chase them out,” Spillman said.
The Health Department doesn’t operate the cannons unless there is a specific complaint in an area where there are lots of birds, Spillman noted. He said so far this year the birds are not as bad as in the past. -
Boil water advisory is lifted countywide
The water controversy that Pulaski County has been boiling over — so to speak — for the last week is finally over.
At 10 minutes after noon Wednesday, the “boil water” advisory for the Western Pulaski Water District was lifted — almost a full week after the problems began around 1 p.m. last Thursday.
Prior to that, the Somerset Water Service — along with the other water providers in its system, including Science Hill Water, Southeastern Water, and Eubank Water — lifted their advisories, with Somerset on Saturday afternoon and the last, Southeastern, by Monday morning. Western Pulaski was the last in the system to complete sample testing for potential contaminants, due to not being able to access its Pikeville-based testing lab until Monday.
Somerset Mayor Eddie Girdler thanked the public for its patience and understanding during the duration of the boil water advisory — put in place to keep citizens from drinking water that could have been contaminated after an accident last Thursday at the water plant site — and also thanked all the city employees for their hard work during this time.
“The boil water advisory went about as well as would be expected,” said Girdler.
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