Just days after the conclusion of the 76th annual Brockwell Gospel Music School, Music School Director Beverly Meinzer has some exciting news to share as she and others from the school will travel to Washington D.C.
“A group of us from the music school have been invited to participate in the 2023 SmithsonianFolklife Festival held at the National Mall on the nation’s capital,” Meinzer said. “We’ll be there from June 29 to July 5.”
The Smithsonian Folklife Festival, established in 1967, honors contemporary living cultural traditions and celebrates those who practice and sustain them.
Each year, the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage features participants from across the world and this year’s theme is “The Ozarks, Faces and Facets of a Region”.
The festival takes place over the course of two weeks each summer and is an educational, research-based presentation featuring artisans and tradition bearers.
“We invite visitors to sing and dance along, try craft and game workshops, learn traditional recipes, ask questions, and take part in this unique cultural exchange,” a representative of the festival said.
Meinzer said she and others from the school have been asked to not only attend the festival, but to participate as well.
“We’ve been asked to hold two sessions a day to talk about shape note singing and demonstrate that. We’ll be part of a community sing on the night of July 3 and will sing with some local Mennonite groups. This year’s Smithsonian Folklife Festival is all about the Ozarks,” Meinzer said.
Justin Wilson, Natalie Stephens and Loyanna Everette Meinzer are looking forward to sharing the art of shape note singing with the world.
“We are very honored and excited for this opportunity to go to the nation’s capital and tell them about shape notes and shape note singing. I almost have to pinch myself to know it’s really real,”Meinzer said. “We will proclaim shape note singing in that area. We are so thankful to the Lord for this opportunity and to our benefactors. People who believed in us and for those who have come before us…”
For more information and to learn about the festival, visit https://festival.si.edu/.
Lauren is a an award-winning journalist who decided after 10 years of newspaper experience to venture out. Hallmark Times was born.
