Traditional musicians launch concert in the park Saturday
The Morgan Arts Council (MAC) launches the 21st annual summer concerts in the park series on Saturday, July 7 at 5:30 p.m. presenting the traditional music duo of Steve Hickman and John Devine. This first of eight free summer concerts is the only one staged at the gazebo in Cacapon State Park. The lake bathhouse serves as a rain location.
Berkeley Springs resident John Devine anchors the acoustic pair with his guitar picking and strumming as well as his strong and gentle voice. Steve Hickman is a lively fiddle player who is reknown for his hambone slapping. Hickman and Devine are popular performers on the traditional dance circuit. In addition, they have performed at a variety of locations from the John C. Campbell Folk School and Kennedy Center to the Library of Congress and Bluemont Concert Series.
The traditional repertoire played by Hickman and Devine ranges from sophisticated turn-of-the-20th century music to contemporary songs of country living.
Devine has called Berkeley Springs home for nearly a decade. He and his wife, Leslie Milbourne, live a life consistent with his choice of music. They operate a Community Supported Agriculture enterprise on their Wind Dance Farm as well as a variety of homeschool programs and summer camps. Their daughter Chenaya has been featured in several Ice House Theater productions, most recently, The Secret Garden. Hickman also lives the life of a traditional musician in a self-built log cabin in rural Virginia with his wife, DeLaura.
"This is a very family-friendly group," said Gordon Macleod who organizes the summer concerts series for MAC. "We hope lots of local folks as well as visitors take advantage of Cacapon State Park and enjoy the dance music as part of their picnic dinner."
The MAC Summer Concerts in the Park are sponsored by Carl M. Freeman Foundation. Additional funding for the free concert is provided by the National Endowment for the Arts, West Virginia Commission on the Arts and local hotel/motel tax revenues. For more information about the Morgan Arts Council and the calendar of upcoming concerts call 304-258-2300.
