Calhoun's Folk Festival Belle - Ruby Shock
The West Virginia Folk Festival starts today in Glenville and continues through Sunday.
This year's folk festival will be dedicated to Melvin Wine who passed away in March at age 93. "He was a fixture at the
West Virginia State Folk Festival from the 1960s and every year holding together a large jam of musicians on Court Street
from his perch on a padded stool." said Ginny Hawker.
The West Virginia State Folk Festival was initiated in 1950 by Dr. Patrick Gainer "to preserve the remnants of West Virginia
traditional life and culture to the end that citizens may appreciate and respect the achievements of their forbearers."
Each year the volunteer festival committee dedicates these few days to rolling back the hands of time and "progress" by
presenting musicians, dancers, singers and crafts people who remind us of the beauty, grace and fun that life in these hills has
always held for so many of us.
The West Virginia State Folk Festival is a great time to look for beginnings of traditions we have come to anticipate. The
festival itself began on the Glenville college campus as an outgrowth of a summer class in folklore, taught by Dr. Patrick
Gainer. From an afternoon exhibit and evening program, it grew - and grew.
West Virginia has always had a strong hold on its culture - a culture shaped by the intensity of mountain life, and nurtured by
strong family ties and an enduring love of the land. Truly Appalachian from border to border, this love is plainly shown in its
music, storytelling, dance, ballads and handmade crafts that tell how life used to be, and how it is still found in community
centers, churches and homes today.
The Folk Festival celebrates these traditions each year in Glenville (pop. 2000), in the heart of central West Virginia. Special
guests include "Belles" in Pioneer costume representing the values and culture of each county. For many it is a reunion and
you are invited to share in the music, crafts, food and fun.
You can walk through Glenville and hear a beautiful waltz or an exciting dance tune played by fiddles, banjos, guitars and
dulcimers. You can join in the playing or singing or square dance to a local old-time band each night on an outdoor platform
built in the street.
On the streets you will see old-time musicians just playing the music they love. This has never been a festival of "stars," but
musicians do come from all over the world to play, purely for the joy of the music. The volunteer staff continues each year to
dedicate these days to celebrating our unique heritage.
We hope that you will join in and sing a song with us, give the square dance a try, or go home determined to learn to play the
fiddle. Most of all, we hope you will feel welcome in Glenville.
West Virginia Folk Festival
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