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Come and have fun on
Labor Day Weekend !
Festival of the Rivers
As the Three Rivers Come Together So Do The People
Hinton, West Virginia
More information, click below
This music festival is located in Hinton, WV at the confluence of the
Greenbrier, Bluestone, and New rivers. As the "Gateway Community" for the New River Gorge National River, the community and festival are near both the National Park Service's New River Visitors Center on Interstate 64 and the breathtaking beauty of Sandstone Falls.
Beginning at 10 a.m. and ending at 10 p.m. daily, the Saturday and Sunday
event at Hinton's City Sidetrack Park, "Festival of the Rivers," remains FREE to the public. The festival features something for every member of the family and the Waterslide will be open each day from 11 a.m. till 7 p.m. Hinton's “Jewel of the Hills” features traditional, regional, and international music
performed by musicians from around the world to showcase the influence Appalachian music has had on the world.
City Sidetrack Park September 5 - 6, 2009
The free festival is held by the Flannagan-Murrell House, Inc. (FMH), a
501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation dedicated to using the arts for the benefit of the people of Hinton, Summers County, and West Virginia in general. FMH is maintained through community support and staffed by volunteers.
For more information on the organization please call publicity coordinator, Gregg Wingo, at (304) 646-3960 or visit the event website at
Festival of the Rivers is sustained through the ongoing support of the State
of West Virginia, corporate sponsors, and private donors.
Flannagan-Murrell House, Inc. (FMH) was founded in 1990 with the purpose of preserving the oldest extant house in the Hinton National Historical District. A group of concerned citizens of Hinton and Summers County banded together and obtained a loan to purchase the abandoned house in order to save it from being razed. Cost of annual membership in the organization is $15 for an individual, $25 for a family, or $50 in in-kind donations or services. FMH also offers lifetime memberships for $1000 and welcomes support for the continuing restoration of the building and program development in the arts. For more information e-mail Fred Long at hinton1000@aol.com or call 466-0005.
Their sound is pure
country. Taylor Made's
powerful music will
electrify your senses
while soothing your soul
with their trademark
harmonies. Siblings Brian,
Wendy, and Greg have
taken their unique style,
which began on a back
porch in Taylor County,
WV and crafted it into
the rich country sound,
that is truly
Taylor Made. Having
thrilled local fans for
the past several years, Taylor Made has now teamed up with Dale Morris and Associates from Nashville Tennessee. Dale Morris is the man responsible for such acts as; Kenny Chesney, Gretchen Wilson, Big and Rich and the country legends Alabama. Taylor Made continues to be one of the most requested country groups on local and Nationwide radio stations with the release of their new hit single Heavy Duty Beauty on the DMP WeBlast Record Label. Heavy Duty Beauty is being played nationwide on over 2000 country stations and, as of March 16, was #58 on the Music Row Chart.
Taylor Made's Greg Duckworth captures criminals by day and croons country music to thousands of fans in his off-duty hours.
The 38-year-old is a sergeant with the West Virginia State Police and the
detachment commander at Beckley. He also is a member of the band Taylor Made, a group he started about two years ago with his brother, Brian, 36, and sister, Wendy Williams, 30.
Greg has been a State Police officer for 17 years, but he has been a musician
for as long as he can remember. He said the same principles have guided him through both undertakings. "I don't think they could be any more different," he said. "The morals and values that have carried me as a policeman for 17 years are what are conveyed through my music. "Being a policeman is what has paid the bills. I have a deep passion for music. I really enjoy and like both."
He recalls singing as a kid with his mom and siblings on their back porch,
where they all belted out gospel music together. He and his siblings also were
in the church choir. The three grew up in Taylor County. Although they eventually moved to other parts of the state, they never forgot their musical past.
About three years ago, they learned about a contest hosted by Beckley radio
station Power Country 105. The contest, called the Colgate Country Showdown, has produced some national stars. On a whim, Greg and his siblings decided to form a band and enter the competition.
All three sing and play both acoustic and electric guitar. Greg and Wendy
also play mandolin. But they knew they would need some more musicians to be
successful. So they found five people to join them and called themselves I 79. The band's other members are Don Drummer on steel guitar, Dan Bailey on lead guitar, Tom Mallory on bass guitar, Rick Lloyd on drums and Dino Pastino on keyboard.
Although I 79 did not win the Colgate Country Showdown, it did continue playing and eventually was heard by the assistant to a Nashville talent agent when it played at a benefit for Hurricane Katrina victims. The agent, Dale Morris, represents A-list stars such as Gretchen Wilson and
Kenny Chesney.
Morris agreed to manage the band and suggested some changes. He recommended the band change its name because he said "the road sign thing" had already been done by Highway 101. He suggested Taylor Made because of the siblings' roots in Taylor County.
The band agreed to change its name, and its fan base is steadily increasing.
In July it played on the same stage as B.J. Thomas and Charlie Daniels for a
crowd of more than 30,000 fans at The Friends of Coal Auto Fair.
The feeling was surreal, Brian and Wendy said. "It's just a different level. You're singing with one of your idols," Brian said. "It's very humbling. It's very flattering." "It's an honor to be able to perform with those kind of people," Wendy added.
The band's popularity is increasing in Beckley, so much so that five or six
of its songs have held the spot for the No. 1 most-requested songs on the radio station Power Country 105 WTNJ. "They love the band. We get very positive comments," said Jay Quesenbury, general manager of Power Country 105. "They constantly request the music."
Some Nashville songwriters are beginning to take notice, too.
Taylor Made writes its own music and recently has been getting music pitched to it. Morris, the agent, has pitched some of his own songs to Taylor Made.
The siblings recently traveled to Nashville to meet with Morris and an image
consultant and now are awaiting word on what their next step should be.
While the brothers and sister say their newfound fame is exciting, they
continue to play just because they enjoy it. "We just love playing on stage," Brian said. Wendy said of fans, "They seem to like the flow of the show. It's just down home, country people making beautiful music on the stage." The audience never knows what to expect from the band as the siblings trade
off spots as lead singer. The band's spontaneity has led some fans to describe its music as "country music with an edge." Greg said others have called it "country music as a box of chocolates -- you never know what you're going to get."
"I would quote this band as being the Alabama of Beckley," said Cowboy Will, program director for Power Country 105. "They're huge."
The band currently is working on its third CD. The others are for sale on
their Web site, www.taylormadecountry.com. No matter how many CDs they make or how popular they get, the siblings hope they can stay in the state where it all started. "We're promoting ourselves as a West Virginia band and want to stay in West Virginia," Greg said. "This is where all of our family is," Wendy added. "We want to stay as close as possible as long as possible."
Brian lives in Greenwood and is a truck driver. Wendy lives in Greenwood and is a stay-at-home mother of three. Cowboy Will, the radio station program manager, said the band has been supportive of West Virginia. "They've done a lot of benefit concerts," he said. "They come to the plate
when needed and make their presence known. They're just really nice guys."
The siblings are quick to credit their fellow band members. "The three of us are nothing without the five of them behind us," Brian said. "Without them, we would be sitting on a porch somewhere."
People in Beckley hope to see their hometown band make it big one day, Cowboy Will said. "Everybody loves them," he said. "They're probably the most excellent band in southern West Virginia."
Festival Line-up 2009
Saturday, Sept. 5
Noon - 12:50-- Johnny Jones
1:00 - 1:45 pm--
2:00 - 3:00 pm-- 51/50
3:15 - 3:45 pm-- Dulcimer Dave
4:00 - 5:15 pm--
5:30 - 7:30 pm-- The Wild Rumpus
8:00 - 10:00 pm- Taylor Made
Workshop
11:00 am-- Dulcimer Building, Part 1
Sunday, Sept. 6
Noon - 12:50 pm-- Johnny Jones
1:00 - 1:45 pm-- Hans Creek String Band
2:10 - 2:50 pm-- Mary Dailey
3:10 - 3:50 pm-- Patrick O'Flaherty
4:10 - 4:50 pm-- Jimmy Costa
5:00 - 6:40 pm-- David LaFleur
7:00 - 9:00 pm-- Costa, Dailey, & O'Flaherty
Workshops
11:00 am-- Dulcimer Building, Part 2
2:00 pm-- Slide Guitar
5:00 pm-- Tales & Tunes of Hinton & Summers County
Schedule Subject to Change
Saturday Night
Headliner
Taylor Made
Saturday Night Headliner
Taylor Made
David LaFleur
With a rich tenor voice and a mastery of the guitar, dobro, mandolin, and dulcimer, David LaFleur has been performing his unique mixture of folk, Appalachian, blues, and bluegrass for over 20 years.
LaFleur learned his “chops” performing among such acts as Danny Gatton, Harvey Reid and the Johnson Mountain Boys. His original music has been featured on TV and radio across the country. His songwriting has placed him among finalists in numerous national songwriting contests. In one year alone, he was a finalist in six national songwriting contests and performed for audiences from Minnesota to Florida. Not only has he performed for over 250 audiences in the mid-Atlantic region he has performed internationally. Recently he was invited by ASCAP to perform at the Kennedy Center and won first place in the Australian Pacific Songwriting Competition.
Superb musicianship and an artful array of thoughtful and sometimes hilarious songs mixed with dynamic stage presence and dry wit keep LaFleur in high demand at concerts and festivals.
"David LaFleur is one of Americana's best examples of multi-instrumentalists, keying on acoustic instruments and musical styles. He can write, too. After seeing what he could do with guitar and dulcimer in such a setting, I was sold. He's a performer, my friends, and if you see his name on a bill somewhere, I heartily suggest you attend. Like I said before, this guy can play!" Frank Gutch Jr., Folk & Acoustic Music Exchange
Jimmy Costa
a Musical Anthropologist
West Virginia master
fiddler, banjo picker,
dulcimer player, you
name it, Jimmy Costa of
Summers County is one
of the best and he will
bring his mixture of
music and folklore to
the Festival of the
Rivers, in Hinton, on
Sunday, Sept. 6.
Costa has a love for the
old-time music, the roots
of the Appalachian music
we hear today. You could say he was "Born To Late," a dim light searching day after day for the past, reviving the music that made the Appalachian people strong.
His imagination soars when he play the music of the past. He believes that much of the state's cultural heritage is contained in the old ballads that were popular in the region at an earlier time. "When I play a tune, people know that it's a West Virginia tune," he said. "The music is part of the isolated fiddling culture."
He says West Virginia fiddle tunes were not as rhythmic as some of the tunes popular in other places in Appalachia. "In other places, music was important for dancing, but it wasn't like that in central West Virginia, where fiddlers used their bows differently for each piece they played. They played more for listening pleasure then for dancing."
But in addition to his fame as a singer and performer on the fiddle and banjo, Costa is also passing along his love of traditional mountain music to a new generation through workshops that will be held that day.
He is also a craftsman and curator and conservator of antique farm implements and tools of this region, rekindling the interest in Appalachia, its people and their traditions.
"It's hard to appreciate things where you grow up," he says. "We might be overwhelmed if we went to a big city. Many of the tourists who come here seem to have a great appreciation for nature. They can't imagine owning land and going out for a walk under the trees. They wouldn't think of throwing a piece of trash out of a car window. They seems to hav e a deep appreciation for the beauty of the state. They want to see it stay that way."
