A Texas non-profit and U.S. IRS 501(c)(3) charitable corporation, formed to promote and preserve Texas fiddling, to educate about and encourage fiddling traditions, and to ensure quality and excellence in Texas fiddle contests.
The Museum of Street Culture and the Texas Old Time Fiddlers Association Announce the 1st Annual 508 Park Fiddle Contest at Encore Park Dallas
November 7, 2015 at the 508 Amphitheater
Dallas, Texas – The 508 Amphitheater will soon resound to the music of fiddles, guitars and Western Swing. The Museum of Street Culture is partnering with the Texas Old Time Fiddlers Association (TOTFA) to create a Fiddle and Western Swing competition on November 7, 2015.
Fiddle and Swing Music are nothing new to 508 Park - it is famous for the field recordings that took place in the warehouse of Brunswick Record Corporation’s regional offices. From the building’s third floor, Don Law orchestrated field recording sessions across the state of Texas and produced 843 recordings at 508 Park between 1935 and 1939. It was here that the first recordings of Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys were made.
Fiddling has always been a part of the Texas heritage. Even Davey Crockett brought his fiddle and played at the Alamo. One of the very first country music recordings was done by Texan A. C. “Eck” Robinson, a fiddler from Amarillo, who recorded a tune called “Sally Gooden,” in New York in 1922. Eck was early innovator of what is now called the Texas Style of fiddling, many fiddlers today play this tune today much the same as it was originally recorded by Robinson.
Inspiration for this event came from Alan Govenar, one of the forces behind the Encore Park project. No stranger to Texas fiddling, Alan produced the 1985 documentary film “Texas Style” an intimate look at rural Texas culture and the traditional fiddle music played on its back roads. According to Alan, “This fiddle contest inaugurates The Museum of Street Culture music series, focusing on traditions that originate on the back roads and sidewalks of America — in small towns, sprawling suburbs, and inner city neighborhoods.”
The competition will feature six age divisions for fiddlers to complete in and has special emphasis on our younger fiddler: 8 and under, 9-12, 13-17, 18-39, 40-64, and 65 and over. There will be a category for the accompanists to compete and show their skills that help the fiddlers sound so good. To give recognition of the history of the first recording of Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys, there will be a special category called “The Roots of Western Swing” open to a fiddler or small group of fiddlers.
There is a high level of excitement in the Texas fiddles community for this new competition. According to TOTFA President Bart Baker “TOTFA had its beginnings in 1973 when a group of Texas fiddlers and musicians decide that an organization to improve the quality and better run fiddle contests in Texas was needed. We are very pleased to partner with The Museum of Street Culture to help promote and deliver a contest that showcases the fiddling and talent of our musicians and especially our young fiddlers.”
The competition will start at 10:00 a.m., Saturday, November 7, at the 508 Park Amphitheater. For more information please contact Alan Govenar ([email protected]) or Texas Old Time Fiddlers Association ([email protected]).
Web: www.totfa.org 2017 N. CR 810, Alvarado, TX 76009 Email: [email protected] A Texas non-profit and U.S. IRS 501(c)(3) charitable corporation, formed to promote and preserve Texas fiddling, to educate about and encourage fiddling traditions, and to ensure quality and excellence in Texas fiddle contests.
About Encore Park Encore Park, an outreach project of The Stewpot and First Presbyterian Church of Dallas, is an innovative revitalization program of an historic, but long-neglected block in downtown Dallas. Work began with the Church’s purchase of 508 Park and adjacent properties in 2011. With the goal of improving the lives of the homeless and improving downtown Dallas, the cultural social campus currently includes Encore Park’s 508 Amphitheater, Sculpture Wall and Community Garden. Fundraising for Phases II and III to complete the interior of 508 Park’s recording and art studios, rooftop, and Museum of Street Culture; add a teaching kitchen to the Community Garden; and renovate 515 Park is underway. More information at www.encoreparkdallas.org.
About the Museum of Street Culture The Museum of Street Culture (MSC) forges community between disparate worlds by providing new perspectives on historical issues and diverse cultures. Its core permanent exhibitions, educational activities, and public programs will link the early film history of 508 Park with the Blues, Western Swing, and Mexican music recorded there. MSC is planning sound/video installations, interactive technologies, social media and other innovative modes of presentation that will broaden its outreach to people of all ages and backgrounds and engaging underserved populations. In addition, MSC will focus on the homeless and the art they create, exploring current directions in street culture and their historical antecedents.
About the Texas Old Time Fiddlers Association A Texas non-profit and U.S. IRS 501(c)(3) charitable corporation, formed to promote and preserve Texas fiddling, to educate about and encourage fiddling traditions, and to ensure quality and excellence in Texas fiddle contests. Additional information can be found on the internet at www.totfa.org.
The 1st Annual 508 Park Fiddle Contest and the Museum of Street Culture concert series is supported in part by The Restoration Fund at the Communities Foundation of Texas, Documentary Arts, and Encore Park Dallas.
Web: www.totfa.org 2017 N. CR 810, Alvarado, TX 76009 Email: [email protected]