By Matthew Jackson
Staff Reporter
HUNTSVILLE —
The No Foolin’ String Band, a local group of musicians dedicated to old time music, will perform a free jam session Saturday evening at the Wynne Home Arts Center.
The band, which includes several Huntsville residents, will begin their performance at the Wynne Home at 4 p.m. and break for dinner at 6 p.m. During the dinner break the Friends of the Wynne Home will offer a simple salad supper include pasta and homemade chicken salad at the cost of $7 per person. The band will resume performing at 7 p.m. and continue indefinitely.
According to Dr. Gene Young, director of the honors English program at Sam Houston State University and a founding member of the group, the No Foolin’ String Band grew out of a mutual love of old time music.
“We met each other at various music events around the state and realized that we had a sort of core of people interested in old time traditional music here in Huntsville,” Young said. “From that, we formed a band, and we’ve been playing for 10 years at least.”
The band includes fiddles, banjos and other traditional instruments, with a sound dedicated to preserving traditional American folk music.
“What we play is called old time music, and it’s essentially the traditional music that was played in the 19th century in the mountains in the southeast and on the frontier,” Young said. “We play essentially the same kind of music Sam Houston would have heard. It mostly circulates around fiddle and banjo.”
The band will continue performing at the Wynne Home on the second Saturday of every month, something the band relishes as a chance to offer a relaxed version of their unique sound.
“Wynne Home is a great place to play. We just love playing there because the acoustics are so great, and it’s very relaxed,” Young said. We don’t need to use microphones because the acoustics are so good. It’s almost like sort of going to your family reunion and sitting there listening.”
To reserve a meal or for more information, contact the Wynne Home at (936) 291-5424.
