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The 29th annual Maury River Fiddlers Convention will be held at Glen Maury Park in Buena Vista this Friday and Saturday, June 16 and 17. The convention gets under way Friday at 6 p.m. and again on Saturday at 10 a.m.
Old-time and bluegrass musicians from throughout the region and beyond will gather at the park for friendly competition in individual instrumentalist, band and other categories. Cash prizes will be awarded to the winners.
There will be special performances on Friday by the Catawba Valley Boys (formerly the Bluegrass Brothers) and the Maury River Ramblers, and on Saturday by Mark and Karen Templeton and Colby Helms and the Virginia Creepers.
Competition categories are to include folk song, flatfoot dance, dobro, old-time mandolin, mandolin-bluegrass, guitar, old-time fiddle, bluegrass fiddle, bass, dulcimer, banjo-bluegrass, banjo-clawhammer and children’s contests Camping will be a little different this year because of ongoing improvements being made to the lower campground. Supply chain disruptions impacted the on-time delivery of necessary materials so that the electrical upgrades were not completed prior to the start of the camping season, as had been anticipated.
The camping area known as “the rally field” near the entrance to the park will have 88 dry camping spots available. Campers will be able to fill up with water near the pump station area and be able to use their generators. There is also a 53-site upper campground with electric and water hookups near the swimming pool.
Admission to the convention is $5 on Friday and $10 on Saturday. Children age 11 and under are admitted free with a paying adult. There is no fee to compete. Camping is $15 per night per site.
The convention began in 1994 when a group of local citizens organized it as a way to showcase Glen Maury Park and the greater Buena Vista area’s scenic beauty as well as to promote the region’s traditional music. For more information, visit https://mauryriverfiddlers.wordpress.com.
