The Indian Run Stringband will perform from 1 to 3 p.m., Sunday, Aug. 21, at Roanoke Mountain Picnic Area, milepost 120.4, on the Blue Ridge Parkway. The outdoor concert is one of the free Milepost Music sessions offered at popular historical sites in the national park.
Indian Run Stringband is led by Ginger Wagner on banjo and Paul Herling on fiddle. Herling began playing fiddle during the old-time revival of the 1970s, and learned from masters such as Tommy Jarrell, Albert Hash, and Marion Sumner. He has performed for many years at festivals, dances, schools, and concerts and has won numerous awards.
Wagner took up clawhammer banjo in the late ’70s, learning from traditional players including Dwight Diller and Mac Traynham, and has played at many dances and festivals. She performed for several years with the Blacksburg Hoorah Cloggers and is an experienced dance caller.
The Roanoke Mountain Picnic Area is located on Mill Mountain Parkway, a 2.5-mile road connecting the Blue Ridge Parkway with Roanoke’s Mill Mountain Park. Roanoke Mountain Picnic Area concerts are held the third Sunday of the month through September on the permanent stage near the restrooms.
Visitors are invited to bring a chair and sit a while to hear songs and stories about local musical traditions. Butch Robins will play the next session at Roanoke Mountain Picnic Area from 1 to 3 p.m., Sunday, Sept. 18.
The Milepost Music concerts showcase regional musicians playing traditional music at Humpback Rocks, Peaks of Otter, Roanoke Mountain Picnic Area, Mabry Mill, and Doughton Park on rotating Sunday afternoons. The programs are a collaboration between the Blue Ridge Music Center, Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation, and National Park Service.
