Plans for Coal and Coke Heritage Music Festival set
Dr. Emmanuel Osagie, chancellor of Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus, is hoping a new regional music festival will serve as a platform to showcase the talents of local musicians and bring the community together. At a press conference Tuesday afternoon, Osagie said he came up with the idea for the Coal and Coke Heritage Music Festival, which will debut Sept. 27 at the campus, shortly after he moved to Fayette County about a year ago.
A committee of community representatives has been working for more than nine months to design the festival, which will celebrate the music, arts and culture indigenous to the coal and coke region of southwestern Pennsylvania, as well as the pride and progress these industries fostered.
Before he moved to Fayette County, Osagie, who was born and raised in Nigeria, said he lived in Louisiana and New Jersey.
“I have spent a good deal of time in such places as New Orleans and the Philadelphia area, where annual music festivals bring people together,” Osagie said. “There is a great deal of excitement and enthusiasm each year for the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, the Mardi Gras and the Philadelphia Folk Festival.
“A similar event seemed like a perfect fit for this area, where a unique history and the melding of so many cultures deserve celebrating,” Osagie added.
In the summer of 2007, a committee was created and the Coal and Coke Music Festival began to take shape as people from the Fayette County area participated and gave the festival life.
The Coal and Coke Heritage Music Festival will feature a wide range of musical genre, including jazz, folk, country, polka, gospel, bluegrass and much more. Several musical entertainers have already signed on to perform. They include local music icon Harold Betters, NewLanders, Simple Gifts, FiddleKicks, River City Brass Band, The Fabulous Softwinds, Lisa Yvonne Ferraro and Ferla-Marcinizyn Guitar Duo.
The festival committee is currently in the process of recruiting a nationally known act to headline the event.
“This festival will offer something for everyone – young and old alike,” said Gina Jones, committee chairman, lifelong Fayette County resident and instructor at Penn State Fayette.
“Keeping the history and culture of this coal and coke region alive is especially important for our youth and young professionals and passing on the rich traditions from one generation to the next is valuable,” Jones added. “Having an opportunity to bring so many people together to celebrate our history, music and cultures is rewarding. It will be a lot of fun.”
The daylong music festival will take place on Penn State Fayette’s 100-acre campus. There will be multiple stages, food vendor booths and arts and crafts displays. The Coal and Coke Heritage Center will be open for tours.
Betters, a Connellsville native who is known by jazz fans throughout the nation as “Mr. Trombone,” said he is very excited about the opportunity to play in the local festival.
“Gina Jones called me up and asked me if I wanted to perform in the festival. Her uncle is a local musician,” said 80-year-old Betters, who has performed for more than half a century. “I like playing in this area because I have quite a few fans in the Pittsburgh, Uniontown, Connellsville and Greensburg areas. I was very proud when they asked me to do it.”
The Softwinds, a Pittsburgh-based group that plays doo wop, oldies and classic Motown music, will be performing at the festival, according to manager Marlene Woodring.
“We’re very excited about the opportunity,” Woodring said. “The Softwinds also will be playing at Storey Square in Uniontown this summer. We have a new CD that will be released soon that includes three original songs written by band member James Satterwhite and Tony Zattola. We have played in Uniontown on several occasions, and we love coming to the area.”
The Coal and Coke Heritage Music Festival Web site will provide up-to-date information about the festival as new musical entertainers sign on and other educational-related activities are finalized. Go to www.coalandcokemusicfest.org
for updates.