Sara Grey grew up in New Hampshire but also spent some of her youth in North Carolina, where she heard a lot of mountain music and developed a love for the old time banjo music and songs. She has carried this interest into her adult life, studying folklore and collecting and performing music from the various areas in which she has lived, including the U.S., Wales, Scotland and England. She has been concentrating for the last several years on tracing the migration of songs from the British Isles to North America. In addition to singing, Grey is well known for her banjo playing and storytelling. She performs with her son, Kieron Means, who was born in the U.S. and grew up in Britain, gaining a great love of the music of both traditions as well as the contemporary scene. He plays traditional songs from the U.S. and the U.K.; he also writes and performs original songs, and he is a skilled guitar player. Means has toured in the U.S. on his own in addition to performing with Grey. In 2000, he performed at Whitby and Wadebridge festivals, where he was received with much acclaim. His first CD received much praise, with airplay on “Travelling Folk” and “Mr. Anderson’s Fine Tunes,” both on radio Scotland. In 2013, the duo released a new album, Down in Old Dolores, of which David Kidman of fRoots wrote, “…virtually all of the material is drawn from old-time heritage, ably researched by Sara from the hidden corners of that tradition where the ring of the familiar often coexists with the unexpected twist or unknown variant.”
While you’re at the Museum, stop by the exhibit Southern Impressions: Paintings from the James-Farmer Collection (exhibit dates: December 11, 2015–July 4, 2016). This exhibit will explore stories of southern people, culture, and landscape through loaned paintings—from the collection of Dr. Nancy Farmer and Dr. Everette James, of Chapel Hill—and museum artifacts. The traditional ballads and songs that Grey and Means perform, like the paintings in this exhibit, reflect moments of daily life as it was when the artwork was created. “The “telling” of a story in ballad and song form achieves a similar result as an artist’s expression of capturing the same emotions and feelings on canvas,” said Grey. “The old songs depict a way of life…and the singer is simply the conveyer of the story.”
Music of the Carolinas concerts are made possible thanks to the support of Williams Mullen and the NC Museum of History Associates.
Parking Advisory: There will be a food truck rodeo in downtown Raleigh this same afternoon – please make your travel plans accordingly! Information about parking and getting around downtown Raleigh
