The Chocolate Drops

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Carolina Chocolate Drops presented byCharlotte Folk Society April 5

The Carolina Chocolate Drops will appear in concert at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 5, in the Northwest School of the Arts Auditorium, 1415 Beatties Ford Road, Charlotte.

The Carolina Chocolate Drops, a band of three young and talented African-American musicians, is recognized as leading the revival of old-time string band music.

They honed their skills under the tutelage of octogenarian fiddler Joe Thompson, a North Carolinian said to be America's last black traditional string band player. Thompson, who grew up in Mebane playing at barn dances, "frolics" and corn shuckings, wound up performing in venues across the country and beyond, including Carnegie Hall, and was honored in September 2007 with a National Endowment for the Arts Heritage Award.

The Carolina Chocolate Drops have left excited audiences stomping, clapping and whistling for more at major festivals from North Carolina to the State of Washington. Rolling Stone praises them for "dazzling velocity and virtuosity." Their energetic and joyful brand of string music created a sensation at MerleFest 2007. And they're sure to charm music lovers when they debut at Charleston's Spoleto Festival in June.

The Chocolate Drops come to Charlotte fresh from a tour of Ireland, England, Scotland, Holland, Belgium and France.

In the meantime, you can see and hear them in the movie "The Great Debaters," starring and directed by Denzel Washington.

Visit The Carolina Chocolate Drops website at www.carolinachocolatedrops.com.

This concert is presented by the Charlotte Folk Society, in partnership with Levine Museum of the New South, The Historic Excelsior Club, African Diaspora Arts Program and Theater (ADAPT),ÊNorthwest School of the Arts and the Afro-American Cultural Center. This project is made possible, in part, through a Cultural Project Grant from the Arts & Science Council and the Grassroots Program of the North Carolina Arts Council (a state agency).

Workshop

On April 5, Carolina Chocolate Drops band members Don Flemons (percussion/guitar), Rhiannon Giddens (clawhammer banjo) and Justin Robinson (fiddle) will lead freeÊinstrument workshopsÊfor young musicians playing beyond the beginning level.ÊWorkshops will take place concurrently, 3:30-4:45 p.m., at Northwest School of theÊArts.Ê

To register, go to www.folksociety.org, e-mail Drops Shops@yahoo.com or call 704-332-9146.Ê

Family fish fry

The Historic Excelsior Club, an anchor of Charlotte's black social life since 1944, located at 921 Beatties Ford Road, will host a Family Fish Fry before the concert fromÊ5:30 to 7:30 p.m. There will be "fish and fixins" for $5 for adults, $3 for children. It's all-you-can-eat.

Admission to the 7:30 p.m. concert is $12 adults; $10 seniors (62 years+); and $6 for students.

Tickets are available at www.folksociety.org and at the door.

For more information, contact Wanda Hubicki at 704-563-7080.

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