The Blue Ridge Ragtime Festival, a first-time festival hosted by the Academy Center of the Arts, was held October 6-8, 2017, in Lynchburg, Virginia. The festival kicked off its first year with a full weekend of events and happenings featuring five professional ragtime pianists from across the nation.
The festival’s events included two unique concerts, a seated educational symposium, free performances at area schools and downtown venues, and a special silent film comedy screening with live accompaniment by featured performers.
Performers for the Blue Ridge Ragtime Festival included Bryan Wright, a Lynchburg native from Pittsburgh, PA, Frederick Hodges from Berkeley, CA, Martin Spitznagel from Pittsburgh, PA, Ethan Uslan from Charlotte, NC, and Bill Edwards from Washington, D.C..
Below, we’ve included photos from the weekend’s events.
Bryan Wright, Lynchburg native, performs on Friday night at “Euphonic Sounds: The Classic Rags of Scott Joplin and His Contemporaries”.
Frederick Hodges plays at the Lynchburg Community Market Hill City Keys Piano on Saturday morning.
Martin Spitnagel flashes a smile after performing at the Lynchburg Community Market on Saturday morning.
Bryan Wright performs at the Kegney Brothers’ Hill City Keys piano on Saturday morning.
Frederick Hodges scores the 1920s silent film ‘The Mark of Zorro‘ on Saturday night at the Academy Center of the Arts.
Ethan Uslan opens his performance on Sunday at the Academy Center of the Arts.
