The Festival of Gnarnia

AUGUST 9 - 11, 2012

As we journey around the sun, a brief window in time draws near. A unique moment for creative human expression comes to light. Far beyond the dirty sneakers forgotten in the depths of your closet, amongst the breathtaking Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, exists the festival of Gnarnia. For four days this refuge satisfies a special yet sophisticated taste with a legendary mélange of musical acts, performance arts, and artistic craftsmanship. You are cordially invited to the festival of Gnarnia, August 9-11th 2012.


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WOW! I'm in! This is the most unique "ski resort" you'll ever visit. Come for the music and spend a week here visiting Beech Mtn's Land of Oz extravaganze, Festival of Gnarnia. When it's over, head to Valle Crucis for a visit to the Mast General Store. Stop at one of the local spots in Blowing Rock for lunch that seats you outside to enjoy the view.

Asheville Mardi Gras Parade and Ball

This year's theme-"Homegrown, Fancy, and Free"
Sunday, March 6 · 3:00pm - 10:00pm
Downtown Asheville, and Pack's Tavern's Century Room

Everyone is invited to participate in, or simply spectate this family friendly spectacle. Asheville's Mardi Gras celebration is rapidly growing as more and more sparkles, feathers, and beads show up each year to march in our annual parade. The parade, led by this year's King and Queen, will be full of dancers, roller skaters, drummers and krewe's of colorful characters. The parade will line up in Pack's Square, NOT Walnut Street at 2:00 pm and will step off at 3:00 pm sharp, RAIN OR SHINE. We will then dance and march our way towards Walnut St, then to Lexington Ave, making a left on to Lexington, and then a right on to College St. Next, the parade will loop around Pritchard Park and up Patton Avenue to Pack Square. This is where the parade ends and the Mardi Gras Ball begins.

Interested in being a part of the parade? Gather your krewe of friends, family, classmates or co-workers or just yourself and come be a part of this great event. Feel free to get creative! Art cars and homemade floats are always welcome. Please register them on the Asheville Mardi Gras Facebook groups page. Remember that Asheville's Mardi Gras is a family friendly event and is “Homegrown, Fancy and Free”. Another great way to enjoy this event is to gather your friends and family, pull up a chair, sit back and watch the show! Bring a camera and be ready to catch beads.

After the parade is over around 4:00 pm, continue the fun and revelry at the Mardi Gras Ball in Pack's Tavern's elegant Century Room. Costumes are not required to enter the ball. This is a free event for the entire community to enjoy. There will be festive libations and extraordinary live music performed by Sirius B to keep us dancing all night long. For more information on the Parade or Ball, and for Mardi Gras events leading up to the parade day, check in with the groups page on Facebook under Asheville Mardi Gras.

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Grand Krewe at the Parade
Sunday at 12:00pm
Pack Square, Vance Monument/fountain area

Nataraj

Nataraj, translated from Sanskrit, means "king of dance", and we do our best to live up to that name.

Combining dynamic drumming with soaring otherworldly melodies, Our music weaves flowing improvisation together with the dancer's energy to create an interactive and high energy atmosphere. They are from Asheville, NC.

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(cross-posted to Easy Bake Coven)

Warren Haynes' Annual Xmas Jam

WARREN HAYNES PRESENTS: THE TWENTIETH ANNUAL CHRISTMAS JAM

(Asheville, NC) --For the past 20 years, Warren Haynes has coordinated his annual Christmas Jam. Like a family reunion, the annual, one-of-a-kind, semi-structured marathon of music brings together old friends on stage and in the audience at the Civic Center Arena in Asheville, N.C. for one of the countries greatest live events. The London Times has rated it "One of the top ten concerts in the USA."

"Christmas Jam started 20 years ago as an opportunity for local musicians to jam at the one time of year they were all in town at the same time. Back then, we gave the money to whatever charity we felt like. As the event grew and we became aware of Habitat For Humanity, we settled on them because we believe in the organization and know the money goes where its supposed to."

Featuring:
Steve Miller Band
The Warren Haynes Band
Gregg Allman
John Bell (Widespread Panic)
Umphrey's McGee
The Dirty Dozen Brass Band
Missing Cats

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Local Buskers and Street Performers

Some local street performers Around Asheville this weekend were captured by some of our area photo bloggers. Lots of talented folks around here and super surroundings just waiting to be captured and shared.

Derek Olson Photography

Through The Lens

Found via Mountain Xpress

Live At Moog with Amanda Palmer

YouTube via MoogMusicInc — April 14, 2010 — "Amanda Palmer & Her Nervous Cabaret Live at Moog Teaser. Catch Miss Palmers raucous performance shot live in the Moog Music Sound Studio in Asheville, NC Premiering April 21, 2010 exclusively at www.liveatmoog.com."

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Asheville Earth Day

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Asheville FringeArts Festival!

Thursday, January 21, 2010 at 8:00pm
End Time: Sunday, January 24, 2010 at 5:00pm
Location: Bebe Theatre and other venues
Street: 20 Commerce St, etc

Come One, Come All! Experience the best of the avant-garde, the experimental, the fringey, freaky, and titillating performances at the 8th Annual FringeArts Festival!

Featuring many talented local performers in a few venues!
All shows are different, so come see them all!

Festival Opening Night Extravaganza!
Jan 21st at 8pm
Located at Scandal's Nightclub, 11 Grove St.
Tickets only $8.00
Jen & The Juice, our musical headliners with Cookie La Rue, our mistress of ceremonies!

Fringe in a Blackbox: A Fringe Focus on Movement and Theatre
Jan 22nd, 23rd at 7:30pm, Jan 24th at 3pm
Located at Bebe Theatre, 20 Commerce St.
Tickets: $12 Students with ID/Seniors $10

Fringe on Wheels: A LaZoom Bus Mystery Tour
Jan 22nd, 23rd at 7:30 and 10pm
Bus departs from the Bebe Theatre
Tickets: $12 Students with ID/Seniors $10

Fringe Audio: A Fringe Focus on Sonic Experimentation
Jan 22nd, 23rd at 8pm
Black Mountain College Museum and Arts Center, 56 Broadway
Tickets: $12 Students with ID/Seniors/BMCM+AC members $10

GET YOUR FREAK PASS AND SEE ALL SHOWS FOR JUST $25!!!
**Tickets for individual shows are also available

Visit ashevillefringe.org for schedules, to buy tix, and get more fringey info.

See you at the Fringe!

Asheville Vaudeville

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Friends of Asheville Vaudeville Facebook Group

VIRATO LIVE! on Saturday

BRIAN "SKYE" FESTA

Saturday, September 19, 2009, 10:06 AM-11 AM EDT

Virato's guest this Saturday morning, Brian "Skye" Festa, was born and raised in Lancaster Pennsylvania, home to the Amish. Amidst his many adventures, he has studied Percussion Performance and Music Education at Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

He founded Koinonia in the Spring of 2008 and has compiled a holistic curriculum which gives each student their own creative foundation from the very beginning.

Gathering of the Peacemakers

Asheville/Black Mountain, NC

August 30-September 5, 2009

Our 90th One Event - Our 4th One Love Retreat!

Tons of events and music!

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The Grey Eagle, August Calendar

Some of the best music around today can be found at The Grey Eagle. It boggles the effin' mind, I tell you.

If you appreciate the essence of classic rock, you'll like Dungen. They're from Sweden and their sound is psychedelic rock sung in Swedish. Dungen's appearing Tuesday, AUGUST 18. And Woods is also on the bill.

The White Rabbits AND Fiery Furnaces visit Tuesday, August 25. They've got two drummers and tight vocals with a solid rock sound. What's not to love? Here's a video of my favorite song of the White Rabbits called "Percussion Gun".



There's much more in store in August at The Grey Eagle. Stop by the website and have a look at the calendar section. link

TRANSFIGURATIONS

THURSDAY, FRIDAY, SATURDAY - AUGUST 13-15, 2009

TRANSFIG-URATIONS: Kurt Vile, Coathangers, & more.

Other artists playing TRANSFIGURATIONS include: Bonnie Prince Billy, Akron/Family, The Books, The Budos Band, Espers, Circulatory System, The War on Drugs, Mount Eerie, Brightblack Morning Light, Jonathan Kane, Steve Gunn, Villages & Ice Cream.

Harvest Records of West Asheville will be celebrating its 5-year anniversary with TRANSFIGURATIONS -- an intimate gathering of Harvest's favorite musical artists today.

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TRON-A-THON

Tron-A-Thon Electronic Music Summit

Friday & Saturday April 10-11, 2009.

Club Nashwa & Hookah Joes
38 N French Broad St Asheville, NC.

Featuring live performances by Pnuma Trio, Future Rock, Elliot Lipp, Kap10, DJ Rootz, Two Fresh, Random Rabbit, Freepeoples Frequency, Sci Fi, Agobi Project, Midnight Ace, Aquarium, Somni Suite, DJ Ginza, Mindelixir, EP3, Tropa, Darth Brown, DJ Bowie, Par D, Live Painting by Ishmael, and Live Graphics by CODE-E.

For Tickets visit: http://www.tronathon.com

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Good Vibrations

Richard Hite approaches the three large gongs, kneeling reverentially and nestles in among the bells, conch shells, Tibetan temple horns and goat horns on the floor. He reaches up with a mallet, and with a feathery touch begins priming one gong with an arcing motion across the textured brass. The result is a continuous low drone that resonates deep into the skin. With his other hand he gives a second gong a glancing blow, the direct tone weaving into the undulating tones of the first.

"Playing the instrument regularly is as much a practice of my own spiritual path as anything else I do," says the 57-year-old Hite. "For me, it's a meeting with God, it's an expression of gratitude. I had a God experience the first time I heard one."

Hite and his partner of 20 years, physical therapist Susan Thompson, are living at the Embracing Simplicity Hermitage in Hendersonville while preparing for a concert at the Light Center in Black Mountain on April 25. "We don't have a plan after that," he says with astounding faith.

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Gathering of the Peacemakers

Life-changing Vacations in Beautiful Mountain Retreat Settings!
Reservations needed as space is limited!

The goal of our retreats is to prepare ourselves mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually for the coming decades of change so that we might share this peace with others.

Days of Conscious Instruction
Solar, wind, wilderness & earth skills, organic gardening, perma-culture, affordable & green shelters, building your own house, healing arts & holistic health, yoga, intentional communities, handling your money wisely, voluntary simplicity, creating & sustaining loving unions, finding your mission in life, staying awake in a sleeping world, creating visionary events & work, drumming circles, Hopi & Mayan prophecies, forgiveness & condolence ceremonies, & more! We also host a Native American “Elder-in-Residence” at each Gathering.

Nights of Celebration & Conscious Music
As the sun sets, we celebrate together. First, we gather around the fire circle where, via storytelling and video footage, we travel together through our books where you meet the Native America, Mayan and Rastafarian Elders and hear their messages of unconditional love for all. Our evening parties follow with performances by conscious recording artists including, Laura Reed & Deep Pocket, Roots Nation, Chalwa, Robanic, Tim Robinson, Songs of Solomon, Julian Abey, Black Rebels & more. Afterwards, there are drumming circles and our One Love Coffee Shop stays open late.


The Roskind family has organized and hosted 80+ free One Love Events at schools, prisons, Native American reservations and public venues in Jamaica and the U.S. All gatherings feature Jamaican and American conscious recording artists and carry the same core message: we are here to learn and teach love. They have also produced an award-winning PBS series and have authored 7Bob books that carry a message of unconditional love - One Love

Check out THEIR website - www.rastaheart.com

The gathering is just what Jah ordered

John Paul Jones, Allman Brothers, Derek Trucks Noodle ‘Til Dawn at Warren Haynes’ Christmas Jam

Guitarist Warren Haynes’ annual Christmas Jams are known for their jaw-dropping “wow” moments, but this year’s star-studded, 20th anniversary throw-down — held December 12th and 13th in Haynes’ hometown of Asheville, North Carolina — had more than usual. The one that silenced the 7,200 partiers who packed the Asheville Civic Center on the first night came when Haynes and one of his rock & roll heroes, John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin, appeared onstage together and played a stirring, acoustic guitar and mandolin version of the Zeppelin classic, “Going to California.”

When Haynes changed the lyrics to “Going to Carolina with an aching in my heart,” the crowd erupted. The duet came about three-quarters of the way into the Friday night show, which began with a performance by Haynes’ band Gov’t Mule, at about 7 p.m., and didn’t end until more than nine hours later, at 4:20 a.m. Saturday morning, when Haynes’ other group, the Allman Brothers Band, hit the last note of “One Way Out.”

Sandwiched in between were performances from the Derek Trucks Band, Joan Osborne, country singer Travis Tritt, bluegrass king Del McCoury jamming with gospel group the Lee Boys, and New Orleans funk band Ivan Neville’s Dumpstaphunk. On Saturday night, Haynes, who sat in with every act on both nights, did it all over again, this time with Ben Harper, Steve Earle, Coheed & Cambria, Johnny Winter and and a slew of guests including Susan Tedeschi and Drive-By Trucker Patterson Hood.

For 26-year-old fan Jeremy Hargett, who drove 10 hours, from Muscle Shoals, Alabama, it’s a Southern rock family reunion he hasn’t missed for the past five years. “Warren does this for people who still love live music,” Hargett said during Osborne’s set. “It’s like a big family of musicians and fans that we’re all a part of. And you always see something that just blows you away.”

Spiritual Didgeridoo Workshop: Discovering the Sacredness of Breath & Sound

828-891-8700 or 684-3798
Sunday September 7, 2008
Time: 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm
Unity Center, 2041 Old Fanning Bridge Rd
www.unitync.net

with Sound Therapist Phil Jones. During this interactive presentation, Australian sound therapist Phil Jones will teach you how to play the didgeridoo, an ancient and sacred wind instrument made from the eucalyptus tree, hollowed out by white ants, decorated with symbolic Dreamtime art, and traditionally played in ceremony and healing by the Aboriginal clans of Australia. Playing the didgeridoo is an entertaining way to explore the power of breath and sound and increase your lung capacity with healing and revitalizing oxygen…Shallow breathers, asthmatics, and smokers particularly benefit. You will discover how simple deep breathing exercises, when combined with the mesmerizing primordial sound of the didgeridoo, will effectively:

* Balance, Harmonize, and Recharge your Body, Mind, and Soul
* Erase ‘Thought Clutter’ and enhance Objectivity, Insight, and Clarity
* Enable you to authentically Express and Connect with your Creative and Intuitive Self

The primordial vibration of the didgeridoo and the simple breathing techniques help create a state of relaxation, lower blood pressure, relax the heart, improve digestion, and significantly reduce sleep apnea and snoring. Phil will also share the traditional Aboriginal techniques of “Circular/Continuous Breathing” and “Australian Bush” sound effects. Phil studied seven years with an enlightened Hindu teacher (1968-1975) and parallels the didgeridoo, a non-denominational meditation accelerator, with Eastern Philosophy, New Thought, and Aboriginal Traditions.

No musical experience is necessary. All participants will be provided an authentic Australian didgeridoo to play during the workshop. Didgeridoos and meditation CD’s will be available to purchase after the workshop. Love Offering.

World Bridge III

Tribal_Neuro Trance Under the Stars

July 11-13, 2008 presented by Those People Productions

Come dance with us in the mountains! Another year of amazing tribal/neuro trance under the stars at Deerfields. Bring your art, vibe, rituals, dancing shoes, and meet us on the floor for transcendental communication through sound and movement.

* This is a RAIN OR SHINE event with rustic camping accomodations.
* Bring EVERYTHING you need to survice...there is no re-entry.
* Camping is free Friday and Saturday nights. If interested in camping Sunday night, there is a land usage fee of $10.00US per person. This fee can be paid to the land owners when you are on site.
* No renegade sound systems
* NO DOGS PLEASE
* This is a LEAVE NO TRACE EVENT!!! Please respect the land and remove everything you bring (including trash) when you leave.
* Feel free to bring your artwork to help decorate!
* Rituals and vibes provided by You, the Community.
* ARRIVED INSPIRED!!!

Shimshai Live - One Night Only

Friday, May 30th

Shimshai is a Namaste family favorite. He will perform one night only outdoors at the Glen (a garden and natural ampitheatre) at Homewood in historic Montford neighborhood. Bring your blankets or lawn chairs for a unforgetable night in oneness. Teas and goodies will be for sale. This will be a rain or shine show (we have can move indoors if need be).

Whether singing the ancient Sanskrit mantras of India, the traditional folklore songs of South America, or performing his original works of divine inspiration, Shimshai’s music invokes a sentiment of ancestral devotion and a dedication to higher consciousness. A self-proclaimed seeker of truth, described by many as possessing the voice of an angel, Shimshai is gifted with the innate ability to deliver his message flawlessly in several languages; most profoundly the universal language of Love and Oneness.

$20 in advance $25 at the door. Gates open at 7pm

To reserve your ticket call Namaste Sacred Events 828.252.8149 or go to Namaste Yoga in downtown.

To learn more about Shimshai visit his website at www.shimshai.com