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Big Sandy Singers to headline SCC International Festival Oct. 21
The Big Sandy Singers will headline the Third Annual Somerset Community College International Festival on Tuesday, Oct. 21. The group will perform in Meece Auditorium, which is located in Meece Hall on the SCC Somerset Campus North beginning at 5 p.m. Admission to all SCC’s International Festival is free and the public is invited.
The Big Sandy Singers are the auditioned, elite student singing group from Big Sandy Community and Technical College (BSCTC), based in eastern Kentucky.
The SCC International Festival will begin at 9 a.m. with the opening of The World Peace Exhibit, an art exhibit by Southwestern and Somerset High School art students. The art exhibit will be located in the East End Gallery, located in Stoner Hall.
The annual Parade of Nations displaying the flags of nations from around the world and featuring Meece Middle School students will take place at 10 a.m.
The opening ceremony for the International Festival will take place at 10:30 a.m. in Meece Auditorium. That will be followed by a performance by The Mountain Connection, a Bluegrass band, in Meece Auditorium.
The popular Ten Thousand Villages Crafts show will return for the second year. The Ten Thousand Villages event includes crafts items for sale made by craftspeople from around the world. Members of the Sheltowee Artisans will also have items on display and for sale. This event will begin at 11 a.m. in Meece Hall.
Visitors will have the opportunity to see displays and hear discussions about a variety of nations including Argentina, Scotland, Ireland, Germany, the Middle East, China, Latvia, Ghana, and Egypt. International foods will be available for sampling as will demonstrations of international fashion and dance.
Each member of the Big Sandy Singers is a student on one of the four BSCTC Campuses in Pikeville, Prestonsburg, Paintsville, and Hager Hill, Kentucky. Auditions for the Singers are held each May and the best and brightest are chosen. The top ten students become members of the group and receive $1,200 scholarships to attend college. The group is directed by BSCTC Instructor and 14-year veteran Kentucky Opry (Mountain Arts Center, Prestonsburg) member Laura Ford Hall; with Timothy Cooley, album producer and technical director; and 10-year veteran Kentucky Opry member Clayton Case, assistant director.
The group released its first album, “Down to the River to Pray,” in March of 2005 and have since released two others: “Going Home,” and “Bring the Rain”, with all proceeds from album sales benefiting the college music and drama department and music scholarships. The group’s new album, “When I Hear the Music” will be available for purchase at their concert. In total, the Singers have sold over 4,000 albums, locally within the last four years.
The Singers have performed several times on WYMT Television, at the Eastern Kentucky Exposition Center and previously at the Mountain Arts Center as well as many other venues. They had the great privelage of performing for Naomi Judd, Presidential Candidate John Edwards, and for KET for Congressman Hal Rogers’ P.R.I.D.E. Envy Awards. The group also sang back-up on choral pieces for Grammy award winning gospel artist Larnelle Harris and Grammy award winning bluegrass artist Ricky Skaggs. In addition, the Big Sandy Singers were the featured opening act for the gospel groups Gold City and The Isaacs.
The group also takes shows into area high schools and elementary schools, presenting a “go to college” and “drug free” message. The Singers also host, entertain and judge Big Sandy Community and Technical College’s Big Sandy Idol competition - a program that takes the Singers and their directors into 14 eastern Kentucky high schools, spanning a 5-county region, hosting talent shows. Students from each school are judged and two winners from each go on to the regional competition held each spring, where one talented contestant will win a $1,200 scholarship to BSCTC, an album of their very own, and a spot with the Big Sandy Singers.
“It is amazing the amount of talent in eastern Kentucky,” said Director Laura Ford Hall. “We are thrilled to bring our show to Somerset and hope that the entire community will come out and see our students, as we are so very proud of them.”
For more information about the SCC International festival contact Elaine Wilson, the SCC Director for Cultural Diversity and Professional Development, at (606) 451-6915.
Somerset Community College is a comprehensive two-year institution of higher education. SCC has campuses in Somerset and London, centers in Clinton, McCreary, Casey and Russell Counties. The website is www.somerset.kctcs.edu. Call for admission and registration information toll free at 1-877-629-9722.
KCTCS serves the Commonwealth through 16 community and technical college districts that form a seamless system of 62 campuses open or under construction. KCTCS colleges change lives by providing accessible and affordable education and training through academic and technical associate degrees; diploma and certificate programs in occupational fields; pre-baccalaureate education; adult, continuing and developmental education; customized training for business and industry; and distance learning. For more information, visit www.kctcs.edu.
