Words and Music Performances
 
Jack Hinshelwood and Sharyn McCrumb. Photo by Greg Vaughn Photography.Take the writing of Sharyn McCrumb and the music of Jack Hinshelwood and combine them for an entertaining evening highlighting the Ballad Novels of Appalachian Novelist Sharyn McCrumb. This internationally acclaimed program brings together the ballads that are woven throughout Sharyn’s novels with Jack performing the ballads as Sharyn reads and discusses her work. This program has been presented at various venues including library programs, book festivals, performing arts centers, and educational seminars.

Listen to a sample:

The program highlights the following titles:
  • If Ever I Return, Pretty Peggy-O
  • The Hangman’s Beautiful Daughter
  • She Walks These Hills
  • The Rosewood Casket
  • The Ballad of Frankie Silver
  • The Songcatcher
  • Ghost Riders
  • St. Dale
“That was the best book-reading I’ve ever been to, I just love that they have the music. …(It) was nice if you’ve read her books to see how the music is tied to her writing.” —Debbie Bloom, Richland Public Library, The State, Columbia, SC
 
Check the Signings & Appearances page for upcoming performances.
 
Previous “Words and Music” Performances
 Sharyn McCrumb and Jack Hinshelwood at the Banff Centre, Banff, Alberta, Canada. Photo by David McCrumb.Mountain Cultures Conference, Banff Centre - Banff, Alberta, Canada
Pueblo City-County Library - Pueblo, CO
North Carolina Literary Festival – Raleigh, NC
Milligan College – Johnson City, TN
Barter Theatre for Virginia Highlands Community College – Abingdon, VA
Scottsdale Public Library – Scottsdale, AZ
Evansville Vanderburgh Library – Evansville, IN
Portsmouth Public Library – Portsmouth, OH
West Virginia Book Festival, WV Writing Project – Charleston, WV
Bowling Green Library – Bowling Green, KY
Lees-McRae College, Forum Series - Banner Elk, NC
Lexington Park Library – Lexington Park, MD
South Carolina Book Festival – Columbia, SC
Loudon Co. Public Library – Leesburg, VA
 
About the Performers
Sharyn McCrumb has been known to join in on a chorus of "Fox on the Run" during a Words and Music Program. Please go to her Biography page for more information about the author.
 
Jack Hinshelwood is an accomplished musician who began playing Appalachian and Bluegrass music on the guitar in 1972. He has won numerous music competitions including the guitar championship at the 1982 World’s Fair in Knoxville, TN.
 
In addition to playing and singing for the Words and Music Programs, Jack arranged and recorded "If Ever I Return, Pretty Peggy-O: Appalachian Ballads from the novel by Sharyn McCrumb." He also recorded "The Battle on Shiloh's Hill" for the Ghost Riders CD, which features a reading by Sharyn McCrumb.
 
Bluegrass Unlimited described Jack as “a fine quick-picker with a weathered, welcoming voice” for his 1992 recording Dark Run. Since 1994, Jack has been playing guitar and fiddle with Celtibillies, a four member group that has released three recordings, Come Dance and Sing, praised by Bluegrass Unlimited as “a masterful work of art that transcends all musical genres,” Greenwoodside, and, their newest release, The Shoemaker’s Child. Celtibillies performed at the 37th Annual Smithsonian Folklife Festival.
 
To book a program contact us at schedule@SharynMccrumb.com.

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