First Metta Cultural Devmnt-WA, 12304 Lanham Severn Rd, Bowie, MD 20720, US

Silver Silver Spring MD, April 8, 2010 -Today, Class Acts Arts, the Silver Spring based nonprofit that brings culturally diverse arts programming to the greater Washington, DC area, announced a unique collaboration with The National Council for the Traditional Arts ( NCTA ) to host two local school performances of "Music From the Crooked Road: Mountain Music of Virginia" a national tour of old-time, bluegrass, mountain gospel and flatfoot dance, which will embark on a 13-city Mid-Atlantic tour from April 9 - 25, 2010. The tour celebrates the vibrant, living musical culture of Southwest Virginia and features NEA National Heritage Fellow and Appalachian guitar master Wayne Henderson, bluegrass banjo virtuoso Sammy Shelor, family old-time string band The Whitetop Mountain Band, old-time fiddle and banjo masters Kirk Sutphin and Eddie Bond and, representing the next generation of Blue Ridge musicians, the up-and-coming bluegrass band Amber Collins & No Speed Limit, and a young keeper of ancient mountain ballads and songs, Elizabeth LaPrelle. The touring artists of Music from the Crooked Road will perform for students at two Montgomery County Public Schools on April 20, 2010 - Strathmore Elementary in Silver Spring and Fox Chapel Elementary School in Germantown. Interested press should contact Liz Wheeler at Class Acts Arts at 301-588-7525 o r liz@classactsarts.org for more information about the school programs. "Music from the Crooked Road: Mountain Music of Virginia" is produced by the National Council for the Traditional Arts and presented in partnership with the Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation with support from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Virginia Tourism Corporation and The Crooked Road: Virginia's Heritage Music Trail. The tour has been designated a National Endowment for Arts American Masterpieces program, representing the best of American cultural heritage and legacy. About Music From the Crooked Road Winding for over 300 miles across the mountains, ridges and valleys of southwestern Virginia from the eastern slopes of the Blue Ridge to the coalfields, the Crooked Road ( Hwy. 58 ) passes through some of the most musical places on earth. For generations, the tiny rural Appalachian communities scattered along its length have produced an abundance of extraordinary traditional musicians. Keepers of an historic musical legacy with roots in the meeting of the African banjo and the European violin during colonial times, they have created and passed on old-time, bluegrass and mountain gospel sounds that have profoundly influenced the development of American music. The Crooked Road: Virginia's Music Heritage Trail was named a 2010 Distinctive Destination in February by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The outstanding artists appearing on this tour link the past, present and future of deeply rooted American traditions. They represent the thousands of area musicians, singers and dancers who love their home grown music, and make it every day in family kitchens, workshops, jam sessions at the local Dairy Queen, community dances, sings and musical gatherings of every conceivable variety. About the NCTA The National Council for the Traditional Arts ( NCTA ) is a private, not-for-profit corporation dedicated to the presentation and documentation of folk and traditional arts in the United States. Founded in 1933, it is the oldest folk arts organization in the nation. Its programs celebrate and honor arts that are deeply rooted cultural expressions - music, crafts, stories and dance passed down through time by families, communities, tribal, ethnic and occupational groups. The work of the NCTA is supported by the Maryland State Arts Council. About Class Acts Arts Celebrating its 15th year, nonprofit Class Acts Arts was founded to fill a critical need in the community for access to the arts. It offers performances and workshops for schools and communities throughout Maryland, Washington, DC and northern Virginia with o