Mountain Blog

If you listen to Mountain Stage on a regular basis, then chances are you're an avid listener of Public Radio in general. Like all the programs you hear on your local public radio station, Mountain Stage depends on the contributions from its listeners. Though public radio programming is always and will continue to be a free service, it certainly is not produced without cost. Nationwide, stations are holding their fall fund drive campaigns and as a listener to Mountain Stage, we hope you'll consider a donation if you haven't done so already.

You can contribute to your local station or provide a donation in the name of Mountain Stage through a pledge to WV Public Broadcasting, the network that produces Mountain Stage.

We like to think Mountain Stage is unique because you don't hear live performances on the radio much at all. Mountain Stage provides our audience  with a unique performance setting and then we share that experience nationwide through NPR and around the world on the Voice of America. We also provide a comprehensive ARCHIVE of the show for those of you who like to listen on the go, and we upload our segments every week to NPR.org/MountainStage so you can listen to each guest individually.

We even produced a special "Best of" Fund Raising Edition of Mountain Stage that you may hear during this pledge season. We tried to pick a wide variety of artists and styles, music from around the world, some established guests and some emerging artists, all of which presented in the spontaneous and exciting live performance setting that Mountain Stage provides. Click here to see a list of the songs we chose for our fundraiser episode. Music by Neko Case, Martin Sexton, Todd Snider, Steve Earle, Rosanne Cash, Nellie McKay and so much more is included in this two-hour special.

We hear from listeners all the time who appreciate what we do and we always appreciate your feedback. Our listeners and audience, be it live in Charleston or on the radio, are the ones who make our show possible. If you have the financial means to do so and feel that Mountain Stage is an important part of your listening routine then we hope you'll become a member today.

Thanks to everyone who joined us last night at the Keith-Albee Theater in Huntington, WV as Mountain Stage participated in the Create, WV Conference. Those of you in the audience can hear yourselves on the radio, along with our guests Kathy Mattea, The Songcatchers (above), Or, the Whale, Shannon Whitworth and The Ahs during the weekend of November 20-22. Follow our Broadcast Schedule for more and find a station and airtime in your area HERE.

Read a little more about Create WV in this Huntington Herald-Dispatch article, keep an eye on our MySpace for some more photos, and if you haven't done so already, we hope you'll become a fan on Facebook.

We will wrap up our recent round of road-shows this Sunday, October 18 in Huntington, WV at the Keith Albee Theater (925 4th Ave, Huntington, WV) as we kick off the Create WV Conference.

A ticket comes with registration, but you don't have to attend the conference to come see Mountain Stage with Kathy Mattea, The Ahs, The Songcatchers, Shannon Whitworth and Or, The Whale. You can purchase tickets by phone at through the Marshall Artist Series at 304.696.6656 or online at TicketMaster.com.

For more on each guest read our Setting the Stage Newsletter and come see us in Huntington.

This Saturday in Charleston, WV the Culture Center Theater plays host to the 8th Annual Mountain Stage NewSong contest for performing songwriters. WV Public Radio's Mona Seghatoleslami has an interview with NewSong director Gar Ragland and you can hear her story HERE.

Some of this year's finalists have been featured this week in the Charleston Gazette and The Charleston Daily Mail. Tickets for the contest can be found HERE and the show starts at 7:30 pm. One of the co-winners will perform on Mountain Stage Sunday night in Athens, OH. There are still tickets available HERE.

We're heading to Athens, OH this weekend, the home of Ohio University and our affiliate station WOUB, to record episode #705 with the Squirrel Nut Zippers, Southern Culture on the Skids, The Coal Men, These United States and the still to be determined winner of the 2009 Mountain Stage NewSong Contest. This will be our sixth trip to Memorial Auditorium since 2005 and we're looking forward to being back in Athens. Below is a link to our Live Show Newsletter, masterfully crafted by WV Public Broadcasting's Shawn Patterson.

Click HERE to read Setting the Stage Newsletter.

Mountain Stage sends a big thanks to those among the 1400+  that joined us last night at the Creative Arts Center in Morgantown, WV on the campus of  West Virginia University. We recorded episode #704 with our friends at WVU Arts & Entertainment, who always make us feel right at home and we look forward to being back in January. Stay tuned to the Mountain Stage Blog for the latest updates.

If you were in the audience we hope you'll tune in when this show broadcasts the weekend of  November 6-8. It will air on Sunday, Nov. 8 at 3pm on WV Public Broadcasting. Find a station and airtime in your area and tell some friends to tune in too. In the meantime we have some photos on our MySpace page and don't forget to become a fan on facebook.

We have some more great shows lined up if you'd like to join us in the audience. We have road-shows coming up in Athens, OH and in Huntington, WV. Tickets are on sale for all of our upcoming shows, including our Charleston, WV shows at the Culture Center Theater in November.

Visit our LIVE SHOW SCHEDULE for more info on artists and tickets. The only thing better than listening on the radio is witnessing the whole thing live.