The Stone Fort Museum on the campus of Stephen F. Austin State University will serve as the venue for a St. Patrick’s Day concert by local band El Camino Real de Nacogdoches from 3 to 4 p.m. Saturday, March 16.
According to band members Paul Driver, Jon Hall, Charlie Jones, Mark McLain, Robbie Roach, Craig and Michelle Smith, and Jesse Tingle, the band is East Texas’ answer to The Old Crow Medicine Show, an Americana string band based in Nashville, playing old-time acoustic music using the fiddle, guitars, mandolin, banjos and percussion.
“Just as hands-on activities at the museum help learners, young and old, connect to their studies in new ways, performances relative to the musical heritage of Texas make history come alive,” said Carolyn Spears, curator of the Stone Fort Museum.
The St. Patrick’s Day musical celebration will showcase Celtic, as well as bluegrass, traditional country, Appalachian, folk and other music genres.
“The Irish brought their traditions to Nacogdoches early on,” Spears said. “The 1850 census listed more than 1,400 Irish living in Texas, and there were more than 3,000 listed by 1860. This concert will allow us to enjoy traditional music from Ireland, as well as music that celebrates the rich history of Texas.”
El Camino Real de Nacogdoches formed in 2002. The band has played at a variety of art, theatrical and musical events associated with SFA. It also has been featured during Nacogdoches’ annual Blueberry Festival, Old-Time Christmases at Millard’s Crossing and The Pine Knot Music Co-op. In 2017, the band released it first CD, “Camino Real: The Nacogdoches Sessions.”
The concert is free and open to the public. Weather permitting, the band will perform on the downstairs porch. Light refreshments will be served and include traditional Irish treats.
For more information, contact Spears at (936) 468-2408 or cspears@sfasu.edu.
