‘Alaska’s Fiddling Poet’ plans songs and stories concert in Collegedale

A concert Tuesday, Nov. 1, at Southern Adventist University will culminate a two- day residency by “Alaska’s Fiddling Poet,” Ken Waldman.

In his first area appearance in nine years, Waldman will be visiting creative writing classes and informally meeting with students on campus. The Tuesday performance will feature Waldman, who’s been touring nationally since 1995, with North Carolina multi-instrumentalist/singer Riley Baugus and Nashville multi- instrumentalist John Fabke.

Wa ldman com - bines old- time Appalachian- style string- band music, original poetry and Alaska- set storytelling in his shows. The Collegedale stop is part of a fall tour that includes events in Pennsylvania, Illinois, Mississippi, Florida, West Virginia and Kentucky. Ken Waldman

He describes his accompanists for the evening as “stellar banjo players and guitarists.” Baugus also plays fiddle and sings. In the 2003 movie “Cold Mountain,” it’s Baugus’ voice on the a cappella ballad sung by Pangle (Ethan Suplee). Fabke plays mandolin and bass in addition to guitar and banjo. Waldman calls both “scholars of American roots music.”

Waldman, a 31- year Alaska resident, has eight books, including six full-

If you go

What: Ken Waldman & Friends in concert.

When: 7: 30 p. m. Tuesday, Nov. 1.

Where: Ackerman Auditorium, Southern Adventist University, 4881 Taylor Circle, Collegedale.

Admission: $ 5 individuals, $ 12 families; free for SAU students.

Phone: 423-236-2814. length poetry collections, and nine CDs, i ncluding two for children. His 2008 memoir, “Are You Famous?,” details his many tours across the country.

An Austin Chronicle reviewer once said of Waldman’s live performance, “feels like a Ken Burns movie.” Shepherd Express Weekly in Milwaukee termed Waldman, “a one-man ‘Prairie Home Companion,’” and The Denver Post has called his mix of music and words “renegade Americana.”

CONTRIBUTED PHOTO