There’s quite an undertaking happening at the corner of South Queen and Springhill streets.
For the next four-to-six weeks, workers from Lanier Construction in Snow Hill will install the basic infrastructure of a music park that will serve as the hub of the eight-county African American Music Trail.
“It documents the African American music heritage in Lenoir County,” said Sandy Landis, executive director of Kinston Community Council for the Arts. “So, it’s not only an enhancement, but it is educational and informative.”
A 12-foot high, 23-foot wide sculpture with images of famous local musicians anchors the park, crafted by the sculpting team of David Wilson and Brandon Yow. A large ring of benches will surround the sculpture.
Off to the side will be a smaller circle, meant to depict the area around a community drum used by cultures in West Africa.
“There will be a walkway that represents a score, a musical score,” Landis said. “And there’s a third circle that represents a bass, the body of a bass. It’s a very involved park.”
The intention is to host live music and other events at the park.
The description of the project from the N.C. Arts Council said the involvement of the local community and its musicians, particularly Maceo and Melvin Parker, led to Kinston snagging a prominent role in the trail.
“Benefitting from folklorists’ inventory of music assets and numerous community engagement sessions in 2008, landscape architect Kofi Boone and an N.C. State University design team developed a plan for Kinston, which has informed subsequent design efforts,” according to literature from the Arts Council regarding the music trail.
Boone and his team are working with landscape architects Fernando Magallanes and Terry Naranjo, and architect Victor Vines.
The Arts Council envisions the park as a part of an overall cultural district for the area, tipping the hat to Mother Earth Brewery, the Chef and the Farmer and Pearson Park.
Funding for the $250,000 music park comes from a number of sources, including the state Arts Council, the state Department of Transportation, the City of Kinstonand a Golden LEAF foundation grant administered by the Community Council for the Arts. The Kinston Department of Parks and Recreation owns the land, formerly the site of a tobacco warehouse, and is overseeing construction.
“It will be a community space, an enhancement space, an educational space and a performance space,” Landis said.
Plans are for the music trail to kick off around September.
Wes Wolfe can be reached at 252-559-1075 or wes.wolfe@kinston.com. Follow him on Twitter @WolfeReports.
