WKMS presents three documentary specials, including a feature honoring Veteran’s Day.

Friday, November 3 at Noon
Japan’s Pop Power
American Radio Works, the documentary unit of American Public Media, explores Japan’s unique pop culture and asks whether this ancient nation will rise again -- this time as the world's leading exporter of fantasy. For decades, the United States has been the dominant exporter of pop culture. In the 21st century, Japan has proven itself a powerful new competitor. Young people across the globe watch anime, read manga comic books from right to left, listen to J-pop, and play with Japanese toys and video games. Tune in for this exciting journey from Tokyo to middle America.

Friday, November 10 at Noon
WWI Living History Project,
This docu-view (documentary/interview) from Treehouse Productions, hosted by award-winning CBS anchor Walter Cronkite, honors the sacrifices and contributions of America's last surviving WWI veterans. Producer Will Everett traveled the country in search of the men and women who made the world (in President Wilson's words) "safe for democracy." Twelve of these veterans, ages 105 to 115, share their reminiscences, humor and wit on November 10, the day before Veteran's Day.

Friday, November 17 at Noon
Early Signs: Reports from a Warming Planet
Early Signs is a joint project of the U.C. Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism, Salon and NPR's Living on Earth. The project discusses the early signs of climate change: from melting outposts near the Arctic Circle to disappearing glaciers in the high Andes; from rising water in the deltas of Bangladesh to the “sinking” atolls of the Pacific. Reports from a Warming Planet takes listeners to parts of the planet where global warming is already affecting life and landscape.

You can see the entire WKMS programming schedule by clicking here.

Fiddling Poet Ken Waldman at MSU

MSU's department of English and Philosophy, College of Humanities and Fine Arts, and the Creative Writing Program hosts poet Ken Waldman at the Clara Eagle Gallery on Thursday, November 2 at 7:30 p.m. Waldman travels the nation writing and presenting poems, stories, and fiddle tunes that combine into a performance uniquely his own.

A former college professor, Waldman has had more than 400 poems and stories published in national journals, and works as a troubadour, performing at some of the nation's leading universities, festivals, arts centers and clubs.

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Western Kentucky Regional Fiddle Festival

The Murray Department of Tourism presents the first Regional Fiddle Festival Friday, November 3 and Saturday, November 4 in Murray State's Lovett Auditorium.

Come see musicians from across the region test their skills in a variety of competitions for beginner, junior and senior fiddlers. Enjoy bluegrass bands, old time string bands and singers as they showcase their talents in this two-day competition. The McKendrees give a special performance during Friday's intermission; and Saturday's intermission performers include Wil Maring & Robert Bowlin at 12:30, and Bawn in the Mash at 3:15. The festival ends with a fiddle-off challenge.

Admission is $4.00 per day Friday and Saturday, or $6.00 for a two-day pass. If you'd like to compete, the entry fee is $10.00 per person. You can see more information, including entry forms, at www.tourmurray.com/festivals/fiddle or, click here.

Friday, November 3
5:30 p.m.: Doors Open for General Admission and Registration 
6:00 p.m.: Welcome—Master of Ceremonies 
6:00 p.m.: Playing Order Posted 
6:15 p.m.: Competition  Begins 
6:15 p.m.: Old Time String Band 
7:00 p.m.: Harmonica 
7:30 p.m.: Intermission featuring the McKendrees 
8:00 p.m.: Dobro 
8:30 p.m.: Old Time Singer 
9:00 p.m.: Old Time Banjo

      Saturday, November 4
8:30 a.m.: Contestant Check-in 
9:30 a.m.: Playing Order Posted
9:30 a.m.: Beginner Fiddler (up to age 16)
10:15 a.m.: Bluegrass Banjo
11:00 a.m.: Junior Fiddler (age 17-49)
11:45 a.m.: Mandolin
12:30 p.m.: Intermission featuring Wil Maring & Robert Bowlin
1:00 p.m.: Senior Fiddler (age 50 and over)
1:45 p.m.: Bluegrass Bands
2:30 p.m.: Guitar
3:15 p.m.: Intermission featuring Bawn in the Mash 
4:00 p.m.: Best Entertainer 
4:45 p.m.: Fiddle-Off Finals     

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JPFOB Bluegrass Night

The Jackson Purchase Friends of Bluegrass kick off their “Winter Pass Through Series” at the Kentucky Opry Bluegrass Night, Friday, November 3 at 7:30 p.m. The event features Timberline Drive, Old Santa Fe, Grandpa’s Legacy & others. Admission to the concert is free!
For more information click here.

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Song 
by
Edgar Allan Poe
     'Mid dark thoughts of the grey tomb-stone;
     Not one, of all the crowd, to pry
     Into thine hour of secrecy.

     Be silent in that solitude,
       Which is not loneliness- for then
     The spirits of the dead, who stood
       In life before thee, are again
     In death around thee, and their will
     Shall overshadow thee; be still.

     The night, though clear, shall frown,
     And the stars shall not look down
     From their high thrones in the Heaven
     With light like hope to mortals given,
     But their red orbs, without beam,
     To thy weariness shall seem
     As a burning and a fever
     Which would cling to thee for ever.

     Now are thoughts thou shalt not banish,
     Now are visions ne'er to vanish;
     From thy spirit shall they pass
     No more, like dew-drop from the grass.

     The breeze, the breath of God, is still,
     And the mist upon the hill
     Shadowy, shadowy, yet unbroken,
     Is a symbol and a token.
     How it hangs upon the trees,
     A mystery of mysteries!

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Click here for more information on more Regional Events

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