var title         = 'The Moose Lodge\'s 73rd Old Fidders Convention';
var intro         = 'Each year before the second weekend in August, since 1935, Moose Lodge #733 of Galax Virginia has sponsored the Galax Annual Old Fiddlers Convention.  This convention, really a competition for prizes and recognition, brings hundreds of old time country musicians and bluegrass musicians to Felts Park in Galax Va for a week of music performance and competition.  The competition includes a youth division, plus adult  fiddling, solo folk singing, flatfoot dancing competion, an individual instrumential competion and... the band competition.  I was only present for the folk song, flatfoot dancing and band competitions on Friday, August 9, 2008, but what an experience!  Hundreds of musicians, wannabee musicians, dancers and bands come to town to compete... and thousands come to hear the authentic old time music these people make.';
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var majorCaption  = new Array( 'Galax is a small city on the Virginia side of the Virginia, North Carolina board.  It has... no it IS the definition of small town charm... Most of the time...', 'This is what used to be the city H.S. football field and is now the playing fields for the city recreation center... except that during the Fiddlers Convention it becomes one of the larger campgrounds in Virginia.', 'This is an overview of the stage area (yellow tent), lawn chair area and grandstand areas.  This is during the afternoon folksong competition and the crowd is small', 'The sound booth and seating area in the early afternoon, around 1 pm on Friday, Aug. 8th.', 'Later in the day as the bands start competing those empty areas WILL fill up...', 'Welcome banner on Main St., Galax VA.  This is about noon and the day\'s competition is just beginning.  The crowds have yet to arrive!', '', 'Many of the shops in the vacinity of Felts Park on Main St. move some of their wares onto the sidewalk.  Civic associations like the Vietnam Veterans also have tents and such set up on the sidewalk.', 'Meanwhile back at the competition the folk song competition is underway.  Although some of the performers were very good my favorite, the bands, have yet to arrive.', 'The judges sit to the left of where I took this photo.  The stage appears a little dark.  Although not lit during the daytime competition, the photo makes the performer more difficult to see than she really was.', 'A close up with my telephoto zoom.', 'More solo singers.', '', 'This guy, the guitar player was the competitor, sounded great.', 'The local CBS radio station broadcasts the entire competition.', 'Ah, the flatfoot dancing competition.  The gal on the left is the dancer.  The same band played for the same music over and over for each of the dancers.', 'This youngers was great!  But, there was a Mommy, Daughter team, the daughter was the competitor and maybe 4 or5  years old and she brought down the house.  I have a soundless movie of them you can see elsewhere.', 'Same band, same song, dancer doing her thing on the right.  Flatfoot dancing isn\'t the same as clogging which has more of tap dance foot movement.', 'Now the bands begin!  The guy sitting on chair is a stagehand that adjusts the mikes for each group.', 'Same group.  The singer had a great voice and could pick.', '', 'This lady, who looked tiny next to the guys had did a great duet with the lady fiddle player in green.', 'Cool... you know these guys know what they\'re doing... they\'re all dressed alike.  They were okay, I like them and they had a nice look to them.', 'Whoa!  Where did all those empty seats go?', 'By 8 pm lots of people had to look all over to find a place to sit.  By 9 is was S.R.O.!', 'This group was reminiscent of some of the old bands.  Note the ladies, one playing spoons and the other playing a milk jug.', 'Ah, here she goes playing the bass part on her jug.  They weren\'t great but the audience liked their style.  Note the guy with the guitar case getting up.  He played in a band that appeared later.', 'This rather soberly dressed group played a religious song.  I love seeing and hearing someone who knows how to really play the dobro.  The lady did a nice job.', 'If this outfit invited me to their backyard to hear them play... well, you can turn my computer off and feed the cats.  I\'ll see ya later!', '', 'They had lots of first aid, just in case.  I didn\'t see anyone get hurt.', 'A cellphone tower about a mile away.  It got real grey looking and made me think it would rain but then cleared up.', 'This group was WILD.  A fairly good band but the LOOK got a lot of attention.  ', 'See what I mean?  ', 'I\'ll bet they had more photos taken than anyone other than the \"special guest\".', '', 'Notice the dulcimer on the left.', '', 'I loved this group. They had two female fiddle players and a washtub bass (on the left).', '', 'An all lady band.', 'And the special guest, Veronica (Roni) Stoneman.  Her father \"Pop\" Stoneman was born in Galax and she started out in her father\'s family band.', 'Roni Stoneman is a fantastic banjo player and a great performer who obvious still loved doing what she does after 70 years of doing it!', 'I wonder how many guys who are young enough to be her kids think she\'s a knock out?  ' );
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