News

Renowned guitar maker opens Magnolia concert series

Wayne Henderson

By Bill Moss, Published: August 25, 2017

The 2017 Magnolia Concert Series opens this weekend with Wayne Henderson on stage at Flat Rock Cinema, 2700 Greenville Highway in Flat Rock.

The live concert, produced by Howard Molton, is 3 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 27, followed by a “meet and greet” with the audience members.
Henderson’s top-notch finger-picking is a source of great pleasure and pride to his friends, family and neighbors in Grayson County, Va. His guitar playing has also been enjoyed at Carnegie Hall, in three national tours of Masters of the Steel-String Guitar and in seven nations in Asia.
In addition to his reputation as a guitarist, Henderson is a luthier of great renown. He is a recipient of a 1995 National Heritage Award presented by the National Endowment for the Arts. He produces about 20 instruments a year, mostly guitars; he is almost as well- known for the mandolins he has made. Good friend Doc Watson owned a Henderson mandolin.
“That Henderson mandolin is as good as any I’ve had my hands on,” Watson said. “And that’s saying a lot, because I’ve picked up some good ones.”
Some of Henderson’s instruments are intricately decorated but are most respected for their volume, tone and resonance. Blues guitarist John Cephas called Henderson “probably the most masterful guitar maker in this whole United States.” There is a waiting list for Henderson’s guitars made up of the famous (and not-so- famous).
Above and beyond his great talents as a musician and luthier, Wayne Henderson is known as a “friend to everyone” and shares his talents and knowledge unselfishly.
Tickets are $15 plus tax. Show times are 3:00 and doors open at 2:30. Flat Rock Cinema’s complete food and beverage menu, including wine and local brews, will be available.