WATCH: ‘My West Virginia’: Chef Michael Voltaggio

Last April, the Greenbrier Resort reopened after some multimillion dollar renovations. Among the changes unveiled was a new high-end restaurant called Hemisphere where the Old White Club, a Greenbrier institution, used to be found. What visitors discovered there instead was a sleek, stylish new prix fixe restaurant helmed by 29-year-old Chef de Cuisine, Michael Voltaggio, who has a penchant for reinventing familiar foods and dishes in unexpected ways.

“Conceptually, what we wanted to do was create a globally themed menu that would accent the finest products and techniques from around the world.,” says Voltaggio.

In the latest audio slideshow in the “My West Virginia” series, we visit Hemisphere and talk to the chef about his methods and food philosophy. In the 35 photographs that accompany an audio interview with the chef, we take a look of some of the dishes from Hemisphere’s several tasting menus, which include a vegetarian option. Read the rest of this entry »

CLICK TO WATCH “West Virginia Skies”
NOTE: Individual photos in the “West Virginia Skies” audio sideshow can be purchased at www.cnphotostore.com

The rolling mountains get all the glory and good press in West Virginia - the place is nicknamed “the Mountain State,” after all. But let’s not forget how cool and flat-out gorgeous the skies that hang above those lovely mountains often look. That’s especially true as sunset comes on and the skies above these hills slide from blue to orange, and then to gold, bronze, pink, purple and other hues from the pastel-colored rows of a Crayola crayon box.

In the latest installment of the audio slideshow series “My West Virginia,” we feature a series of 30 photographs titled “West Virginia Skies.” You’ll see mountain skies from across West Virginia, as well as some urban skies above downtown Charleston. The slideshow is set to a soundtrack of a resonant performance by Roane County musician David Bing. He performs the mountain fiddle tune “Yew Piney Mountain,” a song with what Bing describes as an “archaic” sound and which he performs on a Harold Hayslett fiddle.

Hayslett is a 90-year-old South Charleston instrument maker who has handmade nearly 150 fiddles, violas and cellos, many in whole or part from West Virginia’s trees. He was featured on the show 3 in the “My West Virginia” audio slideshow series.

Click to view “My West Virginia: Show 3″ on South Charleston instrument maker Harold Hayslett. The retired Union Carbide pipefitter has made 81 violins, 63 cellos, 13 violas, plus assorted bows and other instruments. He turned 90 on Dec. 26 and was honored with a West Virginia Cultural Center event , where some of the Mountain State’s finest musicians performed classical, old-time and contemporary music, almost all of it on hand-made Hayslett instruments. Our audio slideshow features more than 30 photographs of that day with music played on Hayslett’s creations.

A companion CD, “The Hayslett Collection ~ A Musical Tribute,” is available for purchase online at cdbaby.com/cd/hayslett. And locally at Taylor Books, Frog Creek Books, Fret’n’ Fiddle and Mountaineer Frames (both St. Albans), Ferguson’s Tea Room (Hurricane) and at Tamarack.

INTERVIEW: Listen to a West Virginia Public Broadcasting interview by Kate Long with Harold Hayslett and family.

Click the photo above or right here to watch  the 5-minute multimedia slideshow, ‘My West Virginia,”  about the debut induction ceremony on Nov. 16, 2007 for the new West Virginia Music Hall of Fame. See the post below for links to West Virginia Public Broadcasting interviews with inductees and with Hall of Fame Founder Michael Lipton.

West Virginia Public Broadcasting recorded several interviews and stories related to the recent debut of the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame. Some links take you to the the W.Va. Public Broadcasting site, others to YouTube clips:

One-hour “Aging With Grace and Dignity” show featuring conversations with all five living members of first class inducted into new West Virginia Music Hall of Fame: (in order in photo above) George Crumb, Hazel Dickens, Little Jimmy Dickens, Billy Edd Wheeler and Bill Withers. Click here
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Interview with Music Hall of Fame founder Michael Lipton: Click here and here.
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Profile of new Hall of Fame member Hazel Dickens: Click here and here -
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A story on the making of the Blind Alfred Reed tribute album: Click here
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Profile of new Hall of Fame member Little Jimmy Dickens: Click here
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TO VIEW THE CHARLESTON GAZETTE’S  ‘My West Virginia’ multimedia slideshow on the Hall of fame induction ceremony, click here.

Photograph by Douglas Imbrogno. Click photos to enlarge

Eventgoers headed into the Nov. 16, 2007 West Virginia Music Hall of Fame debut induction ceremony at the state Cultural Theater first had to pass through a gauntlet of protesters. They were lined up to express their objections to the recent unceremonious ousting of long-times state Archives and History director Fred Armstrong by Division of Culture and History head Randall Reid-Smith.

AUDIO SLIDESHOW: Click the photo above or right here to watch a 4-minute-long audio slideshow of ‘My West Virginia, No 1: Metal Sculptor Mark Blumenstein’

LONGER PODCAST: Click the “audio” button to listen to (or download for later listening) a 7-minute-long podcast mP3 of ‘My West Virginia, No 1: Metal Sculptor Mark Blumenstein’

READ: Read the companion print article in Nov. 25. 2007 Sunday Gazette-Mail Read the rest of this entry »