FAIRHOPE, Ala. — The public is invited to a concert of old-time string band music played on fiddle, clawhammer banjo, guitar, banjo uke and whatever else the musicians pull out of the bag. The concert is April 24, at 7 p.m., at the Fairhope Unitarian Fellowship Hall, across from the Baldwin County Satellite Courthouse.

Old-time music was the music of the American settlers from the British Isles, and is a forerunner of bluegrass and country music. It consists of lively fiddle tunes meant for dancing as well as old songs sung on front porches and in front of fireplaces when families and friends got together after the day’s work was done.

Joyce and Jim Cauthen of Birmingham have done considerable research on old-time fiddling in Alabama and in 1988 produced a collection of rare fiddle tunes played by fiddlers from across the state.

Though most of the fiddlers on the recording, “Possum up a Gum Stump: Home, Field and Commercial Recordings of AlabamaFiddlers,” are now deceased, the Cauthens and their friends across the country are keeping these tunes alive.

For the Fairhope concert they'll be joined by Charlie and Nancy Hartness of Athens, Ga., and Tom Morley of Fairhope will join them for the dance.

At the end of the concert the audience will be invited to join in an old-time Virginia Reel and a square dance or two. Joyce Cauthen will teach and call simple, fun dances that require no experience on the part of the dancers.

A donation of $8 per person is suggested for this lively and fun-filled event, with the proceeds going to the musicians.

For more information, call (251) 929-3207.