The interior of the historic Walker-Stone House in downtown Fayetteville is a uniquely decorated space which contrasts the building’s colonial brick exterior. When you step through the building’s doors onto its creaky floors, vibrant colors field your vision. The walls are covered in bold murals, a bright red-carpeted staircase ascends to the second floor, and a painted tribute to Dolly Parton welcomes visitors. This quirky interior perfectly complements the building’s inhabitants: the Folk School of Fayetteville.
Bryan and Bernice Hembree, co-founders of the folk school, launched the current location in 2023 with a clear mission. “The school is, in its form, a community gathering space for music,” said Bernice Hembree.
Although the school is a recent addition to the community, the Hembree’s mission of celebrating music in Fayetteville has been present since 2010 with their nonprofit, Folk School of Fayetteville, popularly known as Fayetteville Roots. The organization hosted the Fayetteville Roots Festival, a yearly food and music festival which showcased local artists and nationally-recognized headliners. The festival went on hiatus in 2022, and the nonprofit’s headquarters closed its doors; however, the Hembree's mission found a new way to flourish with the folk school. “This is a place where music happens on a daily basis. It’s learning, jamming, collaborating – an incubator for musicians and organizations, a place where music remains alive in the community.” said Bryan Hembree.
The Folk School of Fayetteville offers many different opportunities and services for the school’s students, including individual music lessons, group music lessons, songwriting circles, open mic nights, a music book library, instrument rentals and a variety of monthly jam sessions. “It’s pretty tight knit here, especially the jams, they each have their own tight-knit groups,” said Bernice Hembree. The lessons are taught by local musicians and teachers, each with individual rates and specialties. Jam session selections include dad jams, Irish jams, bluegrass jams.
Additionally, the Folk School of Fayetteville has a curated selection of beginner instruments for students as well as professional and vintage backline equipment all available for rent. “We want to provide both students and masters of their craft with the tools they need,” said Bryan Hembree.
The folk school is a unique addition to Fayetteville, but it is rooted in a tradition celebrated globally. After the Hembree’s visited a folk school with their former band, 3 Penny Acre, they were inspired to plant one in Fayetteville. “We are not called ‘The Northwest Arkansas School of Folk,’” said Bernice Hembree. “We have committed to Fayetteville for a reason. It gave us a lot of great joy playing music here, we’ve met so many great musicians here, we’ve heard great music touring through in this town. There is a special energy in Fayetteville, and this is our chance to continue giving back to it.” The folk school welcomes any musician that chooses to enter the establishment.
Although “folk” is in the school’s name, the school considers itself to be genreless. While traditional folk music is taught and played at the school, the folk school celebrates many different music styles. “What’s been really hard for us is that the first thing people think of when they hear the word ‘folk’ is ‘white Appalachian music,’” said the Hembree’s. “We knew it would be hard, but it’s been hard to twist that perception for people to think of it as a very wide genre of music of the people, including hip-hop, jazz, rap...The folk school is not a genre. ‘Folk’ means people.”
The nonprofit has a specific focus on achieving its mission by finding creative ways to use local spaces. Although most workshops and lessons happen within the school’s walls, the Hembree’s do not actually own the building. Instead, they rent it for one dollar a year from Experience Fayetteville. “We do not want to build our own space,” said Bernice Hembree. “Our core is using space that can hold a gathering instead of creating a vacuum of funding to build your own thing and not let everyone use it.” With this community focus, the Hembree’s strive to inspire others to showcase concerts and events in local homes, businesses and spaces. “We try to embody this idea of finding a space where you don’t usually see music, put music there and get the community to see that music can happen anywhere,” said Bryan Hembree.
There are many opportunities to grow and learn at the Folk School of Fayetteville, whether it be from learning a new instrument, finding a new community or experiencing a new culture. The Hembree’s have a major hope for its students when they walk out of their doors: to carry the tradition with them in their next venture. “If we had a folk school in every region, I think we would be better off,” said Bryan Hembree.
“This is a place where music happens on a daily basis. It’s learning, jamming, collaborating – an incubator for musicians and organizations, a place where music remains alive in the community.” SPACE SPACE SPACE SPACE