
By RealWV staff, www.therealwv.com
Through a weekend of concerts, the Lewisburg Winter Music Festival (LWMF) raises funds alongside the Southern Appalachian Musician’s Association (SAMA) to support music education and the needs of musicians.
“We set records last year in terms of attendance and money raised,” says Board President Josh Baldwin. “We have already begun to distribute monies and continue to do so on a rolling basis.”
The group awarded $3,000 to Music Matters, a non-profit organization with support from Carnegie Hall, that helps subsidize music lessons for underprivileged students.
Birch Graves, who helps run Music Matters, says, “School-aged music students in Greenbrier County can earn the Music Matters Scholarship to help pay the expense of private music lessons. The scholarship is based on need, interest, and dedication, and recipients will represent their learning publicly, giving back to the community.”
“A major mission for SAMA is to make sure any kid that wants to learn an instrument has access,” says Baldwin. “Music Matters is perfectly situated to facilitate putting students and teachers together, so it was the first group we started funding after the festival.”
Baldwin says musicians can also apply now for assistance grants via the the festival website lewisburgwintermusicfest.com.
The Lewisburg Winter Music Festival (LWMF), a two-day celebration of live music and community spirit, is set to return on Jan. 30-31, 2026, in downtown Lewisburg.
More than 60 artists at multiple venues around town are expected to play shows that weekend. For artist interested in playing, the application forms will be open starting in October. Stay tuned to RealWV for update.


