The Waterfront Park Community Center is hosting “Music as Storytelling,” the latest StoryShare Project event, from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Oct. 24.

Admission is free and no preregistration is required.Morning refreshments will also be available.

This event, part of the Bainbridge Island StoryShare Project, will begin with a presentation, “The Power of Negro Spirituals,” by Dr. Gloria Burgess. One of the founding mothers of the acapella musical group Sweet Honey in the Rock, Burgess has presented keynotes, master classes and artistic tributes on the African-American tradition for more than thirty years.

Dave Webb will then be leading an exploration of American Folk Music. Tap your toes and sing along while learning more about that musical staple called the ballad, story-songs that build community through shared experience and tradition.

The morning will conclude with a showing of “Alive Inside,” a Sundance Film Festival award-winning film about the power of music to reach patients whose minds and spirits have been lost to dementia. The movie documents the elemental power that music holds for every human being, and how it can be used to build meaningful connections when often all else fails.

As always, the community center invites all participants to leave a message on the Collect Call Phone Booth. Their latest prompt is “Musical Stories: I Remember When…”

The StoryShare Harvest event is arranged by the BI StoryShare partners, which includes the Bainbridge Island Metro Park & Recreation District, the Bainbridge Island Senior Community Center, the Bainbridge Island Historical Museum and Bainbridge Community Broadcasting.

Waterfront Park Community Center is located at 370 Brien Drive, between T&C and Eagle Harbor. For more information, contact sbarrington@biparks.org or call 206-842-1616.