The Pioneer Museum of Alabama and Broken Strings Bluegrass Band have partnered to bring multi-award winning bluegrass guitarist Jim Hurst to Pike County.

Hurst will appear in concert in the museum’s “Village Center” at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 17. The popular local bluegrass band, Broken Strings, will open for Hurst at 6 p.m. and will possibly join him on a couple of selections.

In addition to many bluegrass awards, Hurst is highly recognized in country and other acoustic music genres. He is known throughout the Nashville area as one of the best in the business for his talents of singing and multi-instrumentalist abilities. He has recorded with some of the best artists in country and bluegrass music including Trisha Yearwood, Sara Evans, Holly Dunn and Travis Tritt.

Hurst is a friend and mentor of the seven Caron siblings that make up Broken Strings. The siblings, ranging in age from 12 to 20, were primarily self-taught when they attended NashCamp in Nashville, Tennessee in 2008. Hurst was Katie’s guitar teacher.

“That’s how we knew him first – as Katie’s teacher,” Doug said. “He was a great teacher and we knew that we could all learn a lot from him.”

Matt said Hurst’s music gave him chill bumps. That was quite a compliment coming from a young musician.

“Jim Hurst’s music puts pictures in your mind,” said Joe. “His music is like a story. You can see the pictures in your mind. It’s amazing.”

The Carons attended NashCamp a second time as they sought to improve their skills on their chosen instruments – banjo, dobro, mandolin, guitar and fiddle. They were honored by the opportunity to play “River of Jordan” with their mentor Jim Hurst.

“When we heard that he was coming through Alabama on his way to Florida, our mom, Bonnie, asked him about doing a concert here,” Peter said. “We are looking forward to hearing him in person again.”

The Caron siblings are in awe of the talents of Jim Hurst and said his music is an inspiration to them.

Hurst’s most recent recording is “A Box of Chocolates” and highlights his singing, guitar work and songwriting talents. Songs from the album will be among the featured music at his concert.

Tickets for the Jim Hurst Concert with Broken Strings are $12 and will be available at the door. A portion of the ticket sales will benefit the Pioneer Museum of Alabama.