Ballad singer and storyteller Joe Penland will kick off the 2012 Songcatchers Music Series at 4 p.m. July 1 at the Cradle of Forestry in Pisgah Forest.

The series features performances of traditional mountain music every Sunday afternoon in July. Local old-time string band, the Roadapple Ramblers, will open the July 1 performance.

Penland will sing the ballads and songs that the earliest settlers brought from the British Isles into the secluded mountain valleys of Western North Carolina, and his performance will contain old Appalachian stories.

The concerts are held in the covered outdoor amphitheater, which is wheelchair accessible and seating is available. However, attendees are also welcome to bring picnics, as well as chairs and blankets for use on the nearby grass. In the event of stormy weather the concert will move indoors.

Admission for all shows is $6 for ages 16 and older; $3 for youth 15 and under and America the Beautiful and Golden Age pass holders.

The Cradle of Forestry is located on N.C. 276 in the Pisgah National Forest, four miles south of the Blue Ridge Parkway.

828.877.3130 or www.cradleofforestry.org.