Ecstasy, dread, defiance, betrayal, hope ... the Psalms, the sacred hymns of the ancient Hebrews, overflow with deeply human feelings that transcend any particular age, even any particular religion. But their soul-searing metaphors can become muffled by the chapter-and-verse, thee-and-thou format through which people today conventionally experience them. That's why Chapel Hill-based musician Charles Pettee (who grew up in Asheville) has taken up-to-date translations of the Old Testament Psalms and combined them with the modal folk sounds of bluegrass, creating powerful, critically acclaimed new acoustic settings for nine of the best-known Psalms. Pettee and FolkPsalm -- an assembly of highly talented bluegrass singers and instrumentalists that includes Taz Halloween, Brittany Whitmire, Brian Bolton, Lizzie Hamilton Bahnson, Robbie Link and Mark Simonsen -- will perform Pettee's inspired work on Sunday, Aug. 10 at First Baptist Church (63 N. Main St., Weaverville). Hammered-dulcimer player Mark Clevenger and guitarist Leonard Holifield will open the show. 7 p.m. Free. 645-6720.
-- Steve Rasmussen