The legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. will be celebrated Jan. 20 with the 34th annual march to the historic Douglass School in Leesburg.
GET OUT LOUDOUN
Get Out Loudoun is distributed monthly to entertainment, tourism, and hospitality venues throughout Loudoun County. For the latest news on the music scene and other community events, go to getoutloudoun.com.
CONTRIBUTORS
Katiana Dawn Norman K. Styer ON THE COVER
Jennifer De Angelo Baxter in her Loudoun County classroom, Courtesy of Jennifer De Angelo Baxter TO ADVERTISE
Susan Styer at 703-770-9723 or sales@loudounnow.com getoutloudoun.com
ARTS SCENE
Jennifer De Angelo Baxter shares her love for art in the classroom and in the community.
TUNES
A year after committing to performing music full time, Eric Selby releases his fourth album this month.
HAPPENINGS
Works by some of Loudoun’s aspiring filmmakers hit the big screen during the eighth annual Cabin Fever Film Festival.
BEST BETS
Get Out Loudoun’s top entertainment picks for January.
Plan Your Vacation Close to Home
BY DOUG ROGERS
Visit Loudoun
The holidays are over but Tuesday, Jan. 28 is National Plan for Vacation Day. After months of shopping, wrapping gifts, hanging decorations and preparing family feasts, you’re now being asked to plan your holidays for 2025 well in advance. That can be exhausting, so here’s a better idea: stay local and take your vacation in Loudoun this year.
WHERE TO START?
It being winter, the first vacation idea is to get warm and cozy at one of Loudoun’s magical bed & breakfasts. More than a dozen properties are listed on the Loudoun B&B Guild website, from historic estates such as Creek Crossing Farm B&B in Lincoln to the more modish Colorado-ski lodge vibe of Stone Gables B&B in woodlands west of Leesburg. The Guild recently added “Perks Pass” for guests: a card with QR codes listing discounts and special offers from up to
Photo by Douglas Graham
The Bear’s Den overlook near Bluemont is a popular point on a 13-mile stretch of the world-famous Appalachian Trail known as The Rollercoaster.
DESTINATIONS
FROM PAGE 4
30 local restaurants, breweries, wineries and other businesses.
Of course, after all that festive season indulgence, you might want to restore mind, body and soul with a well-deserved “wellcation.” Loudoun has you covered. Luxury properties Salamander Middleburg and Lansdowne Resort have state-of-the art spas and outdoor activities from golf to horse riding and hiking, but you can also pamper yourself with a one-, three- or seven-day stay at Aria MediSpa in Sterling, a facility specializing in technology-driven body shaping, weight loss and anti-aging treatments. Then again, if you want to combine exercise with healthy food, book a stay at Goodstone Inn & Restaurant on a 235-acre estate outside Middleburg. In between farm-to-table dining and lavish breakfasts are recreational activities such as kayaking and guided birdwatching hikes, and you can also take tai chi, meditation and breathwork classes. Good(stone) for the soul! By spring and summer, you’re ready for the great outdoors. Among Loudoun’s many public parks and trails is a spectacular 13-mile stretch
of the world-famous Appalachian Trail in the Blue Ridge known as The Rollercoaster. You can hike it north or south but make Bears Den Overlook, a rocky promontory above historic Bluemont, your starting point. An ideal time to visit would be around June 7, when Hillsboro hosts the Loudoun Appalachian Trail Festival, a celebration of the local “trail towns” of Hillsboro, Round Hill and Bluemont.
Of course, all this activity makes one thirsty. In 2024 Loudoun celebrated the 40th anniversary of its now booming wine industry. Instead of traveling abroad to try great wine, celebrate the start of the next 40 years by staying local and sampling everything from Spanish-style Albariño, classic French Bordeaux, South African Pinotage and Uruguayan-style Tannat right here at home. With such a variety of Loudoun grapes, you can taste around the world without ever leaving the county.
Now there’s an idea for a vacation!
www.visitloudoun.org
ART SCENE
Jennifer De Angelo Baxter:
Art as the Teacher
BY KATIANA DAWN GetOutLoudoun.com
The works of local oil painter Jennifer De Angelo Baxter will be spotlighted throughout January at Leesburg’s Second Nature Coffee Co.
This phenomenal artist and art teacher has spent years tuning her craft and now continuously pours back into the community.
At age three, De Angelo Baxter demonstrated an incredible attention span in the particular realm of art. Drawing could hold her attention so intently that her mother, who worked as a teacher, was able to identify this spark within her. At five, she was taking art lessons from a nearby “German woman with a heavy accent.” Classes consisted of many trips to the garden to collect flowers and paintings using solely primary colors.
From the simple beginning of her journey, De Angelo Baxter’s path was cemented in art. She knew that a future career in the field was her goal, although it often changed forms. Sometimes she wanted to be an art teacher, others an architect, and even at times, a fashion de-
signer. She pursued her interests in painting and art history at Notre Dame for her undergraduate degree. Now she is working to open other young minds to the limitless possibilities of art.
Her undergrad art study was a time of big growth in De Angelo Baxter’s career. She began to use oil paints for the first time and that continues to be her favorite medium. A significant work from her college years includes “Eve,” her first effort at portrait painting.
“The piece was really the first time I was painting what I wanted to paint with my own style and so I think that’s why it marks as a favorite, and it was the first time I chose my own model,” De Angelo Baxter said.
In addition to finding her style, she valued the connections made during her time in college.
“Majoring in something that you love, that’s the beauty of college,” she said. “You get to build friendships with people that have a similar interest and are so interested in it that they want to take classes and go to the studio hours.”
That’s something she has carried forward in her career.
“In teaching, I have that on a smaller scale because the two teachers that I teach with are so awesome,” she said.
An artist would not be able to create without the inspiration behind their work, and for De Angelo Baxter there are two sources that stand out.
“Nature has always been an influence—the part of me that’s mesmerized by the beauty of any living thing, trees, leaves, bugs, animals, and humans–being animals, too. I don’t think that will ever go away,” she said. “In my later high school years the internet was invented, but you couldn’t use it like we do now. We were limited to collecting images for inspiration from magazines, and when you found something really good you would tear it out of the magazine. I had a stockpile of images that I used through college. You couldn’t Google images of things. So you had to be on the lookout. I became this collector of images, and collector of found things.”
“I was on a hike in my college years and I happened upon a deer skull. I put it in my backpack and carried on because I knew that eventual-
Courtesy of Jennifer De Angelo Baxter
Loudoun’s Attractions
CATTY CORNER CAFE
A place where cat lovers can come together, spend time in our cozy lounge, drink coffee, and get the chance to meet our amazing rescue cats. With the option of even being able to adopt and give them their forever home.
CATS - COFFEE - COOKIES
116 E. Market Street, Leesburg VA703-944-4158
cattycornercafe.com
DOUBLE X ARCHERY
Northern Virginia’s Premiere Archery Pro Shop and Indoor Range ARCHERY SERVICES - LESSONS - RENTALS
500 E. Market Street, Leesburg, VA 540-206-0041 doublexarchery.com
LOUDOUN HERITAGE FARM MUSEUM
Travel through time to meet the 10 generations of Loudoun County residents who built this county and left their mark on the land. Exhibits include a schoolhouse, general store, Native American artifact display and the American Workhorse Museum Collection.
Morven Park is a 1,000-acre historic estate on the edge of Leesburg that was home to Virginia governor and agricultural pioneer Westmoreland Davis. Tours of the Greek Revival mansion include 16th century Belgian tapestries, Spanish cassones, hundreds of silver pieces, Hudson River Valley paintings, and Asian treasures. The estate also features the Winmill Carriage Museum, the Museum of Hounds and Hunting of North America, formal boxwood gardens, miles of hiking and riding trails, and athletic fields.
17195 Southern Planter Lane Leesburg, VA 20176 703-777-2414 • morvenpark.org
1 50 West Vineyards 39060 Little River Turnpike, Middleburg 50westvineyards.com
2 8 Chains North Winery 38593 Daymont Ln., Waterford, VA 8chainsnorth.com
1 Bluemont Station Brewery and Winery 18301 Whitehall Estate Lane, Bluemont bluemontstation.com
2 Hillsborough Brewery & Vineyards 36716 Charles Town Pike, Hillsboro hillsboroughwine.com
3 Notaviva Brewery and Winery 13274 Sagle Rd., Hillsboro notavivavineyards.com
4 Quattro Goomba’s Brewery & Winery 22860 James Monroe Hwy., Aldie goombawine.com BREWERIES & WINERIES
1 Henway Hard Cider Company 18780 Foggy Bottom Road, Bluemont henwayhardcider.com
2 Loudoun Cider House 43376 Spinks Ferry Rd., Leesburg loudounciderhouse.com
3 Mt. De ance Cider Barn 495 E. Washington St., Middleburg mtdefiance.com
4 Wild Hare Hard Cider Cabin 106 South St., Leesburg wildharecider.com
1 Stonehouse Meadery 36580 Shoemaker School Rd., Purcellville stonehousemeadery.com
Credit: Crystle Chrispen Photography
Eric Selby’s fourth record, “Starting To Sync In,” was tracked at Recording Arts in Arlington and The Facility Nashville, and mastered by Andy Walter at Abbey Road Studios in London.
Selby Gets Nashville Funky with ‘Staring to Sync In’
BY NORMAN K. STYER GetOutLoudoun.com
Since the pandemic, Eric Selby has been stepping out from behind his drum kit to put out CDs of his solo music, with his third recording, 2023’s “Dang Fool,” still garnering national airplay.
This month, the Sterling resident releases his fourth, “Staring to Sync In” with five tracks including songs recorded with the backing of some of Nashville’s top session players and the final mastering completed at famed Abbey Road Studios in London.
Selby is a veteran of the DMV music scene. On any given day, he could be keeping the blues band beats for Billy Thompson or Jay Summerour, doing the singer/songwriter thing in a tasting room of a Loudoun winery, or catching a midweek gig at an area retirement community.
He’s been playing music for five decades. Selby grew up in the Gaithersburg, MD, as the youngest of five boys—all musicians. His siblings played keyboard, bass and guitar. “They didn’t have a drummer.
So when I came along, I became the drummer,” Selby said.
His 20 years of playing for guitar master Thompson has provided opportunities to open for the Doobie Brothers and record with Little Feat’s Bill Payne and Kenny Gradney.
But it is only a year ago, with his daughters off to college, that he fully committed to music. At age 58, he felt a last chance to fully jump in.
“So I quit my job, and I’m doing it full time. Retirement communities during the week, doing studio sessions around the DMV, and playing whatever nights they’ll have me. I’m taking all the gigs I can and supporting this, which is kind of cool,” he said. He released his first CD, “Do, Baby,” during the pandemic lockdown in 2020 “just for fun.”
With the music industry shut down, friends advised him not to. “Don’t send it to radio stations because no one’s releasing music right now,” they told him.
The opposite happened. With fewer choices for new tunes, DJs were searching for material and soon his songs were appearing in the alternative music charts. “I’m just some dumb drummer. What do I know,” he said, he said of that early success.
For “Staring to Sync In,” the project started with recording a couple of songs at Recording Arts in Arlington.
Then he was invited by fellow Loudoun music scene veteran Dave Mininberg to join him on a trip to Nashville. It was Selby’s first trip to Music City.
Along the way a recording cancelation at David Taylor’s The Facility Nashville studio opened an unexpected opportunity.
“They said somebody canceled on Thursday. All these killer studio guys are there. Do you have any song you want to record?” Selby said.
During the October session, Selby’s songs were brought to life by musicians who typically play for Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, Lee Ann Womack or Luke Bryan.
“I’m not really a Nashville guy. Actually, it was just serendipity,” he said.
The result was not your typical country recording; the tracks shift from funky to psychedelic to Beatle-esque.
“I think what stands out for me is that, lyrically and musically, it’s starting to go in a different direction. And I don’t even know what that is,” Selby said.
TUNES CONTINUED ON 11
Photo
With the recordings laid down, Selby turned to the final mix.
On a bit of a whim he reached out to Abbey Road Studios as a buck list wish. Instead of being turned down, they asked which producer he’d like to work with.
Andy Walter, the twice Grammy-nominated engineering veteran who worked on projects for David Bowie, Jimmy Page, U2, The Who and more, assembled the final master. “He said, ‘Hey, I really love your music. What do you think?’ I’m like, dude that sounds great,” Selby said of the final project.
“The first song on the on the record is called ‘Issues.’ That song, I think, is going to be the song that goes to this radio stations. I think that song stands out because it’s got these dudes from Nashville on it and it just has a cool vibe.”
”What was cool about working with these guys was that it was a great palate cleanser for them. They go from session to session and this wasn’t the same old
Learn more about Eric Selby at ericselby.com. TUNES FROM PAGE 10
ART SCENE FROM PAGE 6
ly I would use it as some type of reference. I continue that now when I am out and about, if I find something I will collect it. I definitely have a stockpile of weird things from nature that are an inspiration,” she said.
The deer skull was used in a wondrously deep and moody work, “The Matrimony of Georgia and Sal.” She used intense colors to draw the viewer in for a closer look with brush strokes that have disappeared into the painting.
The found things of nature are not the only aspect in which nature inspires her.
“The human experience, particularly the female experience, in life started being a really influential theme in college, but I think now that I am a mom and have gone through so many phases of life it is even more of an inspiration. The way that you change as a person in your 20s, 30s, and now my 40s is drastic, but the core of the person and what they love stays the same,” she said.
The wisdom that comes with age shows in her works.
“Whatever phase of life I’m in and I have an ah ha moment like ‘woah now I understand how
twang. There wasn’t a pedal steel. There wasn’t a violin,” Selby said.
With the release scheduled for Jan. 24, Selby is looking forward to promoting the new material and entertaining audiences around the region and especially in Loudoun. And he continues to revel in the rewards of performing music and helping to grow the local music scene.
“You know, I was a vice president of a media company, and I thought I worked my ass off. Now being a fulltime musician, I work twice as hard for twice less. But when you go home you feel more fulfilled,” Shelby said.
“I’m so blessed to be here at this time in Loudoun County because it has evolved so much.”
Starting To Sync In will be available Jan. 24 on streaming services and online music platforms, with CDs also available at his shows.
my mom was feeling when I was in elementary school,’ but, I didn’t understand that when I was a young person, before I had kids,” she said. “Now I understand the sacrifices women make to be a mother and a woman in the workforce where I didn’t understand that before. Those ah ha moments of the understanding of a woman’s life really come into play.”
Her students may follow a similar path of discovery, but that journey starts will instilling a connection to art.
“It’s really important for younger people who are in middle school or in high school to see artists working, and to see artists valued, and that also comes from me as a middle school teacher,” she said.
Be sure to check out De Angelo Baxter’s social media and website to learn more about her work and how she uses it to brighten her surroundings.
Website: deangelobaxterart.com
Tiktok: @mrs_baxters_art_class
Instagram: @mrs_baxters_art_class
See the exhibit at Second Nature Coffee Co. at 110 S. King St. in Leesburg.
HAPPENINGS
BOOK TALK:
THE TRUE STORY OF ELIZA MONROE
For over two hundred years, President James Monroe’s eldest daughter, Eliza, has been portrayed as a hysterical and temperamental woman who abandoned her country and fled to France.
Research by author Barbara VornDick using records on both continents resulted in groundbreaking work showing Eliza in a new light and dispelling many of the untruths that have been written about her.
During a special Jan. 11 program, VornDick will discuss her new book, “Eliza’s True Story,” and the effort to repatriate Eliza’s remains from Paris to the Monroe family cemetery in Richmond.
The free program will be held at Oatlands, just
north of Monroe’s home at Oak Hill, starting at 1 p.m.
The event is supported by a grant from the VA250 Commission in partnership with Virginia Humanities and is among the programs highlighting the significance of the nation’s 250th anniversary.
Learn more at oatlands.org.
MLK MARCH: OPEN THE POSSIBILITIES
The community will gather in downtown Leesburg on Jan. 20 for the 34th annual march and celebration of the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr.
The theme of this year’s celebration is “Open the Possibilities” (Reading, Writing, Empowering Through Education) with a focus on the dream of achieving racial equity and harmony.
The event begins at 10 a.m. with a gathering on the courthouse lawn. From there, participants will march to the Douglass Community Center, which until 1968 served as the last segregated high school in Loudoun County. The afternoon program will feature musical performances, presentations, speakers and inspirational offerings will be made by members of the community, with a keynote address by County Chair Phyllis J. Randall.
Attendees are encouraged to participate in a collection drive to benefit Loudoun Hunger and Mobile Hope with the donation of nonperishable food items, gloves, scarves, coats, and hats. Drop off area will be at Frederick Douglass Elementary between 7:30 and 9 a.m.
This celebration, one of the oldest and largest in the region, is organized by the nonprofit MLK Diversity-Engagement Foundation. Learn more at mlkleesburg.org.
FRANKLIN PARK SPOTLIGHTS LOCAL FILM MAKERS
The Franklin Park Arts Center and the Purcellville Arts Council are teaming up for the eighth-annual Cabin Fever Film Festival on Jan. 24 and Jan. 25.
Under this year’s theme of The Sky’s The Limit, the festival highlights films made by Loudoun County residents. Awards will be presented in the categories of Best in Theme, Festival Favorite, and Most Likely to Break Cabin Fever. Each winner will receive $500 and a trophy hand-crafted by an area artist.
A selection of films will open the festival Friday night starting at 7 p.m. Showings will continue Saturday starting at 10 a.m.
At press time, the list of selected films and the schedule had not been determined. Details,
January ‘25
including ticket information, will be posted at franklinpartartscenter.org.
SYMPHONY GOES ON SAFARI
The Loudoun Symphony Orchestra will present its Discover the Orchestra: Safari! concert at 4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 18 at Woodgrove High School in Purcellville.
Conducted by Music Director Hayden Denesha the one-hour full-orchestra animal-themed concert is designed to introduce children to classical music in a low-pressure and fun setting. Selections include music from “Carnival of the Animals” by Camille Saint Saëns, highlights from “Jurassic Park,” and The Shark Theme from “Jaws,” both by John Williams. The program is underwritten by Northwest Federal Credit Union. Tickets are $20 for adults, and $5 for students. For details, go to loudounsymphony.org
OUTDOORS
BANSHEE REEKS NATURE PRESERVE PLANS INAUGURAL RESEARCH SYMPOSIUM
Since it was established as a county park in 1999, the 695-acre Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve has been a destination for residents seeking to spend some quiet time in the great outdoors.
With 20 miles of trails through fields, woodlands and along the banks of Goose Creek, the property is treasured for its recreational opportunities.
But much more has been happening on the land over the past quarter century with both professional researchers and community scientists
documenting their observations of the natural world.
On Saturday, Jan. 18, many of those researchers will present their findings during a special symposium at the park’s Education Annex.
Among the topics on the program will be: Can we bring a species back from the brink of extinction? What is eDNA and how is it used? Why did we record sounds during the eclipse? How many different bat species call Loudoun County home? And what is happening with gray foxes in Virginia?
The inaugural research symposium will feature representatives of the North American Bat Monitoring Project, NASA, American Chestnut Foundation, the University of Delaware, Virginia Tech, Fairfax County Stormwater Planning, Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy, Virginia Master Naturalist, Friends of Banshee Reeks, Virginia Department of Forestry and the Banshee Reeks staff.
The program will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. Jan. 18. Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve is located at 21085 The Woods Road south of Leesburg.
GETOUT Best Bets
Sunday, Jan. 12, 3 p.m. Lucketts Community Center luckettsbluegrass.org
01.12
01.2025
RALPH STANLEY II AND THE CLINCH MOUNTAIN BOYS
01.19
STRANGE SOULS
Sunday, Jan. 19, 7 p.m. (doors) Tally Ho Theater tallyhotheater.com
Enjoy a reimagining of the psychedelic blues rock of Jim Morrison and The Doors.
The pioneers of the new bluegrass style perform with the son of a bluegrass legend carrying on the family traditions.
01.17
JUMPTOWN
Friday, Jan. 17, 6 p.m.
The Barns at Hamilton Station thebarnsathamiltonstation.com
Jumptown warms up the scene with a winter dance party in the barn.
01.25
DANNY KNICELY’S WINTER CONCERT
Saturday, Jan. 25, 8 p.m. Franklin Park Arts Center franklinparkartscenter.org
Knicely returns with OUROS for the 14th annual concert featuring performances in Spanish and English and to celebrate his 50th birthday.
01.30
THE OUTLAWS
Thursday, Jan. 30, 7 p.m. (doors) Tally Ho Theater tallyhotheater.com
Henry Paul leads landmark Southern Rock band 50 years after the release of their first album and signature track “Green Grass and High Tides.”
This National Plan for Vacation Day, treat yourself to a getaway close to home! Loudoun offers everything you need for the perfect staycation— cozy inns, award-winning wineries, scenic adventures and local treasures. Make your plan today! Scan the QR code to start crafting your ideal Loudoun staycation.
