A mixture of bluegrass, folk, country and gospel music can be heard from the open doors of the Belhaven Mainstreet Landing, in which, a Belhaven group gathers weekly for jam sessions.

Jim Carpenter, a Belhaven resident, and a couple of other people who shared a love for music started the idea, according to Andy Fisher, Carpenter’s son-in-law and owner of the Water Street Bed and Breakfast, the original venue for the sessions. Carpenter, also a member of the Beaufort County Traditional Music Association, used to attend Bluegrass festivals and when he moved to Belhaven, he wanted to bring the music to himself.

The sessions grew into a gathering of instrumentalists and music lovers, causing the group to play outside on the porch of the bed and breakfast.

“People would put their folding chairs around the porch and listen to the music,” said Fisher.

The sessions expanded further, and the group moved to a storage warehouse on Main Street in Belhaven.

“In the summer time we open up the barn doors and you can look out on the water,” Fisher said. “People really look forward to that.”

According to Fisher, the group has purchased pews for the people who come to listen to the music and several local businesses have donated seating for the sessions as well. Several improvements have been made to the facility as well, including latticework, a furnace and a sidewalk.

“The jams have grown and they play bluegrass, folk, gospel and country, and as it grows, we grow,” said Karen Fisher, co-owner of the bed and breakfast and Carpenter’s daughter. “It just kind of grows with the audience and the players. Everyone comes just to have a good time. We have had as many as 52 people come to listen and as many as nine instruments at once.”

According to the Fishers’, the sessions have attracted boaters that come to the area, and by word of mouth, people from the surrounding areas have started attending to listen to the music.

According to Fisher, there have been several instruments to grace the jam sessions, including a banjo, violin, guitar, keyboard, mandolin and bass violin.

“We had a guy show up one time with a puppet that sang,” Fisher said. “It was a riot. The puppet’s name was Izzy Real.”

Fisher said that they encourage people to attend the sessions.

“Anyone is welcome to sit in,” Fisher said. “We have a lot of people that sit in the audience and listen. We try to make everyone feel welcome.”

The Belhaven Mainstreet Landing hosts jam sessions on Tuesday nights at 6:30 p.m.

For more information, call 252-945-7028 or visit facebook.com/belhavenmainstreetlanding.