Top of page
Posted by: Stephen Winick
As the Old Year turns to the New Year, thousands of people around the world will sing along to “Auld Lang Syne,” a Scottish song that has come to be firmly associated with New Year’s celebrations. The song has a fascinating history, and we’re lucky at the Library of Congress to have several unique items …
Posted in: AFC Events, Folk Music, Folksong, Holidays
Posted by: Stephen Winick
St. George and the Data Dragon: A Digital Assets Mumming Performed by American Folklife Center Staff with Guests Script drawn from multiple plays in the James Madison Carpenter Collection. Compiled by Stephen Winick, with additional material by Stephen Winick, Jennifer Cutting, Theadocia Austen, Hope O’Keeffe, and the company. Digital assets jargon courtesy of Bertram Lyons. …
Posted in: AFC Events, Folk Drama, Folk Music, Folksong, Holidays, Mumming
Posted by: Stephen Winick
Every year, in the week before Christmas, staff members of the American Folklife Center put our research and performance skills into play, bringing collections to life in a dramatic performance that tours the halls of the Library of Congress. Dressed in costumes that range from striking to silly, we sing, act, rhyme, and dance for …
Posted in: AFC Events, Folk Drama, Folk Music, Folksong, Holidays, Mumming
Posted by: Stephen Winick
Albert Einstein, the physicist behind the Theory of General Relativity and other crucial theoretical advances of the 20th century, is often considered one of the greatest scientists of all time. But did you know that he also liked folklore? At least, he did according to some commentators. A direct quotation, often attributed to Einstein, runs: …
Posted in: German Americans, Legends
Posted by: Stephen Winick
Over the years since its founding in 1928 as the Archive of American Folk Song, the American Folklife Center archive has been explored by a wide range of artists seeking inspiration for their own works. Through their creations, AFC archival materials have often found their way into popular culture. From time to time on Folklife …
Posted in: Aaron Copland, Alan Lomax, Folk Music
Posted by: Stephen Winick
The following is a guest post by Aimee Hess, Library of Congress Publishing Office, and Todd Harvey, American Folklife Center. The American Folklife Center, in collaboration with the Library of Congress Publishing Office, has recently published Michigan-I-O: Alan Lomax and the 1938 Library of Congress Folk-Song Expedition, a digital publication containing text, images, music, and …
Posted in: Alan Lomax, Folk Music, Folksong, Michigan
Posted by: Stephen Winick
Welcome to Folklife Today, a new blog produced by the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress. Here at AFC, we have one of the largest archives in the world relating to traditional folk culture. The Center’s team of bloggers will be posting here regularly with interesting information about our collections and services. We …