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Posted by: Stephen Winick
This guest post by Jennifer Cutting is part of a series of blog posts highlighting performances by contemporary artists at special “Archive Challenge” showcase stages, both at the Folk Alliance International conference, and at the Library of Congress as part of the Homegrown concert series. (Find all entries in the series here!) In both of …
Posted in: Archive Challenge, Bluegrass
Posted by: Stephen Winick
In the Homegrown Plus series, we present Homegrown concerts that also had accompanying oral history interviews, placing both together in an easy-to-find blog post. We’re continuing the series with John McCutcheon, an American folksinger, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. McCutcheon is regarded as a master of the hammered dulcimer, and in the concert displayed jaw-dropping proficiency on guitar, banjo, autoharp, mountain dulcimer, fiddle, jawharp, piano, body percussion, and other instruments. McCutcheon is a master performer whose 36 albums have earned 6 Grammy nominations. For this concert, McCutcheon did something else that was very special to us: he took the Archive Challenge, playing exclusively material from American Folklife Center collections. The oral history is filled with fascinating stories of his long career.
Posted in: Archive Challenge, Concerts with Archive Challenge Content, Homegrown Concert Series, Homegrown Plus, Old Time Music
Posted by: Stephanie Hall
Although the Library of Congress is temporarily closed to the public and staff are, as possible, working from home, the work of the Library continues. It is heartening to see that one of the most labor intensive areas of work, putting archival collections online, continues in spite of the precautions against the COVID-19 pandemic. The …
Posted in: Alan Lomax, Bess Lomax Hawes, Women's History
Posted by: Kerry Ward
The following is a guest blog post by Justina Moloney, archivist with the Veterans History Project, and Kerry Ward, liaison specialist. Seventy-five years ago, bells rang out around the world as Nazi Germany surrendered its armed forces – ending the war in Europe. The days following the surrender were filled with celebration, but the thought …
Posted in: Storytelling, Veterans History Project, World War II
Posted by: Kerry Ward
Today marks 75 years since Victory in Europe (VE) Day, a time which should be full of momentous celebrations for all Allies. Regrettably, our current adversary (COVID-19) will force many of us to commemorate this significant occasion more quietly through virtual events or delaying commemorations to future dates. Don’t despair though! There are still ways …
Posted in: Oral History, Uncategorized, Veterans History Project, World War II
Posted by: Megan Harris
When the war ended, Gladyce “Pepper” Pederson Nypan cried, her tears dripping down into her dinner of mashed potatoes and gravy. Benjamin Cooper wrote a love letter to his wife. Alfred Newman watched his comrades fire off live ammunition, so intense was their celebrating. Jerome Yellin was still high in the sky over Japan, completing …
Posted in: Narratives, Oral History, Storytelling, Veterans History Project, World War II
Posted by: Stephen Winick
Take the Archive Challenge–From Home! The following post was co-authored with Jennifer Cutting At the American Folklife Center, we know it’s been hard for those of you who are cooped up at home in order to contain the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Most of the staff live in areas under stay-at-home orders, and have …
Posted in: Archive Challenge
Posted by: Stephanie Hall
Japanese agricultural workers began immigrating to Hawai`i in 1868, primarily to work on sugar plantations. This immigration peaked in the late 19th century. At this time the population of Native Hawaiians was crashing. As Hawaiians had more contact with Europeans they contracted diseases that they had no immunity to. Sugar plantations, mainly owned by American …
Posted in: Asian American History, Folksong, Pacific Islander History, Pacific Islands Americans