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Posted by: Stephanie Hall
Katherine Dunham is perhaps most famous for her influence on modern American dance with the introduction of African and Caribbean dance movement. That work began with ethnographic work in the Caribbean in 1936. Films made during her research have been put online by the Music Division of the Library of Congress in Selections from the …
Posted in: African American History, Dance, Women's History
Posted by: Stephanie Hall
On February 18, 2020, the Library of Congress hosted an unusual event, a celebration of African American dolls and puppets sponsored by the American Folklife Center’s Benjamin Botkin Lecture Series. Folklorist Camila Bryce-Laporte and fellow artist, Dr. Deborah Grayson, presented several artists from Maryland and the District of Columbia. The event also included a wonderful …
Posted in: African American History, African Americans, Folk Art, Women's History
Posted by: Stephanie Hall
August 2019 marks 400 years since a group of about 20 Africans were brought to the new colony of Virginia and traded as slaves for food. It was the beginning of African slavery in the continental British colonies that became the United States. The events of 1619 are well documented and the British became the …
Posted in: African American History, Native American History
Posted by: Stephanie Hall
For some time I have been intrigued by the beautiful voices of four young men, singers in the Holloway High School Quartet, recorded by John W. Work III in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, in 1941. To mark African American Heritage Month this year, I thought I would try to find out a little more about them. I have …
Posted in: African American History, African Americans
Posted by: Stephanie Hall
When I was a child, in about 1960, I remember two of my father’s cousins getting into an animated discussion about Marian Anderson and the time they resigned from the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR). Although I was not old enough to understand the event they were talking about, it made a strong impression. …
Posted in: African American History, African Americans, Women's History
Posted by: Stephanie Hall
This blog post is the second of two about the abolitionist Frederick Douglass (celebrating his 200th birthday) and part of a series called “Hidden Folklorists,” which examines the folklore work of surprising people, including people better known for other pursuits. The first post, “Frederick Douglass: Free Folklorist,” is available at this link. The 1850s brought new …
Posted in: African American History, African Americans, Hidden Folklorists
Posted by: Stephanie Hall
This blog post about the abolitionist Frederick Douglass is part of a series called “Hidden Folklorists,” which examines the folklore work of surprising people, including people better known for other pursuits. This is part one of a two-part article, part two, “Frederick Douglass: ‘I Am a Man,’” can be found at the link. I have often …
Posted in: African American History, African Americans, Hidden Folklorists
Posted by: Stephanie Hall
This is one of two articles, each focusing on one ethnographic recording of an African American song of World War I. To read the article about “Trench Blues” select here. African Americans left to serve in World War I, beginning one hundred years ago in June 1917, landing in France on June 25. They had …
Posted in: African American History, African Americans, Alan Lomax, Folksong, John Lomax, World War I
Posted by: Stephanie Hall
One hundred years ago this month, February 26, 1917, what is generally acknowledged as the first recording of jazz was released. “Livery Stable Blues,” performed by the Original Dixieland Jass Band [1] was a best-selling record for Victor, but is a problematic “first” as it is a recording of a white band performing an African …
Posted in: African American History, African Americans, Blues, Folk Music, Folksong, Jazz