Discovering Folk Music
From Ani DiFranco to Bob Dylan to Woodie Guthrie, American folk music comprises a truly diverse and rich tradition—one that's almost impossible to define in broad terms. This book explains why folk music is still highly relevant in the digital age.

From indigenous music to Pete Seeger and Bruce Springsteen singing "This Land Is Your Land" side-by-side at the pre-inaugural concert for our first African American president, folk music has been at the center of America's history. Thomas Jefferson wooed his bride-to-be with fiddle playing. Stephen Foster captured the mood of our country in transition. The Carter Family adapted music from across the pond to Appalachia. Paul Robeson carried folk music of many lands to the world stage. Woody Guthrie's dust bowl ballads spoke to the common man, while Sixties protest music put folk on the map, following the Kingston Trio's hit, "Tom Dooley."

Folk music has evolved with America's changing landscape, celebrating its multi-cultural traditions. From Irish step dancers to rap, parlor songs to Dixieland, blues to classical, Discovering Folk Music presents the genre as surprisingly diverse, every bit the product of our national melting pot.

Demonstrating continuing relevance of folk music in our everyday lives, the book spotlights an amazing array of personalities, with special emphasis on the folk revival era when Dylan, Baez, Odetta, and Peter, Paul and Mary sang out. These and others influenced such contemporary performers as Shawn Colvin and Ani DiFranco. Those on today's "fringes of folk" scene continue to look to these deep roots while embracing alternative sounds.

Included are interviews with such legendary artists as Janis Ian, Tom Paxton, and Jean Ritchie. Nora Guthrie, Woody's daughter, also weighs in. Discovering Folk Music is a ground-breaking look at 21st-century folk music in our rapidly changing digital world, family friendly while ripe for rediscovery by the Woodstock generation.
1101000932
Discovering Folk Music
From Ani DiFranco to Bob Dylan to Woodie Guthrie, American folk music comprises a truly diverse and rich tradition—one that's almost impossible to define in broad terms. This book explains why folk music is still highly relevant in the digital age.

From indigenous music to Pete Seeger and Bruce Springsteen singing "This Land Is Your Land" side-by-side at the pre-inaugural concert for our first African American president, folk music has been at the center of America's history. Thomas Jefferson wooed his bride-to-be with fiddle playing. Stephen Foster captured the mood of our country in transition. The Carter Family adapted music from across the pond to Appalachia. Paul Robeson carried folk music of many lands to the world stage. Woody Guthrie's dust bowl ballads spoke to the common man, while Sixties protest music put folk on the map, following the Kingston Trio's hit, "Tom Dooley."

Folk music has evolved with America's changing landscape, celebrating its multi-cultural traditions. From Irish step dancers to rap, parlor songs to Dixieland, blues to classical, Discovering Folk Music presents the genre as surprisingly diverse, every bit the product of our national melting pot.

Demonstrating continuing relevance of folk music in our everyday lives, the book spotlights an amazing array of personalities, with special emphasis on the folk revival era when Dylan, Baez, Odetta, and Peter, Paul and Mary sang out. These and others influenced such contemporary performers as Shawn Colvin and Ani DiFranco. Those on today's "fringes of folk" scene continue to look to these deep roots while embracing alternative sounds.

Included are interviews with such legendary artists as Janis Ian, Tom Paxton, and Jean Ritchie. Nora Guthrie, Woody's daughter, also weighs in. Discovering Folk Music is a ground-breaking look at 21st-century folk music in our rapidly changing digital world, family friendly while ripe for rediscovery by the Woodstock generation.
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Overview

From Ani DiFranco to Bob Dylan to Woodie Guthrie, American folk music comprises a truly diverse and rich tradition—one that's almost impossible to define in broad terms. This book explains why folk music is still highly relevant in the digital age.

From indigenous music to Pete Seeger and Bruce Springsteen singing "This Land Is Your Land" side-by-side at the pre-inaugural concert for our first African American president, folk music has been at the center of America's history. Thomas Jefferson wooed his bride-to-be with fiddle playing. Stephen Foster captured the mood of our country in transition. The Carter Family adapted music from across the pond to Appalachia. Paul Robeson carried folk music of many lands to the world stage. Woody Guthrie's dust bowl ballads spoke to the common man, while Sixties protest music put folk on the map, following the Kingston Trio's hit, "Tom Dooley."

Folk music has evolved with America's changing landscape, celebrating its multi-cultural traditions. From Irish step dancers to rap, parlor songs to Dixieland, blues to classical, Discovering Folk Music presents the genre as surprisingly diverse, every bit the product of our national melting pot.

Demonstrating continuing relevance of folk music in our everyday lives, the book spotlights an amazing array of personalities, with special emphasis on the folk revival era when Dylan, Baez, Odetta, and Peter, Paul and Mary sang out. These and others influenced such contemporary performers as Shawn Colvin and Ani DiFranco. Those on today's "fringes of folk" scene continue to look to these deep roots while embracing alternative sounds.

Included are interviews with such legendary artists as Janis Ian, Tom Paxton, and Jean Ritchie. Nora Guthrie, Woody's daughter, also weighs in. Discovering Folk Music is a ground-breaking look at 21st-century folk music in our rapidly changing digital world, family friendly while ripe for rediscovery by the Woodstock generation.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9798216075066
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication date: 02/09/2010
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 224
File size: 10 MB
Age Range: 7 - 17 Years

About the Author

Stephanie P. Ledgin is an international award-winning photojournalist whose 35-year career has spanned publications, recordings, and museums.
STEPHANIE P. LEDGIN is a journalist and photographer who has focused on bluegrass and traditional folk music since 1975, when she began work as an editor of the seminal bluegrass magazine Pickin'. Her work has also appeared in such publications as Bluegrass Unlimited, Acoustic Guitar, Sing Out!, and Bluegrass Now.

Table of Contents

Foreword by Gregg and Evan Spiridellis
Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction: Why Folk Music?
Chapter 1 What Is Folk Music? Beyond "Kumbaya"
Chapter 2 American Folk Music: A Cultural Mosaic
Chapter 3 Folk Revival: 50 Years On
Chapter 4 No Boundaries: New Folk to Anti-Folk
Chapter 5 The Power of Song
Chapter 6 Guitars, Harmonicas, and Banjos…Oh, My!
Chapter 7 Folk: Family-Friendly
Chapter 8 Folk Alive! Front Porches to Festivals
Chapter 9 Bridging Folk: Tom Paxton to the Abrams Brothers
Chapter 10 A Living Tradition: The Times They Keep A-Changin'
More Folk: Selected Resources
Listening Space: A Folk Continuum
Index
A photo essay appears after page 88 in this book.

What People are Saying About This

Terry Stewart

"Here's the who, what, when, and where primer for folk music. This guide clearly maps out the scope of a genre that is too often narrowly pigeonholed by its association with banjos and fiddles. No doubt, Discovering Folk Music will become a 'go to' reference for fans and students alike."

Terry Stewart, President, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum

Mark Schaffer

"Stephanie Ledgin makes the case that if you love any music (and who doesn't?), you love folk music but probably never knew it. Discovering Folk Music is a compelling achievement in scope, in purpose, and in the details that make its vast subject comprehensible and 'hands on.' She infuses the music with a history and a context that includes people and stories woven into the fabric of our rich cultural heritage. And as a result, we can cherish America's folk music even more."
Mark Schaffer, Songwriter & President, Folk Project of New Jersey

Terry Stewart

"Here's the who, what, when, and where primer for folk music. This guide clearly maps out the scope of a genre that is too often narrowly pigeonholed by its association with banjos and fiddles. No doubt, Discovering Folk Music will become a 'go to' reference for fans and students alike."

Terry Stewart, President, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum

Mary Sue Twohy

"Are you a singer-songwriter? Perhaps you listen to Americana music or are learning guitar or banjo. Did you enjoy O Brother, Where Art Thou? Stephanie Ledgin provides an excellent map to explore folk music in history and pop culture. And she is spot on! Reading Discovering Folk Music is akin to hanging out in your best friend's kitchen talking about the music you love. Strongly recommended for players and casual listeners alike."

Mary Sue Twohy, XM15 The Village, the folk channel on Sirius XM Satellite Radio

Mark Schaffer

"Stephanie Ledgin makes the case that if you love any music (and who doesn't?), you love folk music but probably never knew it. Discovering Folk Music is a compelling achievement in scope, in purpose, and in the details that make its vast subject comprehensible and 'hands on.' She infuses the music with a history and a context that includes people and stories woven into the fabric of our rich cultural heritage. And as a result, we can cherish America's folk music even more."

Mark Schaffer, Songwriter & President, Folk Project of New Jersey

Mary Sue Twohy

"Are you a singer-songwriter? Perhaps you listen to Americana music or are learning guitar or banjo. Did you enjoy O Brother, Where Art Thou ? Stephanie Ledgin provides an excellent map to explore folk music in history and pop culture. And she is spot on! Reading Discovering Folk Music is akin to hanging out in your best friend's kitchen talking about the music you love. Strongly recommended for players and casual listeners alike."
Mary Sue Twohy, XM15 The Village, the folk channel on Sirius XM Satellite Radio

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