Honoring Pete Seeger

If anyone reading this is wondering why there was so much fuss over the 90th birthday of Pete Seeger recently, watch the 2007 documentary Pete Seeger: The Power of Song. If you know what all the fuss was about but haven't seen the movie, watch Pete Seeger: The Power of Song. If you don't care what all the fuss was about, watch Pete Seeger: The Power of Song. If you love folk music, watch Pete Seeger: The Power of Song. If you hate folk music, watch Pete Seeger: The Power of Song. If you've seen Pete Seeger: The Power of Song, watch it again.

On Sunday, April 26, 2009 I had the honor of playing a few songs at the Pete Seeger 90th Birthday Celebration at Ft. Lauderdale's Unitarian Universalist Church. At the end of this blog post, there is a video of one of the songs I performed.

I'm somewhat ashamed to admit that I, a banjo-thumping folksinger, really didn't have proper understanding of the man and his music until seeing Pete Seeger: The Power of Song. Without going into detail or even mentioning many of the significant events in his life (look him up), I'd like to just highlight the things that made the biggest impression on me:

• He co-founded The Almanac Singers in 1941, a group who promoted unions, racial and religious inclusion, and other progressive causes.
• He quit The Weavers, another music group he co-founded, when other members of the group agreed to sing a jingle for a cigarette commercial ("We don't need the money that bad.")
• He wrote How to Play the Five-String Banjo in 1948, a book which taught many banjo players how to play.
• He took his family on a trip around the world filming and recording indigenous music.
• He built a log cabin on the Hudson River with his own hands (and a little help from his friends and family) and lived there with his family.
• He recorded over 130 classic American songs (most of them traditional) between 1957 and 1962 and released them on five albums as the American Favorite Ballads series. The series was recently released as a 5-CD box set by Smithsonian Folkways.
• He was a prominent song leader during the Civil Rights Movement and Vietnam War protests.

As I was watching Pete Seeger: The Power of Song, I expected the story to wind down after the Vietnam segment. That's when his daughter came onscreen saying that her dad promised her as a young girl that she would one day be able to swim in the Hudson River, which was, at the time, heavily polluted. Spoiler alert: he kept his promise. Look up Hudson River Sloop Clearwater. Amazing.

Another huge inspiration for me is Pete's commitment to the power of group singing. A few quotes from the film:

I’ve never sung anywhere without giving the people listening to me a chance to join in - as a kid, as a lefty, as a man touring the U.S.A. and the world, as an oldster. I guess it’s kind of a religion with me. Participation. That’s what’s going to save the human race.

Once upon a time, wasn’t singing a part of everyday life as much as talking, physical exercise, and religion? Our distant ancestors, wherever they were in this world, sang while pounding grain, paddling canoes, or walking long journeys. Can we begin to make our lives once more all of a piece? Finding the right songs and singing them over and over is a way to start. And when one person taps out a beat, while another leads into the melody, or when three people discover a harmony they never knew existed, or a crowd joins in on a chorus as though to raise the ceiling a few feet higher, then they also know there is hope for the world.

So now, from the Pete Seeger 90th Birthday Celebration in Ft. Lauderdale, here's me doing my best Pete Seeger on the song Lonesome Valley. Oh, I almost forgot - watch Pete Seeger: The Power of Song.

New 'Celebrate with Song' Blog

I had planned to write a looking-back-at-2008 Ramblings post, but there proved to be so much coming up early in 2009 that there was time only for looking forward. The two biggest news items are the February release of the CD Songs in the Life of Abraham Lincoln (Ballad of America Volume 3), and the launch of the blog Celebrate with Song, which features free MP3 song downloads.

About Celebrate with Song

This new blog features music that is traditionally related to holidays and observances in the United States. In each post there will be a brief explanation of a holiday or observance, information about music that is relevant to it, and a free MP3 of a song available for download. I welcome your input, feedback, and discussion in the form of comments and email.

The first post, celebrating Martin Luther King, Jr. Day(January 19), is online now. It includes a free MP3 of a new Rambling String Band recording of the song This Little Light, which was commonly sung during the civil rights movement.

I plan to post more or less every month and feature a current Federal holiday or public observance. There are currently eleven Federal holidays designated by the U.S. Congress, including Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Labor Day. Public observances are declared by presidential proclamation and include days (Flag Day, Citizenship Day), weeks (National Family Week, National Park Week), and months (Black History Month, National American Indian Heritage Month.

Next month’s Celebrate with Song post will feature Presidents Day (February 16). Although the legal name of the Federal holiday is Washington’s Birthday, it is commonly called Presidents Day in honor of all U.S. presidents. In that spirit, the Presidents Day post will also celebrate Abraham Lincoln’s 200th birthday with a free MP3 download of a song from the new Rambling String Band CD Songs in the life of Abraham Lincoln (Ballad of America Volume 3). The CD traces Lincoln’s life from the log cabin to his presidency through the folk and popular songs he loved.

More on Abe next month. Right now it’s time to celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. Day with This Little Light.

Old-Time Music Night

This may have been the most fun I've ever had playing music. Definitely top ten. On Friday, October 24, 2008, I brought together all the old-time musicians I could scare up in South Florida for a night of music-making at Luna Star Cafe in North Miami. By the grand finale, half the people in the room were playing a banjo, fiddle, guitar, or mandolin, and all were singing along to Golden Slippers. Follow along and you'll get to the video.

For an idea of just how old old-time music is, consider that the term was first formally used by Okeh Records in the 1920s to label music that was, even then, old enough to be deemed "old-time." Most of the musicians whose records were labeled "old-time" were white rural Southerners for whom music-making was an integral part of everyday life. Their song repertoire included traditional ballads and fiddle tunes from the British Isles that had been circulating in the Appalachians for some two centuries, sacred songs, commercial compositions of sufficient vintage to have entered the oral tradition, and original songs that were often topical and/or tragic.

Ironically, recording technology enables citizens of the world today to savor the sounds of this music from the oral tradition as it was captured the very moment before the commercial record and radio industries effectuated its demise.

Today, throughout the United States, communities of musicians play old-time music at social gatherings and festivals. Right here in South Florida, the Pompano Beach Old-Time Jammers get together every Tuesday night to play and expand their repertoire of fiddle tunes. It is in this spirit of community music-making that I invited them to participate in Old-Time Music Night at Luna Star Cafe.

The night featured the Pompano Beach Old-Time Jammers playing as a group, plus songs played and sung by individuals and duos.

Tony Thomas

Greg Allen

The Rambling String Band

The Grand Finale

The Rambling String Band played the last set of the evening. To go out with a bang, I invited the Pompano Beach Old-Time Jammers to the front. Far too numerous to fit on stage, we pretty much occupied the whole front half of the room - some onstage, some on the floor beside the stage, and some just playing and singing from their chairs at the tables.

The first song we played together was Yellow Rose of Texas. Written for the minstrel stage by a composer known only as J.K., it became popular during the Civil War and passed into Southern fiddling tradition in a somewhat altered form. With the combined group, we brought together the popular vocal version of the song and the old-time fiddle version.

Watch the Video!

Next up was the widely-known old-time breakdown Old Joe Clark.

Watch the Video!

Oh, Dem Golden Slippers was composed by prominent black minstrel songwriter and banjo player James A. Bland in 1879. The melody later passed from the minstrel stage into folk and fiddling tradition. Oh, Dem Golden Slippers was originally a mockery of Golden Slippers, a spiritual song sung by the Fisk Jubilee Singers. Bland's version surpassed the Fisk song in popularity and is now commonly referred to as Golden Slippers. Again, the combined group brings together the vocal version of the song and the fiddle version.

Watch the Video!

Realizing My Musical Mission

Through performances, recordings, and education, I strive to:

• preserve and propagate traditional folk music
• increase participation in the singing and playing of traditional folk music
• enhance understanding of people, culture, and history throughout the world

This blog post focuses on a few upcoming events through which I am realizing that mission.

Old-Time Music Night

At 8:00PM on Friday, October 24th I bring together South Florida's old-time musicians and the community at large for a night out at Luna Star Cafe in North Miami. This will be a fun, participatory night of music making with fiddle tunes, folk songs, sing-alongs and so many musicians they will spill off the stage into the audience.

Featured performers include the Pompano Beach Old-Time Jammers, Greg Allen (fiddle and banjo player), Tony Thomas (folk singer, banjo/guitar player and scholar), and my group, The Rambling String Band.

The Pompano Beach Old-Time Jammers are a group of acoustic musicians (fiddles, banjos, guitars, mandolins, autoharps, basses,etc), including myself, that meets every Tuesday night to play old-time fiddle tunes just for kicks - no microphones, audience, or aspirations of superstardom.

For more information about them and where they meet, email me.

Check out the Pompano Beach Old-Time Jammers playing Waterbound at Red, White, and Bluegrass on Hollywood Beach in May, 2008.

The Florida Fair

This event celebrating all things Florida is being held at Calder Race Course in Miami on Saturday, November 8th from 11:00AM until 5:00PM. I will be performing at various times throughout the day and hosting a booth dedicated to the music of old Florida. The music of early Florida provides an interesting look at the history of Florida, from the Native Americans to the Spanish conquistadors, as well as the French and British settlers who called Florida their home.

For more information about the The Florida Fair, visit their website .

Sunshine State Acoustic Music Camp

For many years, musicians from beginning to advanced have gathered annually in the deep green shade of giant live oaks in a secluded but well-equipped 100-acre St. Petersburg nature park to teach, learn, and trade tunes. This year, as last, I will be teaching classes in old-time banjo throughout the weekend for players of all skill levels, including the absolute beginner.

For one low price you can choose from dozens of workshops taking place throughout the weekend, including guitar, fiddle, banjo, harmonica, singing, lap or hammered dulcimer, autoharp, mandolin, songwriting, and music theory.

For me, the best thing about music camps like this is the chance to get away from everything else in life and just play music. I tend to spend all weekend (when I'm not in a workshop) walking around with my banjo strapped on - playing with, learning from, and teaching like-minded musicians.

The Sunshine State Acoustic Music Camp will be held at Boyd Hill Environmental Studies Area in St. Petersburg, Florida from November 14 - 16. For more information, visit their website.

I hope you can join me at one or more of these events.

Children and American Folk Music

Last month, my blog focused on a recent adult show I played in Sarasota with the Rambling String Band. This month I'd like to share some of my experiences doing Ballad of America children's programs in public libraries and schools. After a bit of pontificating here at the beginning, there are pictures and videos from recent programs.

One of the main goals of my children's programs is to get kids singing songs that played a role in America's history. I weave the songs together in a way that tells a story or stories about what went on here before they were born. We might cover the colonial period, the American Revolution, westward expansion, slavery, the Civil Rights Movement, or all of the above.

I know that I have important work to do in getting kids to listen to, sing, and understand American folk music. Often I will include the song Yankee Doodle in a program. I introduce the song, without naming it, by explaining its significance in the American Revolution. Then I plunk out the melody to Yankee Doodle on the banjo and ask the kids if they know the name of the song. I usually receive an enthusiastic response of "Barney!" from the participants. True, the purple dinosaur has applied the folk process to the familiar tune by fitting it with new words for the theme song to his television program. But, as I said, I know that I have work to do.

I believe in Caroline Kennedy's words that "...children have an immense capacity for faith and for patriotism. If their introduction to the story of our country is captivating, they can develop a lifelong interest in history and a willingness to engage in civic life."

I know what's going on in our elementary schools, at least in Florida, where American history is a "if we have time for it after preparing students for standardized tests in every subject except Social Studies" subject. And I know that American children are not learning the songs of their own heritage as they once did. A study by Dr. Marilyn Ward at the University of Florida confirms this and goes on to assert:

Children need and use these songs to help them understand the world and complex interrelationships that defy logic and a child's capacity to make sense of things. The songs help kids better learn history and important events, empathize with the plight of others, step into another's shoes, and experience the perspectives, hardships, and joys of their grandparents and ancestors.

But that's not all. These folk songs help children form connections and bonds with their communities and our American society at large. Music is powerful, and it has the ability to dramatically affect emotions, attitudes, and perspective. Children need the associations and bonds of these songs. They help children develop empathy for others and a vested interest in the future of their nation. They need these bonds and connections to develop a foundational sense that they are an integral and valuable part of their communities and society. There's a huge difference in the way adults relate to others when their perspective is "me vs. everyone" as opposed to "we're on the same team here."

Of my CDs, I would recommend Ballad of America Volume 2: America Singing for kids and adults of all ages. It is full of folk songs that everyone should know: Oh Susanna!, Blue Tail Fly, Red River Valley, etc. For older kids and adults, Ballad of America Volume 1: Over a Wide and Fruitful Land tells the story of the westward expansion of this country through the words and music of those who made it happen.

'Nuff said. On with the show.

Songs of the Railroad

For a series of recent programs at the Gold Coast Railroad Museum, I focused on songs of the railroad and shared stories about the people who built the railroad, and those who rode the rails around the country.

Watch the Video!

Songs of the Civil Rights Movement

The Civil Rights Movement was strengthened by people singing together wherever they gathered. This Little Light was one of the most popular songs of the movement.

Watch the Video!

Folk Instruments

In my children's programs, I introduce and play a variety of folk instruments. We even assemble a pioneer rhythm band from the audience to play along on a song or two.

Demonstrating the mountain dulcimer.



Demonstrating the limberjack.

Demonstrating the gourd banjo.

Distributing spoons to young musicians.

Student playing the limberjack.

Student playing the spoons.

Student playing the washboard.

Pioneer rhythm band.

Fun for all ages.

Serenading Sarasota

In July 2008, the Rambling String Band performed at the Sarasota Sailing Squadron. The concert was part of the Sarasota Folk Club’s monthly concert series at the Squadron. Three of the five members of our group, bassist Chris DeAngelis, banjo/mandolin player Lynn Griffith, and I gladly made the trip to the west coast of Florida for the event.

The Sailing Squadron is a beautiful boat launch facility on Sarasota Bay with a clubhouse, pavilion, and stage. I was told that attendance at the concerts is low during the summer months, but I was more than pleased with the 50+ people who showed up to enjoy a night of folk music and camaraderie.

I must add that, since the closing of the Main Street Café in Homestead, I have rarely attended or performed at an acoustic music event in Florida that had a larger audience of people listening silently and attentively. The crowd was second to none. Many thanks to the Sarasota Folk Club for providing us this opportunity and treating us with such hospitality.

The beautiful, intimate outdoor venue and adult audience who came to listen coalesced to create the perfect setting for the Rambling String Band to dig deep and highlight some of the music that first drew me to American folk music. Oh, I love the sing-alongs, and everyone sounded great on songs like Oh Susanna! and Home on the Range. Nothing makes me prouder or feel like I am doing something more valuable than when a roomful of people of varying ages and backgrounds joins together in song at one of our shows.

But it’s not at every show that we can so effectively perform The Wisconsin Emigrant and Rambling Gambler - quiet songs whose lyrics paint a vivid picture of the 19th century American pioneering experience. I’d like to share a few videos from our performance that special night on the bay in Sarasota.

(These videos and many more are available on the Ballad of America channel at YouTube.)

Shenandoah

Until the nineteenth century only adventurers who sought their fortunes as trappers and traders of beaver fur ventured as far west as the Missouri River. Most of these men were loners who became friendly with, and sometimes married, Native Americans.

Shenandoah is said to have originated with French voyageurs traveling down the Missouri River. The lyrics tell the story of a trader who fell in love with the daughter of an Algonquian chief, Shenandoah. American sailors heading down the Mississippi River picked up the song and made it a capstan shanty that they sang while hauling in the anchor.

Watch the Video!

The Wisconsin Emigrant

After the War of 1812, immigrants flooded into the United States to farm, work in the factories, and build roads and canals. Eastern seaboard land in the United States became scarce and expensive as industrialization advanced. Seeking new land and opportunity, many pioneers loaded their wagons and headed west. But the decision whether to stay in the relatively settled lands of New England or venture into lesser-known territory was not an easy one to make.

The lyrics to The Wisconsin Emigrant are representative of the discussions that went on in thousands of households at the time.

Watch the Video!

Rambling Gambler

When the Civil War was over, huge areas of the South lay in ruin. Millions of Southerners, black and white, were now homeless and faced with the reality of having to reconstruct their lives. In the face of this, some packed their few belongings and headed west to see what may await them.

Among the things they brought with them as they attempted to start their lives anew were their beloved songs. Word clusters and entire verses from Rambling Gambler can be found in many similar American and British songs including The Wagoner's Lad, My Horses Ain't Hungry, and The Texas Cowboy. This version retains a Gaelic melody and was popular with the early American cowboys which some of these drifting Southerners were soon to become.

Watch the Video!

Photoblog from Thailand

In June 2008 I spent three weeks in Thailand engaged in music projects and exploring. It was one of the great experiences of my life, highlighted by my participation in a multi-cultural concert in Umphang and a recording of songs by Burmese people living in the Umpiem Mai refugee camp.

Sightseeing in Sukhothai

My first stop after flying into Bangkok was Sukhothai in Central Thailand. Sukhothai ("dawn of happiness") was the center of Thailand's first independent kingdom and birthplace of the Thai nation, established in 1238. I spent a blissful few days there with my beautiful travel companion, Jamie, bicycling through town and the historical park filled with Buddha images and brick temples. Also enjoyed the first of many Thai massages there. We stayed at the incredible Orchid Hibiscus Guest House in Old City Sukhothai and highly suggest you do the same if you ever find yourself in Sukhothai.

Not much to see in New City Sukhothai, but we did get a cheap guitar there. By the way, food, goods, transportation, lodging, massages, etc. are all INEXPENSIVE throughout Thailand, so bring a few bucks and live like a king or queen.

We took a bus to Mae Sot in the western borderlands of Central Thailand and spent two days and nights there. Relatively uneventful, save for a few unsettling hours trying to get a ride back to our hotel from the market on the Burma border while armed military men patrolled for refugees. If you're ever in Mae Sot, stop into a bar there called Kung's. Kung is a great artist and music aficionado.

Recording in Umpiem

Next we had a special music recording project at the Umpiem Mai refugee camp. Over 150,000 refugees live in various camps in Thailand having fled a military regime in neighboring Burma that “arbitrarily arrests, tortures, rapes and executes its own people, wages war on minorities within its own borders, and builds itself new cities, while looking the other way as refugee flows increase, narcotics and human trafficking grow, and communicable diseases remain untreated.” (US Acting Ambassador Alejandro Wolff, January 2007)

Jamie works with refugees in the Umpiem camp through American Refugee Committee. She found that her particular group informally sings songs they have written about their quest for basic human rights, expressed with a spirit of great hope for the future. Jamie and I proposed that we make an audio recording of them singing their songs and package it for use by the ARC.

I found the camp to be a spectacular site sprawled over the rolling hills of Central Thailand. We spent a wonderful afternoon listening to and recording great songs of hope and peace on my iPod through an Audio-Technica AT822 stereo microphone. The instrumentation was provided by just two musicians: one playing an acoustic guitar, and one playing a Yamaha keyboard plugged into a car battery for power. Some of the keyboard parts were programmed in advance and some were played live, but all were coming out of the built-in speaker on the keyboard. The songs were recorded live into a single stereo microphone with no overdubs.

Youth Are the Future
listen
lyrics (English)

Hope
listen
lyrics (English)

I'm not sure in what format the recordings we made on that day will be available to the general public, but I certainly hope to make it happen soon.

I brought my trusty banjo along for the ride, and swapped American folk songs and Burmese songs with the group. They didn't want their photographs published in connection with the recording project for fear of possible negative repercussions, hence the picture with their backs to the camera.

Multi-Cultural Concert in Umphang

From Umpiem we traveled a winding mountain road to the beautiful, simple village of Umphang, located in the Tak province of Thailand. Situated at the confluence of the Mae Khlong and Umphang Rivers, it is surrounded by pristine countryside, roaring waterfalls, ancient jungles, hot springs, limestone cliffs, and remote hill-tribe villages.

In Umphang there is a charming coffeehouse/souvenir shop called BanKruSun. It is run by a girl named Gift, her mother and grandmother. Gift's mother was married to a prominent Thai musician known as Krusun. The name of the cafe, BanKruSun, means "home of Krusun."


Krusun dedicated his music and career to helping local village children who were growing up in poverty. Money raised from the sales of his music was used to buy food and school supplies for the children, for whom he also gave concerts and provided music classes. Krusun passed away at an early age, but a foundation in his name, the Krusun Foundation, continues the work he started.


Prior to my visit, Gift arranged a special multi-cultural concert to benefit the Krusun Foundation. The concert took place at BanKruSun on Saturday, June 14, 2008. It featured traditional American folk music, represented by me and Jamie, and traditional music from Northern Thailand, represented by the Children's Group of Mehklong Village and the Elder's Group of Umphang. The Thai musicians played a violin-like bowed instrument called a 'sawoo,' a mandolin-like plucked instrument called a 'sung,' and various percussion instruments.

I met with members of the Elder's Group the night before the concert. We didn't understand a word each other said, but managed to effortlessly infuse their traditional Thai music with my clawhammer banjo playing. The rehearsal and concert were magical and I cannot express how grateful I am for the incredible experience of making music with and for the people of Umphang.

Elder's Group of Umphang (with me on banjo)

Watch the Video!

Matthew Sabatella and Jamie Lee Ganger

Watch the Video!

Children's Group of Mehklong Village

Watch the Video!

Other Highlights from Umphang

While in Umphang we enjoyed rafting down the Mae Khlong River and walking through rice paddy fields. We also narrowly survived an elephant riding excursion through the Thai jungle.

Rafting Down the the Mae Khlong River

Elephant Riding through the Jungles of Thailand

Crossing the Scariest Bridge in the World
to What We Only Hoped Would be an Elephant Waiting on the Other Side

Riding the Elephant That Was Waiting on the Other Side

Watch the Video!

Crossing the Rice Paddy Fields to the Waterfall

The Waterfall

Last Stop: Bangkok

Despite being told that five days was too long to spend in Bangkok, we decided to proceed with our plans anyway. We actually had a great experience there enjoying some of the creature comforts that were not available in the more remote areas of Thailand we had explored (like non-Thai food).

A Violent Massage

Lumphini Park

(The Central Park of Bangkok)

Night Market and Khao San Road

Thanks for Stopping By!