Mode of Program Participation
Academic Scholarship
Participation Type
Paper
Presentation #1 Title
A New Treasure: The James H. Montgomery Music Collection at Mars Hill University
Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary
In 2015 Mars Hill University received the James H. Montgomery Music Collection, 1,023 LPs and 1,368 CDs of American music. The collection, amassed fanatically over seven decades, focuses on country, bluegrass, old-time, western swing, and other forms of traditional music. Montgomery willed his collection to MHU, where he also established a Regional Studies scholarship, because of his respect for Bascom Lamar Lunsford and his work. Through an archival research fellowship we are spending the semester listening to and examining the collection which is notable not only for its size, but also for its breadth. Through our research we have discovered the profile of a modern music collector that followed in the steps of great collectors, like Lunsford, while adapting to new technologies. This collection is a wealth of recordings ranging from commercial country to preservation-minded albums with academic-quality notes. The collection showcases influential musicians such as Doc Watson, Emmit Lundy, Wade Ward, and Tommy Jarrell, and influential folklorists such as Mike Seeger, Alan Jabbour, and Blanton Owen. The collection also highlights musical traditions like fiddlers conventions and lesser known traditions like music at “school breakings.” This research is focused on creating and augmenting curriculum for multiple classes at Mars Hill University. Our presentation will seek to illuminate the efforts of James H. Montgomery as an influential collector of traditional American music, to share educational resources we develop out of our research, and to unveil some of the unique and illustrative stories and traditions uncovered in the course of our research.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1
Brandon Johnson is an Instructor of English at Mars Hill University, where he also teaches in the Regional Studies program. He is the 2016-2017 Hart-Melvin Archival Research Fellow at MHU, a writer, and a traditional string musician.
Ian Kirkpatrick is a Senior Political Science and International Studies major at Mars Hill University. He is the 2016-2017 Hart-Melvin Archival Research Student Fellow at MHU, a ballad singer, clogger, and clogging instructor.
A New Treasure: The James H. Montgomery Music Collection at Mars Hill University
In 2015 Mars Hill University received the James H. Montgomery Music Collection, 1,023 LPs and 1,368 CDs of American music. The collection, amassed fanatically over seven decades, focuses on country, bluegrass, old-time, western swing, and other forms of traditional music. Montgomery willed his collection to MHU, where he also established a Regional Studies scholarship, because of his respect for Bascom Lamar Lunsford and his work. Through an archival research fellowship we are spending the semester listening to and examining the collection which is notable not only for its size, but also for its breadth. Through our research we have discovered the profile of a modern music collector that followed in the steps of great collectors, like Lunsford, while adapting to new technologies. This collection is a wealth of recordings ranging from commercial country to preservation-minded albums with academic-quality notes. The collection showcases influential musicians such as Doc Watson, Emmit Lundy, Wade Ward, and Tommy Jarrell, and influential folklorists such as Mike Seeger, Alan Jabbour, and Blanton Owen. The collection also highlights musical traditions like fiddlers conventions and lesser known traditions like music at “school breakings.” This research is focused on creating and augmenting curriculum for multiple classes at Mars Hill University. Our presentation will seek to illuminate the efforts of James H. Montgomery as an influential collector of traditional American music, to share educational resources we develop out of our research, and to unveil some of the unique and illustrative stories and traditions uncovered in the course of our research.
