Participation Type
Panel
Session Title
Toward a Multicultural Appalachian Music
Session Abstract or Summary
With notable—and relatively recent—exceptions, Appalachian music and dance scholarship has focused on the contributions of people of Scots-Irish descent, to the detriment of other music and dance traditions that were brought to the region from other parts of the globe. This panel brings together three scholar-practitioners to consider the long-term implications of this Scots-Irish focus and to offer some potential new directions for historical and ethnographic research in Appalachian music and dance. Reflecting on trends in the scholarly literature, popular stereotypes, and performance practice, this panel argues for a dramatic revision of our understanding of the region’s music, calling for a new Appalachian music scholarship that is more inclusive and reflective of the region’s multicultural history.
Presentation #1 Title
What We Talk About When We Talk About "Folk Songs from the West Virginia Hills"
Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary
In 1975, Dr. Patrick Gainer (1903-1981), the beloved West Virginia University folklore professor, musician, and collector of West Virginia folk songs, published the foundational "Folk Songs from the West Virginia Hills," a curated compendium of ballads, songs, and spirituals he collected in the Mountain State. While Gainer's pithy annotations of the songs in the collection convey an intimate relationship with the Scots Irish oral mountain song tradition, the music of other cultural traditions are notably absent. Though Gainer writes in his introduction that African Americans have made the greatest contribution to American folk music over any other ethnic group or race, any songs from that tradition are relegated to their own scant final chapter, regrettably entitled, "The Negro Contribution." This paper will explore Gainer's collection as a case study of the historical erasure of the musical traditions of other cultural communities in West Virginia. I will also present modern examples from my own folklife documentation in the Mountain State and consider how they might serve as points of entry for reclaiming a more expansive and diverse vision of musical heritage in West Virginia and the greater Appalachian region.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1
Emily Hilliard is the West Virginia state folklorist and founder of the West Virginia Folklife Program at the West Virginia Humanities Council. She holds an M.A. in folklore from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and a B.A. in English and French from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor. Hilliard is a 2016 recipient of the American Folklife Center’s Henry Reed Fund Award for a public programming and documentation project highlighting the career of ballad singer Phyllis Marks, and was a 2014 Berea College Appalachian Sound Archives Fellow for research and publication on East Kentucky banjo player Nora E. Carpenter. Her writing about foodways, music, and traditional culture has been published by NPR, Ecotone, UNC Press’ quarterly Southern Cultures, and West Virginia University Press, among others.
Presentation #2 Title
Off the Beaten Syllabus: Multicultural Appalachian Musics and University Representation
Presentation #2 Abstract or Summary
In university education contexts, Appalachian musics face numerous challenges of representation, both in terms of institutional funding and in regards to the availability of qualified instructors. This presentation examines this representation across Florida, North Carolina, and nationwide, examining the ways in which traditional and Appalachian-American musics are represented at the university and institutional levels. The connections between university ensembles and local or community music-making are discussed, as well as the implications for their representation at an advanced institutional level and the potentials for growth and movement in musicology and world music degree programs, traditional music-making communities, and local vernacular music scenes. Numerous case studies will be presented regarding the crossovers between multiple pan-American and pan-Appalachian genres and university and community music-making areas.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #2
Holly Riley is an ethnomusicologist and fiddle player currently pursuing a PhD at Florida State University. Originally from Durham, North Carolina, she tours regionally playing fiddle in a wide range of genres and currently teaches American Roots Music and leads an Irish Ensemble at FSU. Her research centers around vernacular American musics, community-institution interaction, and performance politics.
Presentation #3 Title
Echoes and Reverberations: Listening for West Virginia’s Multicultural Musical History
Presentation #3 Abstract or Summary
The hills of West Virginia were once alive with the sounds of musics made by numerous indigenous peoples; by Africans and African Americans who came to the Mountain State as slaves and, later, as migrant workers; and by immigrants who hailed from all corners of Europe. Yet, for the most part, the echoes and reverberations of these musical traditions faded out long ago, leaving a seemingly homogeneous—and predominantly Scots-Irish—musical culture in its place. This presentation explores some of the reasons that these musical traditions have been omitted from our historical narratives and performance practices, including the impacts of Euro-American colonization, changing economic circumstances, cultural assimilation, and biases in musical scholarship, journalism, and tourism promotion. Additionally, this presentation proposes a variety of historical and ethnographic research tools that might be fruitfully leveraged in an effort to amplify the traces of these musical traditions.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #3
Travis D. Stimeling is associate professor of musicology in the West Virginia University School of Music.
Conference Subthemes
Diversity and Inclusion, Migration
What We Talk About When We Talk About "Folk Songs from the West Virginia Hills"
In 1975, Dr. Patrick Gainer (1903-1981), the beloved West Virginia University folklore professor, musician, and collector of West Virginia folk songs, published the foundational "Folk Songs from the West Virginia Hills," a curated compendium of ballads, songs, and spirituals he collected in the Mountain State. While Gainer's pithy annotations of the songs in the collection convey an intimate relationship with the Scots Irish oral mountain song tradition, the music of other cultural traditions are notably absent. Though Gainer writes in his introduction that African Americans have made the greatest contribution to American folk music over any other ethnic group or race, any songs from that tradition are relegated to their own scant final chapter, regrettably entitled, "The Negro Contribution." This paper will explore Gainer's collection as a case study of the historical erasure of the musical traditions of other cultural communities in West Virginia. I will also present modern examples from my own folklife documentation in the Mountain State and consider how they might serve as points of entry for reclaiming a more expansive and diverse vision of musical heritage in West Virginia and the greater Appalachian region.
