Participation Type
Paper
Presentation #1 Title
The Carter Family: A Musical Family's Continuing Influence on Today's Appalachian Musicians
Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary
This research project will examine the influence of the Carter Family through a recording project and archival research. The project will also include a research paper exploring the ways that the Carter Family have affected popular culture. Throughout the history of the Carter Family, many diverse people have contributed to the development of their repertoire. Carter family songs transcend genre and continue still to shape popular music. Starting in 1928 with the help of Lesley Riddle, an African American musician, A.P Carter collected songs that represented the many styles that existed in the Appalachian Mountains during that time period. In addition, they both composed new material and arranged some of the collected songs to become what is now identified as the Carter Family style. The presentation represents the many styles of the Carter Family through a recording project. It includes songs the Carter Family wrote, songs they collected, songs done in the many styles covered by influenced musicians, and songs that have been rearranged to better fit modern social settings. A few examples of the things the archival research will focus on are examining and extracting old recordings of the Carter Family and reading through some of their interviews and set lists. One of the many things that will be presented in the paper are interviews of the Carter family relatives that are still alive today and running “The Carter Family Fold”. They will be able to give a perspective that may have never been heard of before.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1
Melissa Keyser is a Traditional music major at Morehead State University studying appalachian music. She started on the "Crooked Road" in Floyd, Virginia and later moved to Morehead to study traditional music.
Nathan Kiser is the operations manager at the Kentucky Center for Traditional Music. Nathan is a graduate of Morehead State University and teaches traditional music ensembles and private applied lessons.
Thomas Albert is a teacher at the Kentucky Center for Traditional Music where he teaches traditional music ensembles and private applied lessons. He is a graduate of Morehead State University.
Annuet Soehnlen is a Traditional Music and Horticulture major. She started playing music at a young age and decided to further her career as a musician at Morehead State University.
The Carter Family: A Musical Family's Continuing Influence on Today's Appalachian Musicians
This research project will examine the influence of the Carter Family through a recording project and archival research. The project will also include a research paper exploring the ways that the Carter Family have affected popular culture. Throughout the history of the Carter Family, many diverse people have contributed to the development of their repertoire. Carter family songs transcend genre and continue still to shape popular music. Starting in 1928 with the help of Lesley Riddle, an African American musician, A.P Carter collected songs that represented the many styles that existed in the Appalachian Mountains during that time period. In addition, they both composed new material and arranged some of the collected songs to become what is now identified as the Carter Family style. The presentation represents the many styles of the Carter Family through a recording project. It includes songs the Carter Family wrote, songs they collected, songs done in the many styles covered by influenced musicians, and songs that have been rearranged to better fit modern social settings. A few examples of the things the archival research will focus on are examining and extracting old recordings of the Carter Family and reading through some of their interviews and set lists. One of the many things that will be presented in the paper are interviews of the Carter family relatives that are still alive today and running “The Carter Family Fold”. They will be able to give a perspective that may have never been heard of before.
