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CONTENTS Welcome from Joe Wilson WELCOME Folk Festival, the Sarah Gertrude Knott Memorial W elcome to the 47th National third to be held in the beautiful Cuyahoga Valley ~~~~~:; :ii:~~f/ark Superintendant National Recreation Area. The artists you will meet places in America and are the Sunday Schedule here come from many a~ diverse a~ the people who Evening Concert Schedule keepers of traditions made and are still makmg our nation. 47th National Folk Festival Part· . ­ Ganga 1c1pants Some of their arts were introduced when a hand ful of colonies perched on the eastern seaboard, Golden River Grass others are the arts of new immigrants. We value all and the Allstars Big Ed Thompson and wish for their preservation in a nation big and River Bend Dave Evans enough and free enough for diversity. We realize Khmer Traditional Music Ensemble they will continue to evolve as all living things do, we John Cephas and Phil Wiggins are not glass-case preservationists nor antiquarians. Poetry Cowboy We are, rather, people who treasure the better McRae Wally differences. Nyle Henderson Behind all the hard work of putting this festival Doug Wallin together are many wonderful hardworking volun­ Frank Proffitt Jr. teers and generous donors. Two major supporters, File the National Endowment for the Arts and the Ohio Frankie and Doug Quimby Arts Council, are celebrating their 20th anniversaries The Scanner Boys this year and we congratulate them and thank them Joe and Antoinette McKenna for their contributions over the years. We're grateful James Keane to all of the corporations and foundations who have Paul Mills been so generous and to our co-host, the Cuyahoga Page Roberts Valley National Recreation Area. And I have a re­ The Streetsboro Quilters Guild quest for all of you who come here to share this feast Japanese Women's Club with us: enjoy yourself and learn something. ..a. Bob White Eli Miller Joe Wilson Eva Hosack Festival Director The Kue, Hang, Yang, and Chang Families For the Board, staff and Kenneth Kepner volunteers of the NCTA Tim Rastetter and Ralph Aling Holmes County Amish Quilters Jan Sabota Festival Organization and Planning Staff 47th National Folk Festival Staff (partial) Acknowledgements Folk Music on Records and Tapes About the National Council for the Traditional Arts 4 I ' 1

MISS SARAH GER1RUDE KNon M iss Sarah Gertrude Knott died November 20, 1984. She was eighty-nine. Miss Knott was the founder of this festival in 1934. She founded the organization that presented this festival in 1933, and she partici­ pated in creating scores of other organizations and events devoted to the presentation of the folk cul­ tures of our nation. This was her work throughout a long and productive life and she worked with pas­ sionate commitment and great skill. Festivals she inspired exist in many parts of this nation and in other nations as well. Miss Knott retired in 1971 , but continued to work from her home at Princeton, Kentucky, a prolific correspondent with scores of people in her field, always eager to be involved with new ideas and improved ways of presenting folk artists. Her spirit remained young and full of zest, and her good works have proven durable. She loved this festival and all who came to it and those who knew her will feel her presence this weekend. A q;zs

lion and setting for their own artistic pursuits, an MESSAGE FROM THE PARK activity we consider most appropriate to the overall preservation and use of the park. Every year we also SUPERINTENDENT hold art and photography competitions and exhibits, National Recrea­ W elcome to the Cuyahoga Valley and an annual Art and Nature Show. As a center­ tion Area! piece of our arts activities, we hope to restore the Service is pleased to cosponsor The National Park historic village of Everett ( located just up Riverview National Folk Festival here in d host the 47th Road from the festival site) as an artist-in-residence park. We sincerely hope that ~hio's largest national community. The National Folk Festival helps us the festival. And w~ile you're here, we you will enjoy focus our attention on our overall cultural arts will get to know and en1oy the park as well. hope you approach to interpreting the park and its values to many reasons why the National Park There are the general public. is hosting this unique event. For one thing, it Service Perhaps one of the most important of all our goals and makes available to the public the preserves in hosting the National Folk Festival is simply to of America's folk art and traditions, a mission finest make more people aware of the National Park in highly complementary to and compatible with ours. their own back yards- in fact, personally intro­ The primary job of the National Park Service is to ducing them to it in this fun and meaningful way. preserve and make available for public use the Because it is located in the midst of millions of nation's most significant natural, historical, and rec­ people, the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation reational resources in more than 335 units of the Area has an incredible potential for being of service National Park System throughout the United States to the American public. That makes it one of the and its territories. Preserving the country's living, mos! significant additions to the National Park Sys­ heritage seems every bit as important, so cultural tem m many years. Yet to fulfill that wonderful hosting the National Folk Festival in a National Park pro_mise of making high quality, National Park ex­ is a logical and desirable thing for us to do. area penences available to all people in this region, all we're proud and excited to be a partner in Frankly, people must be aware of the park and feel that it is a endeavor! this relevant _and valuable part of their everyday lives. We pleased to host the festival for We are especially are confident the ~ational Folk Festival will go a long in the Cuyahoga Valley National the third year, here way towards helping us make this truly a park for all Recreation Area in northeastern Ohio. It enables us people. A again to showcase Ohio's cultural history, one of our important goals in the overall process of preserving Lewis S. Albert and interpreting the history of the Cuyahoga Valley Superintendent and the Western Reserve and their roles in the history of the nation. Over the past five years we have presented several large cultural events towards this e?d- Mountain Music Days, Tamburitzan Days, Yid­ dish Days, Polka Days, Gaelic Days, Gospel Days, and others- but the National Folk Festival brings together the best of these and many others. There_are other important reasons why we are sponsonng the National Folk Festival in the Cuya­ hoga Valley National Recreation Area. It enables us lo encourage people to utilize the park as an insipra- . URDAY SEPTEMBER 21, 1985 SCHEDULE SAT ' MAIN STAGE STAGE Two STAGE T HREE CRAITS STAGE - R' Grass Irish Tunes Golden 1ver and Paul Mills 11:00 James Keane and Brendan Mulvihill Cowboy Verse Wally McRae & Nyle Henderson 11:00

11 :30 Cambodian Music Ganga 11:30 Khmer Traditional Music Ensemble Cajun Music File 12:00 World Champion Tobacco Aucti Doug Wallin and Frank Proffitt, Jr. Popping & Breaking oneer Page 12:00 The Scanner Boys Roberts

12:30 Bluegrass Break Quiltmaking Frankie and Doug Quimby Dave Evans and River Bend Streetsboro Quilting Guild 12:30 Putting the Rhythm in the Blues 1:00 Big Ed Thompson Wally McRae and Nyle Henderson 1:00 and the Allstars Fiddle Styles Ohio Harness & Bridle Making 1:30 Farren Serrette, Randy Franks, Gerald Eli Miller Evans, Van Pok, John Cephas and Phil Wiggins Banjo Styles Doug Wallin, and 1:30 Brendan Mulvihill Frank Proffitt, Jr., Dave Evans, and 2:00 James Watson Traditional Japanese Skills 2:00 Words, Words, Words Japanese Women's Club File 2:30 Music ofBengal Doug Quimby, Wally McRae, Nyle Ganga Henderson, Paul Mills, Page Roberts, and Kenneth Kepner 2:30 Amish quilt, cap, and bonnet making 3:00 Harmonica Styles Holmes County Amish Quilters Th "Dood e Scanner Boys Blue Ridge Ballads le" Thrower& Phil Wiggins 3:00 3:30 Doug Wallin and Frank Proffitt, Jr. Cambodian Music Hmong Traditional Skills Khmer Traditional Music Ensemble 3:30 Children 's Games from the Georgia Kue, Hang, Yang, & Chang families 4:00 Dave Evans and Riv Sea Islands er Bend Piedmont Blues Frankie and Doug Quimby John Cephas & Phil Wiggins 4:00 4:30 Auctioneering Styles Georgia String Band Music Page Roberts & Kenneth Kepner Golden River Grass with 4:30 Big Ed Thompson and The All Stars Irish Music Square Dance Caller 5:00 James Keane and Brendan Mulvihill Paul Mills Auction 5:00 with auctioneer Kenneth Kepner 5:30 Cajun Dance Party with File Demonstrations All day: 5:30 tobacco auctioneering; instrument making; quiltm 7:30 Evening Concert aking; harness and bridle making; Japanese painting, needlework & plant arranging; Hmong traditional skills; two styles of rug weaving; Czech book binding; Amish quilting, cap & bonnet making. Y SEPTEMBER 22, 1985 SCHEDULE SU NDA ' MAIN STAGE STAGE Two STAGE THREE CRAFTS STAGE 11 :00 11 :00

Gospel & B/uegross North Corolino Mountoin Music ._ 11:30 Dave Evans & River Bend Doug Wallin and Frank Prolfitt, Jr. Georgia Sea Island Singers 11:30 Frankie and Doug Quimby Rhythm & Blues 12:00 Big Ed Thompson & the Allstars Georgio String Bond . . World Champion Tobocco Auctioneer Khmer Traditional Music Ensemble - 12:00 Golden River Grass with Paul Mills Page Roberts

Instrument Making 12:30 Joe & Cojun Donce Music 12:30 Antoinette McKenna, James Keane & Bob White Brendan Mulvihill File Piedmont Blues John Cephas & Phil Wiggins 1:00 1:00 Traditional Rug Weo uing The Scanner Boys Music of Bengol 1:30 Ganga Versifying Cowboys Ralph Aling, T im Rastetter, Eva Hosack & Wally McRae and Nyle Henderson Maxine Helton 1:30 Winds and Reeds Blues Guitar Hmong Traditionol Skills 2:00 Joe McKenna, Vang Hang, Phil Wiggins, Frankie & Doug Quimby John Cephas and Big Ed Thompson Kue, Hang, Yang & Chang families 2:00 Doodle Thrower, James Keane, Ward Lormand, and Eddie Felton Mondo/in Styles 2:30 Wesley Clackum, Lester Williams, and Doug Wallin & Frank Proffitt, Jr. Bob White 2:30 World Chompion Tobacco Auctioneer 3:00 Cambodion Folk Music Music of Bengol Page Roberts Khmer Traditional Music Ensemble File Ganga 3:00

Cowboy Recitations 3:30 Songs ond Games of the Georgio Sea Quiltmaking Wally McRae & Nyle Henderson lslonds Frankie & Doug Quimby Streetsboro Quilting Guild 3:30 4:00 Popping & Breaking Folk Music of Ireland The Scanner Boys Joe & Antoinette McKenna, James Keane Big Ed Thompson & the Allstars & 4:00 Brendan Mulvihill Jopanese Traditional Arts 4:30 Japanese Women's Club 4:30 Piedmont Blues Bluegrass John Cephas & Phil Wiggins Dave Evans and River Bend 5:00 Donce Party with Golden River Gross and World Champion Tobacco Auctioneer Pou/Mills Page Roberts 5:00

5:30 Demonstrations All Day: 5 :30 tobacco auctioneering; instrument making; quilt making; Japanese painting, needlework & plant arranging; Hmong traditional skills; two styles of rug weaving; Czech book binding. •

EVENING CONCERTS some of the hundre~s of regional folk traditions in India that are . GANGA part of an extraordinary oral tradi­ resented . at the Na- tion which Ganga is p t f the "Festival of has preserved sacred tional as a par o . 1 x- texts court poetry, grammars, de­ fRJDAY, SEPTEMBER 20 SATURDAY . '85" a massive cultura e voti;nal , SEPTEMBER 21 India • n the United States songs and ballads intact, 8:00PM. 7:30P.M. change betwee . h in some cases for several thou­ nd India initiated m 1982 by t ~ sand years. The rivers of Ben_gal Golden River Grass Frankie and Doug Quimby a p ·me Minister of India, Indira late n · seem to have been an especially John Cephas and Phil Wiggins Gandhi. As one of the largest m- Khmer Traditional Music Ens b . 1exchanges em le ternatIona .between Ganga Doug Wallin and Frank Proffitt, Jr. two countries, the Festiva( ~as brought hundreds Nyle Henderson and Wally McRae Scanner Boys of mus1c1ans, dancers and artists from India to Page Roberts Joe and Antoinette McKenna perform in cities across the cou~­ James Keane and try. As one small part of the Big Ed Thompson and the All Stars Brendan ' Festi­ Mulvihill val the Cleveland Museum of Art File will present several exhibits of Dave Evans and River Bend Indian art from the Fall, 1985 to WKSU 89.7 fm and the NCTA are Spring, 1986. The Na!ion~l Folk pleased to announce the live, Festival participates m this cele­ national broadcast of this concert bration of India by highlighting to public radio stations via satellite. the music that has been brought to this country by the 700,000 immigrants who now live here. Ganga is the Sanskrit name of India's sacred river, the Ganges. fertile ground for the growth of Ganga by Meg Ganga, a ·folk music ensemble songs sung by peasants and boat­ Glaser from Bengal in Eastern India, was men as well as the people who formed in Alexandria, Virginia, in have left the pursuits of this world 1981. The group initially drew on looking for a path to the divine. the talents of the Roy family w ho Devotees of Vishnu, Muslim boat­ had come to the U.S. from Cal­ men and tribals living in the dense cutta in the 1970s. Since their jungles beneath the Himalayas all formation other musicians have have added to the richness of the joined the group and together they Bengali musical tradition. Ganga have played in numerous perform­ will perform a variety of these ances in the Washington D.C. area songs. including the Smithsonian Institu­ Ganga plays traditional instru­ tion and the Library of Congress. ments crafted by villagers in · The group's leader, Hitabrat a Roy, Bengal. The instruments include returns to his ancestral village pe­ the dotara, a member of the lute riodically to participate in com­ family consisting of a gourd style munity music festivals. sound box, a metal covered fret­ The songs of Bengal are only less neck and four strings; sitar, a long-neck string instrument with rial delivered in a hell-for -I th the South, frets, having 19 strings and ~layed t d' . I . ea er h' mother. James also plays the performing at well t ihona ~tnng band style. Golden is known festivals with a plectrum; tabla, a pair of Iver consists re modern Earl Scruggs "three including the of six memb mo . k' small drums with a range J h "D di " ers finger" style World's Fair in Knoxville, Tennes­ of about o n Goo e_ ThrowerofTalla-. of pIc mg. . one octave; tanpura a C J Clackum began playing see, and the Brandywine Moun­ , long-neck poosa, eorgIa, plays mouth har the fretless drone; guit~; twenty years tain Music Festival, a festival so khamak, a percus­ Randy Franks of Chamblee G P, ago and joined sion instrument Doodle in playing square good that Doodle now considers with a single string gia, plays fid~le, C.J. Clack~m :~r­ dances attached to in and around the Tallapoo~ Delaware and Pennsylvania part the head of a small Waco, Georgia, plays guitar W ar~a. drum: mandira. His son Wesley began playing of the South. They were named cymbals made of l~y Clackum also of Waco, Geo~~­ fid­ dle at dances at age 10. His one of the top ten bands in Geor gia, plays mandolin and guitar skills ­ were later transferred to the man­ gia in Brown's guide to Georgia James Watson of Roanoke, Al~­ dolin and guitar which he now and will be appearing on a PBS ?ama, plays banjo, and Gene Dan­ plays in the band. network special this fall called iell ol ~anetta, Georgia, plays Newest member Randy Franks " Evening at Ferengetti's". This acoustic bass. The original band is began classical violin lessons at their second appearance was formed in 1975 and is com­ at the age nine but was lost to the clas­ National Folk Festival. mitted to playing the old styles They were of sics when his teacher traditional music. made the with us at Wolf Trap in 1981 . • mistake of playing the "Orange Doodle is a self-taught musi­ Blossom Special." From that point cian who started playing the har­ Randy directed his efforts toward BIG monica at age 15. He claims that ED THOMPSON learning all he could about tradi­ harps were one of the three things tional music. Randy has studied AND THE ALL STARS that he used to get for Christmas with Dallas Burrell, Caroline Wor­ B ig Ed Thompson was born and after a while, he had so many in ley, Gordon Tanner, Paul Jordan Bethlehem, Georgia. Although that he figured he had better learn Mr. and listens carefully to Bill Mon­ Thompson is a blues to play one ii this wasn't going musician, he to roe. He is twenty-one. was Golden River Grass brass; and ghungur, ankle bells. be a losing inspired first by radio appear­ proposition. He sings Gene Daniell's Members of Ganga include: father played ances of country musicians, Un­ Hitab­ lead on most of the songs and country rata and western music regu­ cle Dave Macon and Grandpa Roy, dotara; Minati Roy, plays harmonica on many breaks. larly during Gene's youth, at Jones being khamak; Krishnikali Roy, He has been a among his favorites. resident of Talla­ dances, get-togethers and ghungur; Malabika on a When he was 8 years old he made Sur, sitar; poosa, Georgia all his life and has local radio station (WFOM) in the his first guitar from a board Bhola Banerjee, tanpura; and brought joy to all that have and known forties. Gene started playing mu­ chicken Broto Roy, tabla. him. wire. • In addition to his harmonica sic at age six when his dad brought In 1948 Big Ed moved to Cincin­ playing, his trademarks are his _ home a mandolin. His mother nati and it was there that he first RIVER GRASS overalls, an old hat that looks as ii showed him three chords and GOLDEN started playing urban blues guitar. it had been through two world whetted his interest in music . Later He worked record and show dates F rom the rolling hill country west wars and the impromptu delivery at age twelve or thirteen, his dad with several top blues and jazz of Atlanta comes this exuberant of humorous comments about bought him a guitar for his birth­ musicians, including Pigmeat Jar­ Georgia string band. While the other band members, himself, the day. After he was married, he be­ rett and Albert Washington. Dur­ word " grass" appears audience or anything th gan playing the bass guitar in their else at and ing the late 1950s Big Ed performed name, and they appear comes later the acoustic bass in the at blue­ to mind. . early at Louisville's Top Hat, then an grass festivals James Watson started seventies and has remained with , a typical show by playing entertainment hot spot for black the band consists the guitar at an earl that instrument ever since. of old-time y age but later performers. Since the early 1960s country st Golden River Grass is one of songs, gospel music, in­ moved to the banjo. Mo o~_hisby Big Ed has played with H. Bomb strumentals trail the most popular string bands in and bluegrass mate- ing style was taught to im Ferguson and the All Stars in clubs within a I 00 mile radius of Cincin­ sell, the Apollo Club ter Williams of Mayville, Kentucky nati. He leads the band on rhythm voy Ball Room H' anc~th e Sa. s style banjo. Dave's crea­ on mandolin- two musicians he . is credus. ~ ~ugg the banjo is greatly en- and lead guitar and vocals. His performances with J include t1vity on . h h has played with for about three d by his singmg: e as wife Lydia occasionally sings with B B K. ames MoOd and a half years. Other m embers . . mg, Tiny Bradshaw B· Y. han~e ped the full range and power the band. elle, Big Mama Tho I . ig Mab. of River Bend include Gerald Evans ~~:sovoice. The result is a hard­ H. Bomb Ferguson is pianist T-~one Walk:;~~ ~~ddie of Portsmouth. Ohio on fiddle and King, driving combinatio n that ha_s ~e- and vocalist with the band. Like Berry. His driving rhythm and Uck Bill Hamm of Wurthland, Kentucky striking feature of his live many other blues musicians who and early rock and roll styl blues cornea on bass. performances. . migrated to northern industrial cit- to I es led Dave Evans and River Bend have regu ar performances at th Dave was born July 24, I ?S 0 m Sportman's Club and the Alibi~lub Portsmouth, Ohio, where his fa­ m Newport,_ Ke_ntucky after he ther had moved from northeast­ moved to Cmcmnati. Two of his ern Kentucky. The Evanses then best_ known recordings are Good moved to Columbus when the loV1n and My Baby Was O w,· Portsmo uth brickyards shut down. head Women. me. Many Appalachian people were Other members of the Alt Star also moving into the area, choos­ band include Eddie Felton on vo­ ing factory jobs over the poor. cals and tenor sax. Eddie was paying and dangerous coal mm­ born and raised in Ohio and has ing jobs back home. Dave grew playe? on and off with Ed Thomp­ up among these people, and blue­ son smce 1969. Kevin Wilburn grass music was is an important drums, comes from a family of part of their social life. drummers, his father and brother Dave worked with several ban­ are also drummers in Cincinnati. dleaders in his teens and twenties He is a fine soloist and has played including Larry Sparks, Red Allen, mostly with Big Ed for l Oyears . and the Boys From Indiana. In Bassist Russell Givens has been 1978 he formed his own band and Big Ed's friend for 20 years and is soon become known as one of a performer for jazz bands in the the most compelling performers area.A in bluegrass. He is a man with H. Bomb Ferguso" ies from the deep south, H. Bomb deep feelings about his music, & Big Ed Thompson first learned to play music in the and an ability to translate them church. In his home town of Char­ DAVE EVANS into songs. His love for straight leston, South Carolina, H. Bomb AND THE RJvER BEND ahead bluegrass is obvious in his played for a Baptist church, but, energetic approach. He describes he says, "whenever church was D ave Evans, a native Ohioan, has his style in terms of the musicians out, I'd sneak off and play the been singing with the banjo since h~ respects most: " I try and com­ bine the Stanley sound with the blues." At age 18, H. Bomb was he was nine years old and is one smoothness of Flatt and Scruggs discovered by Cat Anderson and of a few banjo picking lead sing­ th and the power of Monroe." went on to tour with Joe Liggins ers. He started with a banjo at th Dave appears at the National and the Honey Drippers, landing his mother had given to his fa er recorded seven albums- 5 for the Dat•c Euuns with his band, River Bend, which in New York City at the end of the as a Christmas gift. His dad taught Rebel label including his newest d features Derrick Sparkman of Wil­ tour. There he performed at the him some clawhammer licks all album, Close to Hom e and two for . t d pla)1ll1g lard· Ohio playing guitar and Les- Baby Grand Club with Nipsey Rus- a neighbor got him star e the Veco label. • ble has been able to survive in- at weddings in cities and villages influential period of his life was KHMER TRADITIONAL tact. They are, in fact, flourishin throughout Cambodia. The singer, spent and where he still has a The Ensemble was originally g. however, must be specially trained beautiful house and garden. He is M USIC ENSEMBLE formed to accompany the Khrn in the wedding traditions and the known for his Piedmont style gui- Classical Dance Troupe which ate to have one tar picking and expressive vocals. In the early 1970s the ~ar in :r ensemble is fortun formed in the refugee camps of as Southeast Asia had sp1ll~d over of Cambodia's well known wed- John started playing the blues ttled in the into Cambodia, dislocating tens of Thailand and rese ding singers, Chhoerun Chheng. on guitar with his aunt and other thousands of people and ~ventu- United States with the help of the The instruments of the mohori local musicians when he was 10 allv spawning a dictatorship that U.S. State Department and the Na. ensemble are slightly different from years old. Family, friends, and tional Council for the Traditional those of aiyai and wedding music. Arts ( NCTA ). Subsequently the A larger drum, the sampho is used musicians performed as a pin peat in place of the skor touch or hand or classical music ensemble with drum and the wood xylophone the dancers on two national NCTA ( reneat)is used rather than the tours in nearly 50 public concerts hammerdulcimer ( khim). This from Boston to Los Angeles, in- ensemble is the most popular Ira- eluding performances at Carnegie ditional music form in Cambodia. Hall, the Epcot Center and the Mahon· musicians can be found at Knoxville World's Fair. village feasts, state functions or Although the members of the birth ceremonies in the home. Khmer Traditional Music Ensem- The members of the Khmer Tra- ble have a wide variety of experi- ditional Music Ensemble include ence in both classical and folk Phan Bin (take/ zither), Chhoerun music forms, they are most com- Chheng ( sampho! drums and vo- fortable playing music from the cals), Chhoerun Chhom (vocals), xylophone neighbors would often get together .John Cephus & /'It,/ Khmer Traditional decimated nearly one-third of the aiyai, wedding and mohori tradi- Chum Ngek ( reneat/ \\ )Rgin~ by Kuth_, ,\1usic £11se111ble by population of the country. During lions. These are the musical tradi- and khim/ hammer dulcimer), Klay on the weekends for country .Jorm:s RickRemhwd most of that tragic decade the rich lions of village performers and Ra (vocals), Van Pok ( trop/ breakdowns or house parties and musical traditions were at best, itinerant musical drama troupes. fiddle), Lapresse Sieng ( manager good music and dance were al- silent or worse, actively sup- The ensemble will present a se- and translator), Vanna U ( ch hang/ ways a part of these gatherings. pressed. Thousands of artists as- lection of this music at the 1985 cymbals and vocals) and Van Yan His cousin David Talliafero from sociated with the palace or the National Folk Festival. ( vocals) • Caroline County, Virginia, taught institutions of the old regimes in- Aiyai is extemporaneous sing- him much of what he knows on finger style, eluding radio, television and uni- ing between a man and a woman. guitar-the thumb and J O H N style, and the " Wil- versities were destroyed in a policy In the banter between the singers CEPHAS three finger liamsburg lope" common to Pied- of extermination and massive de- the tales and gossip of the village P HIL W IGGINS AND mont guitarists. His playing style urbanization. The artists that sur- are retold with humor and often "Bow ling Green John" Cephas was also influenced by such fa- vived did so with the greatest of sarcasm. The songs are sung at rmonica Phil" Wiggins are mous bluesmen as Blind Lemon stealth, ridding themselves of all informal gatherings in the village, and "Ha acoustic urban bluesmen from the Jefferson, Reverend Gary Davis and trappings of their traditional during festivals and especiallydur· Washington, D.C. area. John was Tampa Red,as well as music of training. ing courtship. born in Washington, but takes his the ragtime era. It i_s _remarkable that a group of The ensemble used for wed- nickname from Bowling Green, Cephas was playing with the musicians as accomplished as the ding music is much like the aiyai Virginia, where a substantial and late blues pianist Big Chief Ellis Khmer Traditional Musical Ensem- ensemble. The music is performed Their_duo perfo~mances are char­ reputation as . g the mid-70s when he met I wrote and recited poetry to a cowboy poet and dunn · 'ted to acterized by an intensity of com­ pe · h d Phil Wiggins. Phil was mv1 celebrate life's t~Iump s an pas- as an outspoken advocate of agri­ mitment jam with the band and as a result to blues and gospel ages and even its day-to-day. culture is now regionwide. He's was invited to perform as a regu- traditions, a strong rapport, and ~owboys have respect for oldtim- often asked to read his works at I member of Chiefs Barrelhouse excellent musicianship. Phil and rs and their ways. Second, cow­ events as diverse as art sales, :~ckers. Phil's first gig wit~ the John have had two LP albums ~oying is an occupation that has rodeos and the Governor's Awards was at the 1977 National issued by the German L + R label always attracted many thoughtful for the Arts banquet. His first book, i~~i~estival. After Chief passed ~nd a notable_cassette recording people and poetry is a thinker's It's Just Grass and Water, con­ away Phil and John form_ed a duo. issued by Manmac Recordings. 4 art. Third, cowboys are ornery tained the poem, Reincarnation, Phil was born in 1954 m Wash­ cusses who are often bold enough which has become his most fa­ ington and became interested in COWBOY POETRY to do whatever they wish, ride a mous. That poem has already en­ blues harmonica as a young man. horse into the saloon or write a tered the oral tradition of cowboy He has played with many Wash­ C razy as it may seem, cowboys little verse. poetry as a recitation and i:; re­ ington, D.C. area blues musi~ians have a passion for poetry. In fact Wallace McRae and Nyle Hen­ cited by cowboys who have:i't the including Flora Molton, Archie Ed­ cowboys appear to be the only ' derson are contemporary cowboy wards, and John Jackson. Phil at­ occupational group in the United poets that write their own poetry Wally McRae by tributes his style to his years play­ States with a high percentage of about their lives as cowboys and · Mike Korn ing with Flora Molton, a renowned members who write and recite ranchers. Their poetry speaks Washington street singer and poetry. You should understand, of clearly of the economic, environ­ guitarist. course, that we are talking about mental, and political concerns of Cephas and Wiggins have per­ real cowboys, men and women the cowboy and rancher and the formed together at festivals, col­ that spend a major part of each day things they like best about their leges, and blues gatherings on a horse and often go down a lifestyles. .A. throughout the country. They are rope to a wild cow. also the best travelled bluesmen That poetry is a passion for real WALLY of our time or anytime, having cowboys seems incongruous only McRAE performed throughout Europe, Af­ because the celluloid and pulp A third-generation rancher of rica, Latin America and the Carib­ print media long ago created an­ Rosebud Creek, in eastern Mon­ bean. Much of this touring has other image using actors whose tana, Wallace McRae writes about been for the Arts America Pro­ craggy countenances were made ranching, cows and his life as a gram of the United States Informa­ by makeup men. Those fellows cowman from daily experience. tion Agency and Phil and John are were often crooners with good His poetry reflects the life he leads among the most successful musi­ guitars. Crooners and good gui­ and the day-to-day trials, tribula­ cal ambassadors ever sent out by tars have always been rare out tions, tragedy, humor and gratifi­ our nation. where the star routes run and cation of ranching in the 1980s. Their repertoire consists of tra­ cowpies are good fuel. But cow­ Wally began writing poetry in ditional songs, East Coast blues boy poetry has been common in high school but it was not until learned from old 78s and an occa­ the West for at least a century. the early 1970s that he took a sional R & B standard. The combi­ Why? There are at least three ~eadlong dive into producing verse nation of country blues repertoire, speculative answers that seem rea­ m quantity. He composed poems country blues instrumentation and sonable. First, cowboys hold to a for the monthly Production Credit progressive vocal style make for traditional occupation and a part Association calendar and has been an appealing and highly energetic of their lifestyle is imbedded in published in a number of local blend of the old and the new. the last century when many peo- and regional periodicals. Wally's foggiest idea of who wrote it just a etry Gathering" that brought to- Sodom Laurel comm~nity is ~ome lies came from lowland Scotland few years ago. A second book of gether cowboys poets from f many fine ballad singers m- and northern England via a long Mr. McRae's poetry was rece~tly throughout the West earlier this rding Doug's mother, Berzilla tenure in the north of Ireland. published entitled, Up North ts year. • ~~llin his uncle Cas Wallin, and Mr. Wallin does not frequently Down the Crick. Dellie Norton. The English ballad travel far from his home in Madi- Wally is also famous in his state NYLE HENDERSON collector Cecil Sharp once de- son County, but he has shared his for his unrelenting resistance to scribed this area as "a community fine singing with audiences at sev- coal mining interests that would N yle Henderson of Hotchkiss, Col- in which singing was as common eral colleges and universities. He turn all of Montana's beautiful orado, breaks horses for a living. and almost as universal a practice performed in North Carolina's ex- ranching country into a deep pit His home, nested at the foot of , as speaking." Mr. Wallin's mother, cellent British-American Festival coal mine. Whipple Hill in Delta County, is a Berzilla, still vividly remembers the and on two occasions at the Smith- Wally was one of the represent- good place to live a life surrounded visit of this famous collector al- sonian's Festival of American atives of Montana cowboying at with horses. Nyle came from Iowa J most seventy years ago, Sharp's Folklife . .6. the western regional "Cowboy Po- but has lived in Colorado since first of several trips to the Ameri- 1953. Not only is Nyle known for can South which would result in FRANK PROFFITT, JR. Nyle IIC'ndet s011 by his broncbusting skills, but lately the collection, English Folk Songs .\fikcJ.:om he has become well known as a From the Southern Appalachians. R eared in the Pick Britches Valley cowboy poet. His poetry embraces Doug Wallin is living proof that of Watauga County, North Caro- the subject matter he knows best; this rich singing tradition was taken lina, Frank Proffitt, Jr. grew up in a the trials of the modern rancher, up by the next generation despite gifted family of Appalachian musi- cowpuncher, bronc buster, and the lessening of the isolated con- cians, storytellers and instrument rodeo rider. ditions which Sharp thought pre- makers. He performs on the fret- Henderson's poetry and his served it. He has a strong voice less wood banjo and Appalachian unique way of presenting it is cut and a straightforward style, some- dulcimer and sings songs handed and honed from real life experi- what less ornamented than the through generations of his family ences. "My poetry is just a rhym- style typical of his mother's gen er- members. Frank has performed in ing diary of my life." But it isn't his ation. When inclined, however, he schools throughout North Caro- poetry alone that makes him a humorously imitates with a gentle lina, at the Smithsonian's Festival much sought-after speaker, it is touch the individual styles of some of American Folklile, and at many his performance that puts the of his elders. Mr. Wallin's large other highly respected events. "powder" in his works. repertoire comes primarily from Frank's lather, now deceased, Although in his own commu- i the singing of his mother and was the source of the version of nity, Nyle's talents have long been other members of his family and the Tom Dooley ballad that be- appreciated, he recently gained , community. Instrumental music is came an international pop music some national notoriety when he also a strong tradition in his hit of the 1960s and was a ballad allowed himself to be bucked off f~mily- Doug occasionally plays singer of astounding skill. His a chair on NBC's Tonight Show. • 11?dle_though singing is his spe- travels with his fretless wood banjo cial gift. The old ballads he sings during the late 50s and early 60s ~re one of the most direct re flec- introduced that ancient instrument DOUG WALLIN hons of the cultural heritage to thousands of players. He was D oug Wallin was born and raised br?ught by early white settlers to also a banjo and Appalachian dul- this ar · in the Sodom Laurel section of ea, mcluding those whose cimer maker as was his father, fa l .. Madison County in the Blue Ridge mi ies came directly from Eng- Wiley Proffitt, and his father-in- nd Mountains in North Carolina. The la · as well as those whose fami- law, Nathan Hicks. He performed . two-steps a few Zydeco tence and perpetuation of elements at the National Folk Festival twenty­ ' f • FILE Ca1un of their African cultural heritage. two years ago. ations, and even a ew vm- syncoCpai·un blues and rock'n'roll Their "gullah" dialect and reper­ Frank Jr.'s mother, Bessie Hicks O n a typi~al Saturday night in 1age , is a great granddaughter Breaux Bn~ge, Louisiana, Mulate's toire of play and work songs and Proffitt tunes. . -t.• b d of Councill Harmon (Harmann) dance hall is packed full of people Recently two of FIie s an stories have fascinated travellers the source of the Appalachian hot to dance to the music of File members received word that they and collectors for generations. German-American collection of (ii~ is ground sassafras leaf, an · h ve been chosen for an appren­ Frankie and Doug have helped _a ship' program administered make this unique body of tradi­ stories commonly called "The Jack md1spensable spice used in 11ce . . . Tales'." Her brother, Ray Hicks, is gumbo, a favori~e food of the Cajun h ugh the Lou1s1ana Folkhfe Pro- tion known to a wider public. I rom Ward Lormand will study French settlers m Louisiana. It is gra . . ~lso a band ~ame c_ooked up by with accordion maker Mark_ Sa- hve outstandmg Ca1un musicians voy, a brilliant player of the mstru­ from southern Louisiana. ment and a former NCTA Board File plays dance music unique member. Farren Serette will learn to the Cajun communities of Loui­ from one of the finest old-time siana. The Cajuns are descen­ Cajun fiddlers, Doc Guidry, an­ dants of French speaking Acadians other friend of this festival. expelled by the British from what File is popular among audiences is now Nova Scotia in the mid-18th not only in Louisiana but through­ century. Several thousand settled out the eastern U.S. and Canada. on the prairies west of New Or­ Appearances include the New Or­ leans where they became known leans Jazz and Heritage Festival, as Cajuns ( an English mispronun­ the ~ 84 Louisiana World's Fair ciation of Acadian). They con­ and the Smithsonian's Festival of tinue to speak French and there American Folklife in Washington, Doug Wallin& a famous teller of these stories. are estimated to be 900,000 de­ D.C. They can also be heard regu­ Frankie Sullivan Quimby comes Fite Frank P1offi11, Jr. by Frank Jr. grew up with the stories scendants of the Acadians now, larly at dance halls in Louisiana from one of the few American Meg Glaser. and knows them but does not yet most in southwest Louisiana and including Antlers and Grant Street Black families that can trace its tell them. They have a time and eastern Texas. Dance Hall, in Lafayette, and at ancestry to a definite location in place: one becomes a skilled teller The instrumentation of File is the Maple Leaf in New Orleans. A Africa. Her family came from the by practicing upon grandchildren typical of Cajun dance bands, in­ town of Kianah in the District of and he is still too young to have cluding the Cajun style accordion Temourah, in the Kingdom of Mas- grandchildren. and fiddle along with French vo­ FRANKIE sina, on the Niger River in what is Frank Proffitt, Jr. is thus a keeper cals. Ward Lormand is accordion­ AND DOUG QUIMBY now Nigeria. They were members. of some old family traditions and ist and lead vocalist; Farren Ser­ of the Foulah tribe. Many of the a reminder that our best traditions rette whose father and uncle were Frank!e and Doug Quimby of the family were slaves on the Hopeton are preserved by families and small both' musicians in a family group, Georgia Sea Island Singers per­ and Altama Plantations on the communities. Frank keeps them plays fiddle and sings; Ray Bra_s­ form songs, games dances and Georgia coast. They adopt~d t~e the way his Dad did: quietly and sieur plays guitar; Kevin Sheann st0ries handed dov'..n over two name Sullivan after emanc1pat1on. gently and with good humor. We plays bass and sings; and Peter ~enturies in the island communi­ Frankie was born in Brunswick, know you'll enjoy Frank . .a. Stevens plays drums. Together they ties 011 the coast of Georgia. Black Georgia, in J 937 and was raised perform in the style of a 40s and Slaves worked plantations there on the Georgia Sea Islands. She SOs Cajun dance band with ~ rep­ and th eir· ·isolated conditions and learned the old slave games from ertoire of waltzes, the essential numbers contributed to the exis- older children and after school would play them with her friends: They later moved to coastal Geor ­ pertoire. The group is composed out their stay in these countries It was not until she met Mrs. Bessie gia to esca~e _the sharecropping re . h . I of four young men m _1 e1r ate and received invitations to return. Jones, however, that she learned system. He Iomed the Sensational teens and ea_rly}went1~s. They are: Break dancing is commonly some of her childhood favorites Friendly Stars in 1963, a modern Rennie Harns, the Pnnce of the characterized by the fancy foot­ were actually as old as her slave gospel group. In 1969 he joined Street Dancers"; Gilbert Kennedy, work, exciting spins and acrobatic ancestors. "Miss Bessie" was a the Georgia Sea Island Singers, "Shalamar"; Dave "the Renegade" dives which require a great amount brilliant and vibrant artist as well where his voice quickly became Ellerbe; and Branden Sherrod. of physical strength and energy as a treasury of older styles and one of the central features of the Rennie "Prince" Harris is the tempered with the suppleness and songs and Frankie group on was an apt pupil. their extensive tours leader and formed the Scanner daring of youth. throughout the United States. Doug Boys group in 1979 by recruiting is highly skilled in performing the the best of the street dancers in traditional patting rhythm known Philadelphia. Since then the troupe as ham bone in which the whole has taken their innovative dance body is used as a percussion to stages and streets of cities instrument. & throughout the country, and abroad. Each member of the THE SCANNER BOYS troupe has developed their own style or specialty of street dancing - In recent years break dancing has "Prince" and "Shalamar" are mas­ captured national and international ters of "popping", Dave "The attention. It has been used as a Renegade" and Branden Sherrod vehicle for movies and videos and are breakdancers par excellence. advertisers have incorporated this Dave "The Renegade" also spe­ dance into their television ads to cializes in boogaloo and "electric sell everything from soft drinks to boogaloo" and appears in coun­ fried chicken. One might wonder try music superstar Ricky Scaggs' then what this commercial, popu­ video Country Boy. ( Ricky is an lar art form is doing at a tradi­ NCTA Board member.) "Shalamar" tional folk festival. and "Prince" last year came away It is in fact a folk dance form as winners at the highly competi­ Frunkie & Doug She performed these slave games that has recently vaulted from the tive Swatch Watch Breakdance Quimby with Bessie and the Georgia Sea streets to national attention. It is Contest in New York City. Since Island Singers for many years, based upon older forms: the buck­ ~he~ these young men have been travelling throughout the United dance, the " patting juba" and mVJted to perform on tours, films States, Canada and Mexico. "ringdance" forms with African and videos in the United States Douglas Quimby was born in links. Competitive dance has deep ~nd abroad. This spring, "Prince", "Popping" is another style of Th<' Srn1111,•1Ro_ ,s Baconton, Georgia in 1936. He roots and, as today's street danc­ Shalamar", and "Dave the Rene­ street dancing where total control has been singing as long as he ers have shown, it can be as gade", served as artistic ambassa­ of body movement is necessary. can remember, working before modern as tomorrow, a new de­ dor~ for the United States through In popping, also called isolation, black and white audiences th since light for those who appreciate the eIr participation in a United the dancer moves one small part age four or five. During the st 1950s, arts of movement. ates Information Agency spon­ of his body at a time, breaking Doug's family sharecropped in The Scanner Boys are street sored tour in the Bahamas and down movements into minute southwest Georgia, earning Jam· as lit­ dancers from Philadelphia and . a1ca. They performed for stand- ticks. This dance creates a dis-. tle as $9.25 for a year of work. "breaking" is only a part of their mg room only audiences through- jointed, robot-like and strobe-like followers often will drive 40 or 50 effect when done well. Poppers . strurnent to play. The recently taken up the single row cult in shave recorded 3 al- miles just to attend one of his often imitate animals using this button accordion. He is an ac­ McKennathe Shanachie label. • dances. Paul is an Eastern-style technique- Prince, for example, complished musician and at age bums on caller; he explains that Eastern has become known for his ostrich 34, is among the youngest of Ire­ style is not learned by taking les­ dance. Another specialty of the land's master pipers. Antoinette JAMES I(FANE sons, and there is a lot more Scanner Boys is a move called the is equally talented and she plays swinging in the Eastern dances. "King Tut". The troupe demon­ eane showed a certain the Irish harp and sings. Both she James K 11 h Paul learned how to call by going strates different styles of that . us nature at age w en and Joe are fluent Irish speakers rebe II10 d' . to dances as a young man and move- Dave can do the New York and approximately 25% of her vo­ k Up the accor IOn m a he too. f highly respecte d f'ddlI ers. cal repertoire is performed in her fam1 1yo 'ddl . native tongue. H1spa. rents were rural h ers m• Joe learned Uilleann piping from traditional style who brought their •c Dublin where James was the late Leo Rowesome, a legend­ [DUSI 10 . ary Dublin piper. He has twice born. Brother Sean was dutiful won the All-Ireland piping compe­ d took up the fiddle and has an rformed with The Chieftains for tition and in 1975 won the All­ pe d . h Britain piping competition. Since many years. James performe wit that time the McKenna's demand­ the Castle Ceili Band and has ing touring schedule has forced stuck with the accordion long them to drop out of the competi­ enough to become an All-Ireland tion circuit. They perform exten­ Champion three times. He brought sively on the Continent and usually it to New York in 1967 and says he schedule a 6-week tour of the U.S. has "never had to pick up a shovel every 8 months. yet." James has appeared at Carne­ Joe and Antoinette come from gie Hall, the Smithsonian Festival musical families. Both her parents of American Foiklife, the Milwau­ are fiddlers and he, along with his kee Irish Fest, and the Border Folk brothers, continues to work at the Festival at El Paso. He was also a family craft of building pipes. performer on the NCTA-sponsored The Uilleann pipes are consid­ "Green Fields of America" tour Joe & Antoine/le version, Prince does a slow mo­ ered among the most beautiful of which featured the finest Irish McKenna by Margo tion Philadelphia version and Shal­ bagpipe instruments and they are American musicians and dancers Newmark amar takes it up to speed . .& certainly the most complex. They in concerts throughout the United Rosenbaum are not inflated by mouth. Rather, States. A the player's left elbow constantly JOE & ANTOINETTE works a bellows which feeds air following the callers; he would James Kea11e to a storage bag under the right PAUL MILLS practice the calls while plowing in MCKENNA elbow. At the same time, the Square dancing has never gone his family's cornfields in the town Joe and Antoinette McKenna are player's fingers work the chanter out of vogue as a community en­ of Bladensburg, a community near I t . one of Ireland's most popular per­ while rhythms and chords are er amment in many rural areas of to Paul's long-time home in Gam­ th forming duos. They live in County made by the wrist and heel of the e country. In Knox County, peo­ bier. Square dancing continues to Wicklow not far from Dublin where right hand from regulator pipes ple ~ave been enjoying the dis­ be a vigorous pastime in this they grew up. Joe plays the Uil­ which rest on the right leg. The tmctJve singing calls of Paul Mills area- the granges hold a square leann pipes, tin whistle, and has Uilleann pipe is an extremely diffi- for the past 45 years, and his dance every weekend of the focus their attention ber of the Guild. She has been month, and local gossip even in­ is not retired from a 32-year career 11 farmers a tioneer leading the sale quilting since she was in her teens cludes details on how fast or with Columbia Gas. He still main­ on the ~~~p . A professional auc­ and mainly learned from her ' sloppy a swinger someone is. tains two large gardens and calls at a fas n sell a pile of tobacco mother, Magdalene Howitt. She Paul is known for his fine sing­ dances regularly. He notes with . neerca uo be worth more than a estimates that she has made over ing voice as a caller. Unlike many pride that his granddaughter, who that maYd dollars in six seconds a hundred quilts since she started singing callers who chant along is IO years old, goes to all the tho_ul sanhanting 500 words per quilting. Dolores Kosarek is also a with a tune, Paul sings complete local dances with her parents and wh1ec prolific quilter; she is in her late songs. Of the 25 or so calls he can dance anything the caller minute. Roberts sells tobacco on forties and has been quilting for does regularly, some of his favor- chooses. A young man from the M · kr. ts in Winston-Salem, North neighborhood started following rnar e ky , Paul to learn his calls-by sitting Ca lina and Lexington, Kentuc '. . ~;;;;;--o ~ :. 0 ~ rore the country's largest to- next to him on a stool at the h we rehouse Is· Iocate d H . . e Is dances-and is now a regular cal­ bacc 0 Wa cond-generation tobacco auc- ., l ler in the area. Paul's son-in-law a se I d' also is trying to learn from him, tIon. eer and learned the. me o Ic but he hasn't yet mastered calling. tobacco chant from his father, the When asked what it takes to be a late John Edward Roberts. Page good caller, Paul says, "Nerve, can recite Lincoln's Gettysburg Ad­ mostly . . . and it takes something dress in less than a minute.• special." .& THE STREETSBORO PAGE ROBERTS QUILTERS GUILD Page Roberts of Clarksville, Vir­ ginia, is a 30-year-veteran of the T he Streetsboro Quilters Guild in­ Paul Mills by Judy ites are "Wabash Cannonball," tobacco business and was cho­ cludes thirty members from the Sacks "Little Old Log Cabin in the Lane," sen as World Champion Tobacco Streetsboro-Aurora area of north­ and "Cindy." Paul prefers to work Auctioneer in 1982. He outchant­ eastern Ohio. It is an active club with acoustic stringed instruments ed 71 other fast-talking contes­ with frequent meetings that fea­ like fiddle, mandolin, banjo, and tants in this contest sponsored by ture instructional workshops in guitar, but he has worked suc­ the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Com­ which members share designs and cessfully with other combinations pany. The championship, held in patterns for various pieces- quilts, of backup music. He notes that Danville, Virginia, is Reynolds To­ tote bags, pillows, skirts and vests. the older people at his dances bacco's way of saluting the pro­ For the past three years, the Guild often will dance for a longer time fessional tobacco auctioneer. The has sponsored an annual quilt than the younger ones; sometimes auction system of selling tobacco show featuring the work of club about ten years. Mrs. Kosarek has Page Roberts photo courtesy Reynolds he sees people in their eighties enables many thousands of farm­ around quilts which feature intric­ members and other quilters several 7bbacco Co. dancing the entire evening. Paul ers to sell their crops in a rela­ the state. ately embroidered patterns, and welcomes newcomers, however, tively short period, huge sales N ~he Guild is represented at the her Starburst quilt was judged best­ and teaches dances to beginners warehouses filling and emptying ~Ilona! Folk Festival by four mem- of-show at the 1983 Streetsboro by walking them through the steps daily. It is very important and auc­ rs. Mary Page and Dolores Kos­ exhibition. Marian Miller of Au­ several times before the music tioneers are highly respected fig­ arek, both of Streetsboro are two rora, Ohio and Lois Dolman of starts. ures. Buyers, graders, ticket of_the four. Mrs. Page, no~ in her Streetsboro will also represent the Paul has farmed all his life, and markers, warehouse owners and mid-seventies, is a charter mem- Guild at the festival. J,,. ,

specializes in sumi paintin S decorations for happy and he is working on a special JAPANESE . · g. he uses t ra dItIonal materials· . Japan_as s such as weddings, and mandolin with his apprentice Rick . k f . asurn, WOMEN'S CLUB she o black charcoal Jap oecas1on ' cial gifts to friends. Boring which he plans to call " the . , anese T he Japanese Women's Club was b rus h es, and nee paper in d niven as speT'ekur another mem- Ohioan." The wood in this instru­ • raw. ~ uI·deko 1 ' • 1 ri J panese Women s ment is from Ohio, and he and started by Miyo Barbero of Niles in mg pants and landscapes. She fthe a the mid 1960s, and includes about learned much of her sum; P . !)er o. 1 from Nagoya, Japan, Rick plan to ornament the mando­ . h . amt­ b isa so . twenty women from the Warren­ mg tee ntque from her uncle in Clu , ]ived in Warren, Ohio, lin with the state flower. The tail· and ha~ Mrs. Tiekur learned piece will feature a representation Youngstown area of Ohio. The To~?· She explains that sumi I 78 main purpose of the club is to pamtmg has been practiced in since kfrom her mother and of the state seal. .._ Japan for several centuries; the needleWt?rued to embroider and scon in d ha . ·nee moving to the Umte . art form v.:as introduced to Japan rochet s1 1· h d by ~uddh1st monks visiting from c She is also an accomp is e Chma. Mrs. Barbero's paintings Statdes. er and skilled in the art of gar en both reflect the Buddhist e plant and flower arrange- philoso­ Japan es e explains. that Japanese phy and her Japanese cultural her­ menst . Sh itage. She has taught sumi painting few flowers in an arrange- use . h th for several years. The brush strokes ment and typically wit o er require concentration, and she plants such as shrubs and small says her painting is an exercise in trees. She works with both natural meditation. The meditative proc­ and artificial plants in her arrange­ ess actually begins before paint­ ments and creation of bonsai trees.& ing, when a sumi stick is rubbed in a dish of water. The pictures BOBWHITE themselves are painted quite rap­ idly and Mrs. Barbero completes a Bob White is a mandolin and picture of a bamboo plant or a banjo maker from Coolville, Athens MILLER Bob White by Mark chrysanthemum in two minutes County, Ohio. He is also a musi­ Eu Lutz or less. She says the strokes in- ,.. cica11, most recently with a blue­ E li Miller is a harness and bridle volved in sumi painting "look easy, grass group, the All American Boys. maker from Mesopotamia, in but really they aren't." He has made I-style mandolins for northeastern Ohio. For the past 18 Another member of the Japa­ about fifteen years, and has re­ years, he has run a busy and nese Women's Club is Michie paired instruments for a consider­ successful shop on his property. Hawkins who moved to McDon­ ably longer time. He likes to use He is self-taught as a harness ald, Ohio, thirty-five years ago from both Sitka spruce and German maker and saddle repairer: he Nagoya, Japan. She learned nee­ spruce in his mandolins, "the older began, he says, when "I just took Miyo Bonbero by give its members a chance to dlework from her mother while the better." Bob has also con­ a saddle apart to see how they Bill lewis meet with other women who were working in the family's dressmak· structed instruments from old ce­ were put together." He further born in Japan, and in effect to ing shop as she was growing up. dar wood utility poles; the interior explains that as a member of an keep in touch with their Japanese Mrs. Hawkins creates Japaneses ~ood, he explains, was quite good Amish community, he has been roots. Three members of the club temari, the traditional Japanese : such poles before creosoting around horses and related equip­ will be demonstrating their Japan­ art of decorating silk-covered ?alls . came a common practice Bob ment all of his life. His business ese craft work at the National by intricately winding and lacing ~r~~~~entty a master artist in. the has grown over the years ( the Folk Festival. colored threads into colorful de- . p lhonal Arts Apprenticeship shop also includes a shoe depart­ Miyo Barbero is an artist who signs. These balls are used in rogram at the Ohio Arts Council, ment managed by his son Joe),

er State, is currently doing research and Mr. Miller now takes orders to the customer's braided and woven rugs begin f n are · on the Hmong families living in from all over the country, as well l·zes o te 1 that she is part1cu- their life at strips of fabric- from s Eva fee s . . 1 Columbus and elsewhere in Ohio, as continuing to meet the needs order. with color choices, co - old coats, skirts, or curtains- and and she writes: of the Amish in his immediate IarlY good ·mportant to her, and are magically transformed into There are three types ofpangdau. Mea. Mr. Miller is also interested ors are v~~ ~ave a "look" that floor coverings of exceptional One is a stitched design type in older-style harnesses and bri­ her r~gs em easily as hers. beauty and durability. which includes counted cross­ dles, an interest which he some­ identify th . hbor Maxine Helton Numerous households in cen­ ·sneIg d stitch, a reverse applique type times puts to practical use. Last Eva d t make rugs an tral Ohio's Knox County feature and the applique year, for has learne_ t~e time-consuming . A chain stitch example, he developed a handsome handmade rugs by helps Eva md1·ng the looms. Eva local rug makers. Like many other k O f threa . tas • h process of teaching residents of Fredericktown, Eva ismte · d aI so dd ughters ( one m Fre - had owned rugs woven by Bessie h r gran a . ) ~ kt wn the other in Mame Ebersole during the Depression. enc O • Eva began her career as a rug how to make rugs. . maker 37 years ago. She had been Eva's rugs are highly valued m io They grace saving old coats with the intention centra 1Oh · the floors 1 of making braided rugs. One day, of many local homes; o~her co - she saw some very good-looking Jectors include the pres1den~ of rugs in the window of a thrift Kenyon College, a :'ic~Pres1dent store in Mount Vernon and asked of Borden, and an mtenor decora­ who had made them. She then tor in Chicago. & tracked down 80-year-old Obadiah Frost of nearby Sparta and asked THE him to make a rug from her coats. KUE, HANG, When Eva asked for another rug, YANG, AND CHANG delighted with the first one, . FAMILIES design is also used. In addition to Mang Hang& Obadiah consented on the condi­ symbolic designs, storytelling Young Hmong tion that Eva help make it. For the T here are four Hmong families cloths depict scenes from their dancers by Jack Shortlidge next few years, Obadiah took a bus which have settled in Columbus, homeland. These cloths show a to Fredericktown to teach Eva how Ohio, during the past 5 to 6 years. variety of subjects, including their make rugs, often working to­ halter with a detachable bridle_ 10 Women from each- the Kue daily work, New Year celebra­ Eva Hosack by Judy gether every day. which he based on an old ~es1g_n Hang, Yang and Chang Families­ tions, or even favorite folktales. Sacks After mastering braided rugs. once used by calvary units m this are_currently active in creating The story cloths can be fairly large Eva started weaving rugs on a country during the 19th century.A various kinds of pieces that em­ ( about 2' x 3') rectangular pieces loom. These woven rugs, com­ ploy traditional pangdau needle­ with colorfully embroidered and monly called rag rug~.t~ese days, work. Pangdau is often used as used to be applique scenes. In addition·to EVA HOSACK known as h1t-and­ orna~entaliori for clothing such miss" rugs, since they were ~ade the traditional themes mentioned R ug making is an art_th~t com-_ as skirts and belts. The needle- with leftover scraps of material.. by Miele, other cloths are dra­ bines skill with practicality. As m wd orkers in Columbus have pro- Eva now uses only new wo~l sir~: uced for · matic representations of recent quilt making, the traditional rug st for her braided rugs, resel'Vlng I rately cl m ance, several elabo- experiences, such as battles with maker uses materials that ~ave "recycled" cottons and wools ford childre~co~ted costumes for their Vietnamese soldiers and the outlived their original funcll?n to the rag rugs. Eva makes both round techn· Which feature pangdau Hmong flight from their homeland create pieces that iquesand d . are bea~t1ful as and oval braided rugs. Colors an Miele a es1gns. Cerena of Laos. well as useful. Eva Hosack s ' graduate student at Ohio • Approximately IO to 12 mem- bers of these various Hmong fam­ which he refers to as.. . . n Folklife Festival baptism, pacifism, and separation a gJft " L, · ~e 5mithson~res a block pattern from the world. Today most ilies will join us at this year's works approximately 150 hti National Folk Festival. Several men per year. 4 auctions ~n J971- feat t use and a border Ami_sh still speak "dutch" (Ameri­ I l'keS o h d will demonstrate the traditional o~fph I h. grandfather a carnzed German), don't have elec­ ,..., that is . d method of grinding grain in Laos, pattern rrn's designs mclu ea tricity or telephones in their don't drive automo­ which involves a large wooden TIM RAsTElTERAND created. Jb attern and a rug dar­ homes, and machine for pounding grain that honeycorn _Pde than on the other; biles. They travel by means of RALPHALING one s1 . d is operated with foot power. In ker on d R fph jointly des1gne horsedrawn buggies, and farm . Their clothing is very addition, music will be performed T im Rastetter and his grandfa­ Tirn an_ a ,, rug pattern. In 1983, with horses plain: it is made only of solid­ by Mr. Vang Hang on the kaen, a ther, Ralp~ Aling, of Rastetter the "rainbo:cted by the Women's colored fabrics and no buttons or bamboo mouth organ of Laos and Woolen Mill, near Berlin, Ohio Tirn w~s s: of the Smithsonian In­ ornamentation is used. Thailand. A represents a long-standing f '. corn~~t:s among the best I00 t d" . am1y1 A strong sense of community ra 1t1on of weavers in Holmes stitutJo le in the country. prevails among the Amish as a County. Ralph, now age 88, learned craftspReosptetter Woolen Mill prom- KENNETH KEPNER The a · result of shared customs in dress to weave blankets from his grand­ . s to continue to be a family work, language, and worship. ' K enneth Kepner is an auctioneer father, an Amish man who took ,se t· n Maureen Rastetter, opera 10 · . ificant community from Hartford, Ohio, in Trumbull over one of the five competing . , w,·fe helps in the busmess Quilting is a sign T1rn s , 8 d 9) activity shared among Amish County. He comes from a farming wool mills in 1872. Ralph's and their chil?ren ( ages an women. Traditional Amish quilts family which has lived in the area grandfather-Tim's great-great­ show a great mterest already. and have for 5 generations. After leaving the grandfather-developed some Holmes County can look forwar~ have a singular character upheld as Air Force, Mr. Kepner decided to fancy designs to compete against to a sixth generation of weavers m become recognized and unique artifacts of this important pursue his long-time interest in the other weavers and was so this family. A auctioneering rather than return­ successful that he put the others American culture; they are being ing to the farm. He apprenticed out of business. But he himself acquired by collectors and muse­ himself to Mr. Homer Sparks, a was put out of the business of be­ HOLMES COUN1Y ums throughout the world. well-known auctioneer from ing Amish- the community didn't AMISH QUIL TIRS Maggie Wengard, Nettie Yoder, Sharon, Pennsylvania ( about 20 favor fancing weaving. Ella Schlabach, Sara Yoder, Katie miles from Hartford) and this be­ Tim learned to weave from his The Amish came to North Amer­ Miller, and Lydia Ann Yoder of gan his career. Mr. Kepner says grandfather, joining him in the ica from Germany, Switzerland, Holmes County, Ohio, will be dem­ that he is largely self-taught hav­ business in 1973. Ralph had re­ and France during the 18th and onstrating Amish quilt making dur­ ing closely observed many auc­ started the mill in 1923, seven 19th centuries as part of a larger ing the festival. Ella Schlabach will tioneers and drawn on their years after his grandfather's death. movement of Palatine German also demonstrate white cap mak­ various styles. His primary interest Ralph had begun to make rugs speaking Anabaptist groups seek­ ing and Lydia Ann Yoder will dem­ centers on horse drawn vehicles instead of blankets, and today the ings religious freedom. The Amish onstrate bonnet making. These are and for the past 15 years he and mill is known nationwide for its settled in several areas of North two types of head coverings tradi­ Mr. Eli Miller, also a participant at fine handloomed rugs of wool, America, most notably in Pennsyl­ tionally worn by Amish women. this year's festival, have organized cotton, and other materials. vania, Ohio, and Indiana. Today, The custom of wearing a head one of the largest auctions cen­ The patterns Tim and Ralph Holmes County, Ohio, has the covering at all times derives from tered on their shared interest. This weave are combinations of those largeSI Amish population in the the Biblical teachings of I Corin­ event draws a great deal of atten­ handed down from their family ;or~d. The complex culture and thians, Chapter 11. !ion, especially from the large Am­ and ones they've developed as t~llions of the Amish are strongly The white caps made by Mrs. ish communities. individual craftsmen. For exam­ ie t? their religious beliefs and Schlabach are worn on an every­ He credits his success in his ple, Ralph's "Smithsonian" design ~ractices, including a strong ad- day basis by all Amish women strong voice erence to B1'bl' field to having a good, - exhibited with great success at - ical teachings, adult and girls. This type of cap is con- p

structed by most Amish women ration of pages and even th . for their own use. Mrs Yoder on a page. Mr. Sabota is als~ Print 'irH NATIONAL makes the black bonnets, which extremely talented and i _an t' b' d rnagina :oLK fESTlVAL STAFF are worn over the white or black 1ve m er for many one-of .· caps to special occasio?s such as ~~~ ~~~ (PARTIAL) church meetings, weddings, fu- Mr. Sabota will primarily b d Cerena Miele FE.5TIVAL ORGANIZATION JiJTI Batchelder Terry Miller AND PLANNING nerals, and going to town. These onstrating the time-honorede tn• BarrY Bergey f ' s 111 Sara Miller Joe Wilson bonnets are mostly worn as a o paper restoration Marc Boudreaux at the festival Louise Neu Paul Squire l)ebbie Bowman covering to protect the cap under- He notes that the apprenticeship · Diana Parker Meg Glaser Barbara Boyless neath from the weather. Only a system for learning book bind· Barry Lee Pearson Kathy James d t · ing Belh Braden few women in each community ~n res oration was disrupted dur- Jackie Pfeffer Judy Sacks David Brose Lynn Pettit make the black bonnets, as this mg t~e w~r years in Europe and Phyllis Brzozowzka Richard Kennedy Don Rouse Stephen Bures Jack Shortlidge is a more specialized, time- now_1s bemg taught in schools for Daphne Shuttleworth Charles Camp Gayle Hazelwood consuming skill. apphed arts. However this careful Ricky Skaggs Andy Cohen Howard Sacks All of the women attending the and detailed Sharon White-Skaggs art is passed tm, it Dianne Couves Tim Lloyd Frank Smith festival were born and raised in appears to not be threatened with Valerie DePriest Amy While Dick Swain Holmes County and learned their replacement by computers- the Leslie Fay Tom Tankersley SOUND REINFORCEMENT skills from members of their fam- human touch is a necessary com• Stan Fowler Judy Tiger Pete Reiniger, Chief ily and community. The quilts they ponent to the book binder's work.A Lynn Frederick Robert Garfinkle Debra Van Cleef Mary Cliff will be working on and the quilts Jeff Goehring Dick Van Kleeck Lee Dishman and dolls available for sale were Greg Hall Stephen Wade Lennie Pettitt provided by Miller's Dry Goods in Patty Harrington Alf Walle Mike Rivers Charm, Ohio, and The Lone Star Debbie Heller Mary Weybume Judy Weyburne Quilt Shop in Mount Hope, Ohio Mike Holmes . George Holt Amy White The Amish women will only be John Hoium Pat Wilcox participating in the festival on Pat Humphries Bill Wilson Saturday. Bruce Kaplan Anthony Ziselberger Allison Kaslow Linda Leonard Klena JAN SABOTA Bill Komrich Ekbal Kornrich Jan Sabota is a Czechoslovakian Tasnima Korn rich book binder and restorer. He was Sabino Kornrich born in Carlsbad, Czechoslovakia Deb Lader and studied book binding in Betty Lau Barbara Lau Prague. Diane Nance Lloyd Mr. Sabota came to the United Tim Lloyd States only ten months ago to take Claire MacBride a job in Cleveland at the Case Heaiher MacBride Western University's Allen Memo- I.any MacBride Sebastian MacBride rial.Lib~ary where he is restoring Ellen Mccurdy their priceless collection. His skills Bill McNeil include all aspects of book resto- LYnn Martin ration, from the repair of worn InsM eltzer Van Mertz covers and bindings to the resto- >

many kinds of folk music. Prices ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS foLJ< MUSIC are reasonable and they ha ve cat- alogues ?nd listings. Pay particu- T he National Folk Festival is co­ T he Board of Directories and QNR£CORDS lar attention to their Rounder I b I . Coun­ of the NCTA would like to th staff , a e sponsored by the National AND TAPES Th ere s some great stuff on it Arts and the the following persons and ank cil for the Traditional uent question at the Na- Arhoolie Records, I 0341 S~n with the gen­ for their fine support: groups freq . . .. National Park Service A. Folk Festival 1s, where can Pa?l~ Avenue, El Cerrito, CA 94530 erous support from the following Lewis Albert, Superintendent f C uona 1 . .k Aro u~ah_oga ecordings by artists 1I e TI_i1s is~ great source for Cajun, . Val!ey National Recreation fge t r . b . contributors: entire staff, all of who have coe ~ ab his ?" one answer 1s o VIous: ~1spant~ and other kinds of eth­ for the Arts' Folk Arts directly lo the success of this f:;;iv~\ed these. . b. National Endowment buy them here! Many artists nng nic music as well as vintage blues Program Wayne Lawson, Executive Director Oh· , 10 and rock. The Cleveland Foundation Arts Council recordings with them and they are Standard Oil Company (Ohio) Congressman John Seiberling for sale at the festival sales tent. Marimac Recordings, P.O. Box Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company Bets~ Cut_hbertson of Congressma 5, Little Ferry, NJ 07643. These Se1berlmg's staff n Every dollar you spend goes to the The Treuhafl Foundation and Hale Farm and Village the festival does not take a folks deal only in cassettes The GAR Foundation artist; Old Trail School they are issuing some rare things Ohio Arts Council percentage. g of Northampton else. The George Gund Foundation Burger Kin For those who would like to you won't find anywhere e Society The Knight Foundation Gambier Folklor a dependable and well­ Their re-issues of vintage Appala­ Railroad Line have B.F. Goodrich Company The Cuyahoga Valley chian old-time music are espe­ District stocked source for recordings by The John A McAlonan Trust Ford Motor Company, Brecksville Office like these there is another cially good. "Bowling Green" John The GenCorp Foundation artists Trustees and Police of Bath and answer: Mail Order. There are sev­ Cephas and "Harmonica Phil" The Firestone Trust Fund Northampton Townships Trust with Wiggins have a fine cassette is­ The S. Livingston Mather Charitable Sierra Club eral fine mail order suppliers Send them Babcock-Wilcox Summit County Health Department huge inventories of records and sued by these people. R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company Valley View Golf Club with prices that are usually much a self-addressed, stamped enve­ Mike Korn better than record stores-even if lope and they'll return their list in Lapresse Siengh what you want-and very it. All tapes are $6. h they had Walt Mahovlic 1304 West Shubert, NATIONAL ENDOWMENT and broadcasting services pro­ few do. The following are our Flying Fish, S Recording FOR THE ART vided by WKSU-FM. Emergency care for favorite suppliers. Chicago IL 60614. This is a Chi­ the festival provided by the Emergency label with a broad Medicine Department of Akron General County Sales, P.O. Box 191 , cago based Medicine Center. Sound and lighting equip­ Floyd, Virginia 24091. This is the array of folk musjc on record. Just ent provided by Woodsy·s Music. m best source for bluegrass, old­ write and ask for their catalogue. 2Q tn'.1e and Appalachian gospel. NCTA, Suite 1118, 1346 Conn. l'JllS 19R~ Pnces are usually $2 less per disc Ave. N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036. than store prices and they're sure This is the organization that pro­ in print festival. Only a few ..0_ Wrth the support of to have almost anything grams this C1C the Ohio Arts Council ~orth buying. Their bimonthly products are now for sale, but ounty Sales newsletter is a mon- more are forthcoming. The best­ to h . . ument onest reVIewmg Ask seller is a cassette, The Cowboy for catal · hit. Reb ogues of their excellent Tour, virtually a word-of-mouth I Evais and County labels. Dave It is an hour in length, 8 real records for these folks cowboys singing, fiddling, telling RoundupR . jokes and reciting poetry in live Avenue So ec?rds, 186 Willow A 28 page booklet erated rnerville, MA 02144. Op­ performance. b in Records, this comes with it and instructs supplie/h Rounder I as a huge inventory of cowboying. It sells for $6. The J "Bringing the NATIONAL to the Nation!"

Our first nationwide broadcast via satellite of this 47th National Folk Festival hosted by WKSU's Jim Blum.

Made possible by a grant from the Akron/Summit Convention and Visitors Bureau and the NCTA.

Northeastern Ohio listeners can join Jim again on Saturday eve• ning as we broadcast "live" during HILLS AND HOME. Other Folk and Bluegrass programs on WKSU include: • MORNING FOLK. Saturday and Sunday 6 to 9 a.m. • HILLS AND HOME. Saturday 8 p.m. to midnight. • THE THISTLE AND SHAMROCK. Sunday 6 to 7 p.m. • SIMPLE GIFTS. Sunday 7 to 9 p.m. • A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION. Live Saturday 6 to 8 p.m., rebroadcast Sunday 3 to 5 p.m. • LET THE CIRCLE BE UNBROKEN. Sunday 9 p.m. to 11 p.m.

WKSU-FM is a cultural suvict of Ktnt State Univtrsity