A Fading Craft Finds a Voice on West Virginia Morning →
A version of Emily's radio story on Charleston Broom & Mop Co's James Shaffer, the last commercial broom maker in West Virginia, airs on West Virginia Morning from West Virginia Public Broadcasting. Listen here.
Deep Cuts from the Smithsonian Folkways Collection →
ARC MIX VOL. 20: SMITHSONIAN FOLKWAYS
I had the pleasure of putting together a mix of some of my favorite Smithsonian Folkways recordings for the good folks at Anthology Records. Listen to the playlist here.
Josh and Henry Reed, ca. 1903. Henry Reed, age 19, plays banjo and his older brother Josh plays fiddle. Photograph from the collection of James Reed, reproduced with permission.
West Virginia Folklife Program Receives Henry Reed Fund Award →
The American Folklife Center’s Henry Reed Fund was established in 2004 in honor of old-time fiddler Henry Reed with an initial gift from founding AFC director and fiddler Alan Jabbour. The fund provides small awards to support activities directly involving folk artists, especially when the activities reflect, draw upon, or strengthen the archival collections of the AFC. This year, Henry Reed Funds were awarded to two projects:
Emily Hilliard, State Folklorist at the West Virginia Humanities Council, was awarded funds for “West Virginia Folklife Presents Ballad Singer Phyllis Marks,” a public programming and documentation project highlighting the career and contributions of the respected octogenarian West Virginia traditional ballad singer Phyllis Marks.
West Virginia State Folklorist Emily Hilliard on the Front Porch →
This week, Rick and Laurie are speaking with state folklorist Emily Hilliard from the West Virginia Humanities Council.
They discuss the definition of folklore, the importance and process of collecting it, and the benefits it can provide to the state.
Listen via West Virginia Public Broadcasting