The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #12997   Message #111108
Posted By: Nancy-Jean
03-Sep-99 - 12:18 PM
Thread Name: Helen Hartness Flanders
Subject: RE: Helen Hartness Flanders
Hello Jen and everyone! I have been out of the country, but not out of touch with this project. Thank you for keeping the mudcat fires burning. I am grateful that we now have a listing of HHF's books on this site. Amazon.com is also a possibility for tracking down books. The more I read of my grandmother's letters and lectures, the more I admire her for "following her bliss" into the world of ballads. Her life's story is indeed an inspiratiion. I am honored to have been musically (as well as genetically) connected to her. She was proud of my collecting and singing French folksongs, yet never made more of it than it was. In other words, to be a true collector or to pass along traditional songs, I would have to learn my own way. My own way, it turns out, is to share my grandmother's work with others and to most appreciate those singers who perform ballads (as HHF wanted the oral tradition carried) in a simple, unadorned manner. If only we could have had videos of those ballad collecting experiences! But we don't. What we have is Margaret MacArthur! I hope everyone who is curious about the Flanders collection becomes familier with Margaret's recordings. She truly carries the torch of Helen Hartness Flanders' love of ballads.