NEA Heritage Fellowship Concert Review

Subject: NEA Heritage Fellowship Concert Review
From: GUEST,Bill Kennedy
Date: 23 Sep 02 - 01:40 PM

as for me, Jean was the highlight of the evening, but here is an attempt at a rundown of the event, I may get some people out of order, forgive me, I should have taken notes I guess! I arrived early to get a good seat, met Joe Hickerson and other members of the DC Folklore Society who were already there for the same reason, caught up with them on things since we met last in Cleveland at Folk Alliance 2000, & met Bruce Stratton (& his wife) who is playing with Hesperis in Hiram, OH, this Tues. Finally allowed in about 6:55. Scramble for seats, a woman told me I was moving too slow and ran around me! sat one row behind the reserved seats, for family and friends of honorees. Turns out I was behind, and after intermission, next to, Wilmer Ritchie & his wife, Jean's brother & sister-in-law. Saw Jean's husband George, and son Jon greeting people nearby.

The concert began: house dark, on stage comes two figures, Losang Samten gives an invocation in Tibetan stage right, stage left, Loren Bommelyn gives an invocation in Tolowa, then from the center of the floor behind us Kevin Burke gives a fiddle invocation, a variation of 'Miss McCleod's Reel', composed for the event.

Out comes Nick Spitzer, the emcee for the evening, who did a fine job, and a very engaging & entertaining signer, whose name escaped me. All the honorees are presented and are given a standing ovation, introduced individually to applause. Curtain comes up on the 'Hackberry Ramblers' center stage, with two of the honorees, Luderin Darbone on fiddle & Edward Duhon on button box accordian, Louisianna swing music, some discussion and banter with Nick, then another song. that was the pattern for the performers. Non-performing artists were interviewed at greater length, displaying related objects of thier crafts.

I think next were two recipients, brought out in wheelchairs stage left, Rose (Old Eagle Woman) & Francis (Eagle Heart) Cree, Ojibwe basket maker, and storyteller/pipe carver from Turtle Mountain Reservation in North Dakota. I should say here that the crew for the evening was well rehearsed, hit all the marks with displays wheeled out, smooth transitions, nice lighting, simple but effective set with varying flys dropped from the rigging. A videographer taped the event for each performer, I believe, but also would project on a screen close-ups of the objects being discussed. Very professionally handled. Francis told story of the Mud Hen basket and Trickster's role in the story.

Dave "Honeyboy" Edwards was brought out stage right, sat in a chair with his guitar, played and sang, talked with Nick, about Big Joe Williams' influence, about recording for Alan Lomax in 1942, and he said he couldn't remember how many record labels he later recorded for, Chess Records in Chicago in early 50's when he settled there.

Flory Jagoda, Bosnian Sephardic singer from Serajevo, now in Falls Church, VA, sang a couple of verses of a song with picture of her Nona on the screen, talked a bit, then was joined by her son on Guitar, one daughter on guitar, another daughter with tambourine, all doing vocal harmonies, for a couple of more songs, some sing along.

Nadim Dlaikan on ney flute, from Lebanon, discussed his instruments with Nick, how he raises the cane in his back yard in Michigan and makes his own instruments (it's cheaper that way! he says, plus you can't really find them here) demonstrated a couple of them, then joined by a qanun (zither) player and a percussionist on dambuk drum, a few tunes.

Ralph Blizard was brought out center stage, to discuss the long bow fiddle playing technique with Nick, as well as give some history, he gave up the fiddle in 1952 after a few years with a band called the 'Southern Ramblers' to raise his family. When he retired from Kodak in Blountville Tennessee in 1980, he began practicing the fiddle again whenever his wife was out of the house, sometimes 7 hours a day, but secretly, now plays with the 'New Southern Ramblers' a tight group of younger players, mandolin, banjo, upright bass and guitar, fine musicians whose names I didn't get to write down, some of you may know who they are, who played a couple of tunes including the Blizard Train, so called because it has changed so much from when they started playing, it only somewhat resembles the train song it was.

AN ASIDE: it seemed like all the 'sidemen' were having the greatest time playing for us folks, as if they were all getting an award themselves, I mean they were all playing thier hearts out, from the slap strum bass player of the Hackberry Ramblers, down to the 10 string guitar? player names Atta I think, of Mingo Saldivar's band, 'Los Tremendos Cuatro Espadas'. Great musicianship throughout!

INTERMISSION: got to speak briefly with Jean & her husband George, congratulations, heard that throughout the whole week all the honorees and families were treated wonderfully. Tried to find a throwaway camera somewhere, because I had forgotten to get one, thought I'g get some snaps, but everyplace was closed, or didn't sell them anymore, rushed back to find:

Bob McQuillen on stage with a grand piano, playing for contra dancers, some discussion with Nick, then he played Amelia's waltz, introducing the inspiration, whose mother played flute in the background with another fiddler. dancers waltzed, lovely. Big contingent of Bob's fans seemed to be in the house.

Clara Neptune Keezer, Passamaquoddy basket maker from Perry, Maine sat with Nick and 'talked' about her baskets and her tradition, actually didn't have much to say no matter how Nick tried to draw her out, Nick quipped that the baskets pretty much speak for themselves!

Loren Bommelyn, Tolowa tradition bearer spoke with Nick then brought out members of his family to discuss and perform some long house dancing, two sons and daughter danced, wife called out the dancers.

Jean Ritchie was in her element it seemed, resplendant in shades of emerald, viridian, cobalt, silver, coppery hair, golden glow. sat and sang in the old style, that one could hear echoed from the hills, a couple of verses of 'Come all you Fair and Tender Ladies'. Her voice seems purer and stronger each time I hear her, no matter what she says about it! Then she was interviewed by Nick about her relationship with the Lomax Family, she being given the special Bess Lomax Hawes award as a keeper of the tradition. then joined by her son Jonathon on banjo to her dulcimer preformance of a play party song, then ending with the two of them on thier feet singing Jean's favorite (right now) of the songs she has written, (explaining that for her sometimes there isn't already a song that completely expresses the feelings she's having, so the time to write one) 'Now is the Cool of the Day', getting much of the audience to sing along with them on the choruses. Truly the highpoint the evening was leading up to, in the spirit of peace.

Losang Samten continued the peaceful emanations with a discussion of sand mandala painting, and the demonstration of technique, and brief dismantling of small peace mandala on stage.

Kevin Burke was wonderful, played a couple of reels, then told the story of Kitty O'Shea's Jig, which was really Kitty O'Niells Championship Jig, which was realy a hornpipe written for a famous vaudeville performer of 'sand jigs'. great story, effortless, perfect, nuanced and subtly interpretated fiddling. a Joy, note for note.

and finally Mingo Saldivar's entry in fiery shirt, with his button box accordian. a discussion of his music and history, then onstage with his band Los Tremendos Quatro Espadas, bass, drum, 10 string, percussion/harmonica, and some great conjunto music, ending with encore extended version of Johnny Cash's 'Ring of Fire'.

Then all honorees onstage again for final bow, standing ovation, electric atmosphere. off into the night, tries to write this all down but gave up had a couple of beers and hit the sack to sweet musical dreams.

Be there next year, it's a great time.

Subject: RE: NEA Heritage Fellowship Concert Review
From: Desert Dancer
Date: 23 Sep 02 - 03:37 PM

On behalf of those of us who wished we could be there, thanks for the summary, Bill!

~ Becky in Tucson

Subject: RE: NEA Heritage Fellowship Concert Review
From: GUEST
Date: 24 Sep 02 - 11:16 AM

refresh

Subject: RE: NEA Heritage Fellowship Concert Review
From: GUEST,Bill Kennedy
Date: 25 Sep 02 - 10:23 AM

sorry, that should be Bruce Hutton in the first paragraph, my hearing and memory are not what they once were (don't even ask about my sight!). Heard him with Hesperus as the Crossover Trio at Hiram College last evening. Delightful!

Subject: RE: NEA Heritage Fellowship Concert Review
From: KathWestra
Date: 25 Sep 02 - 03:20 PM

It was great to meet you, Bill, and have a chance to chat while we were standing in line waiting for the doors to open. I'm glad Joe H. introduced us.Thanks for the terrific summary. The Heritage Fellowship concert evening is always a highlight of the year for me -- full of optimism and a sense of community and feeling like we're part of something of great meaning that has gone on for centuries and will continue to go on. My only wish is that Jean would have sung the fourth verse to "Cool of the Day" that says "you may live in this garden if you keep the people free." I first heard her sing that verse at the Fox Hollow festival during the Vietnam era, and it seems as appropriate and needful now as it did then. She is such an inspiration. And you're right, her singing is as sweet and pure as ever. A wonderful evening!

Subject: RE: NEA Heritage Fellowship Concert Review
From: GUEST,Bill Kennedy
Date: 25 Sep 02 - 03:34 PM

great to meet you as well, I remember seeing you at Folk Alliance or somewhere else, but didn't want to butcher your name with my impeded memory as I did Bruce's (& Kath Westra doesn't help jog it much either!), didn't mean to leave you out of the story! You're an essential part of how things get done in DC, from what I can gather.

Subject: RE: NEA Heritage Fellowship Concert Review
From: GUEST
Date: 02 Oct 02 - 04:49 PM

refresh

Subject: RE: NEA Heritage Fellowship Concert Review
From: kytrad (Jean Ritchie)
Date: 04 Oct 02 - 03:02 PM

Thanks again, good folks...I put my original thanks on the other thread, the one with the misnomer, KYTRAD'S AWARDS CONCERT. It wasn't just mine, you know! I particularly appreciated the sensitive and entertaining way Nick Spitzer interviewed the craftspeople and wove the musicians, dancers, singers and craftspeople together to produce a magical evening for everyone. My thanks also to all those who took such good care of all of us awardees, some of us far from home in the big city- wined and dined us and made us all at home.    Jean