Nashville is a name synonymous with music. Years before the first radio broadcast of country music from Nashville�s Grand Ole Opry, music and publishing were central to Nashville�s self-identity. Thousands of songs flooded into the Cumberland and Tennessee River valleys from Southern Appalachia, sung by folk performers. These songs became the foundation for the folk-hymn traditions that grew throughout Tennessee. Into this stream flowed a body of African American spirituals, gospel, and mi...

American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) was formed in Kansas City, Missouri, on February 24, 1959, by 35 choral directors from around the United States. They aimed to create an organization that would meet the professional needs of all choir directors. To achieve this goal, they made the promotion of excellence in choral music through performance, composition, publication, research, and teaching their central purpose. In addition, ACDA strives through arts advocacy to elevate choral m...

Memphis means music. That relationship was solidified in 1909 when W. C. Handy wrote the song �Mr. Crump� and later published it as the �Memphis Blues.� As Handy�s songs were sung and played in streets and music halls, a spotlight began to shine on a new mecca for innovation in music�Memphis, Tennessee. Memphis Music: Before the Blues surveys the people, music, and events that contributed to the rich musical life that emerged against the backdrop of the Civil War and yellow fever in the 19...

We all know we can do more together than we can alone. But collaboration is hard, takes time, and can go against human nature. Collaboration is also at the heart of musicianship. In this dynamic and inspiring book, Tim Sharp guides us with a practical, step-by-step vision for improving the collaborative spirit of any ensemble or organization. The potential results can be dramatic. Sharp provides insights into how to develop sustainable collaboration and work towards a common vision that wi...

Innovation in the Ensemble Arts caps a trilogy of volumes that delves into the building blocks necessary for a vibrant, growing music organization. In the first volume—Mentoring in the Ensemble Arts: Helping Others Find Their Voice—author Tim Sharp examines the mentor/prote´ge´ dynamic and its critical impact on the lives of ensembles and their conductors. In the second volume—Collaboration in the Ensemble Arts: Working and Playing Well with Others—he challenges us to think beyond our trad...

Since colonial times, generations of families from Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and England have settled in Knoxville and East Tennessee. Early on, they arrived with ballads, stories, instruments, and folk music from their former homes. "Songcatchers," including Francis James Child, Olive Dame Campbell, Maud Pauline Karpeles, Cecil J. Sharp, William Francis Allen, Lucy McKim Garrison, Charles Pickard Ware, and George Pullen Jackson, journeyed deep into the remotest areas of East Tennessee to ...

Relevance in the Choral Art is a collection of essays from leading practitioners in the choral field that challenges musicians to reflect on the role choral music plays in today's culture and what can be done to keep it relevant. Now more than ever we must face the challenge of the relevancy of choral music in our culture, for artistic directors and their role within choral organizations, for members of choral organizations, and for the community that choral music education and performance...

"After Dinner Conversation" Magazine - December 2021The Truth As We Know It: Celia's child, Theo, is continually bullied at school and his new step-father tries to "make a man" out of him.For Your Safety: Zoe is visited by the government for having sexual relations without first filing an "Intimate Partnership Agreement."The Growing And Weeding Of Dandelions: A space arc arrives a...

Blesh published They All Played Ragtime as first major scholarly work on ragtime music in 1950, which sparked a ragtime revival. He founded Circle Records in 1946, which recorded new material from aging early jazz musicians as well as the Library of Congress recordings of Jelly Roll Morton. He sparked renewed interest in the music of Joseph Lamb, James P. Johnson, and Eubie Blake, among others.

For centuries, pipe organs stood at the summit of musical and technological achievement, admired as the most complex and intricate mechanisms the human race had yet devised. In All The Stops, New York Times journalist Craig Whitney journeys through the history of the American pipe organ and brings to life the curious characters who have devoted their lives to its music.From the mid-19th to the mid-20th century, organ music was wildly popular in America. Organ builders in N...

The chautauqua movement was a truly American phenomenon, providing education and entertainment for millions of people and employing thousands of musicians in the process. While scholars have previously explored various facets of the chautauqua movement, this is the first book to trace the place of music in the movement from its inception through its decline.Drawing upon the rich collections of ephemera left by several chautauqua bureaus, this study profiles several famous musicians...

The ballad "John Henry" is the most recorded folk song in American history and John Henry--the mighty railroad man who could blast through rock faster than a steam drill--is a towering figure in our culture. But for over a century, no one knew who the original John Henry was--or even if there was a real John Henry. In Steel Drivin' Man, Scott Reynolds Nelson recounts the true story of the man behind the iconic American hero, telling the poignant tale of a young Virginia convict who died wo...