#3635: New Looks at Old American Folksongs
Listen to arrangements of American folk music and their spin-offs for this New Sounds. Hear three arrangements of the murder ballad, “Pretty Polly,” including one from the husband-and-wife team of virtuoso banjo players Béla Fleck & Abigail Washburn. There’s also music by Princeton University-based composer Paul Lansky, a computerized recreation of “Pretty Polly” from his record called “Folk Images,” which also takes on the beloved American Folksongs, “Wayfaring Stranger” and “Tender Ladies.”
Listen to contemporary compositions based on American folk music as well. There’s a work by Julia Wolfe, one of the co-founders of Bang on a Can, and her piece based on the legend of John Henry, “Steel Hammer.” Plus, Carla Kihlstedt’s take on the traditional tune, “50 miles,” as done up by her trio, 2 Foot Yard. That, and more.
PROGRAM #3635, a new look at old American songs (First aired on 9/10/2014)
|
ARTIST(S) |
RECORDING |
CUT(S) |
SOURCE |
|
Darol Anger, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Edgar Meyer |
Heritage |
Pretty Polly, excerpt [1:00] |
Six Degrees #314 524 434 |
|
Béla Fleck & Abigail Washburn |
Béla Fleck & Abigail Washburn |
Pretty Polly [3:45] |
Rounder Records |
|
Last -Forever (Dick Connette, Sonya Cohen) |
Last Forever |
In the Pines [2:35] |
Nonesuch #79447 |
|
Carla Kihlstedt |
2 Foot Yard |
50 Miles [6:10] |
Tzadik #7706 |
|
Paul Lansky |
Folk Images |
Pretty Polly [3:15] |
Bridge #9060 |
|
Bang on a Can All-Stars, Trio Medieval |
Julia Wolfe: Steel Hammer |
Julia Wolfe: Steel Hammer-Mountain [8:50] |
Cantaloupe 21099 |
|
Erik Friedlander’s Bonebridge |
Nighthawks |
Nostalgia Blindside [4:57] |
|
|
DarolAnger, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Edgar Meyer |
Heritage: New Interpretations of American Roots Music |
Pretty Polly [8:43] |
Six Degrees #314 524 434 sixdegreesrecords.com |
|
Tim Sparks |
Chasin' the Boogie |
I’ll Fly Away, excerpt [2:40] |
Tonewood |
