Appalachia

Appalachia

The theme for the week had us listening to "Banks of the Ohio" in the version of Clarence Ashley and Doc Watson and "Will the circle be unbroken" in the versions of the Carter family, and Clarence Ashley and Doc Watson. While listening to "Banks of the Ohio" I chose not to interpret it as literal, but as a song about the end of a relationship. Even-so, the song was very disturbing and I questioned what the purpose of its creation was and what the people that enjoyed listening to it thought of the song. 

I preferred the Ollie Gilbert version of "Banks of the Ohio" because it excluded the overly joyous rhythm. It felt much more stripped down and honest which seems especially important in this song. "Will the circle be unbroken" was a completely different feel. It evoked a strong sense of religion and the idea of heaven. I enjoyed this song a lot more. However it was also enjoyable to hear Clarence and Doc, especially after hearing "the Cuckoo Bird" song and the comments they had regarding record studios as lacking knowledge of the folk music they produce. For this song I preferred the performance version because although it is a song about death it was also very much a song about moving forward. The Carter family really knew how to put on a show and after reading the "Maybelle Carter and the Carter Family" article I learned what a pioneer Maybelle was in the folk music movement. 

Before starting on my piece I researched the Appalachian region to understand the place that these songs and artist came from. I learned that it is known as an impoverished and isolated place where people ended up there out of necessity. Taking all of these things into consideration I created a dark landscape of the Appalachia's where a family is shown in the foreground united by a campfire. The little girl in the front is meant to represent the innocence children possess under even the toughest circumstances.