Musical Legacies: An Innovative Examination and Case Study

This presentation suggests a new way to evaluate and examine the contributions and musical legacy of a musician - particularly one who has been under-acknowledged.The approach is illustrated through a case study of a specific fiddler Musical Legacies: An Innovative Examination and Case Study This presentation offers an innovative approach for the examination of musical legacies and practices, both within Southern Appalachian traditional music and beyond. By adopting a broadened definition of text and performance, theories previously reserved for literature may be applied to non-literary texts such as fiddle tunes. This approach illustrates the polyphonic dialogic qualities of performance; the instability of constructed meaning; the fluidity of interpretation; and the free incorporation of socio-ideological languages in musical “text” - leading us to consider simple fiddle tunes as complex social constructions. Further, when we consider a performance in the context of the “carrying stream” of musical ideas, styles, social meaning, renewal, and performance practice, we are able to develop an expanded musicological worldview that strengthens our ability to examine musical legacies. The presentation will illustrate this investigative approach by using a case study of a specific fiddler.