Polly Stewart Oral History Project: AFS Meeting, 2004 (Part 2)

The second part of video recording American Folklore Society (AFS) meeting. This meeting is a part of Polly Stewart's strategic grand launch of her oral history project, Utah Urban Pioneers Folk Music Revival, seizing the oportunity provided by the fact that AFS meeting was held in Salt Lake City for the first time in 26 years. In this meeting, some of the principals, who participated the revival during the 1950s and 1960s, were assembled for he first time to reminisce their experience in that historically meaningful time. It is also the first time that Polly Stewart introduced the definition of the movement as "Utah Urban Pioneers Folk Music Revival," and the musicians as "Utah Urban Pioneers"1. Polly Stewart opens discussion about collecting folk music in Utah; 2. Barre Toelken talks about collecting a stellar example of the Mountain Meadows Massacre Ballad in Blanding, Utah/ensuing discussion about the politics and social dynamics of this song and chapter in Utah history; 3. Hal Cannon talks about his research and collecting activities and the New Beehive Songster project; 4. Rosalie Sorrels talks about the song, "Lonesome Roving Wolves"/her experience collecting at women's clubs in Utah; 5. Barre Toelken speaks about his own performing and recording career/tells story of Rosalie Sorrels' song, "I'm Gonna Tell"; 6. Ed Reber asks question about a song about the Apostate's Dream/talks about a song from his childhood/being a student of Barre Toelken's at the University of Utah/musical experience with African American soldiers while serving in Vietnam; 7. Rosalie Sorrels talks about continuity in folk music, the contemporary scene/describes what folk music is to her; 8. Discussion of urban folk music revivals in other countries; 9. Discussion about community-based folk music vs. commercial folk music Discussion of the concept, Urban Folk Music Revival; 10. Rosalie Sorrels sings the Bruce (Utah) Phillips song, "Ashes on the Sea" about the passing of Woody GuthrieFolk musician Rosalie Sorrels, Hal Cannon, folklore scholar Polly Stewart, Barre Toelken forms a panel discussion to reconstruct the history of folk music revival in Salk Lake City, 1950-1970. They share their personal experiences of getting interested in folk music, finding teachers and learning to play instruments and sing. The discussion gradually expends to include the national folk scene and its relationship with the Utah Folk Scen