We’ll be heading to the Antlers & Acorns Songwriting Festival in September to begin our podcast on folk music and activism. They have a great lineup of artists scheduled to perform and we’re looking forward to talking with all of them! VIP tickets are available here!
On June 1st, members of the Woody Guthrie Teaching Collective gathered once again in Tulsa, Oklahoma, to present at the World of Bob Dylan conference. The Collective hosted a roundtable on bringing Woody into the classroom and taking the classroom into the community. Titled “Woody Guthrie’s Expansive Reach: The Purpose & Possibilities of Historical and Contemporary Protest Music in Education,” this panel fostered a conversation about the efficacy of and need for bringing protest music to students at the university level. Mark Fernandez discussed the history of Pete Seeger’s “Waist Deep in the Big Muddy,” a song about World War II but resonant with the 1960s antiwar movement. Court Carney looked at Woody Guthrie’s “Grand Coulee Dam” and how educators can use this song to interrogate the past from various angles. Aimee Zoeller presented her work bringing South African singer Berita to Indiana as part of the Art for AIDS initiative. Michele Fazio discussed her ongoing research project on Sacco and Vanzetti, which she uses to promote civic engagement and community outreach. Finally, musician Chris Buhalis joined the group to sing the appropriate songs connected to the discussion, including “Waist Deep in the Big Muddy,” “Grand Coulee Dam,” “Two Good Men,” and ending with a rousing “Song to Woody” to connect directly with Bob Dylan. The roundtable attracted a large and engaged audience interested in expanding the university classroom through protest music.
Teach On and Sing Out!
