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A chance to harmonize : how FDR's hidden music unit sought to save America from the great depression--one song at a time / Sheryl Kaskowitz.
- Format:
- Book
- Author/Creator:
- Kaskowitz, Sheryl, author.
- Language:
- English
- Subjects (All):
- Seeger, Charles, 1886-1979.
- Seeger, Charles.
- New Deal, 1933-1939.
- Music and state--United States--History--20th century.
- Music and state.
- Folk music--Social aspects--United States.
- Folk music.
- Folk music--Political aspects--United States.
- Folk music--United States--History and criticism.
- United States--Social conditions--1933-1945.
- United States.
- United States--Economic conditions--1918-1945.
- Depressions--1929--Social aspects.
- Depressions.
- Genre:
- Popular music.
- Physical Description:
- xxiii, 242 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, portraits, music ; 24 cm
- monochrome
- illustration
- portrait
- music
- Edition:
- First Pegasus Books cloth edition.
- Place of Publication:
- New York : Pegasus Books, 2024.
- Summary:
- "In 1934, the Great Depression had destroyed the US economy, leaving residents poverty-stricken. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt urged President Roosevelt to take radical action to help those hit hardest--Appalachian miners and mill workers stranded after factories closed, city dwellers with no hope of getting work, farmers whose land had failed. They set up government homesteads in rural areas across the country, an experiment in cooperative living where people could start over. To boost morale and encourage the homesteaders to find community in their own traditions, the administration brought in artists to lead group activities--including folk music. As part of a music unit led by Charles Seeger (father of Pete), staffer Sidney Robertson traveled the country to record hundreds of folk songs. Music leaders, most notably Margaret Valiant, were sent to homesteads to use the collected songs to foster community and cooperation. Working almost entirely (and purposely) under the radar, the music unit would collect more than 800 songs and operate for nearly two years, until they were shut down under fire from a conservative coalition in Congress that deemed the entire homestead enterprise dangerously "socialistic." Despite its early demise, the music unit proved that music can provide hope and a sense of belonging even in the darkest times. It also laid the groundwork for the folk revival that followed, seeing the rise of artists like Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, Odetta, and Bob Dylan"-- Provided by publisher.
- Notes:
- Includes bibliographical references and index.
- Local Notes:
- Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Herman V. Ames Fund.
- ISBN:
- 9781639365715
- 1639365710
- OCLC:
- 1384411635
- Publisher Number:
- 99996217098
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