Talking about Music

This past Tuesday I had the opportunity to be interviewed by NewsNet, and Inland Empire (CA) television station that broadcasts early morning programs, including a highlight on California Lifestyles (whatever that means). I actually was interviewed twice: once for the Corona Genealogical Society and once for the Riverside Folk Song Society. For the latter, I performed one song ("Early One Morning") and talked about our group which meets the 3rd Sat. of every month (next meeting: March 20). I mentioned our recent 50th anniversary celebration and the fact that this group has met almost every month for the past 1/2 century! That has to say something about the folks (some of the original members are still involved): people who love to get together for the sole purpose of making music and enjoying each other's company.

But making music is only part of the mission of the society: we also learn from each other. Whether it is learning new skills on one's chosen instrument(s), learning a new song, or learning about a song or its composer, we usually end up with some level of education occurring at every meeting. Personally, I love the meetings where I learn about the background of a song: why was it written, how has it been changed, who has recorded it, etc. In many cases, it tells about our culture (e.g., a song that has been altered to fit the times) and how we have adapted. Songs can also teach history (and keep it alive from one generation to the next).

Our monthly meetings usually have a theme (last month it was "love or love songs," in honor of Valentine's Day; this month it is "sun and rain"). These cause the participants to think of songs to perform that fit the theme and, hopefully, not rely on old standards; with a theme, we are encouraged to stretch our minds and practice something specific for the evening. Of course, we aren't too strict about the theme and, for example, a song last month might be one the presenter professes "to love," thus making it fit the theme, even if it has nothing to do with love, per se. Some of the fun of the evening is hearing how people justify a song they want to sing (I can already hear some of the explanations for this month: "it was raining the first time I heard this song . . .").

Our ancestors used to gather together to sing and play music, too; probably not as organized as the Riverside Folk Song Society, but for many of the same reasons: to enjoy the camaraderie of fellow musicians, take a break from the stress of daily life, learn something new, and share their talents. I know that my father's ancestry includes musicians, as did my mother's. Too bad the details of songs sung, instruments played, and people who sang together are not as prevalent as records of births, marriages, and deaths. But some instruments were passed down to me as were some pieces of sheet music. I remember my father giving me an old harmonica (actually better built than some that are produced today) along with an instruction manual that was in many pieces (and falling apart more every time I tried to work with it). But I learned to play harmonica from that, even though my father did not know from where he had acquired it. It was just one of those things that had been passed down to him.

If you have instruments or music that have been passed on to you, it is possible you have the clues to learn about the musical past of your ancestors. Above all: treat these items as the artifacts they are - don't store them in extreme temperatures or moisture (or non-moisture) rich environments. If they have not had attention in many years, see about restoring them (old hymn books can be rebound, old instruments can be reconstructed, but these tasks should be done by professionals). Even instruments that are over 100 years old can be restored and played again. Consider taking up where your ancestor left off: take lessons, or join a "song circle" group like the Riverside Folk Song Society and get some help learning to play. You will find that there is no experience as stress-relieving and uplifting as joining with others in song! (And if you don't want to play an instrument, these groups usually welcome non-players to just listen or sing along.)

Of bands, instruments, and kids: keep the music playing

For nearly as many years as I have been alive (at least, once we got a television set in about 1956), I have spent a part of Thanksgiving morning watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade. It's as much a part of tradition (for me, that is) as turkey, stuffing, and cranberry sauce. Even though I am "under the weather" (a euphemism for "sick as a dog," or, in this case, "sick as a pig"), I still watched most of the parade yesterday morning.

I am not a huge parade lover, per se, but I am a sucker for marching bands. The Macy's parade has, as I see it, 4 primary elements: floats, enormous balloons, performing groups, and Santa (who, once I see him on the screen, tells me I now have official sanctioning to program my stereo to non-stop Christmas music and to haul out the ornaments and lights for official decorating - this year, the former applied, but I am holding off on the latter due to the illness). I enjoy watching the baton twirlers, love the drill teams (oh, yes, indeed), but the bands are amazing. I am mesmerized by a marching band.

My husband was on the Navy drill team at Great Lakes (IL) and he marched in our local parades in the area where I grew up. We tracked our personal histories to discover that he & I marched in a parade together in 1959 - he in the drill team and I in the Brownies. He was awaiting the birth of his first daughter, I was awaiting the chance to "fly up" to become a Girl Scout (after which I deserted the organization, but that's another story). My father, who of course was present for the parade, filmed (8mm, black & white, no sound) the event but only filmed 2 of the groups: the scouts (of course ... and there I was, clumsily trying to carry the flag in proper form) and the Navy drill team! When we saw that on the film a few years back, we were amazed! Was Dad astute enough to realize that was his future son-in-law he was filming? (No, you couldn't recognize him ... the shot was way too distant to differentiate the people, it was just, obviously, the drill team from Great Lakes.) Butch & I like to joke about our first date occurring when I was just 8 years old!

But back to the bands. I taught at Riverside Community College for a time and loved to listen to their Marching Tigers rehearse. They marched in the Tournament of Roses Parade on more than one occasion. And a few years ago, my friend Susan invited us to come to Yucca Valley to hear a concert by the Marine Corps Band from 29 Palms. Oh, I think I cried throughout the entire performance! And my favorite scene from Mr Holland's Opus is where he leads the high school band in the parade and they break into "Louis, Louis." I even like the part in The Music Man where the kids finally get their instruments and put on their first public "performance," as it were. But I also love bagpipe bands and even ukulele bands.

But band musicians are not easily located. I mean, it takes a lot of practice, solo and group, to be a band musician. When kids were in school, when I was growing up, they had the option to be part of "band" - the class where, for credit, they got to play music together for an hour 2 or 3 times a week. I did not opt for that as I knew I had problems with reading music and was terrified that it would be a major embarrassment for me. But I envied the kids in band. You knew who had "band" on a particular day because the kids would come to school with their little black cases, holding trumpets, flutes, saxophones, etc. Some kids had to get rides on band day because they had elected to play tuba. Well, every choice has its price! (I have a dear friend who played tuba in high school, back in the 1940s, and says that his relationship with the band and his band leader were more influential in his early development than his relationship with anyone else at that time. He went on to play the instrument in the Marine Band. He still has that tuba - it has a lot of "dings" in it, but he keeps it polished and treasures it, even though he doesn't play it any more.)

My Dad, though principally and organist & pianist, played flute at Princeton where he worked at the Institute for Advanced Study (1938-1939). It was a great stress-reliever, he told me. Back then the flutes were wooden and were harder to keep in tune as the wood would swell or shrink. But playing in the Princeton Orchestra was a high point of his time there (he talked more about that than the fact that he was doing work with Von Neumann and Einstein!). (FYI, the flute had been purchased from Sears & Roebuck Co. for, as I recall, about $15; I still have that insrument, though it is cracked and dried out and sounds pretty bad.)

I'm getting to my point (finally). What happens to those instruments and that talent when the kids graduate from high school and move on? A few (very few) manage to get music scholarships to colleges. Some (even fewer) go on to be part of community orchestras (if they play a cross-over instrument). My friend Susan, who was an outstanding flute player in high school, continues to maintain her instrument and plays it in church programs and Sunday services. But most of those instruments, if rented, go back to the music store. If they were owned, they end up in closets, attics, sold on eBay, or passed down to a younger sibling or cousin. I was given a trombone once (have no idea where it is today) by one of my grandfather's neighbors who knew I liked music. I got frustrated by it on many levels, but it was one that the neighbor's child no longer played. Many of our grandkids have played instruments in their school bands and/or orchestras: Kirbi and Emily both played violin (one that had been in our family for years, in fact) and Kirbi went on to play viola (we have both of those instruments, waiting for someone to love them again). Louis played trumpet, if I remember correctly. Jeni played oboe. Our son Max tried the flute for a year (his CP and being left-handed made it more of a challenge than an enjoyment, however).

These opportunities to play instruments with groups give kids a number of benefits in life: they learn to work with a group, they gain a new and valued mentor in their band or orchestra leader, and they get a break from the rigors of traditional school work. Playing an instrument can become an escape as well as an emotional outlet. Now that so many schools are taking this option away in their budget cuts - "band" is hardly an academic necessity - kids are needing to find other ways to develop their creative genes and learn the teamwork they get from the music programs; some such developments never happen and some occur in less than socially acceptable ways. I know that playing the flute or oboe or piccolo may not become a child's life goal, but, at least for those years in school, that can provide the stress-relief that we all seek when the demands of life are closing in. And, without the music programs in the schools, where will our future bands and orchestras come from? Most of those musicians I watched in yesterday's parade have been playing their instruments for nearly half their lives (or they wouldn't be good enough to "make it" into such a prestigious event). Without the training for the youth, who will be in those marching bands in 20 years? 15 years? 10 years? or maybe even 5 years in the future? I could not bear a parade without the bands.

Finally, I have friends who are music teachers in their respective school districts. One of those has seen the music program completed dissolved in her district. Thankfully, her educational background is broad enough that she found another teaching position. The other's music classes have been so reduced that her work hours hardly constitute a living wage. While this is a shame for these people whose passion has been to teach music to children, it is also a devastating blow to the children who are now deprived of the lessons learned in music classes. Support music programs in your children's and grandchildren's schools! Let's keep music alive for the generations to come, just as it has been part of the lives of our ancestors before us. Check out SupportMusic.com for more information.

Instrument Inventory

On Sat., 17 October, Butch & I participated in the Corona Genealogical Society's annual Family History month event, "Stones, Bones, & Ancient Tomes," where we displayed many old (and some replica) instruments. It seems that every time we put up such a display, we end up getting more. People see that we have old instruments and immediately think that they have found a repository for their old instruments, some in much need of love and care. This was no exception. One of our friends immediately said, "I have an old mandolin and dulcimer that I know you would like!" (Why do people think that I would like more of what I already have so many of?) Well, of course he was right! He brought them to me on Monday of this week and they are, indeed, beautiful instruments (though neither has strings . . . yet). As I juggled them out to my car, I started to think about how many times this scene has repeated itself . . .

Many, many years ago, when my collection was rather minimal, we set up a small display at a family history fair and one of the people who was walking through the exhibit hall was thrilled. He said he had something we would love (there's that assessment again). He ran off and returned a short while later with a zither-like instrument, created by National probably around 1900. The back was split, the strings were rusty, but we accepted the gift with smiles. We displayed it in our living room.

As could be expected, someone coming to our home saw the zither on the shelf and said that he had one like it and had no idea what to do with it! A few weeks later it was gracing the same shelf . . . now we have 2 of these things, neither of which we play. But that same person also gave me a Cittern - a guitar-like instrument with 10 strings and a body like a pear-shaped mandolin. I understand it is to be tuned to open C . . . maybe someday I'll try it. Meanwhile, it hangs on the wall.

Another friend, visiting our home, was impressed with the many instruments and, within a few days, had placed an autoharp in our hands. The autoharp (an Oscar Schmidt, no less) had been in her possession for years and "lived" in her garage (oh, don't do that!!). But it was in good condition. We changed the strings, fixed the felts (the part of the button bars that damp the non-playing strings . . . I guess you have to be there), and I play it in some of my programs.

Then there is the very homemade dulcimer (I say "very" because this one has no scroll work, fancy decorative sound holes, or anything that is common with homemade dulcimers). But it works (sort of) and hangs over our front door (that was one we paid for because someone had bought it at a second hand shop - for $35 I think - believing that we would love it . . . we figured that it would make a nice wall hanging and so it has).

Then there are the banjos. I think they multiply when we leave the house (usually people worry about people stealing their instruments; I worry about banjos reproducing when we turn our backs). These are 4-string instruments and Butch loves them. And he plays them . . . well, some of them. One he made into a clock (very effective in that role!) and another into a sign for me to hang in our instrument booth. We still have extras, though.

Then there's the Dobro, but that's a story in itself and I'll save it for next week's blog.

So, if you have something that appears to be a musical instrument and you want to get rid of it . . . (here's where I give my address . . . NOT!). Consider Ebay!

What instruments did your ancestors play?

I am blessed: my great-grandmother's family left behind a number of instruments that they played - a mandolin, a banjo (an 1889 Fairbanks & Cole parlor banjo that I recently had refurbished), and a violin. When I wanted to learn guitar, my mother took me to the attic to show me these instruments (point of information: never store instruments in the attic unless it is climate-controlled), along with her ukulele from her youth. I selected that one, but later dabbled with the mandolin and learned the banjo. When I play the mandolin & banjo I think about my great-grandmother and her music background (she was raised in a family where there was a conservatory in which the family entertained and enjoyed music events). Maybe it's hereditary.

I was talking to my friend, Diane Wright, about knowing what musical instruments were in the family and she shared the following with me about her own grandfather:
How great to have the photos of George's instruments. If you don't have the instruments of photos of them, you might still be able to learn what instruments your ancestors played by checking the tax lists and/or estate inventories. Because music can be very personal to people, their instruments are also likely to have been cherished elements of their lives, so learning about them may cause us to feel that much closer to these special people.

If you have a story about your ancestors' musical background & would like me to share it here, send it along (especially welcome are photos of old instruments . . . and even more welcome if they are shown in the hands of the musicians).

Best wishes in your roots pursuits!

From the Colorado Family History Expo: What Instrument Did Your Ancestor Play?

We made it to Colorado! And the Expo is great! Holly Hansen and Kimberly Savage have been working nearly round the clock to make this genealogy extravaganza particularly eventful . . . there is even a twitter cafe (whatever that is).

And our booth is set up in a back corner, where we can make music with making as little disturbance as possible. We are doing short, 5-minute "sets" of live music to interest people in the banquet presentation tonight. The question keeps coming up: What does music have to do with genealogy? Well, in my family, they played their own music when they wanted entertainment (this being pre-MP3 player). Besides, if the courting couple was playing music in the parlor, their hands were being properly occupied . . . it was when the music stopped that mother came in to see just what they were up to.

So, what instruments did your ancestor play? Mine played mandolin, violin, banjo, piano (called a piano-forte back in those days; literal meaning: "soft-loud"), and harpeleik. I still have all those instruments in my collection (we did not bring the piano on this trip, however).

If you are here in Colorado, come by booth #316 and say "hello" and answer the question: what instrument(s) did your ancestor(s) play? (If you aren't in Colorado at the Expo, just respond here at this blog and let's see how many instruments we can come up with!)