in march and april of 2006, I was able to work in the special collections of berea college’s sound archives, focusing on Appalachian music, interviews, radio programs, and ambient sounds. With the college’s generous support, my research and recording at berea has informed both current work with the fossil fools collective and forthcoming projects. For more information, writings, and additional audio excerpts, visit the project website.

berea college archive website

a second project:

a collection of recordings that i found especially amazing, coupled with images and text. something like a curio-wonder cabinet and a jukebox:

the "berea collections project"

and another:

Quicktime images/audio excerpt

The audio excerpt is from a piece that combines field recordings of Addie Graham being interviewed and singing “The Lonesome Scenes of Winter” along with an ensemble of instruments: banjo, piano, toy piano, bells, and dulcimer. The instruments create a deliberately sparse, empty ‘field’ of sound, separate from the recordings. They are a loose accompaniment to Addie Graham and something for her voice to push off of, to react against. This allows the listener to hear several layers of sounds, both as a combined effect and each element independently.