The BDC's Musical Masterpieces by Olivia Santos

2023 is finally here!

With our transition into the new year, I think there are a lot of people out there entertained by the ‘new year, new me’ mentality, making goals and resolutions for what they’ll accomplish in the year ahead. I’m not really the type to make resolutions, but I do have a reading goal that I try to accomplish every year (with varying degrees of success). Luckily, this year I have the pleasure of working in a place with lots of books where I can spend a bit of time here and there reading through our collection; not only for my own personal enjoyment, but also to familiarize myself with our works in order to better serve our patrons. Doing these posts has also been a big help in familiarizing myself with our collection, and our topic this month is one very near and dear to my heart: Music in the BDC.

Honestly, I think my interest in jazz and blues probably stemmed from my obsession with The Great Gatsby in high school and has since spiraled from there. So, as a fan of jazz myself, I have already nosed around some of the books in our collection about the genre. Therefore, I decided to dedicate Shelf 1 to some of the books we have at the BDC about jazz and blues music in South Carolina. Shelf 1 contains two books of the sort: Jazz and Blues Musicians of South Carolina: Interviews with Jabbo, Dizzy, Drink, and Others by Benjamin Franklin V (2008), and The Jazz Corner Story by Martin J. McFie (2012).

Jazz and Blues Musicians of South Carolina discusses the rich history of jazz and blues in South Carolina, as many well-known artists are from the area, such as Jabbo Smith and Dizzy Gillespie. Smith grew up in Charleston, while Gillespie was born in Cheraw, South Carolina. With interviews done on artists born anywhere between 1905 and 1971, Franklin’s work has both breadth and depth of content. Nineteen artists were interviewed, not only about their music, but also about their personal lives and the craze that followed their success. In particular, these interviews highlight the importance of music education and “stress the importance of the famed Jenkins Orphanage in Charleston and of South Carolina State University in Orangeburg in nurturing young musicians’ talent” (Franklin). The BDC’s copy of this book is the only one available within the Beaufort County Library System.

At first, I thought The Jazz Corner Story was another book in our stacks about jazz musicians in South Carolina. And it is, to an extent. But it’s also about the legacy of one specific jazz club right here in Beaufort County. The Jazz Corner is a famous club on Hilton Head Island that has featured a number of talented artists since its opening 23 years ago. Discussing the history and legacy of jazz, as well as the music scene in relation to The Jazz Corner, this book highlights the chronology of the genre, giving a timeline of events that span from pre-Civil War slavery to the modern age. The musicians and bandleaders of The Jazz Corner over the years are celebrated, and they even talk about the club’s food! When I was first skimming through this book, I didn’t actually realize it was about a specific place until I got to the back. You can probably imagine my confusion at suddenly finding a menu! The Jazz Corner is a well-known and respected establishment in our county that locals and tourists alike love, as well as some pretty good-looking food, if Google reviews have anything to say about it. The Jazz Corner Story is a celebration of a labor of love, bringing musical talent to the folks of Beaufort County and beyond. This book is available for checkout from a number of BCL locations.

Shelves 2 and 3 became dedicated to the vast collection of materials we have about Gullah music and spirituals, including both print and audio formats. Shelf 2 takes on printed materials discussing Gullah music, featuring Step it Down: Games, Plays, Songs, and Stories from the Afro-American Heritage by Bessie Jones and Bess Lomax Hawes (1987), Gullah Spirituals: The Sound of Freedom and Protest in the South Carolina Sea Islands by Eric Sean Crawford and Bessie Foster Crawford (2021), and Separation Song: Featuring Gullah Language and Culture by Patricia Veal Biggerstaff (2017).

While it may come as a surprise to some of our patrons, we do in fact have a few children’s books in our collection. Separation Song became a great addition to this month’s display not only because of its relevance to the topic, but also because, like many children’s books, it’s visually appealing and fun to look at. With a bright yellow cover and crayon drawn pictures covering its pages, this book tells the story of a young girl living on St. Helena Island with her grandmother, where she learns the importance of song in her culture. In particular, she hears her great-grandmother sing her ‘separation song’ in the Gullah dialect, a song about the time of segregation and slavery in the United States that her Mama Susu lived through, and the freedom that followed with the Emancipation Proclamation and work done by activists during the Civil Rights Movement. This book highlights how music can be an invaluable storytelling tool, connecting people within and outside of one’s culture.

While Separation Song introduces the importance of music in Gullah culture, Gullah Spirituals takes this discussion a step further. Written by musicologist Eric Sean Crawford, Gullah Spirituals traces songs to their origins in West Africa and their significance as music for social change and Black identity in the United States, particularly in the South. Focusing mostly on St. Helena Island, this book highlights the history, survival, influence, and tenacity not only of the music tradition in Gullah culture, but also of the folks who practice it. Spirituals in particular are discussed, which are religious songs typically associated with Black Southern Christians, and later were adopted during the Civil Rights Movement as freedom songs. Crawford conducted interviews with performers of Gullah spirituals, asked about their life experiences and music, as well as conducted fieldwork, personal recordings, and other oral interviews to bring this book together into a comprehensive history of the importance of music and spirituals in Gullah culture.

Although Separation Song discusses one specific song sung by a child’s great-grandmother and the meaning it has to her, and Gullah Spirituals discusses music and history of Gullah and Black culture as a whole, Step it Down specifically describes the songs, stories, and games experienced by those of Afro-American heritage. It is also partly a memoir, the ‘rememberings’ of a woman “born in the Southern poverty belt around the turn of this century, a detailing of the mind and body and heart skills she learned in her ‘days coming up’” (Jones XI). The book includes, and is organized by, baby games and plays, clapping plays, jumps and skips, singing plays, ring plays, dances, house plays and home amusements, outdoor games, and songs and stories. A few of these songs and stories are familiar to most people, myself included, but with a regional twist, such as “Head and Shoulder, Baby” and “London Bridge.” Others are less familiar but are still telling of the state of the world at the time these rhymes and rhythms were popular, as is seen with plays like “Knock Jim Crow” and “Uncle Tom.” Many of the stories and plays written in this book are also accompanied by anecdotes from Mrs. Bessie Jones herself; what she thought they meant as a kid, what actions match what part in a song, and the like. This book paints a whole childhood of musical experiences, where song and games were used not only to entertain, but to tell stories and send messages to the younger generation. Step it Down and all the other books on Shelf 2 are available for checkout within the BCL system and throughout the SCLENDS consortium.

Shelf 3 features the audio materials I’ve decided to highlight, including Carolina Lowcountry Patois: Gullah in Story and Rhyme by Dick Reeves (1970), St. Helena Island Gullah: The Voice of an Island by Minnie Gracie Gadson, James Garfield Smalls, Rosa Murray, Joseph Murray, and Eric Crawford (2014), and Osha! by Osalami Lamoke (2004).

Carolina Lowcountry Patois is a vinyl record of the study of the Gullah language done by Dick Reeves. Featuring various stories and rhymes in Gullah, this record is a celebration of a language and culture that is beginning to fade in memory as generations age and new ones take their place. Thanks to works like this one, as well as the efforts of community members and organizations, Gullah culture and language is making its way back to the forefront so that it will not be forgotten by generations to come.

Released in 2014, St. Helena Island Gullah features dialogue, spirituals, stories, and anecdotes for a project that developed out of the dissertation work of Dr. Eric Crawford of Norfolk State University, as well as with support from the Penn Center on St. Helena Island and various churches. It is a multimedia, multidimensional look at the history, music, culture, and language of the Gullah people, with students from varying backgrounds and majors contributing to the work. Through this project, Gullah music and culture is celebrated, and achieves its goal of bringing these 200-year-old songs to a new audience, keeping the ways and wisdoms of the Gullah people alive for generations.

Osha! is a celebration of the music of Osalami “Osha” Lamoke, born Barbara Daise, of St. Helena Island, who was a self-taught guitarist and was heavily inspired by Gullah culture. In 2004 she began writing and performing Gullah songs and released this CD the same year. The music on the CD is full of Gullah folk, Afro-Caribbean, praise house stomp, and blues music. Songs featured include Little Sally Walker, Island in My Soul, Great-Grandaddy’s Gift, and Kujichagulia. The well-loved local singer and guitarist passed on Wednesday, December 4, 2014 at Beaufort Memorial Hospital. Her obituary can be found online.

I decided to choose Osha! and its other counterparts on Shelf 3 to highlight the importance of music in Gullah culture, as well as to show the diversity of our collection and variety we contain. We do not only house books up here, folks! In addition to the CDs and vinyl records mentioned above, we also have a number of movies on CD, videos on VCR, art, maps, and of course, lots and lots of books. We’re very lucky to have all the resources and donors that we do to make the diversity of our collection possible to better serve our community and bring you the best materials to aid in your research and learning.

Multiple copies of St. Helena Island Gullah are available for checkout within the BCL system, although Osha! and Carolina Lowcountry Patois are exclusively available here at the BDC.

Shelf 4 became a more miscellaneous shelf, dedicated to other sources I found relevant within our collection, although they do not fit one particular theme. Shelf 4 features two books: Making Music: The First 25 Years of the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra by Margaret Greer and Kin-Yee Mak (2006) and  A History of the Port Royal Bands: The Men and Music of the Bands of the Third Regiment, New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry and the 2nd Brigade, 10th Army Corps, Department of the South During the American Civil War by John Brookfield (2015).

While not the most visually appealing cover I could have included for the case this month, I felt it was important to include Making Music in our repertoire because it diversifies the case a bit more. All of the materials discussed thus far have featured either jazz, blues, Gullah folk or spirituals. Therefore, I wanted to include other types of music that are still representative of Beaufort. Highlighting the first 25 years of the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra, Making Music discusses the beginnings and musicians that have been part of the orchestra, in celebration of its Silver Anniversary.

A History of the Port Royal Bands has a fairly self-explanatory, albeit lengthy, title. Brookfield gives in depth descriptions of the men and music of the Civil War, and highlights the importance and role of bands during this time. Filled with photos, biographical information, and enlistment records, it paints a picture of the musicians who made up the bands, specifically the Port Royal Bands. It also felt like a particularly appropriate addition to the display case for January, as we are having a Local History program this month about the very subject. Dr. Michael Johns will be with us on Thursday, January 19, 2023 at St. Helena Branch Library and Tuesday January 24, 2023 at Hilton Head Branch Library to talk with us about Civil War Unions Bands. Run in partnership with the Beaufort County Historical Society and the Coastal Discovery Museum, this is one of many programs the BDC hosts every year. Registration for these two events can be found on the Beaufort County Historical Society’s website. Registration remains open until we reach room capacity. Check for any remaining seats for the January 19th session at the St. Helena Branch Library session.  Check for any remaining seats for the January 24th session to be held at the Hilton Head Island Branch Library.   

Making Music is available for checkout within the whole library system, although A History of the Port Royal Bands is only available for viewing here at the BDC.

"Historically Speaking" Season 4 Begins : Register for "Civil War Bands"

Latest update: 12 January 2023 - gmc

A History of the Port Royal Bands by John Brookfield (Sam Teddy Publishing, 2015) is one of those titles that I learned of because of a customer inquiry - and has led to not one, but two forthcoming local history programs! 

According to the book's introduction, the US government issued General Order 15 to establish infantry bands of 26 musicians on May 5, 1861. That order was rescinded 14 months later due to cost. However smaller brigade level bands of 16 musicians shared among 4 to 5 regiments were allowed.

By all accounts, two of the finest bands in the Union Army came from New Hampshire, the Third Regiment Band of the New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry, and a few months after the Third's dissolution in August 1862, the Band of the Second Brigade, 10th Army Corps, Department of the South, often refered to as the Hilton Head Post Band. Both organizations were stationed near Port Royal, South Carolina, and led by Gustavus W. Ingalls, a native of Bristol, New Hampshire. (p. xii)

Besides being an historical account of Civil War bands, Brookfield researched the individual members of the bands before, during and after the war including as illustrations portraits and gravesites of some of the men, photographs of instruments owned by the men, and even an occasional sheet music cover.  

The Beaufort County Historical Society, Coastal Discovery Museum and the BDC are sponsoring programs by Dr. Michael Johns about the role of Civil War bands on Thursday, January 19, 2023  in the St. Helena Branch Library,6355 Jonathan Francis Sr. Road and on Tuesday, January 24, 2023 in the Hilton Head Island Branch Library, 11 Beach City Road. Program start time at both locations is 11 AM. 

Registration is required for the January 19th session at St. Helena Branch Library. (The "Historically Speaking" series has a lot of groupies North of the Broad River. I expect that we'll "sell out" well before the program date.) Registration is suggested for the January 24th session at Hilton Head Branch Library. (I'm in process building a local history groupies South of the Broad River.) Those with registrations will be seated first beginning 30 minutes ahead of lecture start time. Those without registrations will be seated in any remaining seats at 10:55 AM. 

Michael Johns has spent a lifetime in music, both as a vocation and avocation. A graduate of New England Conservatory and Temple University, he received degrees in French horn performance and music history. He was featured in the April 2018 Beaufort Lifestyle magazine.

Expanding his study of history has provided a stimulating and rewarding encore career in the lowcountry, an area that has provided an outsized array of historically significant, course-changing events. One of the most consequential was its role in the Civil War, serving as a union staging, training, refitting, and recuperation hub. Music was an essential aspect of the soldier's life and bands were essential in defining daily activity, maintaining morale, comforting the wounded, and emboldening the warrior.

“Civil War Union Bands—Members, Duties, Instruments, and Music with special emphasis on Beaufort District” is a presentation about the war-time sounds and instruments heard in camp, during battle, and at social settings. Who were some of the specific bands that came through Beaufort District, what did bandsmen do, how were they treated, why were they integral to the fighting unit, what instruments and music did they play? Multiple recorded examples on period instruments will provide a varied aural sampling of what the soldier would have heard and his reaction to it. 

We hope to see you at one (or both!) of these local history opportunities.

Looking ahead: The next program after Civil War Union Bands sessions is the "Battle of Port Royal Island, 1779" with Neil Baxley on February 2, 2023 at Beaufort Branch Library, 311 Scott Street. Registration opens January 19, 2023 on the Beaufort County Historical Society website events page. 

The Library is closed Monday, January 2, 2023. Regular hours resume on Tuesday, January 3. Happy 2023 to you all.

A Yankee Scholar Returns

Bob Hester's presentation in May about his book A Yankee Scholar in Coastal South Carolina (University of South Carolina Press, 2015) was so well received, we decided to host him again. Please join us on Tuesday, July 19th at 3 pm in the Bluffton Branch Library, 120 Palmetto Way, for an inspiring and enlightening program about Beaufort District's musical heritage, local history, and Gullah culture.

Transcribing the Civil War journals of William Francis Allen required a unique skill set. Allen was a New Englander with impeccable academic and abolitionist credentials who was "a perceptive observer of culture and events" in Civil War and Reconstruction era South Carolina. Taking an anthropological view of the former enslaved, Allen analyzed and collected their music to compile the first published anthology of Negro spirituals, Slave Songs of the United States (1867). He studied the syntax of their communication and dispassionately watched their interactions with others sharing his observations with his journal and a series of essays published in the Nation and the Christian Examiner.

Who had the particular set of skills and educational background to pay attention to the details and understand the complexities in the Allen's journal? Robert Hester, that's who.  Hester, an engineer by trade, is well accustomed to paying attention to all the details so vital in a scholarly transcription of manuscript material. Hester also has a deep interest in musical performance, theory and arrangement that equipped him to transcribe those portions of the journal relating to Gullah musical forms.


Hester did his job as historian and musicologist well. Professor George Rable, Charles Summersell Chair in Southern History at the University of Alabama calls A Yankee Scholar  "fascinating reading" and says that Hester's work "immediately becomes an important new primary source for studying the Civil War era."

All are welcome to attend. Books will be available for purchase and autographing from the author at a discounted price.

(Image courtesy of Stephanie Turner, Aiken Standard newspaper).

Author Book Talk on Saturday

(Courtesy of Stephanie Turner)

Please join us on Saturday, May 7th for another free inspiring and enlightening program about Beaufort District's local history and Gullah culture. At 1 pm we're hosting an Author Book Talk on A Yankee Scholar in Coastal South Carolina (University of South Carolina Press, 2015) with Bob Hester.

Transcribing the Civil War journals of William Francis Allen required a unique skill set. Allen was a New Englander with impeccable academic and abolitionist credentials who was "a perceptive observer of culture and events" in Civil War and Reconstruction era South Carolina. Taking an anthropological view of the former enslaved, Allen analyzed and collected their music for the first published anthology of Negro spirituals, Slave Songs of the United States (1867). He studied the syntax of their communication and dispassionately watched their interactions with others sharing his observations with his journal and a series of essays published in the Nation and the Christian Examiner.

Who had the particular set of skills and educational background to pay attention to the details and understand from whence came Allen's entries? According to Stephanie Turner of the Aiken Standard newspaper, Robert Hester, that's who.  Hester, an engineer by trade, is well accustomed to paying attention to all the details so vital in a scholarly transcription of manuscript material. Hester also has a deep interest in musical performance, theory and arrangement that equipped him to transcribe those portions of the journal relating to Gullah musical forms.


Hester did his job as historian and musicologist well. Professor George Rable, Charles Summersell Chair in Southern History at the University of Alabama calls A Yankee Scholar  "fascinating reading" and says that Hester's work "immediately becomes an important new primary source for studying the Civil War era."

All are welcome to attend. Books will be available for purchase and autographing from the author at a discounted price. Doors to the Gallery will open at 12:30 pm.

Grand Finale Performance

 

Please Join Us!

Community Sing

Penn Center continues its long tradition of hosting a "Community Sing," Sunday evening, February 17th beginning at 6:30 PM in Penn Center’s Frissell Community House. 

Community, visitors and churches all come together to preserve and promote the Gullah cultural tradition of singing Spirituals traditionally sung in Praise Houses and churches on St. Helena Island. Penn Center welcomes all to come for immersion in the spirituality of the Gullah People.

The event is free and open to the public. 

"Spirituals"

Latest update: 14 September 2023

Enslaved Africans of Beaufort District (and other parts of the South, of course) contributed the "spiritual" musical form to the our canon.   The Spiritual was, is, and will remain, a monumental African-American contribution to the world's musical heritage.  Thus, during Black History Month 2012, we have put some  "Spirituals" related materials from our holdings on display in the Research Room. 

The formal collection of spirituals for publication began with William Francis Allen and his Slave Songs of the United States printed in 1867.  In his introduction to the book, Allen wrote: “It will be noticed that we have spoken chiefly of the negroes [sic] of the Port Royal islands, where most of our observations were made, and most of our materials collected.”  (Dr. Rowland says "All American history begins in Beaufort."  Is it too much to write that "All African -American musical history begins in Beaufort," too?)

According to Saddler Taylor, "One of the primary features of spirituals … [is] an emphasis on group participation and improvisation…. An improvisational form of music, call and response involves one person ‘calling’ a verse, with the remainder of the choir repeating the line in unison.” (South Carolina Encyclopedia, 2006)

 

Since 1867, a number of composers have used spiritual melodies to create their versions of the songs that they have heard.  Among the best known are H. T. Burleigh, John Rosamund Johnson (who composed the music to "Lift Every Voice and Sing,") and Thomas Andrew Dorsey.  However, you may not know about a native daughter who transcribed the spirituals she heard sung on the Sea Islands into written music by combining melody with African rhythm as James Weldon Johnson defined the "spiritual" music form. (Aside: James Weldon Johnson was John Rosamund Johnson's brother). 

Marguerite Crofut, "Rita" for short, was born in Beaufort to Capt. George A. Crofut and his wife, Elizabeth Onthank. She died at age 90 on December 28, 1974, precisely 50 years to the day after her father.  According to the Clover Club Memorial Page dedicated to her (Clover Club album #1, BDC Archives):

From the Gray/Broz Collection in the BDC

It is not often that a personality like that of Miss Marguerite Crofut spans for almost a century of life of a community. ... 

She had a Bachelor of Music Degree, American Conservatory of Music, Chicago; was a student at the New England Conservatory of Music, Boston; a graduate of the Institute of Music Pedagogy, Skidmore College, New York; had a certificate in Conducting, Julliard Institute.  She studied violin under Felix Winternitz, Daniel Kuntz, Reber Johnson and Jacques Gordon.  She was awarded the Paganini Gold Medal, American Conservatory in 1928.  

For many years she was a successful teacher of violin and conductor of college orchestras in the South and in Chicago, Illinois.  For over 50 years she taught violin and piano in Beaufort; her records show that she had taught over 1200 individual pupils.

... In Clover minutes her first program was January 10, 1899.  Numerous programs are listed in which she participated.  In one of these she rendered "Sea Island Lullaby" which she had composed.  In the early twenties she arranged two Sea Island Spirituals: "Sometime Muh Trubble Mek Me Trimble, Trimble, Trimble," and "Study War No Mo'." (Pictured above; donated to the Beaufort District Collection by her niece Marguerite Crofut Broz and grandniece, Molly Hoyler Gray).

Crofut's obituary in the Beaufort Gazette issue of December 30, 1974 states that "Six of her former violin students served as pallbearers at her funeral services today.  They were Charles Webb, Reeves Sams, W. Brantley Harvey, Jr., William Scheper III, Marion Jones and Charles Aimar." 

You can check out Slave Songs of the United States compiled by William Francis Allen, Charles Pickard Ware, and Lucy McKim Garrison and Gullah Spirituals: The Sound of Freedom and Protest in the South Carolina Sea Islands by musicologist and historian, Eric Crawford from our Local History sections at the branch libraries.  

BDC Sponsors the "Grand Finale" to New Harmonies

The venue is rather small so space is limited. First come; first seated. Doors open 30 minutes prior to the scheduled show time. This may be the one time when you don't want to observe "lowcountry time!"

For images from some of the New Harmonies programs, click here.

Reminder: The New Harmonies exhibit closes to the public at 5 pm on Saturday. If you haven't seen it by now, time is running out.  (We've already found disappointed folks wandering around in the gallery on the 2nd floor looking for the Photography Club's exhibit that left January 30th.) 

For those of you who want to learn even more about Gullah culture, don't forget to check out the events, programs, and activities going on throughout the month of February at Hilton Head Island's Gullah Celebration!

Gullah Culture Featured in February

Beaufort County Library starts our celebration of Black History Month with three presentations the first week of February. Two are related to the Smithsonian's New Harmonies exhibit (which leaves Sat., Feb. 4th.)

For images of some of the programs thus far, click here.

Wed., Feb. 1st
A) Queen Quet, Chieftess of the Gullah/Geechee Peoples, will share Gullah music with participants in the Technical College of the Lowcountry auditorium from Noon until 1 pm. Her program is entitled "Livin' Wid We: A Gullah/Geechee Journey of Harmony." (To see images taken at her high energy December program for New Harmonies, click here.) You'll sure to enjoy her upbeat, lively, and informative performance.

B) Southern Beaufort County residents might want to make plans now to join the Friends of the Hilton Head Branch Library for a presentation by Will Cross and Dr. Emory Campbell about "Books on Gullah Culture." This session will be held in the Hilton Head Branch Library's Community Room and also begins at Noon on Feb. 1st.

Mr. Cross wrote Gullah Culture in America, and Dr. Campbell wrote the foreward to Gullah Culture in America. Copies are available through our local history sections under call number 305.8961 CRO.

Sat., Feb. 4th
The New Harmonies Exhibit and supplemental programming is closing with a Grand Finale performance sponsored by the BDC.

Join the BDC as it sponsors the Aunt Pearlie Sue Show at 2 p.m. in the old SC Room of the Beaufort Branch Library. Meet us downstairs as Anita Singleton-Prather becomes “Aunt Pearlie Sue.” Aunt Pearlie Sue delights audiences with Gullah-flavored folktales, songs, skits and history. Doors open at 1:30pm. Seating is limited. Seating is first come, first served. Room capacity is set by fire code regulations.

For an annotated bibliography of Gullah related materials, read this.

New Harmonies series continues

Although the New Harmonies exhibit must soon be packed and sent away, it's still on display through Sat.., Feb. 4th. If you haven't seen it yet, please do drop by. The exhibit is open when the Beaufort Branch Library is open for business. Who knows when Beaufort County Library will be awarded another such fine exhibit to share with our community?!

In February we have two New Harmonies/Local History related programs for your listening, learning, and entertainment!

Wed., February 1st Lunch & Listen: Livin' Music: A Gullah/Geechee Journey of Harmony featuring Queen Quet Noon to 1 p.m. at Technical College of the Lowcountry, Beaufort Campus

Saturday, February 4^th Closing Celebration with Aunt Pearlie Sue 2 p.m. at Beaufort Branch Library Anita Singleton-Prather, “Aunt Pearlie Sue,” delights audiences with Gullah-flavored folktales, songs, skits and history passed down to her.

"Celebration of American Music," a display of photographic work by members of the Photography Club of Beaufort, will be taken down at the end of this month. If you haven't seen it, do make an effort to see it before January 30th. It's a wonderful exhibit of local talent.

For questions regarding New Harmonies events, please contact Amanda Brewer, at abrewer@bcgov.net or (843) 255-6458.

We hope to see you at one (or more) of these very special opportunities to celebrate the "Roots of American Music" in concert with the Beaufort County Library system!

"African American Contributions to Music" lecture by Dan Huff

Dan Huff, musician, and music historian, will offer a presentation on the gospel, jazz, and blues roots of our African American culture which has contributed to our rich American musical heritage.

Tuesday, January 17^th Lecture: “African American Contributions to Music” by Dan Huff 1- 3 p.m. at University of South Carolina Beaufort, Auditorium, 801 Carteret Street

Dan has played in numerous symphonies and orchestras in major cities. He is an accomplished musician and presenter for OLLI on Gullah history and music as well as a dedicated Friends of the Beaufort County Library member and serves on the system's Library Board of Trustees.

We're getting closer to the end of the New Harmonies exhibit and program schedule, but there's still time for you to experience roots music with Beaufort County Library. For the complete schedule of New Harmonies events click here.

Community Sing

Programs related to the New Harmonies exhibit on display at Beaufort Branch Library, 311 Scott Street continue. Penn Center is holding its Community Sing, Sun., January 15th beginning at 6:30pm in Frissell House. Local gospel choirs will sing traditional spirituals in a community sing-along.

You're welcomed to join in - if you'd like to participate.

If you haven't seen the Photography Club of Beaufort's "Celebration of American Music" display in our 2nd floor gallery, please do drop by. It is scheduled to go away at the end of January. You don't want to miss it. For the complete schedule of New Harmonies events click here.

Please show your support for the Beaufort County Library system by attending at least one program related to the New Harmonies exhibit! For the complete New Harmonies Events program schedule, click here.

Pick a Performance, Any Performance ...

January has 23 opportunities for you to explore American musical traditions with Beaufort County Library. Pick one (or more) to attend! We'd love to see you enjoy your public library - (even more than usual, of course.)

Celebrate 2012 with New Harmonies!

Now that the clamor of the holidays is behind us, come get refreshed by immersing yourself in the sounds of music.

• Visit the New Harmonies: Celebrating American Roots Music exhibit from the Smithsonian Museums. Hours mirror the Beaufort Branch Library operating hours.
• View the "Celebration of American Music" photographs display, 2nd floor Gallery. Hours: Mondays through Fridays, 9 am until 5 pm until January 30th.
  
• Come visit the "Through the Years: Music in Beaufort District" display of selections from our holdings in the BDC Research Room display case. Hours: Mondays through Fridays, 10 am until 5 pm.
• There are 23 (yes, twenty-three!!!) music related programs during the month of January. Pick one or more to attend. For the complete schedule, click here.

We believe that libraries make a positive contribution to our communities. Your attendance at a library sponsored event, program, or exhibition shows others that you believe that libraries make a positive contribution, too! Please show your support for the Beaufort County Library by attending one (or more) of the scheduled activities this month.

New Harmonies: Lunch & Listen on Spirituals

In 1925, James Weldon Johnson, poet and author of The Book of Negro Spirituals wrote:

"Generally speaking, the European concept of music is melody and the African concept of music is rhythm."

The spiritual melds the two concepts into a distinctly American musical form that is the topic of a New Harmonies program:

Wednesday, January 4^th Lunch & Listen “Sea Island Spirituals” featuring the Jones Family Noon to 1 p.m. at Technical College of the Lowcountry, Beaufort Campus
Listen to the Jones Family perform authentic renditions of spirituals originating in the Sea Island. Participants are encouraged to bring their lunch to eat in the Student Center prior to the performance.

To see a list of some of the materials that Beaufort County Library has on the topic of spirituals, look in my SCLENDS Bookbag.

The New Harmonies exhibit hours mirror the Beaufort Branch Library hours. The Photography Club exhibit in the 2nd floor gallery is open Mondays through Fridays, 9 am until 5 pm through Jan. 30th. The BDC Research Room display of music related materials from our holdings, many relating to the spiritual musical form, mirrors Beaufort District Collection hours.

Please show your support for the Beaufort County Library system by attending at least one program related to the New Harmonies exhibit! For the complete New Harmonies Events program schedule, click here.

Photos from "Dancin Wid We" New Harmonies Program

The Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition has posted images from Queen Quet's "Dancin Wid We" performance on Tuesday night. Click here to view the images.

As you can see, attendees at the program became participants in the program! We librarians love it when our customers engage so directly in our program opportunities.

A Heads Up: February is Black History Month. Although both the Queen and the BDC show that every month is Black History Month for us, she has agreed to kick off the Library system's observance. Queen Quet will be sharing her Gullah musical roots as part of the Lunch & Listen series on Wed., Feb. 1st at the Technical College of the Lowcountry. The presentation begins at Noon. Her topic is "Livin' Music: A Gullah/Geechee Journey of Harmony." You may want to go ahead and pencil this opportunity to learn more about an integral part of the fabric that is Beaufort District.

Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition supports New Harmonies Exhibit

The Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition is collaborating with us - twice - to provide supplemental programming for the Smithsonian's Traveling exhibit, New Harmonies. New Harmonies is on display in Beaufort Branch Library from Dec. 17th, 2011 - Feb. 4th, 2012.

Watch the "New Harmonies" segment with Queen Quet and Amanda Brewer from the Gullah/Geechee TV Nayshun News here.

Join the anniversary celebration of the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition with the Dancin' Wid We: Music & Dance of the Gullah/Geechee program. The Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition advocates for recognition of Gullah/Geechee rights and culturalcontinuation at all levels of government. The Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition's homebase is St.Helena Island, SC. The organization was founded by Queen Quet, Chieftess of the Gullah/GeecheeNation, a native of St. Helena with family roots stemming also to Polowana and Dataw Islands.

Queen Quet will lead this interactive evening of music and dance on Tues., Dec. 20th at Beaufort Branch Library (311 Scott Street, 1st floor) that celebrates the harmonies that Gullah/Geechees have brought to and sustained in North America as a part of the New Harmonies: Roots of American Music Smithsonian Traveling exhibition. The program starts at 6 pm (which means you won't have to pay the kiosk to park!)

Pencil in this February event now: Queen Quet offers a "Lunch & Listen" program on Gullah musical traditions almost at the end of the exhibit period. Wed., February 1st she is the presenter/performer at a "Lunch & Listen" session called "Livin' Music: A Gullah/Geechee Journey of Harmony featuring Queen Quet." This program will be held from Noon to 1 p.m. at Technical College of the Lowcountry, Beaufort Campus.

Now on display in the BDC Research Room: "Through the Years: Music in Beaufort District" highlighting selections from our own holdings about the merging of African and European influences to create a sacred American music as exhibited through spirituals, folk songs, and the musical compositions of Beaufort native, Mary Palmer Dana Shindler, 1810-1883.

The "Celebration of American Music" photographic exhibit continues in the 2nd Floor Gallery through January 30th.

Please show your support for the Beaufort County Library system by attending at least one program related to the New Harmonies exhibit! For the complete schedule of New Harmonies related events and programs, click here.

New Harmonies Exhibit Opens Today

Please join us! All are welcomed to eat, drink, be merry, and enjoy the music!!

It's been a long time in coming ...

Good news! Good news! The long awaited and lauded New Harmonies Exhibit opens this Saturday, December 17^th! Join us and enjoy an afternoon of live music and to explore the New Harmonies exhibit. Grand Opening Ceremony for New Harmonies will be held from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. at Beaufort Branch Library, 311 Scott Street. The afternoon will feature local performers Vic Varner, Beek Webb, Kirk Demspey, Queen Quet, and Crosstuned. Ribbon cutting begins at 2 PM. Admission is free. All ages, genders, nationalities, residents or visitors are welcomed. Y'all come, if you can. We'd love to see each and everyone of you.

Events are out of the gate rather quickly. In addition to the on-going Photography Exhibit upstairs on the 2nd floor, there are two New Harmonies related programs Dec. 18 - 20th.

Sunday, December 18th The Nativity Scene 6:30 p.m. at Frissell House at Penn Center, St. Helena Island

A re-enactment of the Christmas story with musical renditions of Old English carols sung by members of local choirs. This traditional holiday performance is based on the original "Mystery Play" that was performed at Penn School in the early 1950's.

Wednesday, December 20^th Dancin’ Wid We: Music & Dance of the Gullah/Geechee 6 p.m. at Beaufort Branch Library

Come and join the anniversary celebration of the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition which is the premiere organization for the advocacy of Gullah/Geechee rights and cultural continuation. The Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition's homebase is St. Helena Island, SC and it was founded by Queen Quet, Chieftess of the Gullah/Geechee Nation who is a native of St. Helena and has family roots stemming also to Polowana and Dataw. Queen Quet will lead an interactive evening in music and dance that celebrates the harmonies that Gullah/Geechees have brought to and sustained in North America as a part of this Smithsonian exhibition.

In the BDC Research Room "Through the Years: Music in Beaufort District" display of BDC holdings about music and musicians is on display. You can take in the Photography Club of Beaufort's exhibit and our display all on the same day! Come visit us during our customary hours of operation, that is, Mondays through Fridays, 10 am - 5 pm except when we're closed for the holidays per County policy. [Friday, Dec. 23rd; Monday, Dec. 26th; and Monday, January 2nd].

For the complete schedule of New Harmonies events click here.

Please show your support for the Beaufort County Library system by attending at least one program related to the New Harmonies exhibit!

New Harmonies is nigh

Beaufort Branch Library's Lunch & Listen music series concludes Mon., Dec. 12th with a return visit of Chris Jones, who will give a high energy performance showcasing guitar playing styles of iconic guitar players.

Bring your own lunch (or buy one at the Outtakes Cafe) to the USCB Performing Arts Center from Noon to 1 pm and enjoy this free concert. Everyone is welcomed.

This fall's Lunch & Listen series has been brought to you by Beaufort Branch Library and the USCB Performing Arts Center.

Don't forget: The Photography Club of Beaufort exhibit is open just outside the BDC Research Room on the 2nd floor of the 311 Scott Street library building. The theme is "Celebration of American Music." Everyone is welcomed. Here's what the Bluffton Today wrote about the photography exhibit.

Double "Don't forget:" The New Harmonies exhibit opens downstairs this Saturday, Dec. 17th with music and ribbon-cutting beginning at 2 pm. Everyone is welcomed. For the complete schedule of New Harmonies events click here.