THE HISTORY BOUTIQUE

EXPLORE YOUR TRADITIONS

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"Buskin' Blues," a documentary feature has released a trailer! Hope you enjoy!!!! 

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MOVIE POSTER TIME!!! 

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SWANKY STRIDE PIANO: BUSKER STYLE

Meet Asheville's very own stride pianist, Andrew J. Fletcher. Think JAZZ, Ragtime, the glamorous roaring 20's, (also the not so glamorous interwar years, the stock market crash, and PROHIBITION!) People were antsy-in-their-pantsy for some entertainment, thus sprouting the style of which Mr. Fletcher so eloquently exudes. 

All throughout my research, I continuously would hear stories of the pianist who drags his piano to the street to perform, and he did not disappoint. Although he has been playing since he was 10 years old, busking on the street is where he learned to grab an audience and be a performer. I'm finding that there are two different avenues for buskers: the traveler, who moves between cities or festival circuits; and those, like Andrew and Big Nasty, who stay in the same city, splitting their time between clubs and the street. The street, however, is where these great musicians learn the art of winning the crowd. It demands a very different performance from the one on a stage, but this invaluable skill learned while busking will aid them in attaining a stronger performance regardless of location. 

I CANNOT WAIT to share his music and story, but in the mean time, you can follow him on facebook, twitter, or instagram.

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"Derham, an Oral Historian"

CITIZEN-TIMES WRITES ARTICLE ABOUT "Derham, an Oral Historian" : )

Thanks so much to Casey Blake for showing interest in the buskers documentary I have been working on for so many months! It's been 8 months since I started the research and grant writing, and now I only have one more shoot and I will be done with production! Very excited to have been working with such an amazing crew, especially my Director of Photography, Shane Peters! And what would a film about music be without the expertise of Asheville's top audio engineer, David Schmidt with Acapella Audio! Now it is time to edit all of this beautiful footage into the perfect story about the Busking subculture! ...

COMING SOON: Buskin' Blues: Asheville's Urban Soundtrack 

                            A Documentary by Erin Derham

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I HEART BUSKER LOVE

The Resonant Rogues are an eclectic fusion of Gypsy Jazz and Traditional Eastern European music. They are also sweet and adorable and crazy good musicians! I find myself writing my opinions more and more each day with this Oral History documentary, and as an historian, this is a big no no. You are supposed to present the facts, not opinions. These amazing buskers are yet another reason why it is simply impossible to document this subculture without expressing my reactions to, not only there diverse stories, but also their artistry. It's official: I am a busker groupie! 

There is already quite a bit of romanticism surrounding the subculture of buskers. Like Sparrow and Keith Smith, they travel the street corners of the globe, collecting tales of adventure and adversity. With such an alluring image of this lifestyle, it can be difficult to see the harder side of things (e.g., long hours, weather, income), and with these two love birds, it is even more difficult. With over two decades of busking between the two of them, they travel the world making music and then come home to our picturesque Asheville for family and good food. 

Now, off to import that footage for editing, comfortable in the knowledge that it will take very little on my part to make you their busker groupie too.

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SINCE THE DAWN OF SPOONS

If you have ever been to Asheville, heck, if you’ve ever been to the South… You will have seen an adorable woman playing a set of large silver spoons like it’s nobody’s business! Abby The Spoon Lady is her name and she could possess the rawest talent I’ve seen thus far. Smart as a whip, anything she wants to learn whether that’s videography, history, software, or learning to play the freaking spoons, she figures it out herself and starts doing it! She has been performing with the spoons for almost ten years in practically every city in the Unites States. 

Historically, spoons have been played since the dawn of spoons. Many cultures around the world including Russian, Irish, British, American, Vietnamese, and Canadian continue this tradition with prominence. Abby plays the American style or more specifically, the Appalachian style of spoon music. It is beautiful to listen to and incredible to watch! She is a busker's busker! Everyone loves her, and everyone wants to play alongside her. 

Check out more from Abby at  www.spoonladymusic.com/

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ASHEVILLE STREET KID USES BUSKING TO SAVE HIMSELF

Josh Newton, solo drummer and accompanist to multiple bands in town, "hung out" with me yesterday. Coincidentally, he also completely challenged my preconceived notions about busking, AGAIN! 

We talked about the most daunting subject: GOVERNMENT REGULATION! Being the music snob that I am, I've always wished for a way to weed out the less talented acts on the street to make room for the "real" artists." Josh explained that quite a few of the "real" artists started out as street kids. Busking is a very difficult profession. The ones who really want it, have to grow as artist and they also have to learn the rules of the trade in order to survive. 

It's a very simple concept... learning how to perform in front of people takes time, so the busker you can't stand listening to today, may very well be incredible the following year. Cities like London and Barcelona, whose busking cultures are disappearing, are proving that government regulation of the street arts is downright harmful to its natural evolution. Without free busking, talents like B.B. King or Glen Hansard may have been prohibited from reaching their full potential, or even worse, hauled away and forgotten altogether. 

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BUSKERS: THE NEXT GENERATION 

When looking at buskers, most bystanders will tell you they see a traveler or a homeless person who has only their act and nothing else. It may be too much to expect, but I have never heard anyone call them “family-oriented.”

Meet Celestially Rooted, a beautiful instrumental band featuring Derek Graziano on Hammered Dulcimer and Laura Graziano on Cello. Here is a couple that busked together, started a life together, and had a hilarious baby boy, Imani, together. His entire life centers around the joy of music! Pretty lucky guy, right! Their busking has evolved with their new family, but it is still very much a part of their lives. 

One of my original reasons for documenting the busking subculture was to discover how deep the divide ran between long-held stereotypes and recent realities of street performers. The Graziano Family fits the bill. They have a home, a family, a band, and an instrument-making business all centered around music and the art of busking. I would not be surprised if I come across a little drummer boy named Imani in Pack Square a few years from now, busking to his heart’s content to a huge crowd of people. 

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TO ALL MY DEAR FRIENDS.... I've got loops of love for you!

Meet Marc Hennessey. He is quickly becoming one of the most popular buskers on the streets of Asheville, working under the band name, To All My Dear Friends. He is a beautiful violinist, looper, and person. Being introduced to music at a very young age gave Marc, a shy and timid kid, an outlet for his creativity. He shares that creativity with people on the streets primarily for the love of sharing the human experience. 

Marc eloquently expresses the busking subculture's desire to make people happy. While tips are important for survival, the chance to reach someone through music is what makes the many struggles of busking worthwhile. In a world of smart phones and social media, personal interactions with one's community are becoming rare. A busker brings a group of strangers into a circle, and connects them through the shared experience of a musical performance.

Without the busker, people pass each other, virtually invisible. To me, this means that buskers aren't just giving you an artistic experience, they are reconnecting you to your community. 

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BOBBY SAX: GODFATHER OF ASHEVILLE BUSKING

Beloved, Asheville staple, Bobby Sax sat down with me yesterday explaining the world of busking. This is a gentleman with 40 years experience in the music industry. He has played on platinum records, and at Carnegie Hall, and even with Marvin Gaye. He has played through bigotry, theft, and violence, but what stands out  to him most isn't the hardships, it is the love and support given to him by the community of Asheville. 

Today, he walks the streets of Asheville, playing tunes to inspire people. He doesn't play for just himself, he plays for each individual person on the street. You may have heard "Twinkle, Twinkle" if you have children, or my personal favorite, "Summertime."

"Some people play what they want to hear... I know what people want to hear, and so I play THAT, and it makes them happy."

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BUSKERS: "A CANARY IN THE MINE" FOR A THRIVING CITY

Interviewed yesterday with the ever so eloquent, Chris Smith of Liverpool! He and partners, Nick Broad and Belle Crawford, started a little something called The Busking Project. They traveled the world for a year, filming hundreds of buskers in 11 countries... fun, right?! 

One comment that Chris made yesterday really stuck with me... he said that one of London's most famous buskers, Mark Rothman, once told him that the health of a city can quickly be seen by the presence of buskers. If there are good buskers on the street, that usually means the city and its inhabitants are progressive, organized, supportive of the arts, and liberal thinking. When buskers start to leave the cities, that's when you know a city is done. It is either so overly regulated that they are jailing even the good buskers for simply playing music on the street, or it is chaotic from a lack of organization within the community. Fascinating!!!! Yet another reason buskers are relevant! 

To see more about The Busking Project, go to...

www.thebuskingproject.com 

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IT'S A BIG NASTY BOOM!

Asheville, North Carolina is very special for so many reasons. One of those reasons... Big Nasty Jazz Band! These guys are crazy talented musicians and pretty hilarious to interview! Sneak peek footage to follow soon! 

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SHENANIGANS @ ECHO MOUNTAIN RECORDINGS

"Buskin' Blues: Asheville's Urban Soundtrack" is officially in production. Director of Photography, Shane Peters, and myself have recorded 5 Oral Histories, including one with former busker turned sound engineer with Echo Mountain Recording Studios, Josh Blake. From international train hopping to colorful rainbow gatherings, this guy has more than one story to tell. Busking, as a subculture, seems to be an eclectic group of adventure seekers! 

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Summer, 2013 MIT held a conference discussing multiculturalism and invited Levine Museum of the New South's preseident, Emily Zimmern to speak. This is the video I created to show how Levine Museum engages the community in ideas of acceptance and tolerance through education. 

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The Double Door Inn: Bringing Live Music to Charlotte Since 1973 is a documentary I directed in graduate school while getting my Master of Arts in History. Legendary performances from Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Dave Alvin, Leon Russell, Buddy Guy, Junior Brown, and Bob Margolin assisted in making the Double Door Inn a place of significant historical value. 

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"American" is a word that's meaning is constantly evolving. Just as the South has transformed over the past 100 years, so to have the people that inhabit it. I created this video for Levine Museum of the New South's exhibit, "Changing Places: From White and Black to Technicolor." 

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Chilean Jazz is a song I grew up listening to. Lori Spencer has been a solo instrumental jazz and finger style guitarist, playing around the Unites States since the early 1970s. She has been rated as one of the top ten or top twenty musicians in the country since she was 15 years old. She is also my momma!