CCU gets grant for American Music film series
by Prufer
Thanks to the efforts of music faculty members Amy Tully and Patti Edwards, Coastal Carolina University is able to present “America's Music: A Film History of Our Popular Music from Blues to Bluegrass to Broadway,” a six-part series that runs from late January through April.
Tully and Edwards were awarded a $2,500 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the Human Endeavor, which went to CCU’s Department of Music and Kimbel Library. CCU is one of only 50 sites nationwide selected to host this program series and the only organization in South Carolina to show it.
“We are thrilled to participate in this exciting program that will help introduce different types of music, show how modern music has been influenced by older styles, and bridge gaps among generations,” said Tully, assistant professor of music at CCU.
Edwards, associate professor or music, said the series is not meant to offer an all-inclusive treatment of 20th century popular music. “Each screening and discussion session will examine an important American musical genre in the context of key social and historical developments, with events in American music history acting as a catalyst for that examination.”
The series will consist of screenings of documentary films about major genres of 20th century American music, followed by scholarly discussions on how the music has impacted our American culture and musical landscape. Each session will end with live music featuring CCU music faculty and students. Edwards is the project director, and Tully is the project scholar.
The screenings and discussions will be held in the James J. Johnson Auditorium of the E. Craig Wall Sr. College of Business Administration Building on select Mondays from 7 to 9 p.m.
The six sessions focus on musical genres that are uniquely American: blues, gospel, Broadway, jazz, bluegrass, country, rock 'n' roll, mambo and hip hop. The sessions are designed to educate audiences in how 20th century American music has influenced modern culture.
The program series will be shown on the following days:
• Monday, Feb. 10, from 7 to 9 p.m.
Session Two: Broadway and Tin Pan Alley featuring “Broadway: The American Musical, Episode 2: Syncopated City (1919-1933)”
• Monday, Feb. 24, from 7 to 9 p.m.
Session Three: Swing Jazz featuring “Ken Burns’ Jazz: Episode 6: Swing: The Velocity of Celebration” and “International Sweethearts of Rhythm”
* Monday, March 24, from 7 to 9 p.m.
Session Four: Country and Bluegrass featuring “High Lonesome: The Story of Bluegrass Music”
* Monday, April 7, from 7 to 9 p.m.
Session Five: Latin Rhythms from Mambo to Hip Hop featuring “Latin Music USA, Episode 1: Bridges” and “From Mambo to Hip Hop: A South Bronx Tale”
* Monday, April 21, from 7 to 9 p.m.
Session Six: Rock 'n' Roll featuring "Plugging In”
“America’s Music” is a project by the Tribeca Film Institute in collaboration with the American Library Association, Tribeca Flashpoint and the Society for American Music.
The James J. Johnson Auditorium is in the E. Craig Wall Sr. College of Business Administration at 119 Chanticleer Drive E. in Conway. For more information, contact Edwards at 843-349-2570 or pyedward@coastal.edu, or Tully at 843-349-2352 or atully@coastal.edu.
