Night Hoots & Morningsongs, Vol. 2 is a 21-track compilation features a variety of musical selections by local musicians in a diverse array of genres representing the diversity and eclectic flair of the Folk School. Much of the compilation honors multi-generational families that have two or three generations of family members playing music and singing together. CDs are available while supplies last in the Folk School Craft Shop.
The Pressley Sisters. Photo by Cory Marie Podielski.
I talked to Brasstown native, Corie Pressley of The Pressley Girls, about the new CD:
Podielski: What do you think of the new CD, Night Hoots & Morningsongs, Vol. 2?
Pressley: I have heard it and I think it’s great. It’s really unique. It’s got a lot of different people on it and I think it is a good representation of this area.
Podielski: Why is music and dance such an important part of this community?
Pressley: It’s important in this community because it is a huge part of what the Folk School does, and the Folk School is a huge part of this community. Also, Western NC is a part of Appalachia, and music and dance has been a huge part of Appalachia for 100s of years.
Podielski: One theme of this compilation is “family.” Can you tell me what it is like to be a musician who comes from a family of musicians?
Pressley: I love the family theme and it’s cool to see all the other people who come from a family of musicians just in this area, let alone only two or three counties away from here. The track we recorded on this album is special to me because my grandpa (Jerry Wilson) is on that track and he has since passed away so it’s really neat to listen to it and have that down in history. He and his brother used to sing at the Folk School (Jerry Wilson and Ray Wilson).
 David Brose. Photo by Nathan Baerreis. |
 Martha Owen & David Liden |
I also sat down with Folk School Folklorist & Nighthoots Producer, David Brose, to talk about the CD project:
Podielski: Hi David. Tell me about the new CD project, Night Hoots & Morningsongs, Vol. 2.
Brose: It was about 3 years in the making. The first volume came out about 10 years ago. Over the course of that 10-year gap, the children of the people on the first album grew up and had kids of their own, so what has happened unintentionally thematically on the compilation is family.
Podielski: Did artists choose the material? Do they record in a studio?
Brose: No, I record musicians and then curate the compilation from my field collections. As a folklorist, I’m recording people in all different sorts of situations, but never in a studio. There are 79 minutes on a CD and this CD is 77 minutes long.
 Dawn Davis. Photo by Nathan Baerreis. |
 Heidi Holton. Photo by Cory Marie Podielski. |
Podielski: How do you pick the music?
Brose: I consider what is fun to listen to and also what is artistically excellent. I pick good music that you would want to listen to again and again.
Podielski: Why is music and dance is so important at the Folk School?
Brose: Before the Folk School being implemented, Olive Dame Campbell did work with a British Folklorist, Cecil Sharp, and they came out with a book English Folk Songs of the Southern Appalachians (1914). Where we live music and dance is important in the community and in this region in general. Because of where we live, music has always been important.
The Nighthoots and Morning Song, Vol. 2 CD is available in the JCCFS Craft Shop.
Nighthoots & Morningsongs, Vol. 2 was funded by a grant from the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area, with matching funds from John C. Campbell Folk School. David A. Brose did all of the on-location recordings. The graphic design work was by David Lynch Graphics of Asheville and album photography by Nathan Baerreis of Murphy, NC.
Sticks in the Mud Border Morris Dance Team
Featured Artists:
The Longtime Rounders
The Hot Duck Soup Jazz Band
David Anderson
Chloe & Jan Davidson
Dawn Davis
Emolyn Liden and the Puddle Jumpers
Julie Hearne
Jerry Wilson, Paul Wilson, Tipper Pressley, & the Pressley Girls
Bob Dalsemer
The Blue Eyed Girls
Heidi Holton
Brasstown Sticks-in-the-Mud Border Morris Dance team
2015 Folk School Ukulele class
Bob & Amy Buckingham
David Liden & Martha Owen
Geraud & Mathias Barralon
David Lynch, Beth Molaro, & Vollie McKenzie
Kathleen Hines Seacrest with David A. Brose
The Wilson Family
Cory Marie Podielski is a freelance graphic designer, photographer, and writer for the John C. Campbell Folk School. She has been writing for the Folk School Blog since 2012 and enjoys interviewing artists, musicians, and craftspeople. In her spare time, she enjoys playing the banjo, dancing, printmaking, playing in clay, and assisting in Folk School bread baking classes. podielski.com
