 |  | | | Appalachian women's mountain songs | 19 Oct 2007 | | |
The women who preserve traditional folk ballads
The Southern Appalachian Mountains have long been a stronghold of folk music with British origins – music transported there by settlers seeking a new life. In the early twentieth century the folk song collector Cecil Sharp was amazed at how much old British music had survived in the region and how pure it sounded. But most notably, the tradition of ballad singing was kept alive by women.
Rachel Hopkin travelled to the heart of the region – Madison Country, North Carolina – to find out what remains of the tradition today. She began by joining Sheila Kay Adams, a seventh generation ballad singer, looking out over the mountains.
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