“Sheer Spine”: Evoking Past and Present in the Southern Highlands

Abstract

This narrative sounding contains the musical, social, and contextual findings extrapolated from an assortment of observations and interviews conducted with Appalachian folk musicians in the mountains of North Carolina. Participants’ stories focus on the benefits and motivations surrounding mountain music traditions, the perceptions of how musicians view their own learning, and the means by which mountain music culture and customs are preserved and disseminated in a modern world. Issues of identity, self-concept, spiritual connectedness, the survival and endurance of Appalachian folk music, and the marked sense of dignity in carrying on a living history told through music are chronicled through the participants’ voices. Implications for incorporating informal modes of music-making in conventional classroom settings are also discussed, as folk music traditions may be an interesting model to consider as music education endeavours to broaden the perspectives of music teaching and learning.