Small Town America Conference, Millikin University, Decatur

APRIL 3-4, 2009

Join Kirkland Fine Arts Center and Millikin University’s College of Fine Arts for a weekend of music, conversation, and lectures on the music of rural America. Scholars will discuss the nation’s diverse musical cultures and practices in small-town communities and address the challenges they face in the musical industry.

Friday, 3 April 2009

Kaeuper Hall, Perkinson Music Center (unless otherwise noted*)

9:00 AM REGISTRATION AND REFRESHMENTS

10:00 AM WELCOME
Barry Pearson, Dean, College of Fine Arts

10:15 AM PANEL DISCUSSION: SITUATING DOWNSTATE ILLINOIS IN THE AMERICAN MUSICAL LANDSCAPE
Matthew Meacham (West Plains [MO] Arts Council, Missouri State University), chair
Pete Ellertson (Springfield College-Benedictine University))
Garry Harrison (Indiana University)
Linda Smith (Southern Illinois University—Carbondale)
Lynn “Chirps” Smith (Chicago, IL)
Paul Tyler (Old Town School of Folk Music, National-Louis University, Chicago State University)

11:30 AM LUNCH (Provided)

12:00 PM KEYNOTE LECTURE: Does Place Matter? Perceptions and Realities of Music in Small Towns

Paul F. Wells (Middle Tennessee State University)

*Perkinson Art Gallery: Kirkland Fine Arts Center

1:00 PM BREAK

1:30 PM RACE, ETHNICITY, AND IDENTITY IN SMALL-TOWN MUSICS
Sandra McKenna (Millikin University), chair

La Valse de Platin: Crowley as a Cajun Music Center, 1920-1950
Kevin Fontenot (Tulane University)

Country Boy, B-Boy: Renegotiating Southern & Hip-Hop Identity in Rural Upstate South Carolina in Early 1980s
David B. Pruett (Middle Tennessee State University)

2:30 PM BREAK

2:45 PM CONSTRUCTING PLACE MUSICALLY
Devon Fitzgerald (Millikin University), chair

The Tie that Binds: Translating Operatic Success from Central City to New York City
Laura Doser (University of California—Davis)
Communal and Nostalgic Soundscapes through Bell Instruments at American Universities
Kim Schafer (University of Texas at Austin)


The Sound of a Fiddle: Hearing the Music in Thomas Hart Benton’s Depictions of American Folksongs
Annett Richter (University of Missouri—Columbia)

4:15 PM DINNER (On Own)

7:30 PM CONCERT: The Gordons and The Special Consensus
Kirkland Fine Arts Center
Tickets $12 (Complimentary Ticket included in Registration)

Saturday, 4 April 2009

Perkinson Music Center Room 110 (unless otherwise noted)

8:30 AM REGISTRATION AND COFFEE

9:00 AM WELCOME
Stephen Widenhofer, Director, Millikin University School of Music

9:15 AM MUSIC IN DOWNSTATE ILLINOIS

Matthew Meacham (West Plains Arts Council, Missouri State University—West Plains), chair

The Multi-Cultural Aspect of Folk and Country Music in the Midwest
Paul Tyler (Old Town School of Folk Music, National-Louis University, Chicago State University)

iPods in Little Egypt: Technology and Southern Illinois Folk Music
Linda Smith (Southern Illinois University—Carbondale)


10:15 AM BREAK

10:30 AM “The Hayloft Gang: The Story of the National Barn Dance”: A Filmmaker’s Perspective
Stephen Parry (Image Base, Chicago, IL)

11:30 AM LUNCH (Provided)

12:00 PM MILLIKIN UNIVERSITY STUDENT POSTER SESSION

1:00 PM REVIVALS AND RETRENCHMENTS IN AMERICAN HYMNODY

Stephen Widenhofer, chair

Sweet Harmonies of Praise: Reviving Shape Note Singing in Rural Arkansas
S. Andrew Granade (University of Missouri, Kansas City)
The Decline of Southern Gospel Convention Singing
Stephen Shearon (Middle Tennessee State University)

2:00 PM BREAK

2:15 PM PEDAGOGIES OF TRADITIONAL MUSICS: A PANEL DISCUSSION (Kaeuper Hall, Perkinson Music Center)
Neal Smith (Millikin University), chair

Gary Gordon (Sparta, IL)
Greg Cahill (Nashville, TN)
3:15 PM BREAK

3:30 PM MUSICKING IN SMALL-TOWN AND RURAL AMERICA

Travis D. Stimeling (Millikin University), chair

Happiness Self Made: The Sears Roebuck Catalog and Music in Rural America, 1894 to 1927
Mona Kreitner (Rhodes College)

Local Culture for Sale: Small Town Music Monopoly, Small Town Resistance
Carey Sargent (University of Virginia)

4:30 PM CONCLUDING REMARKS

Travis D. Stimeling (Millikin University)

5:00 PM DINNER (On Own)

7:30 PM CONCERT: Asleep at the Wheel
Kirkland Fine Arts Center
Tickets $24 (Complimentary Ticket Included in Registration)

Registration:
Register online or call the Kirkland Box Office at 217.424.6318. Registration fee of $70 includes one complimentary ticket to The Special Consensus & The Gordons as well as Asleep at the Wheel. Online registrants may choose their seats to both performances. One day registration will be available at the door only for $35.

Additional Opportunities:

The Macon County Conservation District hosts free Music Jams the second Sunday of every month from 1:00-4:00 p.m. at the Rock Springs Nature Center. Local bluegrass musicians play throughout the afternoon. Musicians are welcome to join in or you can just come to listen. To find out more, visit www.maconcountyconservation.org.