The blues came out of the hard life of African American sharecroppers, says Ruskey. They carried their music to Chicago, St. Louis, and other cities earlier this century when they migrated north to find better opportunities. Although the music has a mainstream following today, it s important not to forget how important it was to the cultural fabric of African American communities, he adds. Now, songs deal with the problems of getting food stamps, the difficulty of finding ever-scarcer farm jobs, raising a family and staying afloat on minimum wage. Keeping the music alive is one of the museum s goals, says Smith.
Someone has to carry the music on.
Smith believes the musical experience has given confidence to students who hadn t been doing well in school. Smith said the museum hopes to expand the curriculum after the museum relocates the music program and some of its exhibits to a refurbished freight depot down the street from the main museum. Ruskey finds it interesting that the museum and the blues have appealed to people of all ages and cultures.