Masters of Traditional Arts: The National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellows
odd: label: Introduction
content: The Folk and Traditional Arts Program of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) joined with the Smithsonian to present the 1994 program on "Masters of Traditional Arts". The Festival program offered an opportunity for retrospection - a look at many of the artists and traditions recognized over the years through the National Heritage Fellowships, a grant program of the National Endowment for the Arts. At the same time, it was an occasion for introspection - a close-up, reflexive view of the National Heritage Fellowships, re-examining their purpose, listening to the insights of the Fellows themselves, and talking with those who conceive and plan such awards.

Each year a small number of artists - a dozen or so - are selected by the NEA to receive a fellowship (amounting to $10,000 in 1994) in recognition of their artistic excellence and their contributions to our nation's cultural life. The National Heritage Fellowships try to strike a balance between recognizing outstanding individuals and ensembles and celebrating the collective achievements of their traditions and cultural groups. These awards are announced each spring through a national press release that is disseminated widely, with particular attention given to the artists' home communities and cultural networks. In the fall, Fellows come to Washington for several days of celebratory and honoring events. They receive award certificates in a lively, congressionally-sponsored presentation on Capitol Hill. They perform at a free concert hosted by a national celebrity known for the breadth of his or her work with American cultures.

Joy and excitement run high during this time, but in more private and informal moments, these representatives of our nation's diverse cultural heritage inevitably turn their thoughts toward more serious matters. This is an all-too-rare occasion for the culturally and geographically distant tradition bearers to exchange views and encourage one another. Their eloquent, insightful, personal statements transcend cultural boundaries and map common cultural concerns. Some are striking tributes to the courage and individual determination it often takes to continue local traditions in a world increasingly driven by consumerism and pop culture. Others are testimonies to the vital role of traditional arts in cultural survival and self-determination. Together the National Heritage Fellows reveal the special beauty and deep meaning that the traditional arts hold for those who understand them, as well as the importance of multiculturalism to the nation.

The 1994 Festival program offered Festival visitors the opportunity to eavesdrop on - and participate in - such conversations, as Fellows from the program's first 13 years held a reunion on the National Mall. In workshops and discussion sessions, they spoke of their experiences maintaining their traditions within their communities, and the encouragement that was manifested in the Heritage Fellowship. And they demonstrated their crafts and performed their music and dance for the delight of Festival audiences.

Marjorie Hunt was Curator and Arlene Reiniger was Program Coordinator; Bess Lomax Hawes served as Consultant. Collaborators from the National Endowment for the Arts Folk & Traditional Arts Program were Daniel Sheehy (Director), Barry Bergey, Norma Cantú, Terry Liu, Pat Makell, Rose Morgan, Pat Sanders.

Masters of Traditional Arts was made possible with the collaboration of the National Endowment for the Arts Folk & Traditional Arts Program, with support from The Recording Industries Music Performance Trust Funds.
label: Presenters
content: JoAllyn Archambault, Betty Belanus, Barry Bergey, Paddy Bowman, Norma Cantú, Anna Chairetakis, Walter Murray Chiesa, Amy Chin, Andrew Connors, Gladys-Marie Fry, Bess Lomax Hawes, Marjorie Hunt, Rita Moonsammy, Ann Rynearson, Howard Sacks, Daniel Sheehy, Amy Skillman, Nick Spitzer, Craig Stinson, Joe Wilson
label: Participants
content: CRAFTS

Juan Alindato, 1925-, Puerto Rican mask maker, Ponce, Puerto Rico

Eppie Archuleta, 1922-, Hispanic weaver, Capulin, Colorado

Jerry Brown, southern potter, Hamilton, Alabama

Sandra Brown, southern potter, Hamilton, Alabama

Sonia Domsch, Czech American bobbin lace maker, Atwood, Kansas

Marie McDonald, Hawaiian lei maker, Kamuela, Hawai'i

Norma Medina, 1941-, Hispanic weaver, Medanales, New Mexico

Seth Mopope Morgan, Kiowa Indian regalia maker, Anadarko, Oklahoma

Vanessa Paukeigope Morgan, 1952-, Kiowa Indian regalia maker, Anadarko, Oklahoma

Cliff Roller, Pueblo Indian potter, Santa Clara Pueblo, New Mexico

Toni Roller, Pueblo Indian potter, Santa Clara Pueblo, New Mexico

Keoudone Saenphimmachak, Lao American weaver, St. Louis, Missouri

Mone Saenphimmachak, Lao American weaver, St. Louis, Missouri

Vanxay Saenphimmachak, Lao American loom maker, St. Louis, Missouri

Duff Severe, 1925-, saddlemaker, rawhide worker, Pendleton, Oregon

Randy Severe, saddlemaker, rawhide worker, Pendleton, Oregon

Harry V. Shourds, decoy carver, Seaville, New Jersey

Margaret Tafoya, 1904-2001, Pueblo Indian potter, Santa Clara Pueblo, New Mexico

Newton Washburn, 1915-, split ash basket maker, Bethlehem, New Hampshire

Arbie Williams, 1916-2003, African American quilter, Oakland, California

MUSIC

Appalachian String Music

Scott Andersen, upright bass, Washington, D.C.

Clyde Davenport, 1921-, fiddle, Jamestown, Tennessee

Dan Gammon, guitar, Knoxville, Tennessee

Natividad Cano y Los Camperos,  -- Mexican American mariachi music -- Natividad Cano y Los Camperos, Mexican American mariachi musicJose Arellano, guitarron, Los Angeles, CaliforniaNatividad Cano, 1933-, director, guitar, vihuela (five-string guitar), Los Angeles, CaliforniaLuis Fuentes Damian, vihuela, Pica Rivera, CaliforniaJesus Guzman, trumpet, Los Angeles, CaliforniaIsmael Hernandez, violin, Los Angeles, CaliforniaSalvador Hernandez, trumpet, Los Angeles, CaliforniaJuan Morales, harp, Phoenix, ArizonaJuan Rodriguez, violin, Los Angeles, California

Chinese Music

Liang-xing Tang, 1948-, pipa (lute), Bayside, New York

Jennifer Tang, pipa (lute), Bayside, New York

Jessica Tang, pipa (lute) Bayside, New York

Jack Coen & Friends,  -- Irish traditional music -- Jack Coen & Friends, Irish traditional musicCharles Coen, 1934-, concertina, Red Hook, New YorkJack Coen, flute, Bronx, New YorkJames Coen, guitar, Bronx, New YorkWillie Kelly, fiddle, Parsippany, New JerseyRegan Wick, step dancer, Washington, D.C.Jesse Winch, bodhran (Irish drum), Silver Spring, Maryland

Joe Cormier & Friends,  -- Cape Breton music -- Joe Cormier & Friends, Cape Breton musicEdmund Boudreau, guitar, mandolin, Waltham, MassachusettsJoseph Cormier, fiddle, Waltham, MassachusettsChristine Morrison, step dancer, Tewksbury, MassachusettsMargaret Morrison, piano, Tewksbury, Massachusetts

The DeFranco Family with Frank Cofone,  -- Southern Italian music & dance -- The DeFranco Family with Frank Cofone, Southern Italian music & danceFrank Cofone, tambourine, vocals, Belleville, New JerseyFaust DeFranco, triccaballacca (clappers), Belleville, New JerseyGiuseppe DeFranco, 1933-, organetto (button accordion), ciaramella (wood oboe), zampogna (bagpipes), Belleville, New JerseyRaffaela DeFranco, 1935-, vocals, dance, Belleville, New Jersey

Fairfield Four,  -- a cappella gospel music -- Fairfield Four, a cappella gospel musicIsaac Freeman, Nashville, TennesseeRobert Hamlett, Nashville, TennesseeJames Hill, 1915-2000, Nashville, TennesseeWalter Settles, 1928-1999, Nashville, TennesseeWilson Waters, 1931-2005, Nashville, Tennessee

Richard Hagopian & Ensemble,  -- Armenian music -- Richard Hagopian & Ensemble, Armenian musicHarold Hagopian, kanun (zither), Brooklyn, New YorkRichard Avedis Hagopian, 1937-, oud (lute), Visalia, CaliforniaHagop Jack Zarzatian, Jr., dumbeg (Armenian drum), Hudson, New Hampshire

Halau 'O Kekuhi,  -- Hawaiian hula dance -- Halau 'O Kekuhi, Hawaiian hula danceHokulani Kaikaina, dancer, Hilo, Hawai'iKekuhi Kanahele, 1966-, dancer, Hilo, Hawai'iPualani Kanaka'ole Kanahele, 1937-, kumu hula, chanter, Hilo, Hawai'iNalani Kanaka'ole, kumu hula, chanter, Hilo, Hawai'iMalie Rea, dancer, Hilo, Hawai'i

Valerio Longoria y su Conjunto,  -- Mexican-American conjunto music -- Valerio Longoria y su Conjunto, Mexican-American conjunto musicKent Bearry, drums, San Antonio, TexasFlavio Guillen, bass guitar, San Antonio, TexasValerio Longoria, 1924-, accordion, San Antonio, TexasValerio Longoria, III, guitar, San Antonio, Texas

Piedmont blues

John Cephas, guitar, vocals, Woodford, Virginia

Phil Wiggins, harmonica, Washington, D.C.

James Jackson, guitar, Fairfax Station, Virginia

John Jackson, 1924-2002-, guitar, vocals, Fairfax Station, Virginia

Savoy Cajun Band  -- Savoy Cajun BandAnn Savoy, 1952-, guitar, triangle, Eunice, LouisianaJoel Savoy, fiddle, Eunice, LouisianaMarc Savoy, accordion, Eunice, LouisianaKen Smith, fiddle, Kinder, LouisianaGinny Snowe, upright bass, Hyattsville, Maryland
name: label: Collection Creator
content: Smithsonian Institution. Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage
setName: label: See more items in
content: Smithsonian Folklife Festival records: 1994 Festival of American Folklife
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections
identifier: label: Identifier
content: CFCH.SFF.1994, Series 4
objectType: label: Type
content: Archival materials