NORTHEAST MISSISSIPPI TRADITIONAL MUSIC PROJECT                   Click to View Pictures

Wiley Prewitt, director of the Northeast Mississippi Traditional Music Project, tells about his work documenting music traditions in an often-overlooked part of the state. The Center and the Mississippi Arts Commission collaborated on the project, which was supported by funding from the National Endowment for the Arts’ Folk and Traditional Arts Initiative program.For a full report, visit www.arts.state.ms.us/.

Dr. Love rents his Tupelo club to event organizers and promoters. Most recently, he has hosted several Mexican groups for a musical experience that is sure to grow more common.

     Although Mississippi was the nursery of Elvis, music scholars and collectors have paid little attention to northeast portion of the state. Blues enthusiasts tend to focus on the Mississippi Delta. Those in search of country music examine Tennessee and other parts of the Upper South. 
     The Traditional Music Project aimed to help rectify the neglect of the area and identify and document some of the musical traditions found in that corner of Mississippi bordered on the west by Oxford and to the south by Aberdeen. One result will be to make a database of artists, venues, and promoters accessible to those interested in the music of the area. 
     The project also produced a series of music and narrative programs at the Lafayette County and Oxford Public Library, after which several of the musicians appeared on Thacker Mountain Radio, broadcast live from Off Square Books near the town square. The university community, which was our main audience, and the performers who came to town, perhaps not surprisingly, know very little of each other. The exposure was beneficial for both groups. 
     Early on, I feared that what Alan Lomax called "cultural grey out" had diminished the differences among music types and performers. But I am happy to report that any musical homogeneity I sensed was only because I wasn’t getting out and listening. If one considers traditional music something that connects generations within and among families and unites communities through the expression of distinct tastes and local talents, then I can say that traditional music is doing fairly well in Northeast Mississippi. 
     The project identified a number of traditions that indicate the vitality of musical activity in the area. In the services of the charismatic Church of the Living God, musicians employ a pedal steel, once known as a Hawaiian guitar, for a unique sound. The pedal steel is a familiar instrument to white country music fans, although the Church of the Living God is majority African American. 
     Live broadcasts on radio and television, once a mainstay of country and gospel music, still have an important place in the region. Groups like Oxford’s Mighty Stars of Harmony, Winona’s Forrest Brothers, Tupelo’s Spiritual Truelights, to only name three, enjoy wide followings among African American gospel listeners. The Hatchie Bottom Boys of Corinth are immediately recognizable to bluegrass fans in the area, and live radio shows and dozens of personal appearances make Bud and Hazel Huddleston celebrated figures in the country north of Tupelo. And most Mississippians recognize Tupelo’s Kay Bain, who hosts a steady stream of old bands and young hopefuls in the music segment of WTVA’s morning show. 
     Northeast Mississippi also supports small music halls and oprys that feature local musicians playing country or gospel. The music halls bring live music typically in an alcohol-free, "family" atmosphere to small but loyal crowds. The white and African American communities support a large number of gospel groups that perform in churches, community centers, and other public venues through the area. Local music festivals often include gospel, bluegrass, country, or a combination, and most of the towns support some type of annual event. The growing Hispanic community has brought new musical traditions that are just beginning to appear at parties and clubs in the area.