History of the Blues: 1900 – 1970 with Gayle Dean Wardlow

Gayle Dean Wardlow will be teaching a folklore class in History of the Blues: 1900-1970 during Week 2, July 12-17, 2015. This class is part of our 5-week folklore series this summer. Wardlow will also give a public lecture one evening during the week. We have craft & folklore classes scheduled each week this summer. Week 2 is also Blues & Swing Week.

A groundbreaking blues historian, Wardlow will lecture and present recorded music, photos and interviews to tell the story of the blues. The class will examine the first blues recordings of the 1920s through modern Chicago blues in the 1950s-’70s. Guest artists will also share their music and stories.

Gayle Dean Wardlow is a leading world authority on the historical development of the Delta blues and has researched extensively the lives of musicians Charlie Patton and Robert Johnson. He began researching a book on Delta blues musicians in 1963 and became a leading authority on country blues, amassing the world’s largest and most valuable collection of pre-war blues records. Wardlow has published many articles on blues history, and the book Chasin’ That Devil Music – Searching for the Blues, which was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 2006 as a classic of blues literature.

Register today to reserve your space, visit http://augustaheritagecenter.org/, click “REGISTER,” and select craft & folklore for the week of your class. More information is available at https://augustaheritagecenter.org/augusta-schedule/craft/