A truly gifted artist, Rhiannon Giddens merges the history of American music as it developed from transatlantic cultures originating in Europe and Africa, transmitted through oral traditions in the hills and hollows of Appalachia and in the stories of slaves. Black musicians preserved their traditions and adapted their musical instruments to incorporate their own cultural roots onto American soil, becoming the hammer song, bluegrass, modern blues, and rock and roll. Classically trained and a MacArthur “Genius Grant” recipient, she has the artistic range to cover nearly any form of vocal genre, and her discography and personal search for the universal roots of music in her journey are both inspiring.
I had the pleasure of seeing her at The Ark in Ann Arbor in October of 2019, (a great intimate venue if you get the chance) where she delivered a performance with Francesco Turrisi that was truly fantastic.
Beyond her role as a musician, Rhiannon Giddens is a curator of lost music and voices, and one of her moving recordings is her cover of Joan Baez’s “Birmingham Sunday.” The bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church by members of the KKK on Sunday, September 15, 1963 took the lives of Addie Mae Collins, 14; Carole McNair, 11; Carolyn Robertson, 14; and Cynthia Wesley, 14, and seriously injured 14 others. These young Americans were the victims of a hateful belief system and a local and state government which failed to protect them from evil. They should have had the chance to live full lives, free to speak, to love, and to keep singing their songs. While Joan Baez delivered a heartfelt anthem written by Richard Farina in 1964, there is something about Ms. Gidden’s version that brings the story into the 21st century for America to remember their names and honor them.
