Folk New England (FNE) has had the pleasure of working with the Haggerty School through a grant entitled “Stories through Song” for three consecutive years. Each year our students met with the same musician for 3 sessions to learn about the unique stories behind folk songs and then encouraged to find their own meaning.
This wonderful Fifth Grade group was fortunate to work with musician Marylou Ferrante when they were in 3rd Grade and learned about the origins of Blues Music while connecting the Folk Revival to the Cambridge Folk Scene. As 4th Graders, they met with musician Mark Kilianski and learned how folk music was created and spread throughout the country.
Now as 5th Graders, through the generosity of the ASCAP Foundation (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers), Folk New England was able to celebrate the 100th graduating class by hiring Grammy Nominee musician, Alastair Moock. Mr. Moock performed and shared “Music for Social Change”, stressing how music was used to enhance the Labor Movement, the Civil Rights Movement, and the Anti-War Movement. This was exemplified by musicians like Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, The Freedom Singers, Bob Dylan and Joan Baez. The students very much enjoyed Mr. Moock’s upbeat and interactive presentations, often sharing their own knowledge while learning how important a role music played in these historical events.
This Grant was in honor of the acclaimed musician Joan Baez, who started her music career in Harvard Square at the Club 47. Ms. Baez learned of the Haggerty Centennial through her former college roommate, Ms. Betsy Siggins, the Founder of FNE. (
http://folknewengland.org)