Words, Wood & Wire
The History of Southern Illinois as Told Through Songs and Musical Instruments
Making music is a part of all human cultures and societies. However, like the spoken or written word, not all musical languages are exactly alike. Song styles, instruments, and harmonic, melodic, and rhythmic forms are only a few of the musical elements that vary from place to place. Nonetheless, songs are performed for similar reasons regardless of geographic or sociocultural area, revealing what is important in people's lives. Some of these reasons include:
Marking life's milestones - births and birthdays, coming-of-age celebrations, graduations, marriages, and deaths
- Capturing history for posterity
- Protesting injustices
- As an integral part of religious activities
- Simply for the fun of it
Words, Wood & Wire was put together based on the information gathered by the late David Seneff McIntosh (1897 - 1979) and his wife, Eva. Professor McIntosh was born in Steelville, Illinois, into a musical family. He received his bachelor's degree in music education from Northwestern University in the 1920s, where he met his wife Eva. He came to Southern Illinois University Carbondale as a faculty member in 1928, and while working in the Department of Music obtained his master's degree from the State University of Iowa in 1935. Professor McIntosh served as chair of the Department of Music for 18 years. He retired from SIUC in 1965. It was during his early years in Carbondale that he developed an interest in Southern Illinois folk music and began researching the genre.
Professor and Mrs. McIntosh collected and documented songs and stories of Southern Illinoisans beginning in the 1930s. The McIntoshs donated these recordings to the SIUC University Museum for research purposes in 1971. Their findings were presented in a number of books and articles over the years, most notably the 1974 volume published by the Southern Illinois University Press titled Folk Songs and Singing Games of the Illinois Ozarks.
What does the McIntosh folk song collection reveal about the people and history of Southern Illinois? When the collection is considered as a whole, several themes begin to emerge. As has been noted by other researchers, the love of family, home and land, and the importance and difficulty of working for a living are topics that can be found in the lyrics to these tunes. Also featured are reverence to God, the trauma of war, lost loves, and the need for respite from everyday routine by playing games and dancing. Although it is important to remember that these observations are not true of all people at all times, they do provide a window into the hearts and minds of those living in this region during the middle of the last century.
As you go through the songs featured in this kiosk, listen and consider what it reveals about the time and people captured within its lyrics.
This online Kiosk exhibition is an excerpt from Words, Wood and Wire: The History of Southern Illinois as Told Through Folk Songs and Musical Instruments, an exhibition comprised of songs, musical instruments, and audiovisual displays.
The project was funded by a major grant from the Illinois Humanities Council and by The University Museum at Southern Illinois University (SIU).
Other Music Projects
The Illinois Humanities Council (IHC) is putting together a set of CDs that will feature Illinois Folk Music. For more information, visit www.prairie.org/Music.
The latest Museums on Main Street traveling exhibit, New Harmonies: Celebrating American Roots Music, will visit several towns in Illinois throughout 2007 and 2008. This exhibit is funded by the IHC and the Smithsonian Institute.
The IHC's Road Scholars Speakers Bureau program has a couple of folk musicians on its roster: Mark Dvorak and Chris Vallillo. Visit www.prairie.org/speakers for details on the programs they offer.
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