Oscar Brand - World of Folk Music

Subject: Oscar Brand - World of Folk Music
From: Thomas Stern
Date: 22 Jan 14 - 02:40 PM

Oscar Brand did a radio series of 15minute programs, sponsored by the US HEW dept-Social Security called THE WORLD OF FOLK MUSIC.
Does anyone have a list of these program transcriptions,
program number, date, guest artist(s), songs? all or partial data ??

Thanks!
Best wishes, Thomas.

Subject: RE: Oscar Brand - World of Folk Music
From: Joe Offer
Date: 22 Jan 14 - 03:26 PM

Hi, Thomas - have you seen this page at the National Archives?
http://research.archives.gov/description/101693

There are some people at the Library of Congress who are very close to the Folklore Society of Greater Washington. I wonder if they could help make these programs available online.

Here's another page that might interest you, Thomas:
http://radiogoldindex.com/cgi-local/p2.cgi?ProgramName=The+World+Of+Folk+Music

The World of Folk Music was distributed on acetate transcription discs, for broadcast whenever radio stations were able to schedule the programs. There's an interesting piece about transcription discs here (click).

-Joe-

Subject: RE: Oscar Brand - World of Folk Music
From: Thomas Stern
Date: 22 Jan 14 - 07:15 PM

Hi Joe,
Thanks for the links. I am familiar with the J David Goldin archive for transcription data.
There is a great wealth of folk (and other music) on transcriptions, also many discs produced for the Armed Forces
during WW2 and subsequently. Known as V-Disc's during the war,
then AFRS and AFRTS (Armed Forces Radio (Television) Service. And
many gov't agencies such as Treasury and HEW also produced transcribed
radio shows.
Anyone interested in recordings should learn about them.
It will be lovely to have these shows online, but suspect
that will be a long time coming. Documentation of what
has been recorded will be very helpful. Most discographies
tend to miss this resource.
Cheers, Thomas.