Hayley’s Story—Peggy Seeger

Folk Singer Brings ‘Heart-Songs’ to USU
By Hayley Jensen

With only a guitar, a 5-string banjo and a bottle of pills at her feet, Peggy Seeger entertained students, faculty and public Thursday at the Utah State University Performance Hall, as a part of the Fife Folklore lecture series.

Seeger, 73, the daughter of musical pioneer Mike Seeger and sister to well-known folk singer Peter Seeger, has found her fame in folklore studies, performance and presentation of folk music. " The ballads… they are my heart-songs. To me they are the core of our tradition. They have been created, tended, loved pruned and trimmed by generations of singers so that they are down to their very bones."

Seeger spoke to the audience about the importance of folk music in society today to the individual, the singer, the songwriter and community as a whole. Noting that folk music may not be the most popular or well-known form of music Seeger discussed the attributes that make the music so special.

" Folk music is not made as a commercial commodity, not for places of large entertainment or patronage. It is the music created by the lowest economic class. It is the music out of their hopes, dreams aspirations and values." Seeger stated. Describing the music as that of an oral tradition, she explained that the songs, characterized by simplicity and repetition, are used to pass down history and document mundane to important events in the lives of those who create the music.

Folk music differs from classical and other forms of music in that the "folks" create it it is a community effort and not the individual. Folk music is more about the words and style of the performance than about pleasing the masses and having a great voice. " You have to have in your head a reason for singing it because there is so much baggage." Seeger stated.

Seeger's own unique and clear voice blended into a unique musical experience as she invited- more like required- those in attendance to sing along with her simple and often humorous lyrics including "When you coming to see me my little Buffalo boy?" or the anti-Bush number stating " Impeach! Impeach! That's what we need to do. Impeach! Impeach! And take Dick Cheney too!"

The difference between folk music and other music according to Seeger is this "This is a community interchange. You are not just sitting there receiving it, you have to be a part of it."

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