Alan Lomax
While Alan Lomax lived for a time in London in the 50's (having fled McCarthyism in America) he got to know the young British folk singer Shirley Collins. The two became a couple and they left together for the United States when Ahmet Ertegun (boss of Atlantic Records, unfortunately deceased in 2006) assigned Lomax to again record the blues legends he discovered in the 40's, this time using new recording techniques. Aside from new recordings of the likes of Bessie Jones, on this trip the twosome also discovered the likes of Mississippi Fred McDowell (who was later adored by The Rolling Stones).
In the early 50's Lomax also made trips through Italy and Spain. His first theory regarding the link between folk music and the social status of the relevant communities grew from those recordings. He would later assume various other academic hypotheses too.
Lomax was the driving forced behind the Association for Cultural Equity as well. In the 40's, his concerts and radio programs already exhibited an extensive multiculturalism. Lomax furthermore feared that means mass-communication, such as radio and television, would mean the end of local folklore worldwide. From 1967 onwards, he was a consultant for the Smithsonian Folk Festival in Washington that, thanks to his contribution to all things folklore, was fundamental to the formation of the UNESCO pact titled International Convention on the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, which was ratified in 2003.
The Lomax Archive and especially the A.C.E. (Association for Cultural Equity), are currently working together with The American Folklife Center of The Library of Congress to continue his work, thanks to the efforts of his daughter Anna Lomax Wood.
More info:
www.culturalequity.org
www.lomaxarchive.com
