Chapel Hill, N.C., October 8th, 2018 – Timothy Duffy has been photographing musicians throughout the Southeastern U.S. for over thirty years. His upcoming book, Blue Muse: Timothy Duffy’s Southern Photographs ($60, hardcover), features portraits of blues, jazz, gospel and folk musicians and places they live and perform. The artist’s monograph will be released on February […]

This blog post was originally posted on Dec. 5th, 2016 | The blues call us to face the reality of mistreatment. Blues songs are full of people doing one another wrong—mistreatment from lovers, strangers, systemic structures, and, of course, from oneself. But by calling it out and making it plain—we humans don’t treat one another […]

The Folk Revival movement of the 1940s, 50s, and 60s played an integral role in our ability to look back at our musical traditions with reverence. Known for producing several Mississippi John Hurt records, in addition to his own playing and songwriting, Music Maker partner artist Patrick Sky continues to be a  vital part of […]

We recently sat down with donors Al and Rich to ask them about their Music Maker experience and why our mission resonates with them. Al and Rich are both longtime donors and provided the $15,000 match for #GivingTuesday.  Al’s Q&A:  How does it make you feel when you give to Music Maker? There’s so many […]

The holiday season—a time often equated with comfort and joy—can bring feelings of anxiety and despair when you’re living alone in chronic poverty. This is the case for many of our artists who, despite being among the most important names in America’s musical heritage, find themselves choosing between keeping their instruments and keeping food on […]