S2:E9 // Moses Asch and Folkways Records (Part 1)

American Songcatcher

Today, American Songcatcher is proud to present a special two-part collaboration with Smithsonian Folkways, going behind the curtain of Folkways Records founder Moses Asch, who was born 117 years ago on this date. This is the story of a ceaselessly stubborn Jewish immigrant with unstoppable ambition. A pioneer who had a great respect for creative artists, whether they were commercially viable or not. A provider whose work was selfless, though he was often quite difficult to work with. A visionary that would turn the record industry on its head without producing any major hits, which was just the way he wanted it. Folkways Records, “The little label that could,” changed the course of American roots music by preserving folk songs from all over the world and having a major hand influencing the folk and blues revival of the 50’s and 60’s. Moe's mission was to create an encyclopedia of sound from around the world, quite literally. Folkways released records of frog noises, poetry, train whistles, cat noises and many others in addition to covering nearly every genre of world music, spanning over 2,100 records. Learn how his collection was acquired by the Smithsonian Institution and how his legacy lives on today.

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In Collaboration with:

Smithsonian Folkways

Full Moses Asch interview with Arhoolie Records’ founder Chris Strachwitz

Interviewees:

Richard Carlin | Worlds of Sound: The Story of Smithsonian Folkways

Michael Asch

American Songcatcher

Source Credits:

Smithsonian | Redalyc | Jstor.com | NPR | Routledge | AllPurposeGuru | Haaretz | Folkworks

Worlds of Sound: Ballad of Folkways | Documentary

Making People's Music | Book