A publication of the Association of College and Research Libraries
A division of the American Library Association
Editorial Offices: 575 Main Street, Suite 300, Middletown, CT 06457-3445
Phone: (860) 347-6933
Fax: (860) 704-0465

FOR INTERNAL USE ONLY

Please do not link to this page.

December 2015 Vol. 53 No. 4

In music, the term field recordings typically refers to recordings ethnomusicologists make when they go to remote areas to study performances of music from traditional cultures.  In the US, field recordings from the South seem to have garnered the most attention.  Leary (folklore and Scandinavian studies, Univ. of Wisconsin) fills a gap by focusing on a region whose field recordings have received scant attention—the Upper Midwest, where many ethnic groups settled.  Featured are five collections of recordings, one by the legendary Alan Lomax, made for the Library of Congress.  There are digitally restored CDs of all the music in each collection, and the book itself provides detailed descriptions of the contents of the CDs, information about the ethnic groups represented (many from Northern Europe), and pictures of many performers.  Also included is a new documentary DVD, Alan Lomax Goes North.  This monumental effort will have an audience among students and fans of traditional music.

--D. Arnold, University of North Texas

Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty and professionals; general readers.