David Holt's State of Music

- This is Hart Square.

An amazing one man project created by my friend, the late Dr. Robert Hart, who saved more than a hundred historic log buildings and moved them to this site in Catawba county, North Carolina.

It all started when a patient told Dr. Hart about an old log cabin on his property that needed rescuing.

Bob moved the cabin log by log to the pond on this property where it stands today.

He went on to create an entire village of rescue log buildings: including houses, churches, workshops, a cotton gin, a grist mill, and even a fort.

Today Hart Square managed by Bob Hart's granddaughter, Rebecca.

Back in the 1800s these buildings were alive with music.

It was called old time even then.

Over the years, isolated communities like this one develop their own musical styles.

Since the 1960s, there's been a revival of interest in old mountain music.

Folks who come from all over the world to study and learn from the old mountaineers and be part of the community.

(upbeat country music) We're gonna hold each other up We're gonna lift each other high We're gonna love each other better than before This old world will keep on turning And our hearts will keep on yearning For each other when the world is so unsure We've seen trouble in the past Some gone by some that last But there's one thing that can help us all get by If we listen to our hearts Each new day is brand new start We can love each other better if we try We're gonna hold each other up We're gonna lift each other high We're gonna love each other better than before This old world will keep on turning And our hearts will keep on yearning For each other when the world is so unsure We have time to be kind It's a time to remind That deep down our differences are few And as every minute ways Turning worry into days We believe that our love see us through We're gonna hold each other up We're gonna lift each other high We're gonna love each other better than before This old world will keep on turning And our hearts will keep on yearning For each other when the world is so World is so unsure - Of all the musicians I know you two are the most connected to other people and really keep a wide roster of friends and you even call your company, community music.

What does that mean to you?

- The name community music for us means all the different ways that we can use music to build community.

It might be giving lessons.

It might be running a festival.

It might be mentoring.

It might be helping somebody else do those things.

But we want our music to serve.

And I think that... - And it does.

- It does and we love a wide community of all ages and all different kinds of music.

- That instrument is so incredible that people can hear in that song.

Tell us about it.

What is it?

- Thank you.

This is called the cello banjo.

It's too like a cello, C-G-D-A.

I love the low- - That's so beautiful.

- Notes of the banjo.

- Yeah.

- And Gold Tone makes these, puts my name on them, which was really sweet.

And every girl's dream to have your name on a banjo.

- Absolutely, especially a big head banjo, like that.

- Yeah, yeah.

Covers up everything- - Play something for it, like maybe a base line.

- Okay, okay.

(banjo playing) - So it works as a base?

- [Marcy] Works as a base.

- And how about a melody line?

- Let's see.

(banjo playing) - Beautiful.

("Goodbye Anne" playing) One of the true treasures of old time music was all about Ola Belle Reed.

And I know you both knew her quite well.

- Ola Belle Reed is a National Heritage Award Winner and International Bluegrass Music Association Award Winner.

But most importantly to us, she's a woman who grew up with traditional music in Lansing, North Carolina.

Moved up North like a lot of people did.

And early on in her career of playing traditional old time music and pre-bluegrass music, she realized that she had her own thing she wanted to say in that style of music and also became an amazing songwriter.

She just really knew how to get to the heart center of something important and sing about it.

Born in the mountains, 50 years ago Climbed these hills and valleys through the rain and snow I've seen the lightning flashing, I've heard the thunder roll I've endured, I've endured How long can one endure Barefoot in the summer, on into the fall Too many mouths to feed, they couldn't clothe us all Sent to church on Sunday to learn the golden rule I've endured, I've endured How long can one endure I've worked for the rich, I've lived with the poor I've seen many heartaches there will be many more I've lived loved and sorrowed, Been through success's door I've endured, I've endured How long can one endure I've endured, I've endured How long can one endure - Paul Brown from New York and Terri McMurray from Wisconsin moved to Surrey county, North Carolina, because of the stellar group of mentors.

People like Tommy Jarrell and Benton Flippen and Luther Davis.

("Shady Glove" playing) That's an old tune that many people have heard "Shady Glove", but quite a different version.

That's from Luther Davis and he was how old, when you- - Well, he was 93 when I met him and that was in 1981, it goes back to before the turn of the 20th Century.

- In fact, many of the people that we both learned from were born in the late 18 hundreds.

And they had a certain... Well, the radio and records didn't influence them.

- Some of them had they'd learned the entire repertoires before the radio was even out there and recordings were unavailable to people, that right.

- So each community often had a very subtle style and change in their styles.

There's a Great fiddler, Tommy Jarrell a lot of the folks will have heard about.

Show us how his style might've differed from this.

- Well, take the old tune called "Pretty Little Girl", which some people also know as "John Brown's Dream".

It's got a bunch of different titles all around the South, but keeps coming back.

He's one of those tunes that just keeps on giving.

Well, Luther Davis played it in this very lilting style.

The way that "Shady Grove" was down at the end of the bow and not too fast and individual notes that you could hear and very almost English or Celtic sounding, you know?

- Yeah.

(violin playing) - We'll it does sound very Irish.

- Yeah, it does.

And so there were several fiddlers around this Southwest Virginia town of Galax who played in that style And they from that generation and before.

- Right.

- It's almost little school the fiddling of itself.

But you asked about Tommy Jarrell just down the mountain, across the North Carolina State line Surry county.

- Big music town.

- Yep.

And there was a little mountain there, which still stands called Round Peak and a small number of people moved somewhere and settled.

And for whatever reason, they were great musicians, a bunch of them.

And they developed a style it's known around the world now.

And it has a lot of syncopation, a little more speed because those folks really love to square dance.

And so Tommy Jarrell would take the same tune and play what he called, "Pretty Little Girl" or "John Brown's Dream".

(violin playing) More syncopated, a little bit more of a roll on a bounce to it.

Perfect for square dancing.

- Perfect for square dancing.

Now, Terri, when you moved into Surry county, there was a lot of music at that time and we were all young at that time.

And is it still happening?

Is it still going on?

- It is.

It faded for a while, but there's a new generation of young people, you know, 20s who are playing, holding music events.

There's jam sessions going on.

And good players.

And they are, they are.

They're different, generation after generation.

- It changes.

- Changes.

But they really playing that Surry county, driving square dance kind of music.

And it's happy music.

- This there's a tune they called the National Anthem of Surry county, which is pretty good, called Sally Ann that Tommy Jarrell used to play.

- He wanted everything in there and within the space of these four resonant strings, melody, rhythm, backup, some percussion and the drone notes that run all the way through it.

And he said, when he was a kid, oftentimes there was no one else to pick with when he was playing.

Maybe one other person.

And there were no guitars.

So he wanted an orchestra in one instrument and you played the banjo on the same night Terri.

- He talked about it the same way in the banjo.

And though he's better known as a fiddler, his banjo playing was amazing.

And complicated of all those players but you could hear that him doing the same things with his banjo as a solo player, basically, yeah.

(violin and banjo playing) - Your mother taught you some of these tunes.

- She was from an old Virginia family and like a lot of folks, they moved up North after starting the civil war.

But she was sent back down south every summer just the way thousands, if not millions of kids from Southern families were.

As soon as school let out, she was in Virginia.

Bedford county, Virginia, and the little community of Goode.

And there was an old plantation house called Bellevue and mom would stay there with some friends with the family.

And there were two African-American musicians.

They were brothers, John and Harry Callaway.

And that's where my mom learned most of the songs that she showed me when I was a kid.

- That's where "Down to Tampa" is from.

- That "Down to Tampa", I'm not sure where it exactly came from, but someone recorded it around 1927, but mom already knew it in 1927.

So she learned it from the Callaway brothers.

So I don't know who made it up, but it's out there.

("Down to Tampa" playing) My mama, she told me when I was nine years old You've got to be a hustler gosh darn your hard luck soul I've got my ticket and I tell you what I think I'll do I'm going down to Tampa, settle down Settle down, settle down, settle down Settle down, settle down, settle down I've got my ticket and I tell you what I think I'll do I'm going down to Tampa, settle down Conductor, conductor Won't you please let me ride your lines You've got to have a ticket, Don't you know this train ain't mine?

I've got my ticket and I tell you what I think I'll do I'm going down to Tampa, settle down Settle down, settle down, settle down Settle down, settle down, settle down I've got my ticket and I tell you what I think I'll do I'm going down to Tampa, settle down Now, yonder goes my darling with a red rag in her hand.

I believe to heaven she's got her another man.

I've got my ticket and I tell you what I think I'll do I'm going down to Tampa, settle down Settle down, settle down, settle down Settle down, settle down, settle down I've got my ticket and I tell you what I think I'll do I'm going down to Tampa, settle down My mama, she told me, and my papa he told me too Don't let no West Virginia woman Make a gosh darn fool outta you I've got my ticket and I tell you what I think I'll do I'm going down to Tampa, settle down Settle down, settle down, settle down Settle down, settle down, settle down I've got my ticket and I tell you what I think I'll do I'm going down to Tampa, settle down I'm going, I'm going, and your crying won't make me stay The more you trouble, The more it'll drive me away I've got my ticket and I tell you what I think I'll do I'm going down to Tampa, settle down Settle down, settle down, settle down Settle down, settle down, settle down I've got my ticket and I tell you what I think I'll do I'm going down to Tampa, settle down (bright music)