Folk Transmission

Episode #6: Hope for the Future

Hear views on what tradition bearers and musicians hope for the future of their living musical tradition. In this final episode, we’ll reflect on what we’ve learned—not only about Cape Breton’s music community, but about what these findings might mean for other music cultures around the world.

Featured Guests: Margie Beaton,  Mairi Britton, Derrick Cameron, Melody Cameron, Shelly Campbell, Mary Beth Carty, Allan Dewar, Glenn Graham, Howie MacDonald, Rodney MacDonald, Taya MacDonald, Joanne MacIntyre, Kenneth MacKenzie, Joe MacMaster, Boyd MacNeil, Ryan MacNeil, Vincent McDonald, Mac Morin, Bradley Murphy, Adam Young

To learn more, visit www.folktransmission.com

Episode #5: Authenticity

How do musicians balance innovation, authenticity, and respect for tradition in a rapidly changing world? Further explore the impact of today’s technologies and look into how tourism and evolving audiences are also shaping the future of Cape Breton’s traditional music. We’ll also explore the changes musicians say they’re witnessing in the tradition, and the mix of reactions to those shifts, from enthusiasm to concern to simply accepting that change is part of the music’s evolution.

Featured Guests: Andrea Beaton,  Betty Lou Beaton, Kinnon Beaton, Margie Beaton, Derrick Cameron, Melody Cameron,  Shelly Campbell,  Kimberley Fraser, Glenn Graham, Carmen MacArthur, Howie MacDonald, Rodney MacDonald, Joanne MacIntyre, Kenneth MacKenzie, Mac Morin,  Boyd MacNeil, Ryan MacNeil, Adam Young

To learn more, visit www.folktransmission.com.

Episode #4: Preservation 

Technology has become an important tool for cultural preservation — helping protect and share elements of the tradition that might otherwise be difficult to access. This episode focuses on learning more about how other cultural elements including how the Gaelic language and step dance traditions are impacted by technologies. 

Featured Guests: Mairi Britton, Derrick Cameron, Melody Cameron, Mary Jane Lamond,  Carmen  MacArthur,  Emily MacDonald, Joanne MacIntyre, Minnie MacMaster, Bradley Murphy

www.folktransmission.com

Episode #3: Technology’s Impact

How does technology shape and impact the musical community directly today? As access to this music style expands through technology, how do musicians navigate influence, changes, and even the boundaries of tradition? Hear perspectives on both challenges and benefits that come from technology’s use. 

Featured Guests: Margie Beaton, Kimberley Fraser, Glenn Graham,  Rodney MacDonald, Kenneth MacKenzie,  Joe MacMaster, Mac Morin,  Bradley Murphy, Adam Young

To learn more, visit https://www.folktransmission.com/

Episode #2: Learning with Technology

How are Cape Breton Musicians using technology in their musical practice today? From the phone in their pocket to sites like YouTube – musicians of all ages and backgrounds have a diversity of experiences in learning music and cultural traditions. Learn about the evolution of technologies and changing media formats used by musicians and more. ​

Featured Guests: Andrea Beaton, Betty Lou Beaton, Kinnon Beaton, Derrick Cameron, Melody Cameron, Shelly Campbell,  Allan Dewar, Rodney MacDonald,  Kenneth MacKenzie, Joe MacMaster, Mac Morin, Mairi Rankin, Adam Young

To learn more, visit https://www.folktransmission.com/

Welcome to Folk Transmission! This podcast is a research-based limited series that explores how tradition and technology intersect, using the traditional maritime music from Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia Canada as a lens. Contemporary technologies - like internet access and even sites like YouTube - have the ability to help us connect with music and cultures outside of our own. Modern day musicians have access to music globally via the internet, where individuals can share, learn remotely, and promote content within and beyond genres. These technologies have the ability to connect music styles to broader global audiences, in this case making Cape Breton's unique Maritime music styles more accessible and better known to "outsiders."

With a focus on the island’s Scottish-Gaelic musical threads, this limited series explores some big questions: How are traditional musicians using digital tools in a tradition that once relied mainly on in-person learning? Are today’s rapidly changing technologies and digital platforms – from Zoom to YouTube – changing the way music is learned and shared here? And are these tools creating an impact we’re only beginning to see and what does this mean for other musical communities worldwide? 

Featuring interviews from those immersed in Cape Breton’s musical community— musicians, Gaelic singers, step dancers, and many more, you’ll hear their perspectives on learning, practice, community, and the future of Cape Breton music. Throughout this six episode podcast series we’ll explore how globalization and technology are shaping, preserving, and potentially transforming this unique musical tradition.

In this introductory episode, learn about the specifics of the Cape Breton music style, discover the region’s history and explore what it means for a tradition to be living. 

Featured Guests: Shelly Campbell, Derrick Cameron, Melody Cameron, Allan Dewar, Kimberley Fraser, Glenn Graham, Joanne MacIntyre, Howie MacDonald, Kenneth MacKenzie, Boyd MacNeil, Ryan MacNeil, Vincent McDonald, Mac Morin