Mike Seeger

The Banjo Project is a cross-media cultural odyssey: a major television documentary, a live stage/multi-media performance, and a website that chronicle the journey of America’s quintessential instrument—the banjo—from its African roots to the 21st century. It’s a collaboration between Emmy-winning writer-producer Marc Fields and banjo virtuoso Tony Trischka (the Project’s Music Director), one of the most acclaimed acoustic musicians of his generation.

The story of the American music dynasty, the Carters and Cashes, and their decades-long influence on popular music.

In 2009, filmmaker Yasha Aginsky accompanied the great old-time musician Mike Seeger and his wife Alexia on recording trips through the Southeastern United States, documented by Yasha and his assistant, Slava Basovich. A tireless collector, performer and advocate of old-time music and musicians, Mike was on a mission to record a survey of contemporary traditional-style banjo playing.

Mike Seeger teaches traditional American banjo styles. 18 tunes are taught: Molly Dear, Snowdrop, French Waltz, Reuben's Train, Tom Dooley, John Brown's Dream, Backstep Cindy, Old Corn Likker, Marching Jaybird, Soldier's Joy, Needle Case, Baptist Shout and White House Blues

A biographical documentary about the life Hazel Dickens profiling a modern woman dealing with contemporary issues from a feminist perspective that is the product of her experiences being Appalachian, being displaced physically and culturally, being poor and working class, being a woman artist in a man’s world, and being a bearer of tradition.