BrANCA 2022: Pedagogical Possibilities

Had a great time at BrANCA 2022 discussing our new edition of What Katy Did produced in collaboration with our students and the UEA Publishing Project. Here we are! News about this year's edition coming soon!

America Changed Through Music: Harry Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music at 60 - press coverage

America Changed Through Music: Harry Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music at 60 - the one day conference and musical extravaganza that I've been organising along with my UEA colleague Ross Hair - took place yesterday, and we couldn't be more delighted with the way it went. There should be some video of the musical performances available on the official website at some point in the not too distant future.

In the run-up to the conference, we were also delighted with the amount of media coverage that the event, and the 60th anniversary of the Anthology, received. I was interviewed for a great article in the Financial Times, "Where the Weird Things Are", by Richard Clayton, which is available here.

"Where the weird things are"

And last weekend I was in-studio with Cerys Matthews on her BBC 6Music show. The audio of that interview is available below. Huge thanks to everyone who helped those things come together, as well as everyone who came along, spoke or performed on the day itself.

America Changed Through Music: Harry Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music at 60

I'm currently co-organising a one day event to mark the 60th anniversary of Harry Smith's ridiculously seminal Anthology of American Folk Music. The deadline for paper submissions has just ended and we're very excited about the programme of speakers and subjects that's coming together. Above, you can see the original conference artwork by the genius artist and animator Drew Christie. And on the day, we're going to have some free musical performances by modern musicians breathing new life into some of the songs from the Anthology. To find out more please visit the conference website, americachangedthroughmusic.com. September 15th, UEA London - make sure to save the date!

BAAS 2012: Missing Ralph Keeler

(Ralph Keeler, via)

Later today I'm going to be speaking at this year's British Association for American Studies Conference, hosted by the University of Manchester. My paper's entitled: "Missing Ralph Keeler: Mark Twain, William Dean Howells, Thomas Bailey Aldrich, and the life and death of a Literary Vagabond." It's a starting point for a longer article I plan to write over the coming months. And if you want to know a little more about the enigmatic figure of Keeler, you can take a look at my new blog, American Scrapbook.

British Association for American Studies Conference, April 8-11 2010

I'm organizing the international British Association for American Studies Conference 2010, running April 8-11 at the University of East Anglia in the UK. The final programme can be found here, and you can keep up to date with conference news on the School of American Studies blog, Containing Multitudes. Looking forward to meeting everyone!

Elmira 2009: The Sixth International Conference on the State of Mark Twain Studies

I've just got back from Elmira College, host of The Sixth International Conference on the State of Mark Twain Studies, where I delivered the paper: "The Mississippi Was A Virgin Field: Mark Twain and Postbellum River Writings, 1865-1875."

More publication news coming soon.

BAAS 2009: "The Mississippi was a virgin field"

From Edward King's Great South

At this year's British Association for American Studies conference (University of Nottingham, April 16-19) I gave the paper: '"The Mississippi was a virgin field": Mark Twain and Postbellum River Writings, 1865-1876.' The abstract is available here. It's part of my ongoing endeavour to think about Twain's relationship with the Mississippi contextually. I'll be developing these ideas later this year at the Sixth International Conference on the State of Mark Twain Studies at Elmira College, August 6-8 2009. 

On the subject of BAAS, I'm also organising next year's conference at the University of East Anglia, April 8-11 2010. More information is available here.

Signing & Symposium

I'm travelling to the US this week, and whilst there I'll be appearing at two events. First, I'll be attending a book signing for River of Dreams: Imagining the Mississippi Before Mark Twain in St. Louis, co-sponsored by Main Street Books and the Kirkwood Public Library - Thursday 17th July, 7.30pm.

Then, on Sunday 19th July, I'll be giving the keynote address at a symposium on Mark Twain and the Mississippi River at the Mark Twain Boyhood Home & Museum in Hannibal, Missouri. More information is available below - click on the pictures for bigger images.

Conference: Understanding the South

I'll be giving a paper at the forthcoming Understanding the South, Understanding Modern America: The American South in Regional, National and Global Perspectives, hosted by the University of Manchester (May 22-24). You can read an abstract of my paper, "Bring Our Country Back: Country Music, The Southern Strategy and the 1968 Presidential Election", here.

BAAS 2008

At this year's British Association for American Studies Conference, held at Edinburgh University, I'll be speaking about: '"A Colossal White Elephant": New Orleans, the New South, and the Cotton Centennial Exposition, 1884-5.' It's a small part of my larger, ongoing research into New Orleans' social and cultural history.

Conference: 1968, The Year of Living Dangerously

This Sunday, I'll be presenting a paper at the American Studies Network conference at the University of East Anglia: ""Bring Our Country Back": Reaction, Revolution and Country Music, 1968." Above, the Byrds playing at the Grand Ole Opry in 1968.