AIR Workshop: Resurrecting Lost Ballads with Kevin Elam

• Kevin Elam

In this workshop, Kevin will explain how the aspiring folk singer can breathe new life into little-known or previously unrecorded ballads. Such songs can be found in archives, field recordings, or learned through the oral tradition—but regardless, the artist must then make the song his or her own. Words, pitches, and rhythms can be adapted; ornaments and flourishes added; instrumental accompaniment and perhaps even vocal harmonies introduced—all while respecting the tradition and history the ballad carries and striving to understand the often very different world that inspired its conception.

As examples, Kevin will demonstrate his own process of creating two album-ready arrangements: one from a printed folk song collection, and another from a field recording in a digital archive. 

About Strathmore Artist in Residence (AIR) Program

A flagship program of Strathmore's Institute for Artistic and Professional Development, the Artist in Residence (AIR) program was created in 2005 to support artists as they transition to professional careers. Since its inception, the program has mentored 106 musicians ages 16 to 32. Every year, a class of six is chosen after a competitive selection process. Strathmore's AIR benefit from the support of mentor musicians, participate in professional development seminars, and are offered extensive performance opportunities throughout the 10-month program.

About Kevin Elam

Kevin Elam is a multi-instrumentalist and 2019 All-Ireland Champion in Men's Singing. Although he boasts a strong background in classical piano and a degree in jazz studies from George Mason University, Kevin is rooted in Irish traditional music. In addition to playing the tin whistle, guitar, mandolin, and banjo, Kevin has also honed his skills as a singer and interpreter of Irish traditional song. In August of 2019, he was awarded first place in Men's English Singing at the 2019 Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann, held in Drogheda, Ireland, and took home the coveted Dalaigh Shield, an award only won by one other American in its 65-year history.

Over the past several years, Kevin has performed at the Kennedy Center, the National Gallery of Art, and the Library of Congress, as well as at the Washington Folk Fest, Appaloosa Music Festival, and many other festivals in the mid-Atlantic region. Kevin has given classes and workshops on traditional music throughout the Eastern US, including with the prestigious faculty of DC's premiere Irish traditional music camp, MAD Week. In 2020, Kevin received a grant from George Mason University's Young Artist Commissioning Project, and consequently recorded his debut album, If I Were A Small Bird, released in September 2021.