Frank Hamilton (musician)
Encyclopedia
Frank Hamilton is an American
folk
musician
and co-founder of the Old Town School of Folk Music
in Chicago
, Illinois
. As a performer, he has recorded for Folkways Records
and, as a member of the folk group The Weavers, for Vanguard Records
, as well as for Philips and several other labels and appeared at the first Newport Folk Festival
in 1959. He was the house musician for The Gate of Horn
in Chicago, the nation's first folk music nightclub. He was also a member of The Weavers
in the early 1960s.
As a young man, Hamilton met and played with Woody Guthrie
at Will Geer's
artist colony in Topanga, California
in the mid 1950s. In 1956 Frank Hamilton met Win Stracke
at the Gate of Horn
. Using teaching methods he observed with Bess Lomax in Topanga Canyon, together, Win and Frank founded the Old Town School Of Folk Music in Chicago. There they developed a teaching method with an emphasis on group learning. On the opening night, Frank taught the class a song demonstrated by Big Bill Broonzy
. Frank served as dean of the school and taught there until joining The Weavers
, with whom he played from 1962-1963.
Hamilton continues to teach and perform today with his wife Mary.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
folk
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
and co-founder of the Old Town School of Folk Music
Old Town School of Folk Music
The Old Town School of Folk Music is a Chicago teaching and performing institution that launched the careers of many notable folk music artists...
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. As a performer, he has recorded for Folkways Records
Folkways Records
Folkways Records was a record label founded by Moses Asch that documented folk, world, and children's music. It was acquired by the Smithsonian Institution in 1987, and is now part of Smithsonian Folkways.-History:...
and, as a member of the folk group The Weavers, for Vanguard Records
Vanguard Records
Vanguard Records is a record label set up in 1950 by brothers Maynard and Seymour Solomon in New York. It started as a classical label, but is perhaps best known for its catalogue of recordings by a number of pivotal folk and blues artists from the 1960s; the Bach Guild was a subsidiary...
, as well as for Philips and several other labels and appeared at the first Newport Folk Festival
Newport Folk Festival
The Newport Folk Festival is an American annual folk-oriented music festival in Newport, Rhode Island, which began in 1959 as a counterpart to the previously established Newport Jazz Festival...
in 1959. He was the house musician for The Gate of Horn
Gate of Horn
For writings, including the Greek myth involving a "Gate of horn", see Gates of horn and ivory.The Gate of Horn was a 100-seatfolk music club, located in the basement of the Rice Hotel on the southeast corner of Chicago Avenue and Dearborn Street, on the near north side of Chicago, Illinois, in the...
in Chicago, the nation's first folk music nightclub. He was also a member of The Weavers
The Weavers
The Weavers were an American folk music quartet based in the Greenwich Village area of New York City. They sang traditional folk songs from around the world, as well as blues, gospel music, children's songs, labor songs, and American ballads, and selling millions of records at the height of their...
in the early 1960s.
As a young man, Hamilton met and played with Woody Guthrie
Woody Guthrie
Woodrow Wilson "Woody" Guthrie is best known as an American singer-songwriter and folk musician, whose musical legacy includes hundreds of political, traditional and children's songs, ballads and improvised works. He frequently performed with the slogan This Machine Kills Fascists displayed on his...
at Will Geer's
Will Geer
Will Geer was an American actor and social activist. His original name was William Aughe Ghere. He is remembered for his portrayal of Grandpa Zebulon Tyler Walton in the 1970s TV series, The Waltons....
artist colony in Topanga, California
Topanga, California
Topanga is a census-designated place in western Los Angeles County, California, USA. It is located in the Santa Monica Mountains. Occupying Topanga Canyon, it is often referred to by that name. Topanga is bounded on three sides by State Park or conservancy lands, and on the south by the Pacific...
in the mid 1950s. In 1956 Frank Hamilton met Win Stracke
Win Stracke
Winfred “Win” J. Stracke was an American Folk Musician and Co-Founder of the Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago, Illinois. Stracke was a Chicago fixture in music, theater, and television in the 1940s and was known for his booming bass voice...
at the Gate of Horn
Gate of Horn
For writings, including the Greek myth involving a "Gate of horn", see Gates of horn and ivory.The Gate of Horn was a 100-seatfolk music club, located in the basement of the Rice Hotel on the southeast corner of Chicago Avenue and Dearborn Street, on the near north side of Chicago, Illinois, in the...
. Using teaching methods he observed with Bess Lomax in Topanga Canyon, together, Win and Frank founded the Old Town School Of Folk Music in Chicago. There they developed a teaching method with an emphasis on group learning. On the opening night, Frank taught the class a song demonstrated by Big Bill Broonzy
Big Bill Broonzy
Big Bill Broonzy was a prolific American blues singer, songwriter and guitarist. His career began in the 1920s when he played country blues to mostly black audiences. Through the ‘30s and ‘40s he successfully navigated a transition in style to a more urban blues sound popular with white audiences...
. Frank served as dean of the school and taught there until joining The Weavers
The Weavers
The Weavers were an American folk music quartet based in the Greenwich Village area of New York City. They sang traditional folk songs from around the world, as well as blues, gospel music, children's songs, labor songs, and American ballads, and selling millions of records at the height of their...
, with whom he played from 1962-1963.
Hamilton continues to teach and perform today with his wife Mary.
Discography
- Nonesuch and Other Folk Tunes for Harmonica, Flute, Recorder, Mandolin, Guitar, Banjo, 12-String Guitar, and Voices, Frank Hamilton and Pete SeegerPete SeegerPeter "Pete" Seeger is an American folk singer and was an iconic figure in the mid-twentieth century American folk music revival. A fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s, he also had a string of hit records during the early 1950s as a member of The Weavers, most notably their recording of Lead...
, Folkways Records, 1959. - Frank Hamilton Sings Folk Songs, Folkways Records 1962. FW02437
- The Folk Singer's Folk Singer, Sound in the Room Records
- The World of Frank & Valucha, Frank Hamilton and Valucha deCastroValucha deCastroValucha deCastro was a Brazilian-born singer, songwriter and artist. Born in Brazil's Minas Gerais state, she grew up in Rio de Janeiro. she was one of the first students of Chicago, Illinois's Old Town School of Folk Music and later a teacher of Brazilian folk music there...
, Philips Records, 1962 - Long Lonesome Home, Songlines 1999.
External links
- Frank and Mary's Artist website
- Old Town School - Video clip of Frank Hamilton talking about the Old Town School's teaching method