Jean Ruth Ritchie (December 8, 1922 – June 1, 2015) was an American

folk singer Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...

, songwriter, and

Appalachian dulcimer The Appalachian dulcimer (many variant names; see below) is a fretted string instrument of the zither family, typically with three or four strings, originally played in the Appalachian region of the United States. The body extends the length of t ...

player, called by some the "Mother of Folk". In her youth she learned hundreds of

folk songs Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has be ...

in the traditional way (orally, from her family and community), many of which were Appalachian variants of centuries old British and Irish songs, including dozens of

Child Ballads The Child Ballads are 305 traditional ballads from England and Scotland, and their American variants, anthologized by Francis James Child during the second half of the 19th century. Their lyrics and Child's studies of them were published as ...

. In adulthood, she shared these songs with wide audiences, as well as writing some of her own songs using traditional foundations. She is ultimately responsible for the revival of the

, the traditional instrument of her community, which she popularized by playing the instrument on her albums and writing tutorial books. She also spent time collecting folk music in the United States and in Britain and Ireland, in order to research the origins of her family songs and help preserve traditional music. She inspired a wide array of musicians, including

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...

Joan Baez Joan Chandos Baez (, ; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing mo ...

Shirley Collins Shirley Elizabeth Collins MBE (born 5 July 1935) is an English folk singer who was a significant contributor to the British Folk Revival of the 1960s and 1970s. She often performed and recorded with her sister Dolly, whose accompaniment on ...

Joni Mitchell Roberta Joan Mitchell (née Anderson; born November 7, 1943) is a Canadian and American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and painter. As one of the most influential singer-songwriters to emerge from the 1960s folk music circuit, Mitch ...

Emmylou Harris Emmylou Harris (born April 2, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, bandleader, and activist. She is considered one of the leading music artists behind the country rock genre in the 1970s and the Americana (music), Americana genre ...

and

Judy Collins Judith Marjorie Collins (born May 1, 1939) is an American singer-songwriter and musician with a career spanning nearly seven decades. An Academy Awards, Academy Award-nominated documentary director and a Grammy Awards, Grammy Award-winning rec ...

Out of Kentucky

Family

Jean Ritchie was born to Abigail (née Hall) Ritchie (1877–1972) and Balis Wilmar Ritchie (1869–1958) of

Viper Vipers are snakes in the family Viperidae, found in most parts of the world, except for Antarctica, Australia, Hawaii, Madagascar, New Zealand, Ireland, and various other isolated islands. They are venomous and have long (relative to non-vipe ...

, an unincorporated community in Perry County in the

Cumberland Mountains The Cumberland Mountains are a mountain range in the southeastern section of the Appalachian Mountains. They are located in western Virginia, southwestern West Virginia, the eastern edges of Kentucky, and eastern middle Tennessee, including the ...

of southeastern

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

. Along with the Combs family of adjacent Knott County, the Ritchies of Perry County were one of the two "great ballad-singing families" of Kentucky celebrated among folk song scholars. Jean's father Balis had printed up a book of old songs entitled ''Lovers' Melodies'' in 1910 or 1911, which contained the most popular songs in Hindman at that time, including " Jackaro", " Lord Thomas and Fair Ellender", " False Sir John and May Colvin" and " The Lyttle Musgrave". However, Balis preferred playing the Appalachian dulcimer to singing, often singing entire ballads in his head along with his dulcimer playing. In 1917, the folk music collector

Cecil Sharp Cecil James Sharp (22 November 1859 – 23 June 1924) was an English collector of folk songs, folk dances and instrumental music, as well as a lecturer, teacher, composer and musician. He was a key figure in the folk-song revival in England dur ...

collected songs from Jean's older sisters May (1896–1982) and Una (1900–1989), whilst her sister Edna (1910–1997) also learnt the old ballads, much later releasing her own album of traditional songs with dulcimer accompaniment. Most of the Ritchie siblings seemed dedicated to performing and preserving traditional music. Many of the Ritchies attended the

Hindman Settlement School Hindman Settlement School is a settlement school located in Hindman, Kentucky in Knott County, Kentucky, Knott County. Established in 1902, it was the first rural settlement school in America.

, a folk school where students were encouraged to cherish their own backgrounds and where Sharp found many of his songs. It is possible that many of the Ritchies' songs were absorbed from neighbors, relatives, friends, school mates and even books, as well as being passed through the family. The paternal ancestors of the Ritchie family, Alexander Ritchie (1725–1787) and his son James Ritchie Sr. (1757–1818) of

Stewarton Stewarton (,
) is a town in East Ayrshire, Scotland. ...

East Ayrshire East Ayrshire (; ) is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland. It shares borders with Dumfries and Galloway, East Renfrewshire, North Ayrshire, South Ayrshire and South Lanarkshire. The headquarters of the council are located on London Roa ...

, Scotland, emigrated to the United States. James Ritchie Sr. fought in the Revolutionary War in 1776 (including at the

Siege of Yorktown The siege of Yorktown, also known as the Battle of Yorktown and the surrender at Yorktown, was the final battle of the American Revolutionary War. It was won decisively by the Continental Army, led by George Washington, with support from the Ma ...

), and lived in

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

before settling on Carr Creek Lake in what is now Knott County, Kentucky, with his family. When he drowned in the lake in 1818, his family moved back to Virginia except his son Alexander Crockett Ritchie Sr. (1778–1878), Jean Ritchie's great-great-grandfather. Most of the Ritchies later fought on the

Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

side in the Civil War, including Jean's paternal grandfather Justice Austin Ritchie (1834–1899), who was 2nd

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

of Company C of the 13th Kentucky Confederate Cavalry. Alan Lomax wrote that:

They were quiet, thoughtful folks, who went in for ballads, big families and educating their children. Jean's grandmother was a prime mover in the Old Regular Baptist Church, and all the traditional hymn tunes came from her. Jean's Uncle Jason was a lawyer, who remembers the big ballads like " Lord Barnard". Jean's father taught school, printed a newspaper, fitted specs, farmed and sent ten of his fourteen children to college.

Her "uncle" Jason (1860–1959), who was actually her father's cousin, practiced law while owning a farm in Talcum, Knott County, Kentucky. He was the source of several of Jean Ritchie's songs and

narrowly missed meeting him in 1917, stating in his diary that "they couldn't get hold of him".

Early life

As the youngest of 14 siblings, Ritchie was one of ten girls who slept in one room of the farming family's farm house. Ritchie and her family sang for entertainment, but also to accompany their manual work. When the family gathered to sing songs, they chose from a repertoire of over 300 songs including

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' d ...

s, old

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and song of Great Britain and Ireland from the Late Middle Ages until the 19th century. They were widely used across Eur ...

s, and popular songs by composers such as

Stephen Foster Stephen Collins Foster (July 4, 1826January 13, 1864), known as "the father of American music", was an American composer known primarily for his parlour music, parlour and Folk music, folk music during the Romantic music, Romantic period. He wr ...

, which were mostly learnt orally and sung unaccompanied. The Ritchies would sing improvised harmonies to accompany some of their songs, including " Pretty Saro". Ritchie graduated from high school in Viper and enrolled in Cumberland Junior College (now a four-year

University of the Cumberlands The University of the Cumberlands is a private Christian university in Williamsburg, Kentucky, United States. Over 20,000 students are enrolled at the university. History University of the Cumberlands, first called Williamsburg Institute, was f ...

) in

Williamsburg, Kentucky Williamsburg is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Whitley County, on the southeastern border of Kentucky, United States. The population was 5,326 at the 2020 census. Developed along the Cumberland River, the city was founded in ...

, and from there graduated

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States. It was founded in 1776 at the College of William & Mary in Virginia. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences, ...

with a B.A. in

social work Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social wo ...

from the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a Public University, public Land-grant University, land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical ...

in Lexington in 1946. At college she participated in the

glee club A glee club is a musical group or choir group, historically of male voices but also of female or mixed voices, which traditionally specializes in the singing of short songs by trios or quartets. In the late 19th century it was very popular in ...

and

choir A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...

as well as learning the

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

. According to Ritchie, Maud Karpeles later said " itchiecannot be termed a folksinger, because she has been to college," which she took as a compliment. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, she taught in an

elementary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

. Meanwhile, in 1946, whilst still in Kentucky, Ritchie was recorded performing traditional songs with her sisters Edna, Kitty, and Pauline by Mary Elizabeth Barnicle and by

Artus Moser Artus Moser (1894–1992) was an American folklorist, educator and musician who collected hundreds of folk songs in his native Western North Carolina and the Appalachian Mountains. Moser grew up in Swannanoa and served in the First World War. He t ...

New York

After graduating she got a job as a social worker at the

Henry Street Settlement The Henry Street Settlement is a not-for-profit social service agency on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, New York City that provides social services, arts programs and health care services to New Yorkers of all ages. It was founded under the ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, where she taught her Appalachian songs and traditions to local children. This caught the attention of folk singers, scholars, and enthusiasts based in New York, and she befriended

Woody Guthrie Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer, songwriter, and composer widely considered to be one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American Left, A ...

, Oscar Brand,

Pete Seeger Peter Seeger (May 3, 1919 – January 27, 2014) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and social activist. He was a fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s and had a string of hit records in the early 1950s as a member of The Weav ...

, and Alan Lomax. To many, Ritchie represented the ideal traditional musician, due to her rural upbringing, dulcimer playing, and the fact her songs came from within her family. In 1948, Ritchie shared a stage with

The Weavers The Weavers were an American folk music quartet based in the Greenwich Village area of New York City originally consisting of Lee Hays, Pete Seeger, Ronnie Gilbert, and Fred Hellerman. Founded in 1948, the group sang traditional folk songs from ...

, and Betty Sanders at the Spring Fever

Hootenanny A hootenanny is a freewheeling, improvisatory musical event in the United States, often incorporating audience members in performances. It is particularly associated with folk music. Etymology Meanings Hootenanny is an Appalachian colloquialism ...

. By October 1949, she was a regular guest on Oscar Brand's Folksong Festival radio show on

WNYC WNYC is an audio service brand, under the control of New York Public Radio, a non-profit organization. Radio and other audio programming is primarily provided by a pair of nonprofit, noncommercial, public radio stations: WNYC (AM) and WNYC- ...

In 1949 and 1950, she recorded several hours of songs, stories, and oral history for Lomax in New York City. All of Lomax's recordings of Ritchie are available online courtesy of the Lomax Digital Archive. She was recorded extensively for the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

in 1951. By 1951, Ritchie became a full-time singer, folksong collector, and songwriter.

Elektra records Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between the ...

signed her and she released her first album of family songs, '' Singing the Traditional Songs of Her Kentucky Mountain Family'' (1952), which included family versions of such songs as " Gypsum Davy", " The Cuckoo", and " The Little Devils", a song which had particularly fascinated Cecil Sharp when he heard it from Una and Sabrina Ritchie in 1917.

The Fulbright expedition

In 1952, Ritchie was awarded a

Fulbright scholarship The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States cultural exchange programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people ...

to trace the links between American ballads and the songs from England, Scotland, and Ireland. As a song-collector, she began by setting down the 300 songs that she already knew from her mother's knee. Ritchie and her husband, George Pickow, then spent 18 months tape recording, interviewing and photographing singers, including Elizabeth Cronin, Tommy and Sarah Makem, Leo Rowsome, and Seamus Ennis in Ireland; Jeannie Robertson and Jimmy MacBeath in Scotland; and

Harry Cox Harry Fred Cox (27 March 1885 – 6 May 1971), was a Norfolk farmworker and one of the most important singers of traditional English music of the twentieth century, on account of his large repertoire and fine singing style. His music inspire ...

and Bob Roberts in England. When people asked what sort of songs they were looking for, Ritchie would sometimes ask them if they knew Barbara Allen and sing a few verses for them. In 1954, Ritchie released some of the British and Irish recordings on the album ''Field Trip'', side by side with Ritchie family versions of the same songs. A broader selection was issued by Folkways on the two LPs ''Field Trip–England'' (1959) and ''As I Roved Out (Field Trip–Ireland)'' (1960). Some transcriptions and photographs were later published in Ritchie's book ''From Fair to Fair: Folksongs of the British Isles'' (1966). While in Britain, Ritchie sang at concerts for the English Folk Dance and Song Society, including its annual

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London, England. It has a seating capacity of 5,272. Since the hall's opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from many performance genres ...

festival, and presented several

BBC radio BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927. The service provides national radio stations cove ...

programmes, appearing on ''The Ballad-Hunter'' which was presented by her friend Alan Lomax. On one occasion, Maud Karpeles took Ritchie and Pickow to visit

Ralph Vaughan Williams Ralph Vaughan Williams ( ; 12 October 1872– 26 August 1958) was an English composer. His works include operas, ballets, chamber music, secular and religious vocal pieces and orchestral compositions including nine symphonies, written over ...

and his wife Ursula, for whom she sang " Come All Ye Fair and Tender Ladies"; Pickow photographed the four of them together.

Musical achievements

In 1955, Ritchie wrote a book about her family called ''Singing Family of the Cumberlands''. The book documented the role of the family songs in everyday life, such as accompanying everyday tasks on the farm and in the home, or being sung when gathered on the porch in the evening to "sing the moon up." ''Singing Family of the Cumberlands'' is widely regarded as an American classic, and continues to be used in American schools. As well as work songs and ballads, Ritchie knew hymns from the " Old Regular Baptist" church she attended in Jeff, Kentucky. These were sung as "lining out" songs, in a lingering soulful way, including the song "

Amazing Grace "Amazing Grace" is a Christian hymn written in 1772 and published in 1779 by English Anglican clergyman and poet John Newton (1725–1807). It is possibly the most sung and most recorded hymn in the world, and especially popular in the Unit ...

," which she helped popularize. Family versions of "Amazing Grace" and the hymn "Brightest And Best" were released on the 1959 album ''Jean Ritchie Interviews Her Family, With Documentary Recordings''. Ritchie directed and sang at the first

Newport Folk Festival The Newport Folk Festival is an annual American folk-oriented music festival in Newport, Rhode Island, which began in 1959 as a counterpart to the Newport Jazz Festival. The festival was founded by music promoter and Jazz Festival founder Geor ...

in 1959, and served on the first folklore panel for the

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the feder ...

Her album '' Ballads from Her Appalachian Family Tradition'' (1961) compiled many traditional Ritchie family versions of

, including " False Sir John," " Hangman," " Lord Bateman," " Barbary Allen," " There Lived an Old Lord (Two Sisters)," " The Cherry-Tree Carol" and "

Edward Edward is an English male name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortunate; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-S ...

." Her traditional version of "My Dear Companion" ( Roud 411) appeared on the album ''Trio'' recorded by

Linda Ronstadt Linda Maria Ronstadt (born July 15, 1946) is an American singer who has performed and recorded in diverse genres including rock, country, light opera, the Great American Songbook, and Latin music. Ronstadt has earned 11 Grammy Awards, three A ...

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, actress, and philanthropist, known primarily as a country music, country musician. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton's debut album ...

, and

recorded some of Ritchie's traditional songs, "Tender Ladies" and " Pretty Saro," and also used a photograph by George Pickow on the front of her album " Golden Apples of the Sun" (1962). In 1963, Ritchie recorded an album with

Doc Watson Arthel Lane "Doc" Watson (March 3, 1923 – May 29, 2012) was an American guitarist, songwriter, and singer of bluegrass, folk, country, blues, and gospel music. He won seven Grammy awards as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. His ...

entitled ''Jean Ritchie and Doc Watson Live at Folk City'' (1963). The traditional Appalachian song " Shady Grove" was popularized by

after he most likely learnt it from Jean Ritchie, who in turn learned it from her father Balis Ritchie. As folk music became more popular in the 1960s, new political songs overshadowed the traditional ballads. Whilst Ritchie largely stuck to the traditional songs, she wrote and recorded Kentucky-themed songs with wider implications, such as the destruction of the environment by loggers and the strip-mining techniques of coal firms. These songs included "Blue Diamond Mines," "Black Waters," and " The L&N Don't Stop Here Anymore," which

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American singer-songwriter. Most of his music contains themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially songs from the later stages of his career. ...

covered after he heard

June Carter Cash Valerie June Carter Cash (June 23, 1929 – May 15, 2003) was an American country singer and songwriter. A five-time Grammy Award–winner, she was a member of the Carter Family and the second wife of singer Johnny Cash. Prior to her marria ...

sing it. Ritchie had written numerous songs about mining under the pseudonym "'Than Hall," to avoid troubling her non-political mother, and believing they might be better received if attributed to a man. " Nottamun Town" (which Ritchie had learned from her uncle Jason and performed in 1954 on '' Kentucky Mountains Songs'' and in 1965 on ''A Time For Singin'') was covered by

(1964),

Bert Jansch Herbert Jansch (3 November 1943 – 5 October 2011) was a Scottish folk musician and founding member of the band Pentangle (band), Pentangle. He was born in Glasgow and came to prominence in London in the 1960s as an acoustic guitarist and ...

(1966), and

Fairport Convention Fairport Convention are an English British folk rock, folk rock band, formed in 1967 by guitarists Richard Thompson (musician), Richard Thompson and Simon Nicol, bassist Ashley Hutchings and drummer Shaun Frater (with Frater replaced by Marti ...

(1969).

used the tune for his 1963 song " Masters of War" on the album ''

The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan ''The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan'' is the second studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on May 27, 1963, by Columbia Records. Whereas his self-titled debut album ''Bob Dylan'' had contained only two original songs, this a ...

''. From her "uncle" Jason, Ritchie had learned to alter tunes and lyrics from verse to verse and performance to performance, viewing elements of improvisation and variation as a natural part of traditional music. Her versions of family songs and original compositions vary slightly between performances, and she often created new songs by using bits of material from existing ones or adding newly composed verses to flesh out song fragments she recalled from her childhood. Her record '' None but One'' (1977), which won the 1977 critics' award in ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'', introduced her music to a younger audience and secured her place in mainstream folk music. Her 50th anniversary album was ''Mountain Born'' (1995), which features her sons Peter and Jonathan. Ritchie was the subject of the 1996 documentary ''Mountain Born: The Jean Ritchie Story'', which was made for

Kentucky Educational Television Kentucky Educational Television (KET) is a statewide television network serving the U.S. Commonwealth (U.S. state), commonwealth of Kentucky as a member of PBS. It is operated by the Kentucky Authority for Educational Television, an agency of ...

The dulcimer revival

Ritchie is credited with bringing national and international attention to the

as the main initiator of the "dulcimer revival." Distinct from the hammer dulcimer, the Appalachian dulcimer (or "mountain dulcimer") is an intimate indoor instrument with a soft, ethereal sound, probably first played by Appalachian Scotch-Irish immigrants in the early half of the nineteenth century. The Ritchies strummed their dulcimers with a goose-feather quill. Her father Balis (1869–1958) had played the Appalachian dulcimer but forbade his children to touch it. At age five or six, Ritchie defied this prohibition and covertly played the instrument. By the time Balis decided to teach her how to play, Jean was already accustomed to the instrument, so father labeled her as a "natural born musician". By 1949, Jean's dulcimer playing had become a hallmark of her style. After Jean's husband George Pickow made her one as a present, the couple decided there might be a potential market for them. Morris Pickow, Pickow's uncle, set up an instrument workshop for them under the Williamsburg Bridge in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

. At first, they were shipped to New York in an unfinished state by Ritchie's Kentucky relative, Jethro Amburgey, then back to the woodworking instructor at the

. George placed a finish and Jean tuned the dulcimers, and soon they had sold 300 dulcimers. Later, the couple manufactured the dulcimers from start to finish themselves. Ritchie's use of the dulcimer and her tutorial, ''The Dulcimer Book'' (1974), inspired folk revival musicians both in the US and Britain to record songs using the instrument. Because fans kept asking her "Which album has the most dulcimer?", she finally recorded an album called ''The Most Dulcimer'' in 1984, which included the dulcimer on every song.

Personal life and death

Ritchie was married to photographer George Pickow from 1950 until his death in 2010, with whom she had two sons, Peter (1954–) and Jonathan (1958–2020). She lived in Baxter Estates,

, and was inducted into the Long Island Music Hall of Fame in 2008. In early December 2009, Ritchie was hospitalized after suffering a

stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

which impaired her ability to communicate. She recovered to some degree then returned to her home in

Berea, Kentucky Berea ( ) is a List of cities in Kentucky, home rule-class city in Madison County, Kentucky, Madison County, Kentucky, in the United States. The town is best known for its art festivals, historic restaurants and buildings, and as the home to Ber ...

. A friend reported on her 90th birthday, "Jean has been living quietly in Berea for the last few years, in good spirits and well cared for by neighbors and family." She died at home in Berea on June 1, 2015, aged 92.

Discography

* '' Singing the Traditional Songs of Her Kentucky Mountain Family'' (1952) * ''Appalachian Folk Songs: Black-eyed Susie, Goin' to Boston, Lovin' Hanna'' (195–) * ''Kentucky Mountains Songs'' (1954) * ''Field Trip'' (1954) * ''Courting Songs'' (1954) (with Oscar Brand) * ''Shivaree'' (1955) * ''Songs from Kentucky'' (1956) * ''American Folk Tales and Songs'' (1956) * ''Saturday Night and Sunday Too'' (1956) * ''Children's Songs & Games from the Southern Mountains'' (1957) * ''Singing Family of the Cumberlands'' (1957) * ''The Ritchie Family of Kentucky'' (1959) * ''Riddle Me This'' (1959) (with Oscar Brand) * '' Carols for All Seasons'' (1959) * Field Trip – England (1959) * ''British Traditional Ballads in the Southern Mountains, Vol. 1'' Folkways (1960) (Child ballads) * ''British Traditional Ballads in the Southern Mountains, Vol. 2'' Folkways FA 2302 (1960) (Child ballads) * As I Roved Out (Field Trip-Ireland) (1960) * ''Ballads from Her Appalachian Family Tradition'' (1961) * ''Precious Memories'' (1962) * ''The Appalachian Dulcimer: An Instructional Record'' (1964) * ''Jean Ritchie and Doc Watson Live at Folk City'' (1963) * ''A Time For Singing'' (1965) * ''Marching Across the Green Grass & Other American Children's Game Songs'' (1968) * ''Clear Waters Remembered'' (1974) Geordie 101 Lifton, Sarah (1983) ''The Listener's Guide to Folk Music''. Poole: Blandford Press; pp. 96–97 * ''Jean Ritchie At Home'' (1974) Pacific Cascade Records LPL 7026 * '' None But One'' (1977) * ''High Hills and Mountains'' (1979) * Sweet Rivers (1981) June Appal JA 037 (hymns) * ''Christmas Revels. Wassail! Wassail!'' (1982) * ''The Most Dulcimer '' (1984) * ''O Love Is Teasin (1985) * ''Kentucky Christmas, Old and New'' (1987) * ''Childhood Songs'' (1991) * ''Mountain Born'' (1995) * ''Legends of Old Time Music'' (2002, DVD) * ''Ballads'' (2003; vol. 1 and 2 above, issued on a single CD)

Published works

* * * * Ritchie, Jean (1965/1997) ''Folk Songs of the Southern Appalachians'' . The original 1965 edition was issued by Oak Publications, the 1997 expanded version by

University Press of Kentucky The University Press of Kentucky (UPK) is the scholarly publisher for the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and was organized in 1969 as successor to the University of Kentucky Press. The university had sponsored scholarly publication since 1943. In 194 ...

. The task of transcribing Ritchie's sung music into musical notation was carried out (1965) by Melinda Zacuto and Jerry Silverman. * ''Jean Ritchie's Swapping Song Book'' * ''Jean Ritchie's Dulcimer People'' (1975) * * *

Awards and honors

Critics Award in (1977) for her album ''None But One'' * Folk Alliance's Lifetime Achievement (1998) *

National Heritage Fellowship The National Heritage Fellowship is a lifetime honor presented to master folk and traditional artists by the National Endowment for the Arts. Similar to Japan's Living National Treasure award, the Fellowship is the United States government's h ...

(2002) awarded by the

, the highest honor for folk and traditional arts in the United States

Notes

References

External links

* *
Live 1976 recording of Ritchie performing "Nottamun Town" from the Florida Folklife Collection (made available for public use by the State Archives of Florida)

Photographs of Jean Ritchie while artist in residence at UC Santa Cruz in 1978, from the UC Santa Cruz Library's Digital Collections

Videos on Woodsongs Archive
*# 159: She sang and played her dulcimer as sole guest in 2000
84 minutes.
*# 450: Was as one of 3 guests in "Celebration of the Mountain Dulcimer" July 7, 2007
94 minutes.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ritchie, Jean 1922 births 2015 deaths American folk singers Songwriters from Kentucky American women singers American women folklorists American folklorists American women musicologists Appalachian dulcimer players Appalachian culture American folk-song collectors National Heritage Fellowship winners Folk musicians from Kentucky University of Kentucky alumni People from Perry County, Kentucky Elektra Records artists Riverside Records artists Tradition Records artists Musicians from Appalachia People from Port Washington, New York American women songwriters Singers from Kentucky Flying Fish Records artists 21st-century American women