Apprenticeships in the Folk & Traditional Arts
about this program
Apprenticeships
The Apprenticeship Program connects master artists to skilled apprentices who receive training in a traditional art form. Teaching an apprentice gives the master artist the opportunity to refine his craft and gives the apprentice a chance to learn an art form that they, in turn, can teach others. Apprenticeships breathe life into the traditional arts and foster the continuation of that art form. In 2015 Texas Folklife relaunched this foundational folk and traditional arts program, thanks in part to support from a National Endowment for the Arts Partnership Award with the Texas Commission for the Arts. See below for current year program application and guidelines.
Most recent articles, events, video, audio and blog posts for this page:
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Posted on Wed Jan 28, 2015
I've been writing about conjunto music and sustainability for some time (for example here and here) and most recently have been working on a book project titled Conjunto Music: Sustaining the Texas Tradition, which I am co-authoring with none other than Cristina Ballí. The book is a very timely and necessary study. It will be first examination of contemporary conjunto... -
Posted on Thu Aug 14, 2014
For Chitravina N. Ravikiran (Born 1967), music is not just a vocation; it is intrinsically tied to his family history. Ravikiran's father was a master musician himself, and in his son recognized remarkable musical gifts. As a two year old, he shocked the Indian music community by identifying and rendering 325 ragas (melodic scales) and... -
Posted on Tue Aug 5, 2014Apprenticeship Program: Carnatic Music Vocal Concert On Padams and Javalis, By Seetha Chandrashekhar ( Event )
Vocalist Seetha Chandrashekhar is undertaking Texas Folklife's apprenticeship in the folk & traditional arts program by training with master Carnatic (South Indian) musician and composer Chitravina N. Ravikran, one of Indian music's most inspiring ambassadors. Based in Coppell, TX, Chandrashekhar has been working with Ravikiran on three important features of the Carnatic vocal... -
Posted on Tue Aug 5, 2014
The land for the Karya Siddhi Hanuman Temple is located in the city of Frisco. Frisco is one of the fastest growing cities in the nation and has grown to 100,000 over the last 10 years. The city is home to a diverse group of people and as mentioned by Sri Swamiji in Baton Rouge, the land is situated next to a church, across from a school, and in the heart of a residential area. Sri Swamiji... -
Posted on Mon Aug 4, 2014 Vocalist Seetha Chandrashekhar is undertaking Texas Folklife's apprenticeship in the folk & traditional arts program by training with master Carnatic (South Indian) musician and composer Chitravina N. Ravikran, one of Indian music's most inspiring ambassadors. Based in Coppell, TX, Chandrashekhar has been working with Ravikiran on three important features of the Carnatic vocal...
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Posted on Tue Oct 15, 2013
Texas Folklife, Texas Dance Hall Preservation, Inc., and the Texas Czech Heritage and Cultural Center hosted a small gathering of local cultural leaders interested in developing the next generation of polka musicians and supporters. For seven years Texas Folklife has been producing a state-wide accordion contest, the Big Squeeze, for youth in all genres of Texas traditional music, and polka... -
Posted on Mon Nov 7, 2011
Texas Folklife presents its newest apprenticeship project in West African dance at Houston Community College’s"Movement Evolution: New Traditions in World Dance"Texas Folklife and the World Dance Program at Houston Community College (HCC) announce a not-to-be-missed night of authentic, regional dance performance from Côte d’Ivoire, West Africa featuring three artists taking part in its... -
Posted on Thu Mar 22, 2018
In February 2018, Texas Folklife hosted a discussion at Larry’s French Market & Cajun Restaurant about how the organization can support efforts of the community to encourage youth participation in Cajun traditional music. The community discussion touched on three main topics: the reasons behind decline in youth participation in Cajun music in Southeast Texas; comparisons between... -
Posted on Tue Dec 19, 2017
Enjoy some archival content from Texas Folklife's Apprenticeship Program: Apprenticeship 2011 Julie and Gabriel Bata and Jean-Claude Lessou: West African dance performance Apprenticeship 2010 Kendal Chilcott and Gary Dunshee: Saddle Making and Tooling Apprenticeship 2007 Amulya & Shanti Aradhyula and Smt. Rajeswari Pariti: Carnatic Veena performance Apprenticeship... -
Posted on Tue May 16, 2017Apprenticeships In The Folk & Traditional Arts: Bob Suttie & Charlie, Robbie Bubenik, Czech Polka Accordion ( Article )
As children, Robbie and Charlie Bubenik never went longer than a month without a polka show. Whether with their father, Bob Suttie’s group, Texas Legacy Czech Band, or another polka band, the exposure to this music at an early age curated a deep knowledge of the songs and melodies that typify Texas Czech Polka music. It wouldn’t be long before listening...