Michael Doucet to receive NEA National Heritage Fellowship
g-l...@satchmo.com
Highest Honor in the Folk and Traditional Arts
Twelve Artists to Receive 2005 NEA National Heritage Fellowships
June 15, 2005
Washington, D.C. - The National Endowment for the Arts today announced
the 2005 recipients of the NEA National Heritage Fellowships, the
country's highest honor in the folk and traditional arts. Twelve
fellowships, which include a one-time award of $20,000 each, are
presented to honorees from eleven states. These awardees were chosen
for their artistic excellence, cultural authenticity, and contributions
to their field. The traditions they represent range from Navajo
weaving, to Hawaiian chanting, and Mexican American paper-cutting to
Cajun fiddling.
Janette Carter, whose parents and Aunt Maybelle made up the Carter
family, widely regarded as the First Family of Country Music, will
receive the Bess Lomax Hawes award for service to the folk and
traditional arts field. The award honors her lifelong advocacy for the
performance and preservation of Appalachian music.
National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Dana Gioia said, "The NEA's
National Heritage Fellowships honor the individuals who preserve
America's folk and traditional arts. These masterful artists and the
cultural legacies they embody are so often overlooked by mainstream
media, that it is a special thrill to give them proper recognition."
For the first time in its 24-year history, an NEA National Heritage
Fellowship goes to an artist, Michael Doucet, who was first recognized
through an NEA-funded apprenticeship grant in 1975 to study with master
Cajun and Zydeco musicians, including Dewey Balfa and Canray Fontenot
who were later recognized as National Heritage Fellows.
2005 NEA National Heritage Fellowship Recipients
Eldrid Skjold Arntzen, Norwegian American rosemaler (Watertown, CT)
Earl Barthé, Decorative building craftsman (New Orleans, LA)
Chuck Brown, African American musical innovator (Brandywine, MD)
Michael Doucet, Cajun fiddler, composer, and band leader (Lafayette,
LA)
Jerry Grcevich, Tamburitza musician, prim player (North Huntingdon, PA)
Grace Henderson Nez, Navajo weaver (Ganado, AZ)
Wanda Jackson, Early country, rockabilly, and gospel singer (Oklahoma
City, OK)
Hermina Albarrán Romero, Paper-cutting artist (San Francisco, CA)
Beyle Schaechter-Gottesman, Yiddish singer, poet, songwriter (Bronx,
NY)
Albertina Walker, Gospel singer (Chicago, IL)
James Ka'upena Wong, Hawaiian chanter (Waianae, HI)
2005 Bess Lomax Hawes Award
Janette Carter, Appalachian musician, advocate (Hiltons, VA)
These honorees join the ranks of previous Heritage Fellows, including
bluesman B.B. King, Irish stepdancer Michael Flatley, cowboy poet Wally
McRae and acclaimed performers Shirley Caesar, Doc Watson, and Bill
Monroe. Since 1982, the Endowment has awarded more than 304 National
Heritage Fellowships. Recipients are nominated, often by members of
their own communities, and then judged by a panel on the basis of their
continuing artistic accomplishments and contributions as practitioners
or teachers. Fellows must be citizens or permanent residents of the
United States or U.S territory.
The 2005 awardees will come to Washington D.C. in September for a
series of events including an awards presentation on Capitol Hill and a
concert at Lisner Auditorium at George Washington University on Friday,
September 23.
The ceremony and related activities are generously supported by Cracker
Barrel Old Country Store of Lebanon, Tennessee.
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