Martha Redbone: Blending Afro-Indigenous Identity and Appalachian Traditions Through Bold Creative Projects
Conversations with Musicians, with Leah Roseman
09/13/25
•75m
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Martha Redbone is acclaimed for her powerful performances as a singer, as well as her prize-winning song-writing, composition and arranging. For over 30 years she’s been in a successful collaboration with her partner Aaron Whitby and we talked about some of their new theatrical projects including Black Mountain Women, The Sex Variants of 1941, and Guardian Spirit: The Words of bell hooks. Throughout this episode you’ll be hearing clips from Martha’s powerful album The Garden of Love which sets the poetry of William Blake to the diverse music of Appalachia, written with Aaron and John McEuen of The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. Many people think of the music, culture and history of Appalachia in terms of the blend of white settlers in the area, but Martha’s family heritage from Harlan County Kentucky includes African American, British, Chickamauga-Cherokee and Mississippi Choctaw. She shared her experiences growing up with her grandparents as part of a coal-mining family, as well as the dramatic changes she has witnessed in Brooklyn over several decades.
In this wide-ranging episode, you’ll also hear Martha’s great advice for self-care, maintaining boundaries and working collaboratively. We started this conversation with Martha’s collaborations with clarinettist Tasha Warren and cellist Dave Eggar and if you missed my interview with Tasha last year it’s linked to this one below.
You can also watch this on my YouTube and I’ve also linked the transcript on my website
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Other episodes you'll love:
Tasha Warren Shakura S’Aida, Chuck Copenace, Jah’Mila, and Vahn Black
photo: Christine Jean Chambers
(00:00) Intro
(02:56) Tasha Warren, Dave Eggar clip Black Mountain Calling
(09:06) Black Mountain Women, clip of A Poison Tree
(13:12) history Black people in Appalachia
(16:06) mixed Black Indigineous family history
(25:00) Carnegie project, The Garden of Love with clip of The Garden of Love
(32:30) John McEuen, David Amram clip of Sleep, Sleep, Beauty Bright
(37:47) telling broader story
(42:47) learning Indigenous culture, Brooklyn
(48:02) other episodes,
(48:53) musical influences (music clip On Another Sorrow)
(54:01) Brooklyn
(58:15) bell hooks
(01:02:59) The Sex Variants of 1941, Stephen Trask, Steve Cosson, LGBTQ+ history
(01:07:53) Aaron Whitby
Previous Episode
Tammy Takaishi is a Board Certified Music Therapist, Podcaster and writer based in New York.
We talked about her podcast Creative Peacemeal, her meaningful and multi-faceted career as a Music Therapist, and her full creative life including her writing. If music therapy is a career you’re curious about, you’ll be inspired by her stories and insights.
As a fellow podcasters, we definitely bonded over our enthusiasm for the medium and the wide range of fascinating, creative people we’ve been able to connect with. I know that fans of Tammy’s podcast will be interested to learn more about her path, personal perspectives and great advice including avoiding burnout.
You can watch this on my YouTube or listen to the podcast; I’ve also linked the transcript to my website
Tammy's podcast Creative Peacemeal
I wanted to let you know about some other episodes I’ve linked directly to this one, with Martha Anne Toll
(00:00) Intro
(01:42) Tammy’s musical childhood, juggling creative pursuits
(08:15) Creative Peacemeal podcast
(14:15) preventing burnout
(16:55) Music Therapy with babies NICU
(22:54) Music Therapy careers and training
(29:53) inspiring stories from life as a Music Therapist
(38:30) other linked episodes and ways to support this podcast
(39:10) music therapy life
(49:52) contrast between Houston
Next Episode
Leif Karlstrom's Volcano Listening Project: A Unique Fusion of Science and Music
September 20, 2025
•62m
Join me in getting to know the fascinating world of Leif Karlstrom, a musician and scientist who combines data sonification in his outstanding collaborative exploration, The Volcano Listening Project. Leif is an Earth scientist at the University of Oregon who studies fluid motions in and on volcanoes and glaciers, landscape evolution, and geodynamics. He’s also a fantastic violinist and mandolin player, composer and improvisor.
The Volcano Listening Project features many great musicians including Billy Contreras, Todd Sickafoose and Laurel Premo. You’ll also hear music from Leif’s fantastic duo Small Town Therapy with Adam Roszkiewicz, from their album Dreams and Circumstances.
Learn how sonification can transform data into a powerful tool for scientific discovery and education and hear about Leif’s adventurous life as both a musician and scientist.
My website takes you to: linked episodes, newsletter sign-up, merch store, Ko-fi page, YouTube and Transcipt!
The Volcano Listening Project album
(00:00) Intro
(02:07) Leif’s family influences, musical background, with clip track 2 Lava dome failure at Soufrière Hills, Montserrat, 2003
(07:37) The Volcano Listening Project upcoming tour, creative collaboration, with clip track 12 Large earthquakes during caldera collapse, Kilauea, 2018
(13:25) Billy Contreras with clip track 4 Mount Saint Helens drumbeat seismicity and eruption, 2004, album art Rachel Sager
(17:09) sonification of the data with clip track1 A walk through fresh tephra
(24:32) memorable experiences in the field with volcanoes
(29:06) instrument collection, 5 string fiddle design
(32:21) Adam Roszkiewicz, with clip Small Town Therapy track 7 from Dreams and Circumstances “33”
(36:45) other episodes linked in the show notes and ways to support this podcast
(37:35) sonification of the data as a scientific tool with clip track 7 Seismic cycles of caldera collapse, Kilauea, 2018
(42:47) Leif’s touring experiences, keeping music in his life, parenting
(50:28) more volcano science with clip track 3 650 years of global explosive eruptions, Stash Wyslouch
(53:50) Adhyaropa records sonification tracks add-on, Laurel Premo with clip track 10 Lightning and the ash plume of Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha-apai, 2022
(57:28) collaborating, Alaska, Todd Sickafoose, Idit Shner, Johnny Rogers, upcoming tour
If you like this episode you’ll love
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