2006-2007 Speakers Bureau Catalog
BRUCE BURNSIDE, Chatauqua Character
Bruce Burnside is a professional musician with over 35 years experience.
He is also a student of American musical history, a composer, a playwright,
an amateur herpetologist, a home builder, a bad plumber, winner of a Children's
Music Web Award, father of three, a mediocre dancer, and has no sense of humor.
Address: 85455 Happy Hollow Rd., Bayfield, WI 54814
Phone: 715-779-3317 (home), 715-779-5724 (fax)
E-mail: bburnside@centurytel.net
The Brand New Four Stories of the Civil War
Bruce Burnside's in-character vignets use song and drama to tell the stories of Old Abe, Mobile Bay, Lincoln's freeing the slaves, and a veteran's experience of the Civil War. "Old Abe" relates the story of the mascot of Eau Claire's Company C and how this eagle affected the enemy and Union troops. "Mobile Bay" discusses the life of David Farragut who, orphaned at seven, spent his life in the the Navy. "Mr. Lincoln Done Freed Us" is a family oral history of a recently freed 65-year-old slave. "The Old Veteran's Song" is a reflection about youth and what the country they fought for did for soldiers afterward.
Portable Music: A Century of Fretted Instruments (1850-1950)
While music and musical instruments are products of our society, they also reflect society's history and tell a rich story of bygone eras. Before recordings and radio, bringing music along involved moving a piano or slinging a guitar on your back, depending on your class and culture. Burnside's talk explores the popularity of banjos, guitars, mandolins, and ukuleles. Through musical performance, he will take audiences on a tour of fretted instruments, including the turn-of-the-century, black-influenced dance music and James Reese's black military band, which rocked all the soldiers and countries they played in during World War I.
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