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Walt Whitman declared,
I hear America singing, the varied carols I hear;
Those of mechanics--each one singing his, as it should
be, blithe and strong;
The carpenter singing his, as he measures his plank
or beam,
The mason singing his, as he makes ready for work,
or leaves off work;
Such voices expressed for Whitman the soul of a nation. He believed America needed "a race of singers and poems differing from all others," because his county was itself the greatest poem awaiting "the gigantic and generous treatment worthy of it."
In my performances of America's popular music from before the Civil War, I entertain and guide my audience into Whitman's sprawling nation. This website describes this, sketching a likeness of the antebellum minstrels' music and my performance of it. It is composed of two sections. The Minstrels' Music tells of the early minstrels and their leading instrument, the antebellum banjo, and includes an annotated bibliography. Daniel Partner's Performance tells of my performances, and me, including song samples, an annotated set list, contact, and booking information.
The historical information given here is not meant to be complete or comprehensive. I am not a scholar or historian; I’m a performer and musician. This website is simply my introduction to you. So I must also introduce the music I play since most people know little about the pioneers of popular culture, their banjo and the music they made. I’ve provided bibliographies for those who want to delve deeper into these fascinating topics.
More than sixty images are found here. Most of them are of sheet music covers from the pre-Civil War era. When you click on any one of these you will find information about that particular piece of music. Click on the picture of me above and see what I mean. With each sheet music image you will find a link to the original lyrics of that piece. Lyrics to at least forty songs are found here. Click here for a note about these lyrics.
On each page you will see a quote from lyrics of a song performed on the minstrel stage. These all refer to the banjo, illustrating the prominent place this instrument held in nineteenth century popular culture. Click on any of these quotes and you will find the information on the quote’s source, complete lyrics of the song, and other information about it.
I'm glad you've come to my web site. I hope to hear from you, and even more to meet you face-to-face and perform for you the music of Whitman's "young fellows, robust, friendly, singing, with open mouths, their strong melodious songs."
Here is Walt Whitman's poem, "I Hear American Singing "