Enjoy a glimpse into the folklife – and the heart – of North Dakota!
TellTale: Dakota Folklife and Stories is a collection of narratives describing the shared personal experiences and lore of life on the North Dakota plains. From stories of blizzards, to the man who climbed atop a windmill to play his accordion, to the fate of Poker Jim – they originate from, and are shaped by, interviews with senior citizens, many of whom are from elder care facilities.
As a special part of the Art for Life Program, which seeks to improve the emotional and physical health of elders through intensive art and artist interaction, these small group interviews take place around shared experiences, culture, and beliefs. The storytelling process of the elders is designed to address loneliness, social isolation, memory loss, and sense of worth. Other interviews were collected from participants of the agency’s Folk and Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program as well as traditionalists identified through fieldwork.
From Germans from Russia folk singers and American Indian storytellers. Watch for new additions!
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TellTale is produced in partnership with Dakota Legacy, elder care and service organizations statewide, and North Dakota Council on the Arts (NDCA). This effort is supported in part by a grant from NDCA, which receives funding from the state legislature and the National Endowment for the Arts.
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Two old friends, Fargo, North Dakota, fiddle player Loy Larson and Bismarck, North Dakota, guitarist John Lardinois sit down together to talk about and play the popular traditional dance tune Red Wing. -
Two old friends, Fargo, North Dakota, fiddle player Loy Larson and Bismarck, North Dakota, guitarist John Lardinois sit down together to talk about and play one of their favorite traditional waltzes Over the Waves.
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John Lardinois, of Bismarck, North Dakota, is not only an accomplished guitarist but also a talented luthier. John shares how he learned this skill as an apprentice under renowned luthier Dan Roberts of Belgrade, Montana. John also tells about the best guitar he owns after being a part of the North Dakota Council on the Arts’ Folk and Traditional Arts Apprenticeship program.
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Fargo, North Dakota fiddle player Loy Larson and Bismarck, North Dakota guitarist John Lardinois reconnect over their love of music and play some of their favorite old tunes together.
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Frank Kuntz of Linton, North Dakota, shares of the healing he and his late brother Leo Kuntz, both Vietnam veterans, felt after working with Nokota horses.
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Frank Kuntz of Linton, North Dakota, has the largest and oldest herd of Nokota horses in the world. Frank shares the history behind this truly unique breed of horse.
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Frank Kuntz shares how he and his late brother Leo Kuntz learned to love horses from a young age, growing up in Emmons County, North Dakota. While horse breaking and racing, the Kuntz family would discover and then fall in love with a different horse breed called Nokota.
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Rural Mandan, North Dakota singer, songwriter, and poet Chuck Suchy discusses the ideas behind his song A Big Small Town, which was a part of the 1990 project “We the People.”
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