C.A.R.T.S.

John Cephas, Piedmont Blues Musician: Interview
Introduction | Regional Background | Music Sample | Teaching Tools

In February of 1998 CARTS interviewed John Cephas using questions submitted by web site visitors. On this page you'll find a list of contributors, questions asked, John's interview responses.

Like many traditional musicians, John Cephas learned to play guitar and sing within his community and did not earn a living from music until he retired in 1987. Since then he has made several recordings and toured the world with a young harmonica or "harp" player, Phil Wiggins. Cephas & Wiggins perform for many students. Paddy Bowman, Coordinator of the National Task Force on Folk Arts in Education, interviewed John Cephas on February 23, 1998. He was delighted to answer the questions that students from around the United States asked him on CARTS. Following the transcription of his interview are some ideas for student activities. CARTS welcomes students' reactions to the interview, to the suggested activities, or to their own classroom activities related to this musical residency. Many thanks to students, teachers, and John Cephas for contributing to this residency.

We wish to thank the following people and organizations for their excellent contributions to this interview:

We recommend that, in conjunction with their online interviews, students research traditions in their own communities and interview tradition bearers in their own neighborhoods. There are many printed and online resources designed to maximize the learning potential of community-based interviews. For example, the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress distributes a handy publication, Folklife & Fieldwork, by Peter Bartis, (single copies available free by calling 202/707-6590). Many other similar resources may be found throughout CARTS. To help students get the most out of their interviews, we offer the following set of guidelines:

Asking Good Interview Questions

Interviewing people is one of the tools folklorists use to study culture. In addition to having curiosity, a good interviewer needs to be a good listener. Asking questions that produce interesting answers isn't always easy. Lots of questions may be answered with just a simple "yes" or "no" and don't tend to lead to in-depth responses. Try to develop open-ended questions that encourage someone to talk.

Before you ask a question of someone else, ask yourself what information you're really looking for. Are you looking for ways someone's life is similar to or different from your own? How someone performs or creates something? How someone learned or taught something? What someone's childhood, schooling, or occupation were like? How the landscape looks where someone lives? How will you use the answer?

Good interviewers also do some investigating in preparation for their interviews. Take time to study the Artist Profile and brainstorm a list of questions you'd like to ask the artist. Then review your questions and practice by asking them to a friend. Lots of times we don't get the kind of answer we expect and we need to revise our questions, making them easier for the interviewee to understand.

Remember to be polite about what you ask. There's a lot to be learned from others if we take time to ask and to listen.

M.E. Francis - Cashell Elementary School, MD
Phillip Michaels - P&L School, TN
John Thickey & his students - Rochester Elementary School, PA
Megan Roberto - Boyes Elementary School, ID
Dennis Beck and his Art Class - Early County Middle School, GA
Barb Backler - Harmony School, IN

Questions Asked of John by CARTS Visitors:

Do you feel that in order to play the Blues well, you have to play it all the time, in exclusion to other types of music? John's Answer
Do you sometimes wish you had pursued your music career earlier? John's Answer
What are the experiences you had as a child that influenced you to become a musician? Was there a particular person who had a lot of influence on your decision? John's Answer
Tell about a book or two that you've read that you think other people should read. John's Answer
Why do you like to play the guitar? John's Answer
Did you ever write a song yourself? If you did write a song, how did you decide what to write about? John's Answer
Who were your influences when you were learning to play? John's Answer
Why the Blues? John's Answer
Where do you continue to receive inspiration for composing and singing? John's Answer
What other kinds of music do you like to sing or listen to? John's Answer
Why do you like to sing folk ballads? John's Answer
Where did you first learn of John Henry? John's Answer
What kinds of songs did you sing in church as a child? John's Answer
How do you compose a song? John's Answer
What was the first song you composed or sang professionally? John's Answer
What is your most favorite song? John's Answer
Besides your aunt, do you have other family members who sing or play? John's Answer
Are you married? Do you have children? If so, do they like the Blues also? John's Answer
Do you use computer technology? Have you visitited your online CARTS residency? If so, what do you think? John's Answer
Which is your favorite Cephas and Wiggins recording? John's Answer
Do people in other countries know about the Blues? John's Answer
Can you read music? John's Answer

John Cephas' Responses
(Paddy Bowman, Interviewer & Transcriber)

Q1: Do you feel that to play the blues well, you have to play it all the time, in exclusion to other types of music?
With the blues, as with almost any other kind of music, you wouldn't necessarily have to play it all the time, but practice is the most important thing. If you want to specialize in a type of music, if you practice it and you're dedicated to it and you have ambitions to play it, then you would perfect your skills the more that you practice. Now if you play blues, the blues has its own technique, its own feeling, its own emotion, and to play the blues by itself you wouldn't necessarily have to just play blues. Other music is also adapted to blues. Almost all pop music that you hear has some influence from blues. The main thing is practice, in blues or any other kind of music. That is the key to success.