Tune in at 12 a.m., Monday, May 20th, and hear the Gypsy Scholar present the 4th installment of the Orphic Essay-with-Soundtrack series, “Beltane / May Day: A Holiday for Pagans & Workers.” Part 4 is a transitional musical essay, moving from the seasonal, pagan May Day (Beltane) to focus on the socio-political, workers May Day, and thus demonstrating its historical roots in the repression of the maypole by the premodern, English (Puritan) church and state, because of both seething paganism and the increasing political character of the maypole festivities of the common people. The second half of this musical essay will introduce the sociological concept of “carnivalesque” to identify the transgressive character of the unruly May Day festivities. Be sure to check out the “Beltane / May Day” webpage, which is dedicated to this musical essay series, at revradiotowerofsong.com.
Program Update: This extended musical essay is now available for listening on the “Archived Musical Essays” webpage, along with the corresponding playlist on the “Program Playlists” webpage, on the Tower of Song website.
