River of Song: PressRoom

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MUSIC AND TELEVISION SERIES TAKES THE TECHNOLOGY PLUNGE

WEBSITE INTEGRAL TO PBS AND PRI DOCUMENTARY SERIES -- THE MISSISSIPPI: RIVER OF SONG

Contact: Leah Mahan, Co-Producer at rivsong2@aol.com

Paving the way for the January 1999 public television and radio broadcast of The Mississippi: River of Song, the project producers have launched an interactive Website on PBS Online (www.pbs.org/riverofsong) that plays a key role in this multimedia production. This Smithsonian series explores the richness and vitality of American music at the close of the 20th century through a four-part television series, seven-part radio series, Smithsonian Folkways CD set, and companion book from St. Martin's Press.
Launched on September 17, the Website will be released in phases and includes an overview of the series, broadcast information, featured artists, discographies, audio and video samples, Smithsonian Folklife Festival articles on the regions, a teachers guide and pressroom.

Reflecting and Enhancing the Project

The Website that resulted from the collaboration between RainCastle Communications, Inc. and The River of Song Project reflects the organic quality of both the music that is presented in the series and the Mississippi River country itself.
       RainCastle took its visual design cues from Director/Producer John Junkerman's vision of wanting to tell a story about the living legacy of the American musicians along this mighty river. Using strong earth colors and informal lines together with many photographs of the musicians and the surrounding river country, the Website echoes with the images seen in the video series.
        "The type of music and the forms of community that are at the heart of the project were the perfect kind of content for an interactive Website. The Web is all about community and reaching folks who have specific interests. River of Song is an ideal Website application. It's what the Web is all about." - Michelle Chambers, RainCastle Communications, Inc.
        The RainCastle team wanted to create a Website that enhanced the story being told in the video series and the companion book. Viewers can find bios, pictures, discographies and Web links on each of the musicians featured in the project. The musician information is available from any page in the site and can be viewed by television episode, musician's name and genre of music.
        In November, the site will be updated to include audio and video clips as well as an interactive Teacher's Guide, being developed by MENC: The Music Educators National Conference. The interactive nature and accessibility that the Website provides will make a significant difference as information about the series is disseminated to thousands of schools, and subsequently millions of homes across the country, through several national networks of educators. The geography of the river country is also promoted on the Website by including Smithsonian Folklife Festival articles and Web links about the various states that make up each of the four regions in the video series.

About the Project

The Mississippi: River of Song is a production of Smithsonian Productions, the Filmmakers Collaborative and KajimaVision Productions and is presented on PBS by South Carolina Educational Television. Major funding has been provided by Hitachi, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, PBS and the National Endowment for the Arts. Additional funding provided by the Missouri Division of Tourism, the Southern Humanities Media Fund, the Tennessee Department of Tourism, the Louisiana Office of Tourism, Mississippi River Country and the Adler Foundation. Special thanks to Kajima Corporation.
RainCastle Communications is a full-service, all-media design and marketing studio specializing in corporate and brand identity, annual reports and Websites. To view RainCastle's portfolio, visit www.raincastle.com.