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SHLOMO PESTCOE שלמה פּסטקאָ
* Yummie * Musical Styles * Instruments * Features * News * Contact * Links * * Banjo Roots: Banjo Beginnings * * The Ekonting: A Link to the Banjo's West African Heritage * Please note: This is not a commercial site. I do not sell or appraise musical instruments. Please do not contact me to request that I identify and provide background information on a specific instrument in your possession and/or evaluate its worth. That's a job for an accredited professional appraiser, which I'm not. That said, I'll be glad to answer questions and discuss any subject I present here, so long as that one proviso is respected.
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The Shepard Family
Before the Jacksons, before the Osmonds, and before the Partridge Family, there was The Shepard Family.... The Shepard Family Concert Company was a Massachusetts-based musical performance troupe that was active in the 1880s and '90s. It consisted of Mr. and Mrs. J.M. Shepard and their five very talented children: Kittie, Laura, Lessie, Georgie, and Burtin. In the late 19th century, musical families like the Shepards were popular stage acts. Typically, their programs were variety shows that offered performances of instrumental music, singing, dancing, and even comic sketches. While there's hardly any specific information on The Shepard Family, there are quite a few photos of them. Apparently, they reproduced several group shots in bulk on cabinet cards -- one of most popular photo formats of the period, consisting of an albumen (i.e. an egg white-based photo process) paper print mounted on a piece of cardboard-- and probably sold them as souvenirs at their concerts. One thing is certain about the Shepards, they certainly were talented! Each member of the family was a multi-instrumentalist as well as a singer. Sisters Laura and Lessie appear to have been actresses as well, if not, comediennes. For their programs, The Shepard Family would perform in different configurations: as a choral group, a brass band, and a violin ensemble backed by Mom on the pump reed organ. The Shepard kids also performed as a banjo quintet. (See The 5-String Banjo )
Above is the front and back of a Shepard Family cabinet card from my collection, dated April 4, 1888. What makes this particular CC such a rare treasure it is that on the verso someone handwrote the names of each member of the family and their featured talents! To the best of my research, prior to the
surfacing of this CC, there was no extant documentation on the Shepards. We didn't even know their
first names! In effect, this CC is the Rosetta Stone that will finally allow us to become acquainted
with these exceptional performers. 'Mr. J. M. Shepard, First Violin, Bb Bass
[Horn] & Basso Soolist (sic) [Soloist]. (NOTE: I believe the term "Irish & Dutch
Specialty Artist" may refer to Lessie performing Irish and "Dutch" [German] dialect comedy routines.
It could also mean that she does Irish and German dances and/or songs but I think if that were the
case there would have been a more specific reference.-- SP) -- Shlomo Pestcoe |
* Yummie * Musical Styles * Instruments * Features * News * Contact * Links * * Banjo Roots: Banjo Beginnings ** The Ekonting: A Link to the Banjo's West African Heritage * Please s end mail to info@shlomomusic.com with questions or comments about this web site.Copyright © 2005 Shlomo Pestcoe. All rights reserved. Last modified: 02/01/09
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