Thomas Hampson.  His name keeps coming up, or, better said, I keep bringing it up.  Sometimes it’s at a workshop called “The Roots of American Music” that I like to give at conferences.  Or maybe I’m simply talking with students who, finishing Unit 16 of Discovering Music, are surprised to learn how seriously our American song tradition ranks alongside of European music.  Regardless of the context, I’m so happy to acquaint people with the name of Thomas Hampson, for he has been a key player in the reemergence of American Song.

First and foremost, Thomas Hampson is a great singer.  Born in Elkhart, Indiana in 1955, he grew up in Spokane, Washington.  His big breakthrough came in 1981, when he won the enormously competitive Metropolitan Opera Auditions.  He was taken under the wing of conductor Leonard Bernstein, and made some significant recordings with him.

Hampson has appeared in opera houses all over the world, but in recent years he has turned his energies to homegrown American song repertoire.  He’s been helped in his efforts by the enormous resources of the Library of Congress, which has been preserving America’s cultural treasures since its founding in 1800.

Ah, the Library of Congress.  My favorite place in the world!  If you’ve never taken the tour, put that on the top of the list the next time you’re in Washington, D.C.  But for the moment, I want to tell you about their initiative called “The American Memory Project.”  Born on the wings of the digital revolution, The American Memory Project has placed massive resources in American arts, culture, and history on line for all to consult.

In 1997, Mr. Hampson teamed up with the Library of Congress for a project called “I Hear America Singing.”  Along with Librarian of Congress James Billington, and several archivists, he toured the U.S. giving recitals of American song enhanced by a traveling exhibit of American musical treasures (both manuscript and printed).  In 2005, this marvelous concert came to Texas as part of the Van Cliburn Foundation Concert Series.  We were able to woo the archivists out to our old Decatur Courthouse for a spell-binding program.

And a day or two later, I was thrilled when Mr. Hampson graciously came to the lecture I gave on American song for the Cliburn series.  I’m still weak in the knees remembering what it was like to stand next to Thomas Hampson as his beautiful, booming voice urged the audience to rejoice in the heritage of American song.

Recently, Mr. Hampson launched a fantastic project, the Hampsong Foundation.  Visit this beautiful site to find out virtually anything you want about American song.

Once you hear him sing these American treasures, you’ll never want to be without this music.