American Routes
Produced and hosted by Nick Spitzer, who provides an absorbing mix of interviews, documentary features, commentary and music, New Orleans-based American Routes is a nationally distributed radio program usually focusing on individual musicians or particular themes, genres, holidays, events or places.
“In the history of American radio, no series has come close to Nick Spitzer’s American Routes in exploring the many streams of this nation’s music.”
— Nat Hentoff, The Wall Street Journal
Nick Spitzer’s American Routes
A folklorist and professor of anthropology and American studies at Tulane University, Spitzer is steeped in New Orleans Mardi Gras as well as its rural Cajun counterpart, known as the Courir de Mardi Gras. Over the years, he has shared much of his field work documenting not only musical but cultural heritage traditions and living art forms including Mardi Gas Indians, Baby Dolls and other practitioners of Carnival arts. The program’s online archives and playlists are a veritable trove for lovers of roots music and Americana. On AmRoutes.org, search keywords “Carnival” or “Mardi Gras” for special episodes focusing on the music and customs of Mardi Gras. Or click on these links:
MardiGrasTraditions.com
