"A Village Churchyard" - Neuland Consort feat. Nathan Bontrager

"A Village Churchyard", originally titled "Mother's Grave", was written by Carson Robison and first recorded by Vernon Dalhart in 1925. By the time Roscoe Holcomb released his version, in 1975, the only similarities one can find are textual. My arrangement uses Holcomb (and also Tim Eriksen's 2001 recording) as a basis for taking it even further afield. I can only speculate as to this melodic transformation over half a century but Ralph Stanley seems to hold the key. As a US American living in Germany, I was delighted to come across this haunting version of Holcomb and the Stanley Brothers singing it live in Bremen in 1966, clearly, to my ears, in the "lining out" style of hymnody common throughout the South for generations:

   • Roscoe Holcomb & The Stanley Brothers...  

Nathan Bontrager - voice
Sofia Diniz, Heike Johanna Lindner, Florian Rynkowski, Carolina Schwäbl-Martins - Viola da gamba
Miriam Shalinksy - Violone

Arranged/composed by Nathan Bontrager

Nathan Bontrager is a multi-instrumentalist and composer active in a variety of genres. His recent work brings together his backgrounds in historical performance practice and traditional folk music.

The Neuland Consort, based in Cologne (DE), is a viola da gamba consort which plays early and new repertoire in equal measure. @neulandconsort

Recorded and mixed by David Rynkowski
Filmed and edited by M.C. Augusto Stahlke