Traditional Arts Indiana

05/15/2026

Join us this evening! Bring a friend and be part of this night

📍 The Orbit Room
🗓 May 15 | ⏰ 6 PM

(Check the comments for the location).

Don’t forget to join us. It’s coming soon!
👇

🎵 Harmonica. Guitar. Stories. Tradition.

Step into an evening with Ray Major, where music and memory come together through polkas, waltzes, and old-time tunes from Southern Indiana.

📍 The Orbit Room
🗓 May 15 | ⏰ 6 PM

Bring a friend and be part of a night where tradition is still alive and played by heart.

05/13/2026

Don’t forget to join us. Only two days left for the event!

👇

🎵 Harmonica. Guitar. Stories. Tradition.

Step into an evening with Ray Major, where music and memory come together through polkas, waltzes, and old-time tunes from Southern Indiana.

📍 The Orbit Room
🗓 May 15 | ⏰ 6 PM

Bring a friend and be part of a night where tradition is still alive and played by heart.

05/07/2026

Don’t forget to join us. It’s coming soon!
👇

🎵 Harmonica. Guitar. Stories. Tradition.

Step into an evening with Ray Major, where music and memory come together through polkas, waltzes, and old-time tunes from Southern Indiana.

📍 The Orbit Room
🗓 May 15 | ⏰ 6 PM

Bring a friend and be part of a night where tradition is still alive and played by heart.

04/05/2026

Traditional Arts Indiana is documenting Easter Sunday with the Chin community at Indiana Lutuv Evangelical Church.

03/02/2026

A century of folklore at Indiana University.
From ballads and folktales to living traditions across Indiana and beyond, IU’s folklore program has shaped generations of scholars and public folklorists.

Traditional Arts Indiana is proud to celebrate FOLK 100 in 2026 as we honor 100 years of graduate training in folklore studies. 🎉🎉

More : https://folklore.indiana.edu/news-events/folk100/index.html

The webpage for our FOLK 100 Initiative is now live! This year, Indiana University marks one-hundred years of graduate training in folklore studies. The Department of Folklore & Ethnomusicology will be honoring this milestone throughout 2026 with a series of special events.

In 1926, six graduate students completed their MA theses under the supervision of renowned IU Distinguished Professor of English and Folklore, Stith Thompson (1885-1976). Their topics included Indiana ballads, African folktales, French Canadians tales and Native American myths. Thompson’s expanded English translation of Antti Aarne’s The Types of the Folktale, first published in 1928, and his momentous Motif-Index of Folk Literature, first published in six volumes in the 1930s and revised by Thompson in the 1950s, continue to be used by folklorists around the world.

You can view the webpage dedicated to FOLK 100 here: https://folklore.indiana.edu/news-events/folk100/index.html or by clicking “News and Events” at the top of our homepage.

02/23/2026

We are happy and proud to share that Traditional Arts Indiana’s former Graduate Assistant and our colleague, Touhidul Islam, presented his Summer 2025 pre-dissertation fieldwork at the 2025 DFE Fellowship Recipients Colloquium at Indiana University, alongside Benjamin Storsved.

Touhid’s research highlighted the rich material culture and lived experiences of the Mru community in Bangladesh, reflecting his deep commitment to community-centered folklore scholarship.

We were excited to learn about his fieldwork journey and hear about his important research.

Congratulations, Touhid. The Traditional Arts Indiana family is proud of you.

02/05/2026

📝 Open for 2026 Applications

The Indiana Heritage Fellowship honors master artists whose lifelong work sustains Indiana’s living traditions. The TAI Apprenticeship Program supports mentorship between master artists and dedicated apprentices.

Apply or nominate by February 16, 2026, at 5:00 PM EST.

🎥 Learn about the program and how to apply**
Watch this video to learn more about TAI’s Apprenticeship and Indiana Heritage Fellowship opportunities and how to apply:
[https://youtu.be/RFuTWBWIXAw] (https://youtu.be/RFuTWBWIXAw)

For nearly three decades, Traditional Arts Indiana has recognized and celebrated Indiana’s rich cultural heritage. TAI documents community traditions, supports master artists, and creates innovative public programs that honor the state’s diverse folk and traditional arts through fieldwork, exhibitions, interviews, and community partnerships.

🌟 Learn more & apply:
traditionalarts.indiana.edu

06/27/2025

Will you join me in supporting Humanities as they work to unlock a matching grant opportunity?

Thanks to a group of generous donors, every gift to the statewide nonprofit will be matched – dollar for dollar up to $15,000 – now until the 4th of July.

Every donation goes straight to work on fueling programs, grants, and storytelling that spark curiosity, connect people, and explore the human experience.

Whether you give $15, $150, or a $1,500, your gift will be doubled. And if you can't give today, you can still help by spreading the word to 15 friends.

Let's unlock this $15,000 match together – donate below!
https://indianahumanities.org/get-involved/donate-today/

11/02/2024

Applications for the Traditional Arts Indiana Apprenticeship Program and nominations for the Indiana Heritage Fellowship are now open!

Deadline: December 2, 2024.

Visit https://traditionalarts.indiana.edu to apply today!

The Indiana Heritage Fellowship Award recognizes traditional artists who have made outstanding contributions to their artistic traditions. Modeled after the National Endowment for the Arts Heritage Fellowships, it honors an individual’s lifetime achievement within an art form rooted in community life in Indiana.

The Traditional Arts Indiana Apprenticeship Program supports the continuation of cultural practices throughout Indiana, enabling apprentices to learn essential knowledge and skills in traditional art forms from master artists.