New Books Network Nancy Newman, "Songs and Sounds of the Anti-Rent Movement in Upstate New York: Including Twenty-Two New Settings of Period Tunes" (SUNY Press, 2025)
Oct 18, 2025
In this engaging discussion, Nancy Newman, a music historian from the University at Albany, delves into the Anti-Rent Movement of the 1840s in Upstate New York. She reveals how tenant farmers used music and poetry to express their resistance against feudal land ownership. Nancy discusses the historical meaning of 'rent,' the legal pressures faced by tenants, and the cultural influences in the movement's lyrics. She highlights the significance of songs as tools for rallying support and shares insights into her collection of period tunes, bringing this rich history to life.
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Music Shaped Political Identity
- Nancy Newman links music, popular culture, and political power to show how songs shaped Anti-Rent identity and action.
- She frames vernacular music as both reflective and constitutive of 19th-century social reform movements.
Origin Story From Old Songs Production
- Newman first encountered the Anti-Rent story through a 2014 Old Songs theater production and then pursued archival research.
- The pandemic sabbatical let her dig into digitized sheet music and newspapers, expanding the project.
Reconstructing A Songbook
- Newman assembled 30 songs from 1839–1846 and matched 22 to period tunes, reconstructing melodies for performers.
- She provides simple settings and MIDI demos to encourage future recordings and performances.
