Preserving the Blues by Teaching, Documenting & Sharing It

The Blues Heritage & Education Foundation develops programs that keep Gulf Coast blues heritage active and accessible.

Our work combines hands-on education, traditional craftsmanship, music, storytelling, cultural documentation, and community engagement.

Rather than simply preserving the blues as something from the past, BHEF creates opportunities for people to experience the traditions, learn the skills, hear the stories, and carry them forward.

Cigar Box Guitar Heritage & Education Program

Build It. Learn It. Play It. Pass It On.

The cigar box guitar represents the resourcefulness, creativity, and folk traditions deeply connected to American roots music and the blues.

BHEF is developing a hands-on folk arts education program centered on cigar box guitar craftsmanship, history, and music.

Participants will have opportunities to learn about the cultural history of the instrument while experiencing the process of building and playing one themselves.

The program brings together:

• Traditional instrument craftsmanship
• Blues and folk music history
• Hands-on learning
• Basic musical instruction
• Cultural storytelling
• Intergenerational education

BHEF has received a Fiscal Year 2027 Organization Project Grant from the Mississippi Arts Commission to support this initiative.

As part of the program’s development, BHEF leadership is receiving specialized cigar box guitar luthier training before bringing these educational experiences back to the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

Our goal is simple:

Teach the tradition well enough that somebody else can carry it forward.

After the Smoke Clears

Documenting the People Behind the Music

Some of the most important pieces of Gulf Coast blues history have never been written down.

They live in conversations, memories, photographs, performances, neighborhood stories, family histories, old venues, and the people who were there.

After the Smoke Clears is BHEF’s developing cultural storytelling and documentation initiative.

Through recorded conversations, interviews, audio and video storytelling, and community-based reporting, the project is designed to preserve the voices and experiences connected to blues culture on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

The project looks beyond the stage.

We want to document:

• Musicians and performers
• Songwriters and storytellers
• Venues and juke joints
• Churches and neighborhoods
• Promoters, DJs, and cultural workers
• Craftspeople and tradition bearers
• Families and community elders
• The places and experiences that shaped Gulf Coast music

Our purpose is not simply to interview famous people.

It is to preserve the stories that might otherwise disappear.

Blues Heritage Education

Understanding Where the Music Comes From

The blues cannot be fully understood by learning songs alone.

Its story includes history, migration, faith, hardship, celebration, craftsmanship, community, entrepreneurship, and generations of people who created culture with the resources available to them.

BHEF incorporates blues heritage education throughout its programs to help participants understand the people and circumstances behind the music.

Educational activities may include workshops, demonstrations, conversations with tradition bearers, historical interpretation, listening experiences, and community presentations.

The goal is to make blues history approachable, meaningful, and connected to the communities from which it came.

Community Partnerships

BHEF believes cultural preservation works best when communities participate in it.

We seek partnerships with schools, museums, libraries, arts organizations, churches, community organizations, musicians, educators, cultural institutions, and other groups interested in preserving and sharing Mississippi Gulf Coast heritage.

Partnerships may include:

• Hosting workshops
• Providing educational demonstrations
• Presenting cultural programs
• Recording oral histories
• Developing community events
• Connecting students with artists and tradition bearers
• Documenting local music history

Organizations interested in partnering with BHEF are encouraged to contact us.

Bring a BHEF Program to Your Community

Interested in hosting a workshop, educational program, cultural presentation, or partnering with BHEF on a heritage project?