THE MAGAZINE OF FLORIDA HUMANITIES
2022 Board of Directors B. Lester Abberger
TALLAHASSEE
Frank Biafora
ST. PETERSBURG
Kurt Browning
SAN ANTONIO
Peggy Bulger
FORT LAUDERDALE
Reginald Ellis
TALLAHASSEE
Makiba Foster, Secretary
PLANTATION
Maria Goldberg, Vice-Chair
PENSACOLA
Joseph Harbaugh, Previous Past Chair Sue Kim
HOLLYWOOD ORMOND BEACH
George Lange, Treasurer
TAMPA
Thomas Luzier, Chair
SARASOTA
Linda Marcelli
GULFPORT
Janet Snyder Matthews
SARASOTA
Glenda Walters
LYNN HAVEN
Florida Humanities Nashid Madyun
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Stephanie Chill
GRANTS COORDINATOR COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR
Lisa Lennox
DIGITAL MEDIA MANAGER
Lindsey Morrison
GRANTS DIRECTOR
April Myerscough
PROGRAMS COORDINATOR
Brenda O’Hara
CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER
Patricia Putman
ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR
Mara Utterback
MEMBERSHIP COORDINATOR
FORUM Pam Daniel
EDITOR COMMUNICATIONS CONSULTANT
Athena Buell
CONTRIBUTING EDITOR
David Meek
DESIGNER
To advertise in FORUM, contact nmadyun@flahum.org Florida Humanities FORUM/Vol. XLV, No. 1 Spring 2022 © 2022 Florida Humanities The magazine of Florida Humanities 599 Second Street South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701-5005 (727) 873-2000 Website: www.floridahumanities.org Florida Humanities is a nonprofit organization funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities and private contributors. FORUM is published three times a year and distributed to the friends of Florida Humanities and interested Floridians. If you wish to be added to the mailing list, please request so in writing or via the website. Views expressed by contributors to FORUM are not necessarily those of Florida Humanities.
T
here may be a better job for a Florida-fanatic journalist than editing this magazine, but after five months on the job, I can’t think of one. Published by Florida Humanities, the council that helps support legions of deserving organizations across the state, FORUM has been the voice of the humanities in Florida for three decades. Along the way, it’s racked up numerous awards and attracted an exceptional audience of intellectually curious readers who are eager to dive deep into the history and culture that make Florida so fascinating. Anything relating to the humanities anywhere and at any time in this hugely diverse state is fair game for our pages, and that is both an exhilarating and a daunting challenge for an editor. Heeding the storyteller’s adage that narrow is better than broad, we decided to focus on one subject in much of this issue—and what a subject it is. Florida has a rich and exciting musical legacy, from the songs of Indigenous people to the electrifying riffs of some of the world’s greatest rock guitarists. You’ll read about them and many others in this issue. As our stories came in, we found ourselves taking guilty breaks from editing to listen to the mesmerizing music and artists our writers were describing. I came to appreciate more than ever the magnetic power of music— as well as its ability to provoke controversy. In a brash moment, we’d decided to pick the 16 G.O.A.T. Florida musicians and asked artist Regan Dunnick to illustrate our choices. Several of our writers helped make the final picks, and when a few previewed the list on social media, along with all the “likes,” a flurry of outraged objections and alternate suggestions popped up. (Let me know your reaction to our All-Star picks, pages 28 to 29, by emailing me at pdaniel@flahum.org.) Working on my first issue of FORUM has stretched my musical horizons, deepened my understanding of our state, and been pure, unmitigated joy. I hope you have a similar reaction to reading it.
Pam Daniel We would like to acknowledge the generous support of the National Endowment for the Humanities and the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Arts and Culture and the Florida Council on Arts and Culture. 4 F O R U M F L O R I D A H U M A N I T I E S
PHOTO BY GIGI ORTWEIN
SARASOTA
Olympia Duhart
Janet Scherberger
Sound Check
FERNANDINA BEACH
Dan Denton
Lashonda Curry
Letter from the Editor
