American folk artist SAM AMIDON will present Harry Smith’s ‘Anthology of American Folk Music’ on the Live at St Luke's stage. Amidon grew up in a family where Appalachian folk music quite literally formed the soundtrack of his youth. When Smith’s ‘Anthology of American Folk Music’ came out on CD in 1997, as a 16-year-old, Sam received a musical uppercut that would change his life: ‘When I heard old field recordings of fiddlers and singers on the mountain, it was as harsh and strange as an Albert Ayler free jazz album. Suddenly, here were vintage recordings buried under hiss and crackle, with strange accents and weathered voices. It sounded as alien as my first encounter with Ornette Coleman and was part of the same world of exploration.’