Joe Kinzer

Biography

Joe Kinzer is a faculty member at Utah State University, where he serves as the Community & Oral History Archivist and Curator of the Fife Folklore Archives. Trained as an ethnomusicologist, he studies folklore and cultural expression through music, oral traditions, and everyday narratives. His instruction focuses on oral history, fieldwork, and archival methods, emphasizing community collaboration, ethnographic practice, and the interpretation of archival silences and counternarratives. His work integrates librarianship, research, and public engagement, curating collections and leading oral history projects that explore care, community heritage, and lived experience across the Intermountain West. His broader interests connect these local narratives to comparative traditions of performance and storytelling in a global context.