Folk music is a broad genre that spans across numerous cultures and regions worldwide. Folk songs commemorate historical events, celebrate cultural traditions, express emotion such as joy, humor, frivolity and willfulness and melancholy to various degrees, while commemorating historical moments or commemorating cultural traditions.
Songs transmitted orally often take on different forms through repeated performances over time, since oral transmission cannot guarantee word-for-word and note-for-note accuracy. This phenomenon is known as folk music revival.
Origins
Traditional folk music is the musical embodiment of a culture’s traditional beliefs, values, and stories. Typically passed down from generation to generation and associated with land through songs about nature or specific events as well as legends and myths, traditional folk music may also be associated with particular times and places and used for celebrations and rituals.
Folk music refers to any genre that does not fall under an exclusive group’s control such as upper class society, but instead has broad popular appeal among a population. This differs from classical music which follows stricter criteria when performing and composing and is usually created by highly trained musicians or composers.
Folk music focuses on traditions within communities rather than individuals, often associated with rural and working-class areas. It can also be identified by simple melodies, lyrics that tell a tale, and easily portable instruments – these characteristics have helped propel its popularity since its revival by the likes of Bob Dylan and Joan Baez in the 1950s. These days you may find folk musicians performing at bars, coffeehouses, Unitarian Universalist Churches, peace demonstrations or house concerts!
Many cultures possess an oral tradition of folk music dating back to village culture in Europe from the 18th to 19th centuries. At that time, industrialization took off rapidly while nationalist movements gained influence across Europe; these changes threatened folk music’s identity, forcing it to reevaluate what constituted its classification while blurring distinctions between art, traditional and popular genres of music.
Political issues have had a considerable influence on what constitutes folk music, such as its use to celebrate Nazi Germany and Soviet Communism through traditional musical forms. This resulted in scholars retreating from studying folk music altogether in favor of more in-depth studies of different bodies of music. Since the early 21st century however, folk music has seen renewed interest due to social and political movements reviving interest in it.
Styles
Folk music refers to traditional songs and tunes passed down from generation to generation within a culture, often featuring instruments like fiddles or guitars that have strong cultural ties to particular regions. You may hear folk music everywhere you travel around the globe! Its origins often lie within rural environments with this form of expression having strong cultural associations within regions.
Folk music tends to be less formal than art or popular music, relying instead on simple melodies and lyrics that tell a story through lyrics that often deal with experiences such as love, loss or death. Folk music serves as a form of community music which unites people together while often serving as a tool for social activism.
Historical folk music transmission was mostly oral; nowadays it tends to be recorded and distributed through mass media such as recordings or radio broadcasting. Folk music’s main characteristic is wide appeal among lower classes; art music, on the other hand, tends to be limited only to an exclusive group of professional musicians.
Though academics may prefer more comprehensive classification schemes such as popular music or art music to describe all forms of musical styles, folk music has retained its place in popular consciousness and everyday usage as an easy shorthand to denote an expansive grouping of genres that would otherwise be hard to distinguish from one another.
Music analysis can be particularly helpful for describing musical traditions from non-Western cultures that are difficult to categorize using Western categories, and has also been adopted by popular movements from 19th-century nationalist composers to left wing cultural revolutionaries in 20th-century society.
Numerous iconic artists have built careers around folk music, from singers such as Woody Guthrie and Bob Dylan to bands like Mumford & Sons. Folk musicians play traditional instruments or write their own songs about personal experiences or those around them; Elliott Smith is an American singer/songwriter whose songs draw heavily upon his early childhood experiences in Brooklyn, New York.
Influences
Folk music draws on elements from traditional, popular, and rock music genres alike; Woody Guthrie and Bob Dylan were two well-known folk singers that made headlines while still part of Rock and Roll scene at one time or another. Have students consider why they may classify these two artists as folk singers and what impact their influence had on the genre as a whole.
Folk music is typically passed down orally, unlike art music which tends to be read and written down. This allows songs to change over time as they are performed more widely while making it more difficult to trace their original author – many folkloric or mythological themes can often be found within these tunes.
Modern folk music often reflects the traditions of its respective community and has therefore become popular worldwide.
Folk music remains widely utilized today, even though academics have increasingly deprecated it as traditional or regional music is increasingly acknowledged. Still, everyday language uses “folk music” extensively as well as for teaching non-specialized or introductory classes.
Canadian immigrant groups frequently study folk music from their native homelands to stay connected to their heritage while creating an identity within Canadian culture. People of Greek descent also often learn songs from their families to perform at coffee houses.
Students should understand that folk music has historically served to bring people of various cultures and regions together through its universal appeal. Minstrels and troubadours traveled throughout Europe singing of love and heroic deeds; then passed along these songs to other communities – similar to how American folk songs are popularly performed today.
Musicians
Folk music has its roots in oral tradition and is passed from generation to generation like folk literature. Songs are typically performed rather than written out; their style and structure may change over time with society changes. While folk music refers to any traditional genre from Europe and America, many types of folk songs focus on specific cultural aspects and relate back to folklore traditions.
Folk musicians typically comprise amateur musicians. This was often true before the mid-20th century, when professional musicians became essential members of folk revival movements that emerged due to social unrest or political agendas.
Traditional folk songs serve to memorialize historical and personal events. For instance, African slaves composed work songs to help them endure the strains of field work before their emancipation, eventually evolving into gospel spirituals and blues songs. Folk songs also celebrate religious festivals through group singing and dance performances.
Folk music differs significantly from classical in that it is generally performed and enjoyed by non-musicians; therefore it has an extremely democratic quality to it. Folk songs aren’t just entertaining; they also teach people about their heritage and history.
Folk musicians frequently perform with banjo, fiddle, accordion or harmonica instruments – instruments popular across cultures and countries – often combined with other instruments for performances. Acoustic guitars may even be found being used during American folk music performances.
One of the earliest artists of this revival movement was The Kingston Trio, formed in 1958. Their success and that of similar groups led to an increase in appreciation of traditional folk music as a genre; further, its reach extended into other musical traditions such as Blues music, Irish tunes, and country-western.
Folk music remains popular globally. Many bands draw upon its traditions to craft unique sounds; Of Monsters and Men is one such group which has achieved such fame by staying true to its roots while adding contemporary themes into their compositions.
Folk music originated from oral tradition within communities or families and generally had rural origins.
Francis James Child and Cecil Sharp were legendary folk musicians of their day who collected songs for future generations to hear, although today this definition is much looser: any song which tells a tale and is played live by amateur musicians can be considered folk music.
Origins
Folk music aims to promote community rather than entertainment or profit. It typically relies on acoustic instruments like guitar, banjo, piano or fiddle (folk word for violin) for accompaniment and uses simple melodies and narrative verse with themes including love, work history and politics as well as themes relating to love, work, history and politics as well as nonsense or satire. Folk music can be an important political force; for example it has advocated peacekeeping, environmental protection, workers rights protection and minority rights issues among other issues; in America folk singers like Leadbelly and Woody Guthrie continue singing their songs about working people, poverty and social injustice which are still being performed today.
Folk musicians were once an attractive form of entertainment, garnering wide acclaim as they roamed villages, camps and living quarters performing folk songs that people came out to hear or pass through. Travellers from other areas or countries would also hear these musicians perform. Folk music’s flexibility makes it adaptable and allows it to evolve or even be reinvented with every group that hears and sings it – making the genre perfect for its time period and audience!
Re-creation is one of the hallmarks of folk music that gives it its unique sound, setting it apart from other genres of music. Folk themes have even crept their way into classical compositions like Antonin Dvorak’s works.
Music of this genre is also highly versatile, readily combining with different genres – an example being the legendary 1960s Laurel Canyon scene that saw folk combined with rock, jazz, world music and psychedelia to great effect – Joni Mitchell, Crosby Stills and Nash all hailing from this timeframe.
Styles
Folk music can be defined in various ways, with one popular definition being traditional music that has not been written down and therefore lacks an identifiable composer. This differs significantly from classical or commercial music genres. Furthermore, this genre often evolves organically through communal re-creation with songs or tunes evolving over time due to accidental or creative modifications by performers.
Folk music was first popularly understood to refer to a group of tunes that originated with the folk revival movement, although its roots go much deeper back. Examples can be found all across the world from traditional Indian music and choral singing a cappellas, to Celtic fiddles and African tribal drumming.
Folk music conjures images of Bob Dylan, Joan Baez or Neil Young when most people think about its creators; however, contemporary musicians also create folk music, with influences being found across genres of music. Their themes tend to focus around personal experiences as well as universal truths or social comment.
Performers of these songs usually employ some form of acoustic instrumentation such as guitar, ukulele, banjo or flute to add authenticity to their sound. Other instruments may include vocals and acoustic percussion.
Leonard Cohen, Joni Mitchell and Buffy Sainte-Marie were among the earliest and best-known folk musicians. More recently, artists like Animal Collective, Joanna Newsom and Bon Iver have expanded upon folk traditions while remaining true to it – one example being Joanna Newsom’s soprano voice floating gently above a harp while creating an entrancing dreamscape filled with poetic metaphors and fantasies on “Sprout and the Bean” from Joanna Newsom’s song.
Adaptations
Folk songs, whether written decades ago or updated to address contemporary issues, remain deeply pertinent today. A modern rendition of an older folk classic such as Blaze Foley’s ‘Clay Pigeons’ — who tragically passed away just months after recording this track celebrating life’s ups and downs — offers another reminder.
Folk music serves as an oral history for its community, preserving their history, beliefs, and customs through storytelling, moral teachings, historical events reenactment and creating a sense of belonging among its listeners. It serves as an oral history repository that keeps family traditions alive while serving to foster identity among its listeners.
Many songs from different regions share similar harmonies while featuring unique tunes that differ based on where they originate, due to various modes available on musical instruments like tetratonic scale (four notes per octave) and pentatonic scale (5 notes per octave). As time progresses, variants of one song develop further becoming part of its tune family.
Folk music has often been employed as part of movements for change or nationalist ideology in modern times. Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy used folk music extensively; similarly civil rights activists in America and trade unionists in Britain employed it.
Contemporary folk musicians utilize an assortment of instruments in their performances, such as an acoustic guitar, banjo, violin or fiddle and other stringed instruments such as mandolin or mandola to perform their art. While some performances remain entirely acoustic others incorporate elements of rock music or other styles into their performances. A new wave of folk artists has reinterpreted older tunes for 21st-century audiences through albums like ‘Songs Without Authors Vol 1’ by artists such as Molly Linen Katy J Pearson Junior Brother Yorkston Thorne Khan Rosa Zajac and Lankum among many others.
Protest songs
Folk songs have long been associated with social and political movements. From Robin Hood ballads to hip hop tunes, folk songs often express an expressed plea for justice or fairness while also rallying the masses against oppressive governmental or corporate power structures.
Though many of these songs may seem outdated by modern standards, they remain effective at raising awareness to important issues. While three-minute tunes won’t change the world overnight, they can help increase consciousness and give voice to those who may otherwise remain voiceless.
Folk music offers songwriters great room for experimentation and creativity. This genre can range from subtle, haunting pieces to boisterous songs that bite, giving musicians plenty of room to express themselves while drawing upon an ancient musical history. Furthermore, while some folk artists may be considered politically conservative or traditionalist; others can be liberal or progressive; this was especially evident during the last “Folk Revival,” when artists like Bob Dylan refocused pop music’s focus onto pertinent current crises.
Although it can be hard to define what makes music “folk”, most agree that any tune which conveys a story or takes a stand on an issue can fall under this genre. Folk music continues to remain popular today among a diverse set of listeners and has left an indelible imprint on our collective cultural memory and lives of its listeners. Nick Noble currently serves as Communications Manager and School Historian for St. Mark’s School (SM Class of 1976) while simultaneously publishing seven books such as Brantwood Camp History and The Town of Southborough History as well as hosting The Folk Revival Show on WICN (Worcester Public Radio).
Recording
Folk music can be difficult to describe; most will agree that you simply know it when you hear it. Yet there are some key characteristics shared among all folk songs: an emphasis on community involvement and storytelling ability as well as political statements or topics of controversy. Harmonies add another dimension that makes the music beautiful and emotionally impactful; these harmonies may come from multiple singers layering their voices or simply by using echo effects with vocal chords for added effect.
Start creating a folk song by crafting its melody. Make sure that its sound complements the lyrics and can easily be sung. Lyrically, folk songs often use vivid images or metaphors to convey their messages about social issues or cultural phenomena.
Many folk musicians are focused on issues related to environmental protection, labor rights, racial equality and sociopolitical issues that impact larger society like poverty and war. Additionally, folk music often forms part of rituals or festivals – for instance choral folk music can bring family and friends closer together at weddings or funerals by performing at these occasions.
If you’re new to folk music, finding and joining a folk session near you is an excellent way to learn an instrument and meet like-minded folkies. Websites such as UKSessions provide useful searches by location; Google will also likely help you locate one near your location – you are bound to find something suitable!