Folk songs... literally..Music of the people.
Varied, but always the same characteristics... Simple...must be remembered and easy to play..many: no training. Tell a story .... some actual events...some stretched. A singable chorus with varied verses (Goodnight Irene tonight... none of us knew the others’ verses... an oral traditon.
Defined mainly by how it’s taught
Simply expresses an emotion in music..the simplest folk song: Nya nya nya
American: carried on underground by Pete Seeger, Woody Guthrie, etc. All but died out in pop music ... 1958.. Kingston Trio: Tom Dooley Gave way to Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, and the protest music of the 60’s.
Some of the meanings are not generally known... Ring Around the Rosie.. The Black Plague…
It’s Roots... always here.. God made it on the 8th day. Shepherd Boy David sang folk music... King Saul Dark Ages and Middle Ages in Europe... wandering minstrels would carry the news, sing it, juice it up. British Isles and America: broadsides were printed with new words. Same tradition in Asia... Musicians were officially hired to juice up the Emperor’s battles and his character. Words and tunes keep changing “communal recreation”.. authors are mainly anonymous...
Folk definition different all over the world.. India: sharp contrast between folk and other. Middle East: very blurred.
Our American tradition is borrowed mainly from Great Britain... England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales... Tube: buskers... carry on the tradition... Samuel Bayard made a study in the 1950’s of American folk music... only 40 or 50 families of tunes... of those: most are of 7.
And......7 categories of American folk music..
- child songs.. Barbara Allen 2)epic... John Henry, Casey Jones
- calendric... Happy Birthday, Jingle Bells
- Work songs.. to build a communal spirit.. slave, cowboy, sailor, railroad,
- Love songs.. Aura Lee … tonight, and a newer version of same tune
- Children’s songs... Pop goes the weasel
- Religious.. fostered in churches without ability to read words or music.
Now: used a great deal to preserve our heritage...
Do Lord Round the Mountain Saints Railroad