Your Introduction Guide To America’s Popular Folk Music

“Folk Music covers a plethora of different traditional and dance tunes. In this guide, you will find a complete introduction to America’s popular Folk Music. What it is exactly is meant by the term folk music? It is the music produced by folk people. Even if so, it is then what all type of music is included in folk music album. Millions of people all over the world face confusion when it comes to understanding folk music.” says Ruth Thornhill, a commission artist. 

Classical definition of folk music means music that is passed down from one singer or instrumentalist to another. Another term to describe this phenomenon is called as ‘oral transmission’ as there is no written score or guideline what so ever. Remember modern folk music is different that old folk music. During the transmission, there are subtle changes in words, melody or tempo. This is termed as ‘folk process’ which mean that there can be virtually dozens of different versions of a single song. Today, most of song-writer don’t compose song. Their composition is often rooted in the folk communities. Folk music ‘survive’ best in folk communities and when they don’t come in contact with modern popular music. However, it is challenging and folk music performers are usually not ‘professionals’ but they rather play the music to eliminate their own boredom. 

Today, many songs entered the folk repertory in the same way as other popular music did, through published sheet music, traveling shows and or radio broadcasts.

History Of American Folk Music

Finding history of American Folk Music on twitter is impossible, further, its complicated background is not easy to track. To research, you either have to meet folks from the 1950s or mid-1960s or read as many books as you can. During the aforementioned time, ‘folk groups mostly made up of young, college-educated musicians. Most of them with their learning rooted in folk music camps, songbooks or records. For example, group named Kingston Trio had one of the major pop hits with songs like ‘Tom Dooley’. It is based on a real story.

One of the most influential songwriters of early ’60s was a young guitarist. He was from Minnesota and arrived in New York City in 1961. His name as Bob Dylan, and soon he showed to world how contemporary songs could be written that reflect on folk tradition but still reflect on unique events and attitudes of their times.

Later during 1970s and 1980s, folk music arose as individual musicians become interested in particular regional styles. So, at times different immigrant groups, for example, Cajun Music, KlezmerJewish and Tex Mex music become part of folk music. In a nutshell, folk music means different things to different people. Nowadays people attempt to make quality music by carefully using instruments, musical styles, and languages. 

Here list of few entries of folk music: –

1. Abshire, Nathan (1913-1981): He was an accordionist and was born in Louisiana, on June 12, 1913. Abshire was inspired by his parents which played accordion instruments as well. He started playing accordion by age of six. His friend Cajun another recording artist encouraged him to play for dances. Abshire made his first recording t in 1934 for Bluebird, but he came into his own as a recording artist in 1950s and 1960’s. His regional hit was ‘Pine Groves Blues’, a mixture of Cajun and African American Blues Stylings.

What is an Accordion? 

Accordion is one of most commonly used large piano-keyboard instruments. However, you can find entire family of free-reed instruments that have similar background, including piano and button accordions, melodeons and concertinas, etc. All aforementioned instruments are used in folk music. You can use accordion anywhere from dance halls to noisy bars. Most of them are louder than fiddles, mandolins, and banjos. 

Wrapping Up 

Race, class, culture, and sex played important roles in the development of American popular music folk music. Today, the number of folk music listeners is decreasing and so does level of performance. But, in year 2020 there are fresh expectations and plenty of line-ups for roots music. All in all, folk music is unique mixture of culture, geography, style, and technology.