English folk 2013

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Folk Music Traditional English Music in the 20 th century - revivals

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Transcript of English folk 2013

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Folk Music

Traditional English Music in the 20th century - revivals

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Suggested Readings ! Broughton S, Ellington, M and Trillo, R (eds.),

World Music, The Rough Guide, vol 1, Africa, Europe and the Middle East (London,1999)

! Cohen, Ronald, Folk Music, the Basics (London, 2006)

! Lifton, Sarah, The Listeners Guide to Folk Music (New York, 1983)

! Lomax, Alan, Folk Song Style and Culture (New Brunswick, 1994)

! Rob Young, Electric Eden, (2010) ! Garland Series on particular area

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Questions

! What is it that constitutes folk music? ! Are there basic similarities across the

geographical areas? ! How and why is it performed? ! How are traditions changing? ! What is the future? ! Connections with popular music and art

music.

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Folk?

! By and for the people - Fortune my Foe Vernacular traditions

! Not composed but organically generated through usage and changing over time

! Sense of place, identity and cultural belonging – national traditions

! Functional concerns – dancing, ballads, lullabies, etc - - Playford’s Dances

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Ravenscroft and Playford 1652

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Big Area of Study ! One of the main branches of ethnomusicology ! Of great interest in early part of 20th century – for

composers of art music – Bartok, Kodaly, Grainger, Grieg etc all collectors of folk music

! In Britain – part played by Cecil Sharp and the English folk song and dance society

! Influence of art music composers Vaughan Williams, Holst, Grainger, Butterworth, Moeran, etc - Berio - Black Black Black

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And Now

! Seen by many as old fashioned, boring, stayed – its role increasingly subsumed by pop music and pop culture – kids know pop songs and no folk songs

! In period before and after war there was considerable emphasis on promoting folk song and dance in schools – radio programmes, recorders, singing together – largely gone

! Folk clubs and revival in 1950s and 60s Folk and Skiffle folks greatest moment.

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Revivals ! There are many influences on ‘folk’ music

and there have been several ‘revivals’ ! 1. Big one in the 1900-30s based on

dance and song collecting. Strong connections with art music – work of Grainger, Holst, Butterworth, Peter Warlock and Vaughan Williams.

! 2. Period after the war of source singers and purists.

! 3. From 60s new generations with new approaches, new songs and connections with pop.

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19th Century

! Folk music collectors – especially in Scotland and Ireland – Robert Burns, Johnson, William Stenhouse, John Glen.

! William Chappell’s ‘English Music of Olden Times.

! Expansion of industrial working class – largely ignored.

! Brass Bands and singing clubs

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Copper family

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Cecil Sharpe ! In 1899 Cecil Sharp by chance saw the

Headington Morris Men outside the Mason’s Arms in Headington Oxford.

! Started his interest in Folk Dance and then song.

! 1900-1930 age of folk collectors – Sharp, Carpales, Grainger, Kennedy.

! English Folk Song and Dance Society. ! Folk Dance into schools. Problems after

Sharp’s death. 1930s.

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Headington Morris Today

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English Folk and Folk Clubs

! Generation of 50s A. L. Lloyd, Ewan McColl, Peegy Seeger, etc

! Source Singers, Harry Cox, Copper family,

! Revival singers – Martin Carthy, Nic Jones, June Tabor - How Pleasant and Delightful - Ian Giles

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A. L. Lloyd – All for me grog 1961

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Instruments

! Violin ! Concertina ! Accordion ! Pipe and Tabor ! Piano ! (not the guitar – which was rare before the

mid 1950s and came from American)

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1950s

! Influence of Alan Lomax, Peggy Seeger and Ewan McColl. Work of Duncan and Peter Kennedy.

! Gritty industrial folk music. ! Only allowing performers to play music at

folk clubs which was ‘native ‘ to them. ! Political and engaged. ! Lead by McColl ! Folk Clubs throughout Engand.

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Ewan McColl

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Early Sixties

! New Younger Generation of folk artists from America.

! Often with radical political views and new songs

! Festivals in America had become quite big and it was more professionalised.

! Some on the edge of commercialism ! E.g. Peter Paul and Mary ! Case of Bob Dylan

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Instrumentalists

! Instrumentalists of 60s and 70s– Jansch, Swarbrick, Renbourn, John Martyn (play excerpt)

! Electric Bands – Steeleye Span, Watersons, Albion Band, Fairport Convention etc.

! Explosion of interests in folk that was fused with early music, electric rock, even Jazz and African music.

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Steeleye Span 1976

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Where are they now

! Essentially they are still around and still record and perform – but as a minority genre within a much bigger pool.

! Many groups have become electrified ! Others have fused with musicians of other

traditions – some stayed ultra regionalist ! Folk Clubs still exist – but again have had

to make room for all sorts of other music clubs (rave, garage, blues. Etc)

! Many big festivals – like pop festivals – e.g. Glastonbury

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New Generation

! In the last few years a new generation of artists have begun to create a new fusion of traditional music and newly composed music in a folk idiom.

! E.g. Catherine Tickell, ! Using amplified acoustic instruments they

address and attract a young audience. ! Often a younger generation of the Fairport

convention/Steelye Span groups.

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Kathryn Tickell

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Celtic Traditions ! British Isles – Scotland (Tweedside), Ireland and

Wales – all have their own regional traditions as do the English regions.

! Continent – French folk traditions based on concept of regionalism

! Britanny especially – but also south and massive central – importance of specific instruments, regional dialects and dance forms

! Irish - modelled on The Chieftains - Folk Road

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Elsewhere

! Tenors of Sardinia, Lanedas of Sicily ! Difference between Northern and

Southern Europe ! However big pan European similarities in

dance forms, ballad styles, modal tunes and instrument types.