style
The term 'folk' includes both traditional music, and the genre which evolved from it during the 20th century folk revival. The term originated in the 19th century, but is often applied to music far older than that which has been passed on by ear over 100's of years! Most cultures around the world have some form of traditional folk music which is often referred to as 'world music'; this term is often used when referring to music outside of western folk. Folk music rose up in popularity from the 30's and the genre peaked in the 50's-60's with the traditional folk style being reproduced. As a result, folk music has been an influence for much of the singer-songwriter type music being produced, and has also been fused with other genres such as rock and metal to create new sub-genres which carry some of the characteristics of folk music, and sometimes make use of traditional folk instruments such as the bouzouki, penny whistle, fiddle or bodrhan.
Example of world music: Example of traditional folk: Example of 50's-60's folk: (Ali Farka Touré & Toumani Diabaté) (The Bothy Band) (The Dubliners, 1968) (Traditional African folk music)
Example of world music: Example of traditional folk: Example of 50's-60's folk: (Ali Farka Touré & Toumani Diabaté) (The Bothy Band) (The Dubliners, 1968) (Traditional African folk music)
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harmony
Harmony in folk music tends to be fairly simple using mainly 4th and 5th intervals when two melody instruments harmonize together, and the tonic ( l ) and dominant ( V ) chords as the body of the accompaniment to a piece. This has risen from tradition - with chords l and V being recognizable across communities and cultures for hundreds of years. Using these chords, drones are typically used under slow tunes while rhythms are created using them for more upbeat melodies, both these methods of accompaniment are effective in creating an atmosphere suitable for the melody to sit in.
What makes up for the simple chords in folk music, is it's interesting tonality. Folk tunes can be in a major key or minor key, and commonly makes use of parallel modes to switch between the two in a melody. For example, if the melody was in C major, it may be played once in the major key, and then played again using it's parallel C minor. This is done by flattening the 3rd, 6th and 7th degrees of the major scale, or sharpening the same degrees in the minor. Due to the tonic being the same in the two keys, it can be a instant change with no modulation process involved which is relatively simple for the players to carry out but at the same time gives the tune a whole new interesting feel and take for the listeners. The other type of key folk music is frequently played in is modes. Modes are made up of 7 pitches with no sharps or flats. The reason a lot of old folk music is played in modes is because the tunes have been passed down by ear from hundreds of years ago when there was no such thing as a sharpened or flattened note. Folk music therefore continues to be written and played in modes to keep tunes stylistically accurate to the tradition. |
Example of a folk tune based on chord l and V and using drone:
Folk tunes in a mode (Dorian):
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A key feature of folk music is ornamentation. Appoggiaturas, acciaccaturas and rolls (these are all types of fleeting notes played before the main note within melody) are frequently used in melodies, but are usually used as a form of expression by the performer as opposed to being notated (notation of folk music is a really recent practice as tunes are more often than not passed on by ear, meaning any notation is merely a guide) and creates interesting chromatic flashes which give a folky flavor to tunes (due to how common they are they will forever be associated with the genre).
rhythm
Because much of British folk music is based on/is traditional dance music, there are many different types of time signature (and therefore rhythms) to go with each type of tune e.g. jig, reel, air etc. dependent on how fast the dance is meant to be! However, the most common time signatures in folk music are:
6/8 9/8 12/8 2/2 2/4 4/4 Folk tunes can be swung (using triplets) e.g. 1st picture on the right (notation is in 4/4) or straight e.g. 2nd picture on the right (notation is in 3/4) and sometimes both! (when a tune is repeated it is usually for a variation which may change the overall rhythm from straight to swung and vice versa). The tune will be either swung or straight depending on how the player wants the mood of the tune to be depicted. Other variants on a tune outside of the actual melodies note values (however note values can be changed to an extent) are tempo and melody which are typically changed up as the player wishes which keeps a repeated melody interesting. Folk music often uses offbeats in it's accompaniment. The emphasis in a bar tends to stress the offbeats or backbeats. For example, in 4/4 (emphasized beats in bold) '1 2 3 4' and in 2/4 '1 and 2 and'. In other words, the strong beats are felt internally and the weak beats are accented. E.g. 3rd picture on the right shows offbeats in 4/4. This creates a sense of movement, and is commonly used in fast jigs and reels. |
structure
Binary is the most common structure of a folk tune aka AABB. The A section will be one half of the tune and will be repeated, and the B section will be the other half and be repeated. However, because folk music tends to be played by ear, it leaves a lot of room for variations on this structure. A lot of folk tunes will be played one after the other in a set, however each tune will usually be played through a few times with variations on the melody or accompaniment each time!
When folk melodies have traditional lyrics, the verses tend to be long with several instrumentals throughout to break up the stanzas. The lyrics tend to be melancholy and tell tales of hardship filled with raw emotion, similar to those in the blues.
Example of variations on a folk tune: Example of folk song:
When folk melodies have traditional lyrics, the verses tend to be long with several instrumentals throughout to break up the stanzas. The lyrics tend to be melancholy and tell tales of hardship filled with raw emotion, similar to those in the blues.
Example of variations on a folk tune: Example of folk song:
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case study - whiskey in the jar by the dubliners
STYLE:
The Dubliners were an Irish folk band (1962-2012). The band were internationally successful with their lively Irish folk songs, traditional street ballads and instrumentals. Their songs are on the whole in a traditional folk style. 'Whiskey in the jar' is a famous Irish traditional song first recorded in 1967 by the Dubliners. The song has been recorded several times since, but the Dubliners traditional folk version has been the most popular.
The Dubliners were an Irish folk band (1962-2012). The band were internationally successful with their lively Irish folk songs, traditional street ballads and instrumentals. Their songs are on the whole in a traditional folk style. 'Whiskey in the jar' is a famous Irish traditional song first recorded in 1967 by the Dubliners. The song has been recorded several times since, but the Dubliners traditional folk version has been the most popular.
HARMONY
The chords used in 'whiskey in the jar' are C, G, Am and F - it is in the key of C major. These are l, V, Vl (or rather the relative minor of the tonic C) and lV. This is a simple chord progression using the fundamental folk chords l and V, plus the added lV and Vl add harmonic interest to the song. There is a lot of use of ornamentation in the penny whistle and violin parts in the form of appoggiaturas and rolls. There is also use of slides. These are crucial to folk music as they create interest to otherwise simple melodies - this is particularly noticeable in this song. All the parts in the song follow the vocal line. the parts being: violin, banjo, acoustic bass, lead vocals, backing vocals and penny whistle. This is also typical of folk music. There are a few direct harmonies is the choruses though.
RHYTHM
'Whiskey in the jar' is in 4/4 and at a fairly steady pace. The beat is held in the banjo part (though the banjo plays a chordal version of the melody most of the way through) with both beats and offbeats being played. There is also a root position bassline underlying which plays on every beat of every bar. Both of these factors ensure the piece is energetic and has the folky off-beat feel to it. The melody and accompaniment throughout with the same beat and rhythm all the way through also.
STRUCTURE
'Whiskey in the jar' has a typical folk song structure with verses and chorus type phrases. There is a chorus type phrase in the song which is repeated after each verse, however each verse leads straight into the chorus phrase which leads straight into each verse. The structure is as follows:
- Intro (violin 2 bars with irregular timing followed by 1 banjo bar)
- verse 1 + chorus
- verse 2 + chorus
- verse 3 + chorus
- verse 4 + chorus
- verse 5 + chorus
- verse 6 + 2 choruses + 1 chord to finish song
This structure allows for the tale of the song to be put across very well. The lyrics tell the story of a highwayman who is betrayed by a woman after robbing a military official. This is typical of folk music - folk lyrics are all about sharing and passing down stories and often tell tales of hardship and emotion! The song is based around the vocal melody/lyrics and so the fact there is no instrumental sections isn't surprising and is also typical of folk music due to it's story telling nature. Often there are instrumentals in longer songs to help break up the verses, but because this is fairly short song this isn't necessary.
The chords used in 'whiskey in the jar' are C, G, Am and F - it is in the key of C major. These are l, V, Vl (or rather the relative minor of the tonic C) and lV. This is a simple chord progression using the fundamental folk chords l and V, plus the added lV and Vl add harmonic interest to the song. There is a lot of use of ornamentation in the penny whistle and violin parts in the form of appoggiaturas and rolls. There is also use of slides. These are crucial to folk music as they create interest to otherwise simple melodies - this is particularly noticeable in this song. All the parts in the song follow the vocal line. the parts being: violin, banjo, acoustic bass, lead vocals, backing vocals and penny whistle. This is also typical of folk music. There are a few direct harmonies is the choruses though.
RHYTHM
'Whiskey in the jar' is in 4/4 and at a fairly steady pace. The beat is held in the banjo part (though the banjo plays a chordal version of the melody most of the way through) with both beats and offbeats being played. There is also a root position bassline underlying which plays on every beat of every bar. Both of these factors ensure the piece is energetic and has the folky off-beat feel to it. The melody and accompaniment throughout with the same beat and rhythm all the way through also.
STRUCTURE
'Whiskey in the jar' has a typical folk song structure with verses and chorus type phrases. There is a chorus type phrase in the song which is repeated after each verse, however each verse leads straight into the chorus phrase which leads straight into each verse. The structure is as follows:
- Intro (violin 2 bars with irregular timing followed by 1 banjo bar)
- verse 1 + chorus
- verse 2 + chorus
- verse 3 + chorus
- verse 4 + chorus
- verse 5 + chorus
- verse 6 + 2 choruses + 1 chord to finish song
This structure allows for the tale of the song to be put across very well. The lyrics tell the story of a highwayman who is betrayed by a woman after robbing a military official. This is typical of folk music - folk lyrics are all about sharing and passing down stories and often tell tales of hardship and emotion! The song is based around the vocal melody/lyrics and so the fact there is no instrumental sections isn't surprising and is also typical of folk music due to it's story telling nature. Often there are instrumentals in longer songs to help break up the verses, but because this is fairly short song this isn't necessary.