About
- Folk Musical TraditionsThe heterogeneous nature of American culture has consistently worked against the emergence of a single, distinctive style of folk music in the United States. Although much of America's oldest music—the songs and dances of Native tribal groups—was eradicated during the European settlement of the continent, the immigrants and their African slaves brought with them rich troves of traditional song, instrumental music, and dance that were transformed into an array of American folk styles. As Old World expressions met and mingled on American soil, new forms developed through the syncretic process of cross-cultural exchange. For nearly four centuries diversity and the blending of styles have been the twin hallmarks of America's folk music.
- Native American MusicNative American song and dance serve multiple purposes: as prayers, tools for healing, prophecies, lessons, history books, ways to honor achievements, aids to the forces of nature, ways to bind tribes together, genealogical records, gifts, and more. Of course, Native American songs differ from one tribe to another and from one occasion to the next.
Native peoples of the Arctic, Northwest Coast, California, and the American Southwest, for example, had relatively little contact with European influences until the nineteenth century, providing a reasonable glimpse of earlier forms of music. The Siberian Yupik tap accompaniment to their songs on pear-shaped drums with wands. Dancing, which celebrates the wildlife that the tribe relies on for its way of life, joins this tapping. The dancing is a typical bouncing at the knees found in many Native American tribes. - SpiritualsAfrican-American spirituals are overtly religious songs that are believed to have been sung since the days when African-Americans were brought to the New World as slaves. While the word “spiritual” originally referred only to songs sung at religious congregations, as time progressed, they were greatly influenced by African-American slave songs, and as such, the songs of slavery are included in the category of spirituals. Like folktales, spirituals were probably created to help slaves adjust to the conditions they found upon arriving in the New World from Africa, and also to help them come together as a single people despite the fact that they came from different areas of the African continent and thus had different traditions. Also, like folktales, when African Americans tried to get out from under the yoke of slavery, spirituals became instruments of underground rebellion.
- Women in American Folk MusicAs in other genres of music, women have been active in folk music as performers and composers throughout history, although until the 20th century they got little credit for their efforts. This lack of credit has much to do with the ways that folk music is created and performed as well as the secondary place of women in public spheres. This article explores the role of women in folk music and articulates their place in contemporary American folk music performance.
- Mexican Music (Modern Mexico-Chapter 13)In the realm of popular culture, music and dance are very much a part of Mexican daily life. Mexico is home to many folkloric dance traditions that combine the colorful costumes and dances of the indigenous peoples of the region with those brought originally from Spain and later from the United States.
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Credo Reference is an easy-to-use tool for starting research. Gather background information on your topic from hundreds of full-text encyclopedias, dictionaries, thesauri, quotations, and subject-specific titles, as well as 500,000+ images and audio files and over 1,000 videos.
Books
Gullah Spirituals
In Gullah Spirituals musicologist Eric Crawford traces Gullah Geechee songs from their beginnings in West Africa to their height as songs for social change and Black identity in the twentieth century American South. While much has been done to study, preserve, and interpret Gullah culture in the lowcountry and sea islands of South Carolina and Georgia, some traditions like the shouting and rowing songs have been all but forgotten. This work, which focuses primarily on South Carolina's St. Helena Island, illuminates the remarkable history, survival, and influence of spirituals since the earliest recordings in the 1860s. Grounded in an oral tradition with a dynamic and evolving character, spirituals proved equally adaptable for use during social and political unrest and in unlikely circumstances. Most notably, the island's songs were used at the turn of the century to help rally support for the United States' involvement in World War I and to calm racial tensions between black and white soldiers. In the 1960s, civil rights activists adopted spirituals as freedom songs, though many were unaware of their connection to the island. Gullah Spirituals uses fieldwork, personal recordings, and oral interviews to build upon earlier studies and includes an appendix with more than fifty transcriptions of St. Helena spirituals, many no longer performed and more than half derived from Crawford's own transcriptions. Through this work, Crawford hopes to restore the cultural memory lost to time while tracing the long arc and historical significance of the St. Helena spirituals.
Minstrel of the Appalachians
It is said that Bascom Lamar Lunsford would "cross hell on a rotten rail to get a folk song"--his Southern highlands folk-song compilations now constitute one of the largest collections of its kind in the Library of Congress--but he did much more than acquire songs. He preserved and promoted the Appalachian mountain tradition for generations of people, founding in 1928 the Mountain Dance and Folk Festival in Asheville, North Carolina, an annual event that has shaped America's festival movement. Loyal Jones pens a lively biography of a man considered to be Appalachian music royalty. He also includes a "Lunsford Sampler" of ballads, songs, hymns, tales, and anecdotes, plus a discography of his recordings.
Encyclopedia of Native American Music of North America
This book is a one-stop reference resource for the vast variety of musical expressions of the First Peoples' cultures of North America, both past and present. Encyclopedia of Native American Music of North America documents the surprisingly varied musical practices among North America's First Peoples, both historically and in the modern context. It supplies a detailed yet accessible and approachable overview of the substantial contributions and influence of First Peoples that can be appreciated by both native and nonnative audiences, regardless of their familiarity with musical theory. The entries address how ethnomusicologists with Native American heritage are revolutionizing approaches to the discipline, and showcase how musicians with First Peoples' heritage are influencing modern musical forms including native flute, orchestral string playing, gospel, and hip hop. The work represents a much-needed academic study of First Peoples' musical cultures--a subject that is of growing interest to Native Americans as well as nonnative students and readers. Provides print and Internet resources with each entry Presents exclusive information derived from the personal research and fieldwork of the editors Includes a timeline that highlights important developments in First Peoples' musical expressions Supplies an index that allows users to easily look up all of the relevant information on a topic
The Course of Mexican Music
The Course of Mexican Music provides students with a cohesive introductory understanding of the scope and influence of Mexican music. The textbook highlights individual musical examples as a means of exploring the processes of selection that led to specific musical styles in different times and places, with a supporting companion website with audio and video tracks helping to reinforce readers' understanding of key concepts. The aim is for students to learn an exemplary body of music as a window for understanding Mexican music, history and culture in a manner that reveals its importance well beyond the borders of that nation.
Exploring American Folk Music
Exploring American Folk Music: Ethnic, Grassroots, and Regional Traditions in the United States reflects the fascinating diversity of regional and grassroots music in the United States. The book covers the diverse strains of American folk music--Latin, Native American, African, French-Canadian, British, and Cajun--and offers a chronology of the development of folk music in the United States. The book is divided into discrete chapters covering topics as seemingly disparate as sacred harp singing, conjunto music, the folk revival, blues, and ballad singing. It is among the few textbooks in American music that recognizes the importance and contributions of Native Americans as well as those who live, sing, and perform music along our borderlands, from the French speaking citizens in northern Vermont to the extensive Hispanic population living north of the Rio Grande River, recognizing and reflecting the increasing importance of the varied Latino traditions that have informed our folk music since the founding of the United States. Another chapter includes detailed information about the roots of hip hop and this new edition features a new chapter on urban folk music, exploring traditions in our cities, with a case study focusing on Washington, D.C. Exploring American Folk Music also introduces you to such important figures in American music as Bob Wills, Lydia Mendoza, Bob Dylan, and Muddy Waters, who helped shape what America sounds like in the twenty-first century. It also features new sections at the end of each chapter with up-to-date recommendations for "Suggested Listening," "Suggested Reading," and "Suggested Viewing."
Mexican Northern Music
- Films on Demand This link opens in a new window
Corrido, or music of the border, is a popular genre in Mexico. The music is about actual happenings that need to be told about. Los Tigres del Norte performs a song from their Grammy-winning album.
Native American Music & Dance
- Films on Demand This link opens in a new windowNative Americans use music and dance to bring the sacred to life. Highwater compares Native American dance to ballet in European society.
Emerging Folk Scenes
- Films on Demand This link opens in a new windowTom Paxton discusses the impact of Pete Seeger, Woodie Guthrie, Josh White, and Lead Belly. Watch a performance of "To Hear Your Banjo Play;" after World War II, the Weaver's formed but disbanded during McCarthyism. Harry Smith released "Anthology of American Folk Music" in 1952.