Folk music

What exactly is folk music? Simple answers that come to me are: folk music is of the folk. It is by and for the people, ordinary people, you and me. After that the answers get more complicated, more qualified.

Folk music is often thought of as basically rural and therefore peasant or country music. But today we also speak of urban folk music and songs. Folk music is said to be music and song which has anonymous authorship and is performed informally, essentially for social employment of the participants. In this sense it can be thought of as being in contrast to concert music, piano, orchestra, violin, etc., major compositions such as symphonies, operas, ballets, instrumental and vocal “recitals” of formally highly developed works.

But there are also, obviously, folk-song and folk-music performers, playing folk music instruments (in solo or in groups), and singing rural and urban songs, topical and love songs, labour songs, songs of sorrow, of celebration of events, of tragedies, of struggle, of defeats and of victories. This could be described as folk music at the “first remove”. For it to be worthy of the designation of true folk music it must be performed either by folk musicians, or by performers who have absorbed and identified themselves with complete honesty as being people’s artists.

In Germany there is generally (I believe) a broader view of the term “Folk Musik” or “Folklied” which doesn’t worry so much about whether the music of the song is composed by a famous musician or poet, or whether it is an anonymous product, rural or city, but just that it is music that people want to identify themselves with, to whistle, hum, and call their own. So for them it can be said that Mozart or Schubert or Brahms may be the composer of a “folklied”, or again a famous poet like Heinrich Heine. Who is to deny that many of today’s topical songs, blues and jazz are not folk music and songs? For me the determining guidelines could be:

1. that it be a relatively simple music or song;

2. that it express or convey honest sentiments – that we can readily identify ourselves with if we are genuine folk;

3. that the music or song not be commercially motivated in its origin (this is not to say that it may or may not be commercially used – or even successful).

4. that it be performed by a capable artist who understands and is able to protect the true meanings of the music and (or) song.

(From “MN”)

Exercises

1. Practise reading the words from the text. Learn their Russian equivalents:

to absorb, anonymous, ballet, designation, folk, genuine, guideline, peasant, rural, violin

2. What do you know about Heinrich Heine?

3. Answer the questions:

1. What differential features of folk music are suggested by the author? Do you agree with this opinion? Why (not)?

2. What’s your attitude towards folk music?

3. Does folk music need popularising considering the stranglehold put by popular music on the listener?