Scottish Folk Music - Essay Example

? Scottish Folk Music Scottish music is liked and enjoyed by people all over the world. It is not only played by people who belong to Scottish nationality but by everyone. All along the 20th century, Scottish music has remained very popular. Although traditional music of many different nations lost their essence due to the introduction of pop music, Scottish music retained its essence. Scottish music has also remained popular because of its association with a huge highland bagpipe. This sort of musical instrument has indeed played an important part towards the development of Scottish music. It was introduced in the Scottish music industry many years ago (around the 15th century) and was recognized as a family and professional instrument. It passed on from generation to generation. The bagpipe is used in dances all across Scotland. Also, singing along with the music played from traditional instruments like Harp and bagpipe is also a common practice in Scotland. Some Scottish music is also specific to certain region and hence all in all, Scottish folk music is considered to be very unconventional and diverse. Many different musical instruments are used in playing Scottish music. One such instrument is the accordion which is mostly used by the countryside musicians. The bagpipe is another very popular instrument and it has already been discussed earlier. The Fiddle has been used to create regional music and is said to have evolved over time. It is used for playing cheerful and lively beats. The guitar is considered to be new in Scottish music and the harp, which is treated as an ancient musical instrument. Although Scottish music was never dull enough to be revived, it is said that Scottish music underwent a revival in the 1960s. Scottish singers always had an international following and heavy sales, in 1960s came the innovation to rejuvenate the spirit of the music. In 1970s, the music evolved from being completely a solo affair to being a band. In the 1980’s duos started and a popularity of rock and metal was observed. Ad in the present times, Scottish music is enjoyed in the form of symphonies and operas. Also Jazz is especially liked in Scotland and numerous famous artists have played their part in mingling Jazz with traditional Scottish music. One vocal genre of Scottish music is the Bluegrass music. It is a form of Jazz and is symbolized by tunes called breakdowns. It’s just like the old-time music in which only one instrument would dominate and continue to be played while other instruments would accompany it. Different people from all over the world like Bluegrass music and enjoy it. It is played on traditional acoustic music string instruments. It is also characterized by upright bass and guitar. But apart from instrumentation, the distinguishing aspect of Bluegrass music is the vocals. Inclusion of other musical instruments like accordion, harmonica, drums, harp and electric guitar resulted in an evolution of Bluegrass to Newgrass. Vocals are also done very differently with two, three or four parts. It is done with a deviating sound in the highest voice. This style of music is called ‘high lonesome sound’ The music itself is influenced by the music of African Americans. The orientation of the vocals and its synchronization is called Stack. A stack principally has a background voice, a main lead voice and a tenor voice. However, it is not necessary that one sticks to this sequence while singing a stack especially when female voices are included. The early days of the genre followed this trio type arrangement. Famous vocalists in this field include Alisson Krauss, Howard Watts and Osborne brothers. Blue grass music is enjoyed all over the world because people can easily relate to it; it is actually a narration from the everyday lives of people. This might include their love life, other tensions, unhappiness with changes that were unwelcomed or financial burdens that people face. It ranges from discussing the difficulty of living in areas with lack of financial resources (For example living in Appalachia) to the mountaintop coal mining. It also addresses the transportation industry with special references to the railroad industry. An even greater emphasis has been laid on the weather changes especially rain. Many famous songs have been composed with respect to rain because of its romantic significance. Examples include ‘No place to hide’ and ‘Early morning rain’. Bluegrass can be called a mixture of American, Scottish, German and Irish music. Because if we go back in history and search for the roots of this music, we’ll find out that when different immigrants from different countries settled in the Appallachian region of the United States, they brought along their own music along with them. Black people mixed their own styles into this version of music, giving birth to Blue grass music. Previously this music was only restricted to rural areas where it was played for dancing. As it found its way to the urbanized cities, it gained more popularity and people started following it more eagerly and passionately. After the Second World War Blue grass witnessed its golden era. It was previously played only by the professional musicians but now amateur musicians also started playing their part in it. However, it was too minute to be taken into account and only the professional musicians can be accredited for setting the right time and direction for Blue grass music. Although Bluegrass music is also about narratives and is played at festivals, it cannot be classified as folk music. Many people who have knowledge of folk music also study bluegrass music in depth but that in no way means that the boundary between folk music and bluegrass music can be diminished. The name ‘Bluegrass’ took birth in the 1950s. It was inspired by a band consisting of a group of boys and led by Bill Monroe. From the birth of this type of music till today, the development of Bluegrass music has been divided into three generations. The first generation includes all the musicians of the golden era. The second generation musicians began performing, recording and composing different songs of Bluegrass type therefore making the music reachable to all. Many groups are known to have performed during the second generation. The musicians of the first generation were playing music since a very young age, but second generation musicians deliberately invoked their interest in this field and took it up as a profession. The third generation of Bluegrass music came forward in the 1980s. High quality sound equipment allowed revival and replenishment of blue grass music. It got diversified, broadened and took up several forms. And recently bluegrass music has spread worldwide and is accessible by a variety of people. It is very much heard on live radio stations also. There are many subgenres of Bluegrass music. They are: Traditional Bluegrass, Progressive Bluegrass and neo traditional bluegrass. Works Cited Dabczynski, Andrew, Robert Phillips and Bob Phillips. Fiddlers Philharmonic: Viola. Alfred Music Publishing, 1996. Read More