The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #112597 Message #2388221
Posted By: glueman
14-Jul-08 - 03:51 AM
Thread Name: Does it matter what music is called?
Subject: RE: Does it matter what music is called?
You're flapping Jim! Which oral tradition? Who are these common people? What makes them common and why are they no longer able to contribute? I'm not hiding behind language, the proponents of those definitions are - they're wooly terms, comfortable, suggestive certainly but they don't stand up to scrutiny. Medieval song and their singers have nothing to do with 19th century ballads except in the minds of C20th folkies. By using them loosely they've lost the historical high ground and turned themselves into a cult with no more relevance than Mods and Rockers.
These threads are always about the same thing, a rearguard action to stop the word folk being used in an ongoing, creative, contemporary context. There is no legal framework to stop it's use, it's not a trademark so you've lost I'm afraid.