The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #119547 Message #2593550
Posted By: GUEST,TJ in San Diego
20-Mar-09 - 03:52 PM
Thread Name: 1954 and All That - defining folk music
Subject: RE: 1954 and All That - defining folk music
For better or worse, the "Ellis Island Syndrome" has its way with music in much the same way it did with people whose names were altered when they arrived here. We have, in this country (US) and, I'm sure, elsewhere a tendency to make things more understandable by filtering them through our peculiar experiences and expectations. When a piece of music gets to us from abroad, the language may seem stilted or difficult to manage for whatever reason, so we amend it to fit our needs. Sometimes it improves, sometimes it bastardizes, but, it is certainly effective. I suppose that this is a part of what we call the "folk process" too.
On another front, take any song with which you have enjoyed success and which you are repeatedly asked to perform. How many times have you varied the song if for no other reason than avoiding boredom?