Ooo, hasn't this been debated here once or twice before?? Age and tradition are two different things, I don't believe the age of the music necessarily determines whether it's traditional...

Sure, the string band "tradition" is just a baby, by Old World standards, but lots of the tunes pre-date the string band format of the early 20th century and definitely come out of oral tradition (with fiddles and such-like, isn't that more an "aural" tradition?). And, given that Mark A. listed singers like Texas Gladden and Frank Profitt, he's talking about some music that is not only traditional, but pretty darn old, even by your standards.

However, doesn't the debate get a bit fuzzy when so many "ancient, traditional songs" don't seem to go further back than 200 years... even on your side of the pond?

~ Becky in Tucson