I feel one has to integrate knowledge about the inhabitants and the types of music they were and may have experienced with what we have of their music, if you are going to pull off a respectful presentation of music of a certain locale during a certain period.

That's why you should know things like literacy rates, access to education, the state of the transport and mail systems, whether there was a local newspaper or a nearby bookstore, work rhythms, climate, etc. to help you decide what kind of repertoire your person would likely know and perform. Age, gender, race, ethnicity, religion, and class would all affect what you might or might not sing.

If you lived in or close to Toronto, you might have access to the theaters, or perhaps outdoor concerts, or music in taverns, hotels, brothels, or on the streets from street musicians, serenaders, and military parades. You probably would know the latest songs as sung in the theaters or available at music stores, bookstores, or news depots. Some of the recent literature would be American Civil War songs, or pieces from British music hall, but you might only integrate a few new songs into your own repertoire.

Someone in the rural areas would probably not have the same diversity of sources from which to learn songs, but that does not mean that one could not have a large collection of songs that one knew. Family and friends might sing as they worked, or after the day's labor was over. Impromptu celebrations, harvest festivals, quilting bees, barn-raisings, sleighing parties, etc., could all provide opportunities for musical entertainment and for sharing knowledge. Newspapers might provide lyrics in the "poetry corners" and so might journals and magazines. A few might even print scores of songs and dances on their pages, as _Godey's_ did on occasion. Periodicals would also have ads which told one where they could buy or order music. A general store might carry some music, or perhaps broadsides or songsters. People visiting towns and cities also might be sources of songs.

The most common instrument was the human voice, but obviously certain instruments were favored as accompaniments to singing or in the performing of arrangements of songs. Again, class, gender, ethnicity, wealth, and age would influence which instruments an individual would likely own. A young, middle- or upper-class young woman or man might accompany themselves with a piano, reed organ, or Spanish guitar (smaller and shaped differently than the "modern" acoustic guitar and probably using fingerstyle technique). Young men would also be likely to learn the violin/fiddle or flute (probably with 1-8 keys). Fiddle again would be a safe choice for men in rural areas, where a woman might use her voice alone, or the less expensive reeg organ or guitar. The above examples are based on my knowledge of British settlers, so one might find different instruments preferred by, say, German, French, or African-Canadian settlers.

Of course, people did not always use the most popular instruments, or refrain from using an instrument associated with someone of the other gender, but IMHO it is best to show what was typical for the period and the particular persona one is portraying, in order to give an audience a more accurate imprssion of music-making in the past.

Well, I must close for know, but I hope to bring some more concrete information in future posts. Personally, I'd be thrilled if someone who is a scholar of music in pre-Confederation Canada would step in to enrich, contradict, or otherwise add to this thread. :-) Becuase, as I stated in my earlier post, I am looking through the lens of the 19th-century US.

Cheers!