Origins: Dissertation - Aid the poor student....

06 Feb 10 - 04:33 PM (#2831688)
Subject: Origins: Dissertation - Aid the poor student....
From: Fenlandrover

Hi Everyone,

I've been using the site for some time but never got round to registering until now!

I'm currently working on the outline for my dissertation for my Bachelors in History which I intend to write on the subject of Folk music and History. I'll be focusing on the First World War, Northern Industrial England, Ireland and general folk music in Britain - Looking at Cecil Sharpe and others. Combining contemporary songs and later examples of how key social and political areas are recorded within Folk music.

I was just wondering if anyone happened to know any useful books concerning folk music and in fact any songs concerning the above areas in general?

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks! :)

Matt

---

06 Feb 10 - 08:38 PM (#2831911)
Subject: RE: Origins: Dissertation - Aid the poor student....
From: Bert

A lot of WWI songs are now considered folk by many of us.

Try Harry Lauder for a good start.

---

06 Feb 10 - 11:19 PM (#2831986)
Subject: RE: Origins: Dissertation - Aid the poor student....
From: Joe Offer

Don't mind Gargoyle, Matt. We've come to consider him "quaint."

Topic Records has a couple of very good CDs on Industrial England: Iron Muse and Deep Lancashire. The songs on both will be a good start for you. Some of the Voice of the People series will also be helpful. I'm sure that Roy Palmer must have written something that will be helpful to you.
Good luck. Stop back if there's is any specific information you need.

-Joe-

---

07 Feb 10 - 09:48 AM (#2832044)
Subject: RE: Origins: Dissertation - Aid the poor student....
From: Folkiedave

Personally I'd narrow that down a bit. A lot of Roy Palmer's books will be of use. YOu will need to learn where the internet resources are too.

A lot of the books you need are likely to be expensive-ish. I know - I sell them!

---

07 Feb 10 - 10:31 AM (#2832078)
Subject: RE: Origins: Dissertation - Aid the poor student....
From: Dave Hunt

That is an absolutely HUGE area to try to cover - better to chose a smaller part to concentrated on. Start by joining the EFDSS http://www.efdss.org/ (I think student rate is only 20 pounds)and you will then be able to use the superb Library for research plus you'll get help from the Librarian, Malcom Taylor - or the two Asst.Librarians Peta Webb and Elaine Bradke.

Get in touch with people running the Folk Degree course at Newcastle Uni
http://www.ncl.ac.uk/undergraduate/course/W340 for suggetions about directed research. AND there is shed loads of wonderful stuff available online these day.
Dave Hunt

---

07 Feb 10 - 11:16 AM (#2832116)
Subject: RE: Origins: Dissertation - Aid the poor student....
From: Marje

Yes, Roy Palmer is a good place to start - see if you can get hold of a copy of The Sound of History. I think when you see how much he has to say, you'll see what the above posters mean about narrowing down your subject area. It's a huge field for research, and you'll need to focus on some narrower, specific aspect unless you want to produce something of encylopaedic proportions (or something very superficial).

And here (if I get the clicky bit right) is a good website for research, with loads of articles archived and available.
http://www.mustrad.org.uk/

Marje

---

07 Feb 10 - 01:47 PM (#2832250)
Subject: RE: Origins: Dissertation - Aid the poor student....
From: Fenlandrover

Hi everyone,

Thanks for all the ideas!

I've just ordered a copy of the The Sound of History and will be sorting membership with the EFDSS tomorrow!

I have just organised a meeting with my Lecturer about narrowing my area down (probably to Northern England)

Thanks once again,

Matt

---

07 Feb 10 - 01:56 PM (#2832261)
Subject: RE: Origins: Dissertation - Aid the poor student....
From: Howard Jones

A.L. Lloyd's "Folk Song in England" has a lot to say about industrial folk song, although he was perhaps not as academically rigorous with his facts and sources as he might have been.

And it was Cecil Sharp (no e)

---

08 Feb 10 - 09:13 AM (#2832802)
Subject: RE: Origins: Dissertation - Aid the poor student....
From: SteveMansfield

Most English counties' central libraries should have a good archive of the Folk Music Journal, the academic research journal produced by EFDSS (welcome aboard on membership by the way), which will contain a lot of useful and relevant stuff.

---

08 Feb 10 - 10:05 AM (#2832844)
Subject: RE: Origins: Dissertation - Aid the poor student....
From: Mick Pearce (MCP)

For background you might look at:

Martha Vicinus - The Industrial Muse
Roy Palmer - The Sound of History
A.L. Lloyd - Folk Song In England
Reginal Nettl - A Social History of Traditional Song

For songs:

A.L. Lloyd - Come All Ye Bold Miners (mining songs)
Roy Palmer - A Touch On The Times (songs of social change 1770-1914)
Roy Palmer - A Ballad History of England (from 1588 to the present day)
Jon Raven - Victoria's Inferno (songs of the old mills,mines,manufactories,canals and railways)
Karl Dallas - 100 Songs of Toil (450 years of work songs)
Karl Dallas - The Cruel Wars (100 soldiers songs from Agincourt to Ulster).

These are mostly popular books, so look for critical reviews of them as well.

The EFDSS library should get you the rest of the way.

Mick

---

08 Feb 10 - 10:17 AM (#2832858)
Subject: RE: Origins: Dissertation - Aid the poor student....
From: artbrooks

I'm in the US, so I really can't give you as good advice on sources as others can, but perhaps I can give you a thought from the academic perspective. Talk to your faculty adviser about narrowing the topic significantly. Narrow and deep is generally better than broad and shallow, unless your focus is on historiography rather than the core topic. Perhaps something like "a review of different perspectives upon (***) as reflected in the folk music of (+++) and (^^^)" would work for you. Those could be locations, industries, time periods, or whatever.

---