Folk Music & its Instrumental Figures
By Avery Simpson
Folk Music History
According to Britannica, folk music was “originally was passed down through families and other small social groups. Typically, folk music, like folk literature, lives in oral tradition; it is learned through hearing rather than reading. It is functional in the sense that it is associated with other activities, and it is primarily rural in origin.” In its essence, folk music is a means of storytelling. Historically, African Americans used folk music to express a message, using instruments to deliver it. Notable forms of folk music include the negro spiritual, work songs, the ring shout, and field hollers. These different variations, performed in both community and individual forms, represent the voice of African Americans and often the experiences of living while enslaved, whether it be the experience of resistance, perseverance, strength, or more.
Folk has influenced other genres like blues, country, and jazz, and to this day, it represents the early developments of African American music.
(https://www.britannica.com/art/folk-music) — Quote source
Key Instruments
As is the case in many musical genres, several instruments used in African American folk music stem from early creatives in Africa. Each instrument produces a unique sound that captures the essence of folk. Below, you can read examples of folk instruments and listen to musicians use them.
Key folk instruments:
- Djembe — a goblet-shaped percussion instrument from West Africa. As a D.C. native, when listening to this instrument be played, I can’t help but think about gogo music.
- Kora — a stringed instrument from West Africa that resembles a combination of instruments, like a lute and harp.
- Bones — an instrument traditionally made of animal bones that can also be created with other materials like wood.
Other instruments used in folk:
- Fiddle
- Guitar
- Tambourine
Significant Figures
Folk music has many instrumental figures who laid a strong foundation for the future of both folk music and other musical genres with influences from folk music. Let’s highlight some:
- Taj Mahal — born in Harlem, New York, a hub for Black music.
- Wynton Marsalis — from New Orleans, LA, another major center for Black musicians.
- Rhiannon Giddens — was the lead of the Carolina Chocolate Drops music band.
- Lead Belly — recognized for his strong vocal abilities.
- Eileen Southern — researched and documented the history of African-American music and highlighted the deeper meaning behind Black music.
- Odetta — known as “”The Voice of the Civil Rights Movement””
Here is a performance of Elizabeth Cotten performing “Freight Train,” an example of Black Folk music.
