A collection of terms related to folk music, plus some mini-biographies, musicology terms, trivia, and miscellaneous facts and figures.

© Bill Markwick, Feb/97 Toronto, Ontario Version 3.00

Acknowledgements

INTRODUCTION

*** Folk music is an art form for everybody. ***

Folk, or roots music, is intensely loved by its fans and practitioners, so much so that it forms a subculture with a particular lifestyle, especially in English-speaking countries. Because of the large number of fans and their varied preferences, it isn't possible to paint an absolutely accurate portrait. However, there are certain similarities that tend to bind all folkies together in common. Some of these personal characteristics are detailed in folkie profile.

For obvious reasons of limited space, this document is limited to the folk music and folk subculture of North America and Britain. There'll be some Canadian bias.

About the references to folk musicians: I've listed some of the best and most famous; please accept my apologies and explanation if your favorite isn't there. I hope to include many more in future updates.

Quick Start a brief list of some main entries that branch to other related information. The full index lists all the entries.

:Famous Names* Baez, Joan, Carthy, Martin, Child, F.J., Dylan, Bob, Elliott, Jack, Guthrie, Woody, Kingston Trio, Leadbelly, MacColl, Ewan, Ochs, Phil, Paxton, Tom, Seeger, Pete, Weavers.

*General Interest* ballad, blues, Child, F.J., communal origin, electric folk, folk dance, folksong, definition, folk process, folk revival, oral tradition, Sharp, Cecil, song family.

*Instruments* autoharp, bagpipes, banjo, concertina, dulcimer, fiddle, guitar, hammered dulcimer, mandolin, melodeon, psaltery.

*Music Theory* chord, diatonic, do-re-mi, harmony, interval, inversion, key, key signature, mode, octave, pentatonic scale, parts of music, progression, scale, vocal ranges.

*Music Technology* formant, harmonic series, monitor, perfect pitch, pitch, reverb, temperament.

*Historical* carol, Gregorian chant, Guido d'Arezzo, hexachord, historical accuracy, moldy figs, Playford, ritual.

*Sources* books, collectors, Internet folk, magazines.

ABOUT THE FILE

"In lexicography, nothing is ever simple."
Eric S. Raymond, Author/editor, "The Jargon File"

In the case of contentious issues, I've tried to present multiple points of view, but occasionally I'll take sides. I'm responsible for opinions that buzz out at you.

Many of the musical terms, like rubato, are not in common use among folkies, but they do turn up in textbooks and articles about folk music. Musicologists use technical terms that are hard to find.

Spelling is (mostly) Canadian Press style.

There are some old dialect words defined thanks to the Child collections. Don't expect the meanings to be definite; Child mostly explained them in the context of specific ballads. Many of the words marked as Scottish are also found in northern England.

I strove for accuracy in dates for births and deaths, but various books give conflicting numbers (if they give them at all).

Each song or tune *title* (not the lyrics!) in any entry (or in its own entry) is in Appendix A, Songs and Tunes Mentioned.

(For lyric-hunters, see Digital Tradition under Internet folk).

And lastly, my apologies to those who are left-handed: all references to instrument playing assume that the player is right-handed.

DEFINITIONS

8va (also "8ve") a symbol placed near a note to indicate that it is to be played one octave higher or lower; a line pointing up or down is used to show which. The advantage is the minimizing of leger lines.

12-string a guitar with six pairs or courses of strings - see guitar for more information.

98 the song "On Board a 98" refers to a 98-gun ship of the line.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Search the entire FolkLib domain with Google - added 6-11-2004
      Add your search term following the text "site:www.folklib.net/folkfile/

William F. (Bill) Markwick, 1945-2017
      Bill Markwick was born in Owen Sound, Ontario, Canada. He was humble, witty, an amazing writer, electronics wizard, exceptional cook, photographic genius, excellent guitar player and member of the Toronto folk music scene for many years back in the 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s. He turned his astounding knowledge of music into 'The Folk File', a web-based encyclopedia of the history of music which can be found at http://www.folklib.net/folkfile. Bill never stopped learning. He was a voracious reader spending thousands of hours over the years reading books at the Toronto Reference Library on Yonge Street. Bill, you touched the hearts of many more people than you will ever know. You will surely be missed. He leaves his wife Eileen, as well as many cousins from Toronto and Beaconsfield, Quebec, Canada.

Introduction  -   A  -   B  -   C  -   D  -   E  -   F  -   G  -   H  -   I  -   J  -   K  -   L  -   M  -   N
O  -   P  -   Q  -   R  -   S  -   T  -   U  -   V  -   W  -   X  -   Y  -   Z  -   Appendix  -   [Appendix B]  -   Search

[Additions/corrections]
The Folk File: A Folkie's Dictionary Copyright © 1993-2009 Bill Markwick, All Rights Reserved.