THE RISE OF A NATIVE AMERICAN BALLADRY
First, it will be necessary to review some important points. In the
early days (1600-1770s), importation/adaptation was the dominant process.
British songs and ballads were adapted to the frontier experience,
Victorian morality and Puritan ethics. Songs which contained subject
matter which was completely irrelevant to the frontier or unacceptable to
moral and ethical standards were either discarded altogether, new lyrics
were added to old melodies, or lyrical changes were made. (Remember, there
were no copyright laws at that time). However, even from the beginning,
original folk creations began to take their place alongside the traditional
ballads.
While some strong similarities to the traditional patterns my be
observed, some important differences emerge. Compared with British ballads,
American ballads placed more emphasis on vocal harmony and instrumentation
(except in the mountain regions where women seldom played instruments).
The American ballads were more journalistic (Wolfe, in Carr, 1979:4),
that is, they paid much more attention to names (Tom Dula, Sally Goodin,
Omie Wise, Floyd Collins), dates (of train wrecks, floods, wars, mining
disasters) and place. They were certainly more moralistic - in keeping with
the Puritan moral code. Art for art's sake was considered frivolous, e.g.,
"fiddling around." The idle mind is the devil's workshop, therefore
frivolity is also probably sinful. These attitudes were very pervasive
and were instilled in generations of American youth through McGuffey's
Reader, Poor Richard's Almanac and popular literature such as Hawthorne's
Scarlet Letter). Writers of new songs and adapters of old ones took great
care to make the lyrics conform to moral and ethical standards. This was
done by including a moral object lesson, i.e., a warning, exhortation,
etc., which gave the song some moral justification and made it palatable to
Calvinistic religious beliefs or by omitting offensive material. The
"Wreck of the Old 97" ends with the admonition to girls that they should
never speak harshly to their sweetheart because "he may go an never
return." In "Rising Sun Blues," the singer says,
"Go tell my baby brother, Lord, not to do what I have done,
Don't spend your days in pain and misery,
In the House of the Rising Sun."
Even songs about natural disaster such as floods, storms, etc., contained
such lessons. In a song known as the Vicksburg Flood, the writer warns his
listeners to "Get right with your Maker as He doeth all things right." At
the same time, American ballads retained the significant characteristics of
the ballad tradition --descriptive narrative, hard-hitting realism and a
pre-occupation with the tragic element.
Just as important as the adaptation of older ballads and the creation
of new ones was the rise of a distinctive "folk style."(Much of the
following discussion is from Alan Lomax, "Folk Song Style," in The
American Anthropologist, 61 (December, l959):929-955). No sound recordings
were made until the 1880s and no folk music was recorded, to speak of,
until the 1920s; therefore, any discussion of performance style must be
somewhat conjectural and speculative. However, as Lomax argues, there is
good reason to believe that the folk styles present in the 1920s probably
reflect the styles of their forerunners. In Lomax's view, singing styles
are inherently conservative cultural traits and are resistant to change.
Not only are songs transmitted across generations, but also the manner in
which they are performed.
In the development of any musical tradition, styles persist long after
the content of the songs has changed to fit new circumstances. As Lomax
says, "An entirely new set of tunes or rhythms, or harmonic patterns may
be introduced; but, in its overall character, a musical style will remain
intact. This point is especially important in understanding the term
"country music." The lyrical content has changed to fit a modern urban
setting, tremendously increased professionalism with regard to instru-
mentation and production has led to a "slicker" product--but the style
remains distinctively "country."
W.J. Cash (The Mind of the South) reminds us that it is probably not
accurate to speak of the south as one region in the sense of ethnic or
cultural homogeneity; there are many "souths." The Mountains, the hill
country, the lowlands, the delta, the Texas plains and the sophisticated
cosmopolitan urban areas each had their own "style" with regard to
instrumentation, vocal interpretation, etc, ranging from vocal solo without
instrumental accompaniment in the Appalachian highlands to group singing
with accompaniment in the lowlands to formal chamber music, even symphony,
in urban areas. Also, in some sections of the south, white musicians were
much more likely, due to proximity to interact with musicians of other
ethnic groups - blacks in the lowlands and delta regions, Cajuns in the
delta, Mexicans in the Southwest. In urban areas, jazz, Dixieland, show
tunes (Tin Pan Alley), etc. However, the "folk style" remained a dominant
style and these various influence represent minor strains that found their
way into the music. White rural country/folk music, particularly in the
mountainous regions, remained remarkably true to its British roots.
There are two major components of the folk style: vocal and
instrumental. Two distinct traditions exist in the folk tradition (Malone,
1985:20-21) The domestic tradition is primarily the music of the home;
largely women singing as they went about their daily work routines -
sewing, cleaning, child-rearing (lullabies) usually without musical
accompaniment. The assembly tradition (sometimes known as the "frolic
tradition," hence the "Friday Night Frolic," etc.) was music performed at
public social gatherings - barndances, weddings, funerals, etc.
The second component of the southern folk style is its distinctive
instrumental flavor. (Cf. Malone, 1985:12-15). The introduction of musical
instruments into the south was a slow process. The few early instruments
that did exist were usually crude homemade instruments. The mountain
dulcimer - an ancient instrument of German origin - was particularly
popular in Kentucky and eastern Tennessee. The dulcimer is a beautiful
instrument and relatively easy to play (at the rudimentary level) and
well-suited to home or to individual self-entertainment. It's very weak
volume, however, limited it's use to very intimate settings. Today, with
electronic amplification, the dulcimer has become very popular at old time
fiddlers contests and jamborees.
According to Malone (1985), the fiddle was brought into the south as
early as the 17th century. Most of the early fiddlers were blacks,
probably slaves, who played for white social gatherings. As noted earlier,
Puritan restrictions on music for its own sake defined music-making as
idleness -- "fiddlin" around." Blacks would likely have been free of such
restrictions. The role of "Fiddler" in Alex Haley's popular television
series, "Roots," is an accurate reflection of the role of black musicians
during slavery. The fiddle gained immense popularity because of its
versatility and volume. It should be noted there is no difference between
a fiddle and a violin other than the manner in which the instrument is
played.
The banjo is an instrument of African origin (cf. Bruno Nettl, An
Introduction to Folk Music in the United States, l960). The forerunner of
the modern instrument, the African bania, was re-created by African slaves
in the rural south. In the early 1800s, the banjo was revolutionized by
the addition of a fifth string (a drone fifth) and in this form became the
"hillbilly," bluegrass, banjo. There are some early photographs of the
bania which indicate that the five string version was also known to the
African tradition. The five string banjo as developed in the southern
highlands was ideal for the lonely laments of the early country singers.
The four string original found its way into Dixieland jazz where it is
still retained.
The mandolin is an ancient European, probably Italian, instrument
which came into the folk tradition somewhat later (1910 or so). According
to Lomax, the mandolin entered the south through the mail-order catalog
(complete with instruction booklet and song book). It has been most
significant in the bluegrass tradition within country music.
Some debate exists with regard to the emergence of the guitar in
country music. Was its primary influence from Mexicans in the southwest or
from blacks? The guitar is an instrument of Spanish origin and would
likely have been transported to the new world by Spanish colonists.
However, the guitar was in the American colonies during the colonial
period. Malone is probably correct in his assertion that the guitar was
rather late in coming into the southern musical tradition; however, once
introduced it soon became the dominant instrument. Again, the
Sears-Roebuck mail order catalog was one of the major sources for the
guitar.
SOURCES
Carr, Patrick (ed). The Illustrated History of Country Music. Garden
City: Doubleday, 1979.
Lomax, Alan. "Folk Song Style," The American Anthropologist 61:926-955.
Malone, Bill C. Country Music USA: Fifty Year History. Austin:
University of Texas Press, 1985.
Nettl, Bruno. An Introduction to Folk Music in the United States,
l960).