Traditional Folk Music Instruments of England
Contents
Looking to add some traditional English flavor to your music? Check out these traditional folk music instruments of England!
Introduction
Instrumentation in English traditional folk music has been varied, with a wide range of instruments being used. The use of a particular instrument (or group of instruments) tends to be characteristic of a particular region or musical tradition.
The three main categories of traditional folk music are dance music, ballads and work songs. Dance music is often for solo violin, or more commonly now for fiddles (sometimes with other accompaniment), melodeons/button accordions, concertinas, guitars and mandolins. Ballads generally require only voice and acoustic guitar or piano. Work songs often featured call and response vocals often sung by groups.
The list below is not exhaustive but includes some of the more common traditional folk music instruments found in England.
-Fiddle
-Melodeon/Button Accordion
-Concertina
-Guitar
-Mandolin
-Piano
Traditional Folk Music Instruments
Traditional folk music instruments are the string, woodwind, and percussion instruments that have been used for centuries to create the music of the English people. These instruments include the fiddle, the penny whistle, the bodhran, and the accordion.
The Fiddle
The fiddle is the most commonly used traditional folk music instrument in England. It is a stringed instrument that is played with a bow. The fiddle can be used for a variety of different genres of music, including traditional folk, Celtic, and even country.
The Bagpipes
Bagpipes are a type of musical instrument that has a long tube of air, which is inflated by the player’s breath. The player blows into a small opening at one end of the tube, and this air is then forced into the bag. The bag has a small hole in it, which the player can open and close with their hand, controlling the amount of air that is released. The player then uses their other hand to play the pipes, which are attached to the bag.
The most common type of bagpipes in England is the Great Highland Bagpipe, which has three drone pipes and one chanter pipe. The drones are tuned to one note each, and they produce a constant drone sound while the chanter pipe is played. The chanter pipe has a series of holes along it, and the player presses down on these holes with their fingers to produce different notes.
The Accordion
The accordion is a portable, freely vibrating reed instrument. It consists of a keyboard and bass chassis that are connected by a folding bellows. The keyboard activates metal reeds in the instrument’s vibration chamber, while the bass chassis contains one or more metal reeds that are activated by the player depressing a button. The player forces air through the instrument using either a hand-operated bellows or an electric motor.
There are many types of accordions, including diatonic, chromatic, button, piano, and concertina accordions. The diatonic accordion is the most common type of accordion; it is used in many genres of traditional folk music, includingmusette waltz, polka, and tango. The chromatic accordion is often used in jazz and blues bands. The button accordion is commonly used in Cajun and zydeco music. The piano accordion is used in many different styles of music, including classical, jazz, rock, and roll. The concertina accordion is used in British Isles traditional music.
The Concertina
The concertina is a free-reed musical instrument, belonging to the category of hand-held bellows-driven instruments. It has a large number of variations in size and structure, but all share the feature of being blown by the player’s breath through a set of buttons on either side of the instrument’s bellows, producing different notes.
The earliest known concertinas were developed in England in the early 19th century, though they were based on earlier German instruments such as the Aeoline and Handharmonika. These instruments typically had between 10 and 40 buttons, and were used primarily for congregational singing. By the middle of the 19th century, however, concertinas with as many as 80 buttons were being manufactured, and they quickly became popular as solo and chamber music instruments. Several different types of concertinas exist today, including Anglo-German, English, French, and American models.
The Guitar
Guitars are a very popular choice of instrument for folk musicians, and there are many different types to choose from. The most common type of guitar is the acoustic guitar, which is typically used for playing rhythm guitars. Other popular types of guitars include the electric guitar, which is typically used for playing lead guitar, and the bass guitar, which is typically used for playing bass parts.
Guitars can be played in various different ways, including fingerpicking, strumming, and flatpicking. Fingerpicking is a technique that uses the fingers of the right hand to pick individual strings, while strumming involves using a pick to strum across all of the strings at once. Flatpicking is a technique that uses a pick to play individual notes on the guitar.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the English folk music tradition is rich and varied, with a wide variety of traditional folk music instruments being used over the centuries. Each of these instruments has its own unique history and sound, and all contribute to the distinctive English folk music sound.
