Folk Music
I am plugged into Alison Krauss and reading an excerpt from a book. The book is a classic. A classic is a work that is often cited but never read.How true that is! Alison Krauss is the First Lady of Bluegrass Music (FLBM), which may not be true, though she brought bluegrass to mainstream America, always filled with its current 'idols'. There is something very appealing about folk music. Last night someone was playing the Gypsy Kings in the lab, it was wonderful. All my Gypsy Kings CDs are back home with all the others. There is an odd 'aha' feeling in hearing an old tune, something familiar in an unfamiliar place. Funny how French gypsies singing Spanish flamenco could change the complete atmosphere in a few minutes. The lyrics are simple usually ( unless you are talking of Bob Dylan, who is something else!) and so is the tune. A hummable, singable tune. The more I hear different fold music, its easy to see the common thread in all of them. Folk Music can be sad, lively, funny, satirical but it's never full of anger. The relatively fewer electronic, synthetic sounds make it more natural, more soothing. I became a major fan of the Hungarian folk musicians Musikas ( MOO-she-KASH) featuring Marta Sebestyen ( they are on the OST of the English Patient), which sounds at times so much like Indian music. Apart of the extremely talented Indian band Indian Ocean, I see very little of folk in Indian bands. We do have a rich classical tradition but also an incredibly rich folk music tradition. There was much of it in the 40s and 50s, but not anymore.
In the meanwhile, Alison Kraus and Union Station are twanging away on their banjos and mandolins. I have my earphones plugged on. Life is perfect!