Song

Category Editor: Dr Vic Gammon

There are many thousands of songs. There are many song collections and many versions of the same song. Where to start looking? That's the problem.

Note. Our intention is not to restrict this initiative to English Song, but to use the present headings as a starting point to view whatever develops from wherever it comes.

Indexes

• The Vaughan Williams Memorial Library online index including
  • Sharp
  • Vaughan-Williams
  • Karpeles
  • Broadwood
  • Hammond
  • Collinson
  • Gardiner
  • Grainger

The site also gives you access to the Roud Index, compiled by Steve Roud.

'The Roud Folk Song Index is a database of 143,000+ references to songs that have been collected from oral tradition in the English language from all over the world.'

Traditional Singers

Singers by County

Books

Percy's Reliques of Ancient Poetry is described in Wikipedia See

The contents might well be catalogued here but in the meantime here's one song to be going on with - The Bailiff's Daughter of Islington

Old English Popular Music by William Chappell Ed. H.E.Wooldridge Additions by Frank Kidson

Recordings

Commercially Available Recordings

Currently available or deleted

• Kyloe Records
• Musical Traditions
• Topic Records
• Veteran
• Wildgoose Records

Performance

section editor Chris Coe

This is a tricky section to think of including. One doesn't always associate folk song and 'performance' but some of the techniques applied by the traditional singers can bear scrutiny, especially by those who want to sing the same sort of songs.

The intimate fireside delivery of Walter Pardon.......

Lizzie Higgins taking a deep breath, expanding to be a 'giant' and setting forth..........

Johnny Doughty turning his cap sideways and singing the Herring's Head.....

And any one who has seen Jock Duncan perform the Two Sisters will have a vivid understanding of song delivery with gestures....

Watch this space.