Towards an Ethnography of a Culturally Eclectic Music Scene
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Durham E-Theses Towards an ethnography of a culturally eclectic music scene. Preserving and transforming folk music in twenty-rst century England GAYRAUD, ELISE,GAELLE,MARIE How to cite: GAYRAUD, ELISE,GAELLE,MARIE (2016) Towards an ethnography of a culturally eclectic music scene. Preserving and transforming folk music in twenty-rst century England, Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/11598/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk 2 Towards an ethnography of a culturally eclectic music scene Preserving and transforming folk music in twenty-first century England Élise Gaëlle Marie Gayraud A Thesis presented for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Music University of Durham England January 2016 Towards an ethnography of a culturally eclectic music scene: Preserving and transforming folk music in twenty-first century England “The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. No quotation from it should be published without the author's prior written consent and information derived from it should be acknowledged.” Élise G. M. Gayraud (2016) Abstract This thesis presents an analysis of the recent transformations in the folk music scene in England. Through interviews of professional and amateur folk artists, it elicits musicians’ points of view about the music they perform and their own compositions. Adopting an ethnomusicological approach, it compares and contrasts theories of cultural globalisation with the musicians' perceptions of their position within the music scene and in relation to musical traditions in the twenty-first century. Exploring changes in music-making, collecting, and modes and contexts of transmission, this study considers how musical repertoire is exchanged, adapted and preserved within and beyond local communities through means such as archiving, pub sessions, workshops, festivals and formal tuition. From the perspectives of both artists and audiences, contemporary modes and contexts of transmission and the development of new technologies for recording, sharing and teaching music have been encouraging diverse transformations of perception, repertoire, composition and interpretation, as well as the dynamics of interaction between folk musicians. This thesis sheds light on how folk musicians’ horizons have expanded far beyond the local sphere; processes of globalisation have engendered global perspectives, new conceptualisations of what “traditional” and “folk” music are, complex identities reflected in musical hybridisation, new opportunities to access traditional and folk music, new forms of communication technology, demographical changes and cross-borders musical initiatives. The thesis demonstrates that, although the folk music scene in England might often be perceived as somewhat conservative in outlook and overshadowed by a profusion of widely disseminated contemporary popular musical products, many folk musicians have been open to transformation, adapting to new contexts and modes of transmission, embracing new communication technologies, and drawing influences from beyond the immediate local surrounding. At the same time as preserving musical heritage they have been enriching it in diverse ways to ensure its continued relevance. EGMG (2016) Page 2 of 229 Table of Contents Abstract ................................................................................................................................................... 2 Table of figures ........................................................................................................................................ 7 Acknowledgments ................................................................................................................................... 8 1. Introduction ......................................................................................................................................... 9 1.1. Topic introduction ........................................................................................................................ 9 1.2. Research questions..................................................................................................................... 13 1.3. Literature review ........................................................................................................................ 16 1.4. Thesis structure and chapter summaries ................................................................................... 21 2. Methodology and ethical reflections ................................................................................................ 23 2.1. An ethnographical approach ...................................................................................................... 23 2.1.1. Challenges in defining geographical and cultural areas ...................................................... 23 2.1.2. Theoretical bases ................................................................................................................. 26 2.1.3. Fieldwork contexts .............................................................................................................. 29 2.2. The interview process ................................................................................................................ 32 2.2.1. Interviews in the field .......................................................................................................... 32 2.2.2. The questionnaire (and tangential questions) .................................................................... 33 2.3. Interpretations of results: some technical and ethical matters ................................................. 37 2.3.1. Qualitative and quantitative data analysis .......................................................................... 37 2.3.2. Ethical issues in ethnographical study: criticism and counter-criticism .............................. 39 2.3.3. Recording interviews ........................................................................................................... 40 3. Conceptual bases and global perspectives ........................................................................................ 42 3.1. Identities and cultures in contemporary socio-political contexts .............................................. 42 3.1.1. Culture and cultures ............................................................................................................ 42 3.1.2. The Nation and its Folk Music ............................................................................................. 45 3.1.3. Complex identities ............................................................................................................... 48 3.2. Globalised cultural contexts ....................................................................................................... 49 3.2.1. Definitions and theories of globalisation ............................................................................ 50 3.2.2. Cultural imperialism and the “clash of cultures” ................................................................ 52 3.2.3. Globalising musical expression ............................................................................................ 54 3.3. Tradition and hybridity in globalising contexts .......................................................................... 55 3.3.1. Traditions in evolving contexts ............................................................................................ 55 3.3.2. Linguistic approaches to understanding eclecticism ........................................................... 58 3.3.3. Hybridisation: theoretical approaches and terminologies .................................................. 59 3.4. The inherent mutability of traditional music: eclectic influences and personal choices ........... 61 3.4.1. Travels, compatibility and resulting eclecticisms ................................................................ 61 3.4.2. Modern instrumentations and electrification ..................................................................... 64 3.5. Retrospectives on globalising forces: Questioning authenticity ................................................ 65 3.6. Conclusions ................................................................................................................................. 68 4. Perceptions on music classification ................................................................................................... 71 4.1. Difficulties in classification and categorisation .......................................................................... 71 4.1.1. Historical views on classification ......................................................................................... 72 4.1.2. The significance of style .....................................................................................................