Bluegrass music is really more of a style of performance
than a particular set of tunes or songs. Although there are
pieces that have been written specifically as bluegrass numbers,
the bulk of material played by bluegrass bands is extracted
or based on earlier American folk traditions such as old-time
or old timey as it is sometimes called. However, it is probably
possible to take almost any song or tune and turn it into
a "bluegrass" number.
Earl
Scruggs - Who Pioneered the Bluegrass Banjo
Download and Listen - Earl
Scruggs
- Roll In My Sweet Baby's Arms.mp3
Bluegrass as a style is characterised by use
of mostly un-electrified string instruments usually, fiddle,
5-string banjo, acoustic bass, guitar, mandolin and sometimes
a dobro (resophonic Hawaiian) guitar. Better known examples
of bluegrass music from movies and television shows include
Deliverance (Duelling Banjos), The Beverly Hillbillies and
Bonnie & Clyde. Vocals often include 3 and 4 part harmonies.
Tempos used tend to be quite fast compared to other music
types.
Stanley Brothers - Bluegrass
harmonies at their best
Download and Listen - The
Stanley Brothers - The Master's Bouquet.mp3
Bluegrass music has it's origins in the 1930's with
the acknowledged Father of Bluegrass Music, Grand Ole Opry
legend Bill Monroe. The music took it's name from his band
"The Bluegrass Boys". Presumably, they chose this
name from their native "Bluegrass" region of Kentucky,
so called because of the bluish green Poa species grass often
found growing there. Monroe based his music on the old time
fiddle bands and balladeers of the late nineteenth and early
twentieth centuries, playing and singing their rustic melodies
in a new, but still traditional and exciting way.
Bill
Monroe - Need We Say More....
Download and Listen -
Bill
Monroe
- Memories Of Mother And Dad.mp3
Since those early days, bluegrass has kept going in more or
less it's original form plus gathering a few off-shoots such
as "Newgrass" along the way. Bluegrass, is today
probably more popular than ever, with movies such as "Brother
Where Art Thou" and "Cold Mountain" bringing
traditional American music to public attention.
Fans of bluegrass music have a rather unusual profile compared
with those of other popular music forms in that a very high
percentage (probably 50% in a typical UK audience) of them
actually perform as well. This I suppose, says something
about the quality of a music genre, music good enough to
make you want to learn an instrument must have something
going for it.
Alison
Krauss - Plus Union Station
Download and Listen - Alison
Krauss - I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow.mp3
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