Folk Tunes and Englishness

Dr Alice Little speaks with folk musicians and researchers Cohen Braithwaite- Kilcoyne, Nicola Beazley, Stewart Hardy, Tom Kitching, and Marie Bashiru about the borders of English folk music - regionally, racially, and conceptually. From the traditions of the North East to those of the North West, from Scottish musicians in England to the influences of Irish immigration, this episode features recordings of a range of folk music (including previously unreleased tracks) in addition to the discussion.

Musicians Sam Sweeney, Rob Harbron, and Alan Lamb join Dr Alice Little to discuss English folk music in performance today. From eighteenth-century manuscripts to traditional sea shanties, where do they find their tunes, how do they play them in an 'English' way, and how do audiences respond?

Dr Alice Little speaks with folk musicians and music collectors Jeremy Barlow, Matt Coatsworth, and Becky Price about the history of English folk music, and what makes it so 'English'. From seventeenth-century Playford to twenty-first century Boldwood, the speakers look primarily at instrumental music and discuss the migration of tunes around the world, how they are played, their use in dance, varying instrumentation and the restrictions that brings, and how tune titles relate to each other.