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Muriel Anderson演奏的Bluegrass Medley
演奏家主页: http://www.murielanderson.com/
http://www.youtube.com/v/6Oi0x803HcM&rel=1
蓝草音乐简介:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bluegrass_music
前GFA冠军, Segovia的学生古典吉他演奏家Michael Chapdelaine就获得过全美蓝草音乐指弹冠军.
Bluegrass music is a form of American roots music which has its own roots in Irish, Scottish and English traditional music. Bluegrass was inspired by the music of immigrants from the British Isles (particularly the Scots-Irish immigrants of Appalachian), as well as that of rural African-Americans, jazz, and blues.In bluegrass, as in jazz, each instrument takes a turn playing themelody and improvising around it, while the others revert to backing;this is in contrast to old-time music, in which all instruments play the melody together or one instrument carries the lead throughout while the others provide accompaniment. Bluegrass is distinctively acoustic, rarely using electrical instruments.
[edit] Characteristics
[edit] Instrumentation 
Bluegrass artists use a variety of stringed instruments to create a unique sound.
Unlike mainstream country music, bluegrass relies mostly on acoustic stringed instruments. The fiddle, five string banjo, acoustic guitar, mandolin, and upright bass are often joined by the resonator guitar (popularly known by the Dobrobrand name). This instrumentation originated in rural black dance bandsand was being abandoned by those groups (in favor of blues and jazzensembles) when picked up by white musicians (van der Merwe 1989,p.62). Instrumental solos are improvised, and can frequently betechnically demanding.
Debate rages among bluegrass musicians, fans, and scholars over whatinstrumentation constitutes a bluegrass band. Since the term bluegrasscame from Bill Monroe'sband, The Blue Grass Boys, many consider the instruments used in hisband the traditional bluegrass instruments. These were the mandolin(played by Monroe), the fiddle, guitar, banjo and upright bass. Attimes the musicians may perform gospel songs, singing four-part harmonyand including no or sparse instrumentation (often with banjo playersswitching to lead guitar). Bluegrass bands have included instruments asdiverse as the resonator guitar (Dobro), accordion, harmonica, Jew's harp, piano, drums, washboard, electric guitar,and electric versions of all other common bluegrass instruments, thoughthese are considered to be more progressive and are a departure fromthe traditional bluegrass style.
[edit] VocalsBesides instrumentation, a distinguishing characteristic ofbluegrass is vocal harmony featuring two, three, or four parts, oftenfeaturing a dissonant or modal sound in the highest voice (see modal frame). This vocal style has been characterized as the "high lonesome sound." The "High Lonesome" sound can be credited to Shape-Notemusic where a high-pitched harmony, that can generally be characterizedas having a nasal timbre, is sung over the main melody. There is alsoan emphasis on traditional songs, often with sentimental or religiousthemes.
[edit] History
[edit] CreationBluegrass as a style developed during the mid 1940s. Because of warrationing, recording was limited during that time, and the best thatcan be said is that bluegrass was played some time after World War II, but no earlier. As with any musical genre, no one person can claim to have "invented" it. Rather, bluegrass is an amalgam of old-time music, blues, ragtime and jazz. Nevertheless, bluegrass's beginnings can be traced to one band. Today Bill Monroe is referred to as the "founding father" of bluegrass music; the bluegrass style was named for his band, the Blue Grass Boys, formed in 1939. The 1945 addition of banjo player Earl Scruggs,who played with a three-finger roll originally developed by SnuffyJenkins but now almost universally known as "Scruggs style", isconsidered the key moment in the development of this genre. Monroe's1945 to 1948 band, which featured Scruggs, singer-guitarist Lester Flatt,fiddler Chubby Wise and bassist Howard Watts, also known as "CedricRainwater," created the definitive sound and instrumental configurationthat remains a model to this day.
By some arguments, as long as the Blue Grass Boyswere the only band playing this music, it was just their unique style;it could not be considered a musical style until other bands beganperforming in similar fashion. In 1947 the Stanley Brothers recorded the traditional song "Molly and Tenbrooks" in the Blue Grass Boys' style, and this could also be pointed to as the beginning of bluegrass as a style.
Bluegrass is not and never was folk musicunder a strict definition; however, the topical and narrative themes ofmany bluegrass songs are highly reminiscent of "folk music". In fact,many songs that are widely considered to be bluegrass are older workslegitimately classified as folk or old-time performed in a bluegrassstyle. From its earliest days to today, bluegrass has been recorded andperformed by professional musicians. Although amateur bluegrassmusicians and trends such as "parking lot picking" are too important tobe ignored, it is professional musicians who have set the direction ofthe style. While bluegrass is not folk music in that strict sense, theinterplay between bluegrass music and folk forms has been studied.Folklorist Dr. Neil Rosenberg, for example, shows that most devotedbluegrass fans and musicians are familiar with traditional folk songsand old-time music and that these songs are often played at shows andfestivals.
[edit] First generationFirst generation bluegrass musicians dominated the genre from itsbeginnings in the mid-1940s through the mid-1960s. This group generallyconsists of those who were playing during the "Golden Age" in the1950s, including Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys, the Stanley Brothers, Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs with the Foggy Mountain Boys, Reno and Smiley, Lonesome Pine Fiddlers, Jim & Jesse, Jimmy Martin and the Osborne Brothers, Mac Wiseman, Mac Martin and the Dixie Travelers, Carl Story and his Rambling Mountaineers, Buzz Busby, The Lilly Brothers, Jim Eanes and Earl Taylor.
[edit] Second generationBluegrass's second generation came to prominence in the mid- tolate-1960s, although many of the second generation musicians wereplaying (often at young ages) in first generation bands prior to this.Among the most prominent second generation musicians are The Dillards, J. D. Crowe, Doyle Lawson, Sam Bush, John Hartford, Norman Blake, Frank Wakefield, Harley "Red" Allen, Bill Keith, Del McCoury and Tony Rice. With the second generation came a growth in progressive bluegrass, as exemplified by second generation bands such as the New Grass Revival, Seldom Scene, The Kentucky Colonels. In that vein, first-generation bluegrass fiddler Vassar Clements, mandolin virtuoso David Grisman, Grateful Dead frontman Jerry Garcia (on banjo) and Peter Rowan as lead vocalist collaborated on the album Old and in the Way; the Garcia connection helped to expose progressive and traditional bluegrass to a rock music audience.
[edit] Third generationThe third generation in bluegrass reached primacy in the mid-1980s.Third generation bluegrass saw a number of notable changes from themusic played in previous years. In several regards, this generation sawa redefinition of "mainstream bluegrass." Increased availability ofhigh-quality sound equipment led to each band member being mikedindependently, and a "wall of sound" style developed (exemplified by IIIrd Tyme Out and Lonesome River Band).Following the example set by Tony Rice, lead guitar playing became morecommon (and more elaborate). An electric bass became a generally, butnot universally, accepted alternative to the traditional acoustic bass,though electrification of other instruments continued to meetresistance outside progressive circles. Nontraditional chordprogressions also became more widely accepted. On the other hand, thisgeneration saw a renaissance of more traditional songs, played in thenewer style. The Johnson Mountain Boys were one of the decade's most popular touring groups, and played strictly traditional bluegrass.
[edit] Fourth generationIt could be argued that a fourth generation of bluegrass musiciansis beginning to appear, marked by a high level of technical skill.Although it is too soon to see definite trends, one of the most notablefourth generation musician to emerge so far is probably Chris Thile, who has recorded five solo albums since he was 13.
[edit] Recent developmentsSince the late 1990s, several mainstream country musicians have recorded bluegrass albums. Ricky Skaggs,who began as a bluegrass musician and crossed over to mainstreamcountry in the 1980s, returned to bluegrass in 1996, and since then hasrecorded several bluegrass albums and tours with his bluegrass band Kentucky Thunder. Around the same time, country music superstars Dolly Parton and Patty Loveless have both released several bluegrass albums. Along with the Coen Brothers' movie, O Brother, Where Art Thou?and the subsequent "Down From the Mountain" music tour, this hasbrought bluegrass music to a much wider audience. Meanwhile, bands suchas the Yonder Mountain String Band in the United States, and Druhá Tráva in the Czech Republic have attracted large audiences while pushing at the edges of progressive bluegrass.
Though she is often considered a crossover or mainstream country artist, Alison Kraussis a prominent contemporary bluegrass star. A vocalist-fiddler whosefirst album was released when she was just 16 years old, Krauss and herband, Union Station, were major contributors to the soundtrack of O Brother, Where Art Thou?As a solo artist, collaborator, and producer, Krauss has won (withUnion Station), as of 2006, 20 Grammy Awards, the most of any femaleartist in history. She is now tied for seventh on the all-time winnerslist.
Other notable recent bluegrass bands Cherryholmes, The Grascals, and Mountain Heart. It is also need to be noted that the Grascals and Cherryholmes play more traditional bluegrass than progressive bluegrass, the term has been coined that these bands are neo-traditional bluegrass.
[edit] SubgenresIn addition to what might be considered "mainstream" bluegrass,which has gradually changed over the last 60 years, three majorsubgenres have existed almost since the music's beginning.
[edit] Traditional bluegrassMain article: Traditional bluegrass.Traditional bluegrass,as the name implies, emphasizes the traditional elements. Traditionalbluegrass musicians are likely to play folk songs, songs with simpletraditional chord progressions, and use only acoustic instruments. Theygenerally follow the pattern set by Bill Monroe and the Bluegrass Boysin the late 1940's. In the early years, traditional bluegrass sometimesincluded instruments no longer accepted in mainstream bluegrass, suchas washboards, mouth harps, and harmonicas.Traditional bands may use bluegrass instruments in slightly differentways (claw-hammer style of banjo playing, or multiple guitars orfiddles within a band). In this sub-genre, the guitar rarely takes thelead (the notable exception being gospel songs), remaining a rhythm instrument. Melodies and lyrics tend to be simple, and a I-IV-V chord pattern is very common.
Nationally popular traditional bluegrass bands include Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder, Dan Paisley and the Southern Grass, Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys, James King Band and arguably, Larry Sparks and the Lonesome Ramblers and The Del McCoury Band.
[edit] Progressive bluegrassMain article: Progressive bluegrass.Another major subgenre is progressive bluegrass, roughly synonymous with "newgrass" (the latter term is attributed to New Grass Revivalmember Ebo Walker). Progressive bluegrass came to widespread attentionin the late 1960s and 1970s, as some groups began using electricinstruments and importing songs from other genres (particularly rock& roll). However, progressive bluegrass can be traced back to oneof the earliest bluegrass bands. A brief listen to the banjo and bassduets Earl Scruggs played even in the earliest days of the Foggy Mountain Boysgive a hint of wild chord progressions to come. The four keydistinguishing elements (not always all present) of progressivebluegrass are instrumentation (frequently including electricinstruments, drums, piano, and more), songs imported (or stylesimitated) from other genres, chord progressions, and lengthy "jam band"-style improvisation. String Cheese Incidentis a good example of a band that occasionally coordinates a bluegrasstune mixed with a jam band feeling (especially original tunes like"Dudley's Kitchen"). A twist on this genre is the combining of elementsthat preceded bluegrass, such as old-time string band music, withbluegrass music. Imagine that, for instance, you add a clawhammer banjo (an archaic style that preceded the bluegrass banjo style of Earl Scruggs) to bluegrass arrangements as played by Mark Johnson ("Clawgrass" music) and Dick Kimmel.
[edit] Bluegrass GospelAlthough nearly all bluegrass artists regularly incorporate gospel music into their repertoire, "Bluegrass Gospel" has emerged as a third subgenre. Distinctive elements of this style of bluegrass music include lyrics focused on Christian faith and theology, soulful three or four part harmony singing, and occasionally subdued instrumentals. A cappella choruses are popular with bluegrass gospelartists, though the harmony structure differs somewhat from standard"barber-shop" or choir singing. Although some "mainstream" bluegrassartists such as Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver and Third Tyme Out have produced extraordinary bluegrass gospel music, others, such as Mount Zion and The Churchmen have chosen to focus on it exclusively.
[edit] Social and musical impact
[edit] Bluegrass in movies
[edit] Publications
[edit] Opera and theater- The Original Bluegrass Opera of Detroit [12]
[edit] Museums
[edit] References- Kingsbury, Paul (2004). The Encyclopedia of Country Music: The Ultimate Guide to the Music. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-517608-1.
- Rosenberg, Neil (1985). Bluegrass: A History. University of Illinois Press. ISBN 0-252-00265-2.
- van der Merwe, Peter (1989). Origins of the Popular Style: The Antecedents of Twentieth-Century Popular Music. Oxford: Clarendon Press. ISBN 0-19-316121-4.
External links
[ 本帖最后由 cyberninja 于 2007-10-24 04:58 编辑 ] |
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发表于 2007-10-24 04:52:35
