FOLK MUSIC, ANGLO-CANADIAN
Encyclopedia of Music In Canada
Dick Nolan Country
NEWFOUNDLAND. The folk music of
Newfoundland reflects a rich cultural heritage from the
British Isles, nurtured in the New World into a unique
tradition. The relative isolation of the outports and the
extensive travels of seafaring Newfoundlanders are the
basic factors behind a body of music which is at once
firmly local and broadly eclectic.
Singing styles. The major published collections of
Newfoundland folk music have dealt almost entirely with
the province's vocal (rather than instrumental)
traditions. Newfoundland folksinging is unaccompanied and
is characterized by a straightforward undramatic solo
performance with little dynamic variation from stanza to
stanza. Personal styles may include vibrato (generally
only on lingering notes) and melismatic ornamentation.
Tone production usually is clear rather than raspy but
may be relaxed or tense depending upon whether the upper
or lower portions of the singer's natural range are used.
Often the final words of a song are spoken. Emphasis
within the tradition is upon words rather than tune (or
'air').
Categories of song. Two very broad categories of
song are used by most Newfoundland singers. The 'ditty'
is a non-serious song with satirical, derogatory, bawdy,
or children's lyrics. The 'story-song,' often simply
called a 'song,' is a serious narrative folksong of the
type usually called 'ballad' by scholars. The latter is
the more important of the two categories, both
numerically and in terms of local values.
Newfoundland ballad traditions. The stylistically
heterogeneous body of ballads traditional in Newfoundland
includes the old English and Scottish popular ballads
(see Child ballads in Ballads), British and North
American broadsides of the 17th to 19th centuries, 19th-
and 20th-century sentimental ballads from British music
hall and US popular music traditions, songs from the
flourishing 19th-century-Maritime and lumberwoods
traditions, sentimental ballads from 20th-century
'cowboy' traditions, and locally composed ballads.
Most of these songs describe a single incident. Stories
of disasters such as shipwrecks are popular. Other common
motifs include lovers separated and adventures in foreign
lands. Settings include sealing, fishing, war at sea or
on land, lumbering, and local communities. Such content
reflects the environment and daily concerns of the
singers and their audiences.
Most of Newfoundland's folk music has been preserved and
passed on by oral/aural means, but print has played an
important role in the introduction of new material.
Principal printed sources have been Irish and US
'songsters,' the 'Old Favourites' page of the Montreal
weekly the Family Herald, the broadsides and
songsters of St John's ballad poets like James Murphy and
Johnny Burke, and the five editions of Old-Time Songs
and Poetry of Newfoundland published by Gerald
*Doyle.
Phonograph recordings from England, mainland Canada, and
the USA of music hall, popular, and cowboy songs also
have influenced the folksong traditions of the province.
After confederation with Canada in 1949 and especially
after the mid-1960s, Newfoundlanders in their recordings
have reintroduced the older traditional songs as well as
new material from indigenous sources. Examples of this
can be found in the recordings by Dick *Nolan, *Figgy
Duff, Rawlins Cross, Harry *Hibbs, The Wonderful Grand
Band and others. Another important influence upon recent
song traditions has been the music of immigrant Irish pop
groups.
Song performance contexts. Folk singing in
Newfoundland occurs most frequently at informal parties
called 'times.' Held in outport kitchens or fish stores,
'times' typically involve solo performances by one or
several singers. The song commands the attention of all
present; words of encouragement are spoken to the singer
between verses or during pauses within the song. The end
of the song is observed with similar comments and may
precipitate a discussion of its contents. Generally there
is drinking, the usual fare being dark rum. 'Times' occur
almost always at night on weekends, and most frequently
in the winter when there is more leisure. There is a
'time' every night somewhere in the outport community
during the 12 days of Christmas.
Other occasions for singing include work situations, such
as those on shipboard or in the lumberwoods, and formal
community 'concerts' held in local church or school halls
on religious and national holidays. Usually organized by
the teacher or clergyman, concerts involve dramatic
skits, dancing, recitations, and other kinds of stage
performance by members of the community. Often local
singers compose songs for specific concerts. These deal
humorously with recent local events and local
personalities, and some are sufficiently memorable to
become part of local folksong traditions.
Instrumental music. While after 1949 the guitar
increased in popularity as an accompanying instrument for
young singers, instrumental and vocal traditions
generally have been quite separate in Newfoundland.
Instrumental music was dance music, and the most popular
instrument was the button accordion. Among other
instruments used were the harmonica, the tin whistle, and
the violin. When no instruments were available for a
dance, the tunes would be sung - a practice known
variously as 'gob music,' 'mouth music,' or 'chin music.'
A great many Newfoundland dance tunes appear to be from
Irish traditions, and those in 6/8 and 9/8 meters are as
popular as those in 2/4 and 4/4. Dances were held in
community halls, kitchens, and fish stores and in the
summer on wharves and bridges. A dance had from three to
six segments, each of which had its particular rhythm. A
good instrumentalist had to know the appropriate tunes
for each section and also might be called upon to provide
music for solo 'step dancers' between segments of the
dance. Occasionally singers would perform between dances;
usually a 'mug up' or tea was served afterwards.
Recent trends in Newfoundland's folk music. With
the introduction of paved roads, electricity, and TV many
of these musical traditions have been altered or become
moribund. Younger musicians and singers are apt to
perform rock, Irish, or country-western music rather than
perpetuate the traditions of their fathers. Dances rarely
involve the intricate patterns of earlier times, although
step dancing still is quite popular. Increasing emphasis
on instrumental virtuosity in playing traditional dance
music has replaced the older concern with the ability to
accompany dancing properly. Song-writing and local
composition still are relatively common, reflecting the
fact that Newfoundland's musical culture still is
flexible enough to cope with and adopt from mainland
influences.
From the 1960s on an indigenous popular music with
important connections to local folk music has developed.
Based on a synthesis of Irish popular folk, North
American country and western, and local traditions, it
owes much to the work of Harry Hibbs and Dick Nolan, and
by the early 1990s had found its popular expression in
the work of the duo Simani (Bud Davidge and Sim Savory).
With the accordion in the foreground, this
vocal-instrumental ensemble genre usually includes
guitar, drums and bass, some or all of which may be
electronic. This form, now the most popular type of dance
music in rural Newfoundland, draws from Newfoundland's
storehouse of traditional lyrics and melodies and
contributes new songs on local topics.
From the 1970s on folk revival activity centred in St
John's has rekindled local interest in Newfoundland's
folk music through a folk club, annual folk festivals,
and other activities, many of them organized by the St
John's Folk Arts Council. This has led to the popular
recognition of older representatives of Newfoundland's
traditions such as fiddlers Rufus *Guinchard and Émile
*Benoit, and to important roles as presenters and
performers for younger interpreters such as Figgy Duff,
Jim Payne, and Kelly *Russell. This activity has been
considerably influenced by ideas from the folk revival
movements of Great Britain and Ireland. Most recently
considerable attention has been paid to the revival of
the complex old dances.
See also 'The Anti-Confederation Song'; Ballads; 'The
Banks of Newfoundland'; 'The Blooming Bright Star of
Belle Isle'; Disaster songs; 'Hard, Hard Times'; 'Jack
Was Every Inch a Sailor'; 'Lukey's Boat'; Occupational
songs; 'She's Like the Swallow'; 'Squid-jiggin' Ground';
'We'll Rant and We'll Roar like True Newfoundlanders'.
DISCOGRAPHY
Buffet Double. Baxter Wareham. 1989. Pigeon Inlet
PIP-7324
Outport People. Simani. 1986. SWC Productions SD-
Songs and Ballads of Newfoundland. K. Peacock.
1956. Folk FG-3505
Songs from the Newfoundland Outports. 1966. Folk
FE-4075
Songs from the Newfoundland Outports. 1984. Pigeon
Inlet PIP-7319
Tradition: A Sampler of Newfoundland. Guinchard,
Benoit, Figgy Duff, et al. Pigeon Inlet PIP-7316
See also Émile Benoit; Omar Blondahl; Figgy Duff; Rufus
Guinchard; Harry Hibbs; Ed McCurdy; Alan Mills; Dick
Nolan; Ignatius Rumboldt; Arthur Scammell; and
Discographies for Émile Benoit; Alan Mills.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Peacock, Kenneth. 'The native songs of Newfoundland,' Contributions
to Anthropology, 1960, Part II, National Museum of
Canada (Ottawa 1963)
Szwed, John F. 'Paul E. Hall: a Newfoundland song-maker
and his community of song,' Folksongs and Their Makers
(Bowling Green, Ohio, 1970)
Casey, George J., with Rosenberg, Neil V., and Wareham,
Wilfred W. 'Repertoire categorization and
performance-audience relationships: some Newfoundland
examples,' Ethnomusicology, vol 16, Sep 1972
Mercer, Paul. The Ballads of Johnny Burke (St
John's, Nfld 1974)
Taft, Michael. '''That's two more dollars'': Jimmy
Linegar's success with country music in Newfoundland,' Folklore
Forum, vol 7, 1974
A Regional Discography of Newfoundland and Labrador
1904-1972 (St John's, Nfld 1975)
'A reference list on Canadian folk music,' compiled by
Barbara Cass-Beggs and Edith Fowke, CFMJ, vol 1,
1973; rev enl vol 6, 1978; rev enl vol 11, 1983
Mercer, Paul. Newfoundland Songs and Ballads in Print
1842-1974: A Title and First Line Index (St John's,
Nfld 1979)
'Interview: Jim Payne,' Canada Folk Bulletin, vol
3, Jan-Feb 1980
Cox, Gordon S.A. Folk Music in a Newfoundland Outport
(Ottawa 1980)
Thomas, Gerald. 'Contemporary traditional music in
Newfoundland,' CFMB, vol 15, Fall 1981
Madison, R.D., ed. Newfoundland Summers: The Ballad
Collecting of Elisabeth Bristol Greenleaf (Madison,
Wisconsin 1982)
McNaughton, Janet. 'Variation and stability in two murder
ballads of Placentia Bay, Newfoundland,' CFMJ, vol
12, 1984
Quigley, Colin. Close to the Floor: Folk Dance in
Newfoundland (St John's, Nfld 1985)
Hiscock, Philip. 'Newfoundland folklore and language: a
bibliography,' RLS, 12, Dec 1989
FOLKSONG COLLECTIONS
Hutton, Charles. Newfoundland Folio of Over Fifty Old
Favorite Songs (Springfield, Illinois 1906)
Greenleaf, Elisabeth Bristol, and Mansfield, Grace
Yarrow. Ballads and Sea Songs of Newfoundland
(Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1933; repr Hatboro,
Pennsylvania, 1968)
Karpeles, Maud. Folk Songs from Newfoundland
(Oxford 1934). New version (London 1971)
Doyle, Gerald S. Old-Time Songs and Poetry of
Newfoundland (St John's, Nfld 1940, 1978)
Leach, MacEdward. Folk Ballads and Songs of the Lower
Labrador Coast, National Museum of Man (Ottawa 1965)
Peacock, Kenneth. Songs of the Newfoundland Outports,
3 vols, National Museum of Man (Ottawa 1965)
Ryan, Shannon, and Small, Larry. Haulin' Rope and Gaft
(St John's, Nfld 1978)
Songs of Labrador (Northwest River, Labrador 1982)
Lehr, G., ed. Come and I Will Sing You: A Newfoundland
Song Book (Toronto 1985)
Encyclopedia of Music In Canada
Dick Nolan Country
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