folk music


noun

music, usually of simple character and anonymous authorship, handed down among the common people by oral tradition.
music by known composers that has become part of the folk tradition of a country or region.

Origin of folk music

First recorded in 1885–90

Example sentences from the Web for folk music

British Dictionary definitions for folk music

folk music

noun

music that is passed on from generation to generation by oral tradition Compare art music
any music composed in the idiom of this oral tradition

Cultural definitions for folk music

folk music

A kind of music originating from the ordinary people of a region or nation and continued by oral tradition. The ballad (see also ballad) is a typical form of folk music. Music is also called “folk” when it is made by artists and composers who are inspired by, or imitate, true folk music. Composers such as Bob Dylan and Woody Guthrie are folk musicians of the second kind.