American folk

History and character

American folk gathers the orally transmitted music of the United States, especially of the South and the Appalachians, and its learned and commercial developments. The roots are the Anglo-Scottish and Irish ballads (the “Child ballads” collected by Francis James Child and rediscovered in the Appalachians by Cecil Sharp in 1916–1918), fiddle dance music, the banjo of African origin (an instrument of African American slaves, later adopted by white musicians), spirituals, work songs and the blues, the religious shape-note singing (The Sacred Harp, 1844), and the songs of miners, railroad workers and cowboys.

The commercial recordings of the 1920s created the “hillbilly” market: the Bristol Sessions of 1927 (Tennessee, for Victor, producer Ralph Peer) launched the Carter Family (A. P., Sara and Maybelle Carter, with the “Carter scratch” guitar style: melody on the bass strings and strums on the treble) and Jimmie Rodgers. In the '30s–'40s Woody Guthrie (Dust Bowl songs, This Land Is Your Land) and Lead Belly made folk a social voice; Alan Lomax recorded in the field for the Library of Congress. In 1945–46 Bill Monroe and His Blue Grass Boys with Lester Flatt (guitar) and Earl Scruggs (three-finger banjo, Scruggs roll) defined bluegrass (the “high lonesome sound”); then came Flatt & Scruggs, the Stanley Brothers, Doc Watson.

The folk revival of the '50s–'60s started from the Anthology of American Folk Music edited by Harry Smith (Folkways, 1952), from the Weavers and Pete Seeger, passed through the Kingston Trio, the Newport Folk Festival (since 1959), Joan Baez, Peter, Paul and Mary, Odetta, and culminated in Bob Dylan (The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, 1963; the electric turn at Newport in 1965), from which came folk rock (The Byrds), singer-songwriters (Joni Mitchell, Simon & Garfunkel, James Taylor) and country rock. From the '90s, Americana (as defined by the Americana Music Association) and indie folk went back to the roots: Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, Alison Krauss & Union Station, the soundtrack of O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000, produced by T Bone Burnett), Old Crow Medicine Show, Fleet Foxes, Bon Iver, Mumford & Sons, The Lumineers, Punch Brothers (Chris Thile), Rhiannon Giddens and the Carolina Chocolate Drops, Billy Strings, Sierra Ferrell.

Scales and keys

American folk is predominantly major and pentatonic, with “ancient” modes in ballads and old-time and the “blue note” from the blues. Roman numerals in minor are relative to the natural minor.

Major (Ionian)

• Formula 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 — G major: G A B C D E F#. Chords: I (G) ii (Am) iii (Bm) IV (C) V (D) vi (Em).
• Characteristic note: the leading tone (F#) in V–I cadences; but many melodies avoid it.
• Use: most bluegrass, country and folk revival songs in “guitar” keys (G, C, D, A, E) or “fiddle” keys (G, D, A).

Major pentatonic

• Formula 1 2 3 5 6 — in G: G A B D E.
• Characteristic note: no semitones, an open, “mountain” sound; the basis of many ballad and hymn melodies (Amazing Grace is major pentatonic).
• Use: vocal melodies, banjo riffs, guitar fills (Lester Flatt's “G run” uses notes of the pentatonic with a chromatic passing tone).

Mixolydian

• Formula 1 2 3 4 5 6 b7 — D Mixolydian: D E F# G A B C; A Mixolydian: A B C# D E F# G.
• Characteristic note: b7 (C in D): the “modal” sound of old-time (many fiddle tunes such as Old Joe Clark in A Mixolydian).
• Chords: I (D) ii (Em) iii° IV (G) v (Am) vi (Bm) bVII (C).
• Common mistake: using V7 under a melody with a b7: better to use bVII or v.

Dorian and Aeolian (“ancient” ballads)

• Dorian 1 2 b3 4 5 6 b7 — E Dorian: E F# G A B C# D; chords (relative to the natural minor) i ii III IV v #vi° VII.
• Aeolian 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 b7 — E minor: E F# G A B C D; chords i ii° III iv v VI VII.
• Use: murder and death ballads, Appalachian songs (e.g. Shady Grove in Dorian, Pretty Polly in a minor/modal mode), revival songs in an “ancient” style.

Minor pentatonic and blue notes

• Minor pentatonic 1 b3 4 5 b7 — in E: E G A B D; blues 1 b3 4 b5 5 b7.
• Characteristic note: the “blue” b3 over a major chord (G over an E major chord) and the b7: the African American contribution (country blues, Doc Watson, Mississippi John Hurt).

How to choose

Major and major pentatonic for bluegrass, country and folk revival; Mixolydian for old-time fiddle tunes; Dorian/Aeolian for tragic ballads; minor pentatonic and blue notes for country blues and African American folk.

Harmony

Three chords and the truth

• I–IV–V in major (G–C–D) is the basis of almost everything: verse songs, fiddle tunes, bluegrass. The V7 prepares the return; the II7 (A7 in G, the dominant of the dominant) is the typical passage of bluegrass and country (“I–II7–V7–I”).
• vi and iii only as colors; in the revival and in singer-songwriter music, vi, IV with walking bass, and open sus2/sus4 chords are added.
• Modal: I–bVII (Mixolydian old-time), i–VII–VI (minor ballads), often over a drone (open strings of the banjo and fiddle).
• Harmonic rhythm: one chord per one or two bars; in fiddle tunes, changes every half bar in the faster parts.

Tunings and voicing

• Guitar: first position with open strings (G, C, D, Em, Am with alternating basses), capo to change keys; open tunings (open G DGDGBD, open D DADF#AD, DADGAD) in folk and indie folk.
• 5-string banjo: open G tuning (gDGBD, the short fifth string as a high G drone), “double C” (gCGCD), sawmill/mountain modal (gDGCD) for modal tunes.
• Fiddle: standard tuning GDAE or cross-tuning (AEAE, GDGD, ADAE) for pieces in A and D with drones.
• Mandolin: chop (a muted closed chord) on 2 and 4 as the “snare”.

Bluegrass gospel and vocal harmonies

Vocal harmonies in 3–4 parts (lead, tenor above, baritone below, bass) over I–IV–V: the harmonic richness lies in the voices rather than in the chords.

Typical progressions

Rhythm and groove

• Boom-chick: bass on the strong beat (1 and 3), strum on the upbeat (2 and 4): the guitar pulse of country, bluegrass and folk.
• Bluegrass: fast tempo with forward push (drive), double bass on 1 and 3, mandolin chop on 2 and 4 (the “snare” of bluegrass), banjo with continuous rolls in eighth/sixteenth notes, guitar with boom-chick and G run.
• Old-time: the circular, hypnotic groove of fiddle and clawhammer banjo in 2/4 or 4/4, accents on the upbeat (“bum-ditty”); dance tempo (square dance, clogging).
• Waltz (3/4): many old-time, bluegrass and country songs (Tennessee Waltz).
• Train beat: imitation of the train with brushes and guitar (folk and country).
• Swing: light in old-time and bluegrass (almost straight eighth notes with push), more pronounced in country blues and western swing.
• Ballads: free or rubato tempo, often just voice or voice and guitar.

Drums

The rhythm section without drums

In traditional bluegrass and old-time there is no drum kit: the rhythm is distributed among the string instruments.

• Double bass = kick: root and fifth on 1 and 3.
• Mandolin chop = snare: a muted closed chord on 2 and 4.
• Guitar = hi-hat and bass: boom-chick with upbeat strums and bass runs.
• Banjo = rhythmic-melodic shaker: continuous rolls (forward, backward, alternating) in eighth notes.
• Fiddle: bow “shuffle” (Nashville shuffle, double shuffle) that becomes rhythm.

Traditional percussion

Bones, spoons, washboard, jug (jug band), feet (clogging, flatfooting), hand claps in religious songs.

In folk rock and Americana

• Light drum kit: brushes on the snare (train beat, two-beat), soft kick on 1 and 3, snare on 2 and 4; tambourine and shaker in the choruses.
• Indie folk (Mumford & Sons, The Lumineers): bass drum played with the foot or a mallet in quarter notes (“stomp”), hand claps on 2 and 4, tambourine: a choral, “campfire” groove; crescendo by doubling the quarter notes.
• Suitcase kick and stomp box for buskers.

How it changes by section

Verse: just guitar and voice or light brushes; chorus: everyone, full mandolin chop, hand claps; instrumental break: the soloist (banjo, fiddle, mandolin, dobro) while the others pull back.

Typical mistakes

Rock drums under traditional bluegrass; mandolin chop not synchronized with the bass; stomp too loaded with sub; quantization that removes the drive.

Bass

• Double bass (upright bass, slap bass in rockabilly and part of bluegrass): root and fifth on 1 and 3 (or 1 and 2 in 2/4), diatonic and chromatic passages toward the chord change (walk-ups and walk-downs), “G run” with the guitar at the endings.
• Electric bass in folk rock and Americana: simple lines, soft sound (fingers, flatwound strings).
• Guitar thumb: alternating tonic–fifth bass (Carter scratch, Travis picking with constant alternating bass).
• Register: 40–200 Hz; in the acoustic mix the double bass must have attack (the fingers on the strings) more than sub.
• Relationship with the rhythm: the bass is the “kick”; mandolin and guitar complete it on the upbeats.

Harmonic instruments

• Acoustic guitar (steel-string dreadnought: Martin D-28, Gibson J-45; techniques: flatpicking with a pick for fast melodies, fingerpicking/Travis picking, Carter scratch, strumming).
• 5-string banjo (open G gDGBD): Scruggs style with three fingers and fingerpicks, continuous rolls; clawhammer/frailing (downstroke with the nail and thumb on the fifth string) in old-time.
• Mandolin (tuned like the violin GDAE): rhythmic chop and tremolo solos (Bill Monroe).
• Dobro / resonator guitar (played with a slide, in high open G tuning GBDGBD): mournful fills and solos (Jerry Douglas).
• Autoharp, Appalachian dulcimer (mountain dulcimer, with a drone), harmonica, piano and organ (gospel, folk rock), pedal steel (country).
• Voicing: open chords in first position, alternating basses, open strings; capo for vocal keys.

Melody and vocals

• Voice: direct, “speaking”, often nasal and with little vibrato; the high lonesome sound of bluegrass (high tenor voice, tense, with close harmonies); the folk revival with cleaner, singer-songwriter voices; country blues with blue inflections.
• Vocal harmonies (bluegrass and gospel): lead (melody), tenor (a third or fifth above), baritone (below the melody, often a fifth below the tenor), bass (gospel quartets); tight parallel harmonies.
• Solo instruments: fiddle (bow ornaments, double stops, slides), banjo, mandolin, dobro, flatpicking guitar (Doc Watson, Tony Rice, Clarence White), harmonica.
• Vocal form: narrative verses (ballads of 6–20 verses), choral choruses (protest songs for everyone to sing together: We Shall Overcome).
• Indie folk: wide, choral backing vocals, reverberated falsetto voices (Bon Iver), group unisons.
• Effects: traditionally none (dry voice); in modern Americana plate and light slapback; in indie folk big reverbs and multitrack voices.

Instruments

Acoustic guitar, 5-string banjo (and tenor banjo), fiddle, mandolin, double bass, dobro/resonator, autoharp, mountain dulcimer, hammered dulcimer, harmonica, piano, organ, pedal steel, electric guitar (folk rock), light drums and brushes, “stomp” bass drum, tambourine, washboard, bones, spoons, jug; voice and backing vocals.

Drum patterns

Synths and sounds

• B-3 V — Folk rock and gospel organ: Hammond with slow Leslie for folk rock (electric Dylan, The Band) and gospel: drawbars 88 8000 000, percussion off, light overdrive.
• Wurli V — Americana electric piano: Warm Wurlitzer for Americana ballads and singer-songwriter music of the '70s; light tremolo.
• Piano V — Upright piano: A slightly “out of tune” and close-miked upright for folk and Americana (saloon and gospel style).
• Mellotron V — Folk rock flutes and strings: Tape flutes and strings of the folk rock of the '60s–'70s (orchestrated ballads).
• Augmented Strings — Strings for indie folk: Soft, slow string pads under choral voices (Fleet Foxes / Bon Iver style), with a low-pass filter.

Song structure

Ballad and folk song

Verses (4–8 lines) with or without a chorus; guitar or harmonica intro and interludes; 3–6 minutes; traditional ballads can run 10 minutes.

Fiddle tune (old-time and instrumental bluegrass)

AABB form (each part 8 bars, repeated), played several times; in bluegrass each repetition is a break by a different instrument (fiddle – banjo – mandolin – guitar – dobro), with the band accompanying.

Bluegrass song

Americana and indie folk

Pop structure (verse–chorus–bridge) with choral build: an intimate beginning (voice and guitar), gradual entrance of banjo, double bass, stomp and backing vocals, choral climax, coda.

Mixing and mastering

Sonic goal

Acoustic naturalness: voice up front and intelligible, string instruments separate and defined (each in its own band and position), clear rhythm (bass + chop + guitar), small space (room, barn, church). Two recording traditions: a single microphone (the bluegrass band moving closer to and farther from a condenser microphone: the balance is done by the musicians) and modern multitrack (Alison Krauss & Union Station, Punch Brothers: hi-fi sound). References: Flatt & Scruggs (1950s–'60s), Alison Krauss & Union Station (Live, 2002), O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000), Gillian Welch (Time (The Revelator), 2001), Fleet Foxes (2008).

Voice

• Large-diaphragm condenser at 15–30 cm; EQ: high-pass 80–100 Hz, −2 dB at 200–300 Hz, presence +1/+2 dB at 3–5 kHz, air +1 dB at 10 kHz.
• Compression: opto 3:1 with 3–5 dB (folk), FET + opto in Americana (5–7 dB).
• Space: room 0.6–1 s or short plate 1.2 s; slapback (80–120 ms) in country-folk; long reverbs and multitrack backing vocals in indie folk.
• Harmonies: tenor and baritone slightly to the sides (L/R 15–30), compression similar to the lead.

Acoustic guitar

• Pair (condenser at the 12th–14th fret at 20–30 cm + a second near the bridge or in the room) or XY/ORTF at 40 cm.
• EQ: high-pass 80–100 Hz (60 Hz if solo), −2/−3 dB at 150–250 Hz (boominess), +1/+2 dB at 4–6 kHz for the strum, −1 dB at 1 kHz if “boxy”.
• Compression 3:1 (3–4 dB) to even out the strumming.
• Panning: with the voice in the center, guitar L/R 20–40 or narrow stereo.

Banjo

• Microphone at 30–40 cm aimed between the head and the neck (not at the center of the head: too “clacky”).
• EQ: high-pass 120–150 Hz, −2/−3 dB at 2–3 kHz if piercing, +1 dB at 6–8 kHz; fast 2–3:1 compression.
• Panning: L or R 30–50.

Mandolin

• Microphone at 20–30 cm near the f-holes/sound hole; high-pass 150 Hz; −2 dB at 1–1.5 kHz if nasal; +2 dB at 3–5 kHz for the chop.
• Panning: opposite the banjo (R or L 30–50).

Fiddle

• Microphone at 50 cm above the instrument; high-pass 150–200 Hz; −2 dB at 2.5–3.5 kHz if shrill; +1 dB at 8 kHz.
• Panning: L/R 20–40.

Dobro

Microphone at 20–30 cm on the cone; high-pass 100 Hz; −2 dB at 500 Hz; light plate; panning L/R 20–40.

Double bass

• Microphone at 20–30 cm from the f-hole or the neck + pickup/DI; high-pass 35–40 Hz; −2/−3 dB at 200–250 Hz; +2 dB at 700 Hz–1 kHz for the “touch” of the fingers; compression 4:1 (4–6 dB).
• Panning: center.

Drums and stomp (Americana, indie folk)

• Kick/stomp: close microphone, +2 dB at 60–80 Hz, −4 dB at 300–400 Hz; no excessive sub; hand claps with room.
• Brushes: mono overhead or a pair at 1 m; high-pass 150 Hz.

Buses and groups

Voices, guitars, “string band” (banjo, mandolin, fiddle, dobro), bass, drums/percussion; a shared room reverb and a plate for the voices.

Sidechain

Rare; in indie folk with a powerful stomp, light ducking of the pads on the kick.

Master

• Folk and acoustic bluegrass: −14/−11 LUFS integrated, true peak −1 dBTP, LRA 6–10 LU.
• Americana and indie folk: −11/−9 LUFS.

Common mistakes

• All the string instruments in the same 1–4 kHz zone and at the same stereo position: assign each its own place.
• Double bass with no attack (just “boom”).
• Banjo too loud and shrill.
• Excessive compression that flattens the breaks and the group dynamics.

Reference tracks for mixing

• Flatt & Scruggs — Foggy Mountain Breakdown (1949).
• Alison Krauss & Union Station — Man of Constant Sorrow (Live, 2002) / O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000).
• Gillian Welch — Time (The Revelator) (2001).
• Fleet Foxes — White Winter Hymnal (2008).
• The Lumineers — Ho Hey (2012).

Reference listening

• The Carter Family — Wildwood Flower (1928)
• Woody Guthrie — This Land Is Your Land (registrata 1944)
• Lead Belly — Goodnight, Irene (1933)
• Bill Monroe and His Blue Grass Boys — Blue Moon of Kentucky (1946)
• Flatt & Scruggs — Foggy Mountain Breakdown (1949)
• Pete Seeger — We Shall Overcome (1963)
• Bob Dylan — Blowin' in the Wind (1963)
• Joan Baez — Diamonds & Rust (1975)
• Doc Watson — Black Mountain Rag (1964)
• Gillian Welch — Revelator (2001)
• The Soggy Bottom Boys — I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow (O Brother, Where Art Thou?, 2000)
• Fleet Foxes — White Winter Hymnal (2008)
• Mumford & Sons — Little Lion Man (2009)
• Billy Strings — Dust in a Baggie (2017)