Rounder records : 40th anniversary concert

Originally the folk or regional music handed down from generation to generation, consisting of narrative songs for every state of mind and occasion: love, joy, sorrow, wedding, work, adultery, illness, death, and so on. As a result, they have a wide variety of faces, although in the West they usually refer to the North American and English variants. The dividing lines with blues, country and singer/songwriters are often thin. Folk songs are often so old that the original composer is unknown. In the thirties Alan Lomax and Harry Smith played an important role in the conservation of American folk songs. They went to the countryside to record the old folk songs. In the sixties folk revived on the basis of a young, post-war generation. Pop genres that make use of folk influences are americana, folkrock and folkmetal. The adventurous combination of folk with alternative pop that emerges after 2000 is called 'freakfolk'.

Bluegrass has its roots in the folk music of the American states of West Virginia, Virgina and Kentucky (nicknamed 'The Bluegrass State'). It is the music of the poor white farmers who were called 'hillbillies' in the city. The characteristic line-up of a bluegrass combo consists of guitar, mandolin, violin and often also a double bass. Also striking are the beautiful harmonic vocals of the band members. Bill Monroe was the first in the fifties to call his music 'bluegrass'. The genre later experienced a number of striking revivals, partly due to the success of the film O Brother Where Art Thou? in which bluegrass sounds. Violinist and singer Alison Krauss is considered the greatest bluegrass artist of the twenty-first century.

Singer/songwriters zijn hoofdzakelijk door folk en/of country geïnspireerde troubadours, wier werk voornamelijk persoonlijk en bespiegelend van aard is. Ze opereren vrijwel altijd alleen, en maken ook in de studio slechts spaarzaam gebruik van instrumentale begeleiding, vaak bestaande uit niet meer dan akoestische gitaar of piano. Hun zelfgeschreven nummers zijn in tegenstelling tot die van folkartiesten minder traditioneel en gaan hoofdzakelijk over zichzelf. Voordat Bob Dylan zijn intrede deed was het binnen de popmuziek normaal dat zangers en zangeressen hun liedjes kochten van uitgeverijen die op hun beurt de nummers lieten schrijven door professionele liedjesschrijvers. Dylan liet zien dat een schrijver best zijn eigen liedjes kon zingen en als moderne bard succesvol door het muzieklandschap kon trekken. Opvallend is dat de rustieke singer/songwriter juist in het digitale tijdperk (vanaf midden jaren negentig) populairder lijkt dan ooit tevoren.

Americana (or roots) is the collective name for all music that inspired the white American folk music of the beginning of the last century. The musical idiom of Americana is close to country and folk. As a rule, country is more commercial than americana, which has its origins in the 'outlaw country' of the seventies when Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson are opposed to the slick country sound made in Nashville. In americana, writing one's own material is an advantage and that's where it distinguishes itself from folk. In the root world, innovation is often synonymous with reinterpreting the style of the founders. Modern influences are applied only sparingly. The so-called 'alternative country' artists consider themselves part of a long tradition and the respect for the icons of the genre is great.