France, famous for its lavender fields and delectable cuisine, boasts an abundance of culture – and that includes music.
Tradition French music dates back to organum from the 10th century and Notre Dame school, along with troubadour songs of courtly love composed by composers like Adam de la Halle. Traveling musicians known as jongleurs also developed unique styles.
Bagpipes
Bagpipes are one of the most iconic instruments in French traditional music. Played in various styles, bagpipes are often seen accompanied by dancers. Also used at parades, weddings and other special events; bagpipes may require considerable concentration but are well worth your efforts!
Musette bagpipes are one of the most widely played in France, being mouth-blown and using a bellows under one arm to pump air into a bag clutched under the left hand. Their chanter pipe typically features one or two finger keys with simple finger keys on them for playing melodies; and their drone pipes may be tuned with different pitches to produce different notes on its drone pipes.
The Musette bagpipe’s shuttle-drone, or bourdon, stands out among bagpipes in that its design follows that of Renaissance racketts: four to five cylindrical airways bored through wooden blocks are connected by four to five air tubes with openings reminiscent of finger holes on Renaissance racketts, which can be covered using layettes attached to coulisses – this allows four or five tones at the same time! This allows its unique sound.
Guitar
Guitars are used in numerous musical genres and styles, from Western classical music to folk, mariachi and jazz music – they’re even an integral part of country and rock and roll bands! Guitarists who master this instrument are considered “virtuosos”, producing mind-boggling riffs and licks on their instrument that blow people away!
Indigenous folk music brings a distinct flair to French music and dance. One popular instrument used in indigenous folk music is the hurdy gurdy; an oval-shaped instrument composed of parts from violin and piano accordion combined together using some keys for melodious tunes.
In France during the 1920s and 1930s, nylon string classical guitar became extremely fashionable among artists and jazz artists like Django Reinhardt who played it to great acclaim. This created a high demand that was met by Italian makers from Paris as well as cabinetmakers from Catania in Sicily who supplied affordable models to suit popular music markets.
Accordion
Most people think of French accordion music in terms of Parisian cafes, Edith Piaf, and between-wars France; but I prefer rural French music played with two accordions (bagpipe and hurdy-gurdy).
Accordions (commonly referred to as the French accordee, German Akkordeon or Italian armonica a manticino) are portable musical instruments characterized by bellows-operated free reed music instruments with external piano-style keys or buttons on either end and bass casing with melody buttons attached on opposite sides of a hand-operated bellows system.
Accordions have long been associated with common people and were widely propagated throughout Europe as it spread overseas. Arkadia Chansons presents this beautifully remastered CD that showcases some of the biggest stars from accordion history, showing its timeless place within French chanson. Regardless of its lack of popularity in popular culture today, no one can deny its ability to add melody and soulfulness.
Ballads
France is home to beautiful lavender fields and stunning architecture; but its music scene also stands out. From legendary singer Edith Piaf to French rocker Johnny Hallyday, France boasts some incredible traditional musical acts that will leave you breathless with desire for more.
Ballads are songs that tell a tale or legend with simple music and lyrics, usually to tell their tale. Ballads can cover anything from history to folklore to personal anecdotes; from tragic (like “Springfield Mountain” about snakebite) to more joyful pieces like lullabies and children’s songs.
Ballads can also be used to promote an idea. Warde Ford’s rendition of “Custer’s Last Charge,” for instance, portrays George Armstrong Custer and his men as heroes despite their misjudgments when attacking American Indian tribes that had treaties protecting their lands from attack by attacking American Indian tribes who defended these territories from incursion. This form of propaganda remains common today.