It’s “folk
music”. This means that most
tunes have no known composers and are part of the traditional repertoire. Tunes in tradition are often passed from
fiddler to fiddler down the generations, and are frequently known as “the
version after so-and-so” (or after his son, or his uncle, or his teacher,
or his grandmother’s singing, and so forth). Sometimes the tune comes
with a name, and sometimes not.
Some
musicians made collections of tunes that they
learned, or that they heard, or that they composed. Sometimes we know the collector’s name,
and sometimes not.
Formal music
education was not
unknown. Musicians came from
various levels of society. Some
were well-traveled, and some went into the army and came back with popular tunes
and dances. Some tunes and harmony
parts show a familiarity with classical music practices, while others are modal
or pre-Baroque in feel.
There are famous
musicians and musician
families that go back well into the 1700s. Sometimes we know who individual
composers are in the older generations. Some musicians are so well-respected that
many more tunes are attributed to them than is entirely likely.
Tunes travel and
evolve. Traditional tunes change over time. There is no one “right” version. Memory is imperfect, regional styles
change, individual musicians settle in a new place or pick up new
favorites from elsewhere and popularize them, and art tunes pass into the
popular repertoire. The parts of a
tune can separate and recombine, or take on entirely independent lives. Sources vary: two of the most widely
spread tunes are “Vårvindar Friska”, a simple folk song, and "La
folia", a classical theme that has been popular since the Renaissance.
It’s a living
tradition. These tunes are still being played and
musicians are still writing new ones in the old styles. People still get married and need
processionals and dances for the wedding. Children are still being born and getting
baptism tunes. When a tune’s
composer is known, it is acknowledged in the title (e.g., “Polska av Pers Hans”)
or in the score. For these tunes
there is a sense of a “correct” version, but even these tunes will evolve over
time as the tradition works upon them.
