The music of Spain has a long history. It has played an important role in the development of Western music, and has greatly influenced Latin American music. Spanish music is often associated with traditional styles such as flamenco and classical guitar. While these forms of music are common, there are many different traditional musical and dance styles across the regions. For example, music from the north-west regions is heavily reliant on bagpipes, the jota is widespread in the centre and north of the country, and flamenco originated in the south. Spanish music played a notable part in the early developments of western classical music, from the 15th through the early 17th century. The breadth of musical innovation can be seen in composers like Tomás Luis de Victoria, styles like the zarzuela of Spanish opera, the ballet of Manuel de Falla, and the classical guitar music of Francisco Tárrega. Nowadays commercial pop music dominates.
A sea shanty, chantey, or chanty is a type of work song that was once commonly sung to accompany labor on board large merchant sailing vessels. The term shanty most accurately refers to a specific style of work song belonging to this historical repertoire. However, in recent, popular usage, the scope of its definition is sometimes expanded to admit a wider range of repertoire and characteristics, or to refer to a "maritime work song" in general.
The folk music of England is a tradition-based music, which has existed since the later medieval period. It is often contrasted with courtly, classical and later commercial music. Folk music is traditionally preserved and passed on orally within communities, but print and subsequently audio recordings have since become the primary means of transmission. The term is used to refer both to English traditional music and music composed or delivered in a traditional style.
Since the early 1970s, Brittany has experienced a tremendous revival of its folk music. Along with flourishing traditional forms such as the bombard-binou pair and fest-noz ensembles incorporating other additional instruments, it has also branched out into numerous subgenres.
Paimpol is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Brittany in northwest France.
Henry Gibson "Seaman" Dan, known as Seaman Dan, an Indigenous Australian, is a Torres Strait Islander singer-songwriter with a national and international reputation whose first recording was released in 2000. His album Perfect Pearl won him an ARIA award for Best World Music Album in 2004 and in 2009 won again with Sailing Home. In 2014 at the age of 85 he released A Caribbean Songbook, his tribute to the music of the West Indies. In 2016 at the age of 87 he released An Old Man of the Sea, which was a finalist for an ARIA Award in the World Music category.
Johnny Collins was an English folk singer based in London, England, specializing in traditional maritime music and sea shanties.
Stanley James Hugill was a British folk music performer, artist and sea music historian, known as the "Last Working Shantyman" and described as the "20th century guardian of the tradition".
South Australia is a sea shanty, also known under such titles as "Rolling King" and "Bound for South Australia". As an original worksong it was sung in a variety of trades, including being used by the wool and later the wheat traders who worked the clipper ships between Australian ports and London. In adapted form, it is now a very popular song among folk music performers that is recorded by many artists and is present in many of today's song books.
The Fisherman's Friends are a male singing group from Port Isaac, Cornwall, who sing sea shanties. They have been performing locally since 1995, and signed a record deal with Universal Music in March 2010. Whilst essentially an a cappella group, their studio recordings and live performances now often include traditional simple instrumentation.
Bounding Main is an American a cappella quintet focusing on traditional sea shanties and maritime music.
The London Bulgarian Choir (LBC) is a London-based amateur choir, specialising in Bulgarian folk music. Dessislava Stefanova has led the choir since its formation in 2000. Primarily a performing choir, the LBC perform around 20 concerts a year and have been involved in high-profile collaborations with British Sea Power, Doves, Orlando Gough and Nigel Kennedy.
Salty Walt & the Rattlin' Ratlines is a sea shanty performing group based in San Francisco, originally formed in 2003. The group consists of Walter "Salty Walt" Askew, Daniel Briggs, Griff Nelson, and Jon Richardson. On occasion, they also perform Celtic music and since at least 2005 have been performing a show of traditional carols and wassails on Boxing Day. They were voted San Francisco's "Best Sea Shanty Band" in 2006. The group appeared at the "Festival Maritim" in Vegesack, Germany in 2007.
Tom and Chris Kastle are a maritime music performing duo based in Chicago. They first began performing maritime music in approximately 1977. In the mid-1980s they were known for running "whale watching" concert cruises on Lake Michigan on the sailing schooner Charlotte Ann.
The Johnson Girls are an all-female a-cappella song group based in New York City. They specialize in maritime music and perform songs from a melange of cultures including the United States, Britain, Ireland, Italy French-Canada, and the Caribbean. Named after a traditional African-American sea shanty, "The Johnson Girls," they formed as a quintet in 1997. The original members were Joy Bennett, Maggie Bye, Alison Kelley, Bonnie Milner, and Deirdre Murtha. Bye left the group after following the release of The Johnson Girls' second CD. Each of The Johnson Girls is also a member of the official maritime group of South Street Seaport Museum, The New York Packet.
Banana Boat is a Polish a cappella sextet, authoring and performing original songs representing the genre of neo-shanties. Being one of the pioneers of the new genre, the group retains its simultaneous focus on contemporary interpretations of traditional sea shanties and maritime music. Owing to its characteristic six-part, jazzy harmony, departing from the traditional sound of the music of the sea, the group has become one of the emblems of what the international artists of the maritime stage have informally come to dub as the Polish style maritime song. With maritime music constantly in the focus of its activity, since 2004, Banana Boat has also been experimenting with other musical genres, including popular and jazz compositions, inviting other artists to participate in individual projects. The group is a Member of International Seasong and Shanty Association (ISSA).
The Chicago Maritime Festival is a maritime music and culture festival held in Chicago, United States, every winter, usually the last weekend in February, usually at the Chicago History Museum. It is not uncommon for over 500 people to participate. It has existed in its present incarnation since 2003 and is the only wintertime festival featuring maritime music in the United States. The main organizers are performers Tom & Chris Kastle.
The Vancouver Folk Song Society is a nonprofit organization that promotes folk music in the Vancouver, British Columbia, area. The society was founded in 1959 as the Folk Song Circle. The VFSS is not primarily a venue for concerts by professional performers, but a place where everyone is encouraged to participate in music.
Morrigan was a traditional music group formed in 1978 in Seattle by folk musicians Marc Bridgham, Mary Malloy, and William Pint. The group played traditional music of Ireland, Scotland and England.
