Country Music
Country music is a genre of American popular music that originated in the Southern United States in the early 1920s. It takes its roots from genres such as American folk music, blues, and Western music. Country music often consists of ballads and dance tunes with generally simple forms, folk lyrics, and harmonies.
Origins & History
Country began with Appalachian folk and rural Southern music. Early recordings in the 1920s featured the Carter Family and Jimmie Rodgers. Western music merged in the 1930s-40s. Honky-tonk and bluegrass emerged in the 1940s. The Nashville Sound polished country in the 1950s-60s. Outlaw country reacted in the 1970s. Modern country blends with pop and rock.
Southern United States, Appalachia
1920s
Musical Characteristics
- •Acoustic instrumentation (guitar, banjo, fiddle)
- •Storytelling in lyrics
- •Rural and working-class themes
- •Twangy vocal style
- •Simple harmonic progressions
- •Emphasis on authenticity and tradition
Subgenres
Bluegrass
Honky-tonk
Western swing
Outlaw country
Country pop
Americana