Old time fiddle
Encyclopedia
Old time fiddle is a genre of American folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
. "Old time fiddle tunes" may be played on fiddle
Fiddle
The term fiddle may refer to any bowed string musical instrument, most often the violin. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including classical music...
, banjo or other instruments but are nevertheless called "fiddle tunes". The genre has European origins and traces from the colonization of North America by immigrants from England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, and Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
in the 1600s and thereafter. It is separate and distinct from traditions which it has influenced or which may in part have evolved from it, such as bluegrass, country blues, variants of western swing and country rock.
Definition and distinction of old time fiddle
Newer traditions have grown out of old time fiddle music but it retains a separate and distinct identity from those styles. These include bluegrassBluegrass music
Bluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and a sub-genre of country music. It has mixed roots in Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish traditional music...
and Western swing
Western swing
Western swing music is a subgenre of American country music that originated in the late 1920s in the West and South among the region's Western string bands...
and to some degree country rock
Country rock
Country rock is sub-genre of popular music, formed from the fusion of rock with country. The term is generally used to refer to the wave of rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s, beginning with Bob Dylan and The Byrds; reaching its greatest...
. However, the positive statement of what, exactly, constitutes the true and authentic delineation of old time fiddle music is not necessarily unambiguous. Different sources draw a sharper distinction than others, and there is a good deal of overlap which purists will acknowledge to a varying degree. The areas of overlap are primarily with bluegrass, Western swing (Texas swing), country and even rock.
Narrow use of the term
Art Stamper plays in both Appalachia Old Time and bluegrass styles. In autobiographical material posted on his artist website, the writer asserts Stamper's contiguity with "old time and mountain" music, that he learned "the Appalachian fiddle style" from his father, but that Art "Art also played bluegrass fiddle..." continuing that "Whether playing Appalachian fiddle or bluegrass fiddle, Art was a musical marvel."Old Time purists
In an essay with the short title Why Old TIme is Different from Bluegrass, Allan Feldman argues against the proposal of an "inclusive cover name that would bring oldtime music, bluegrass, clawgrass and dawg music under the same umbrella in order to attract new audiences. The unfortunate trend in this country is to homogenize things. I think oldtime music stands against homogenization."Having thus staked ground out for himself as a purist, he continues that "he for one celebrates the fact that oldtime music is not bluegrass or dawg music or new grass or even claw grass". He identifies the following categorical distinctions which set Old Time apart:- "Oldtime" works from different tonal centers
- it uses open tunings
- it uses harmonic resonant overtones
- it uses incidentals
- it mixes non-tempered scales with harmonization
- or it is completely modal.
He continues in direct comparison with bluegrass or country western, emphasizing the difference between songs which, as opposed to tunes
Tunes
Tunes may refer to:* Music* Tunes , a brand of boiled sweet* iTunes music software* TUNES , an operating system concept* Looney Tunes, a cartoon* Tunes , an album by Spiers and Boden...
, have lyrics and are primarily for listening rather than for dancing.
- largely dance centered and not song centered
- many of its songs are verses to dance tunes
- most of its songs were meant for solo and unaccompanied performance in their oldest form.
Blending
Although there is considerable published opinion sharply distinguishing Old Time from other genres of fiddle music, there is also area of overlap. Unlike many states which support independent Old Time and bluegrass associations, the Minnesota Bluegrass & Old-Time Music Association intermingles the genres.Peter Anick is a noted authority on fiddle music genres and is co-author with David Reiner of Old-Time Fiddling Across America and a contributor of feature articles and “Folk Routes” columns for Fiddler magazine. Old Time Fiddling Across America has selections from Northeast, Southeast and Western regions, but also includes in the same volume "ethnic styles" including Cajun, Irish, Scandinavian, Klezmer, and Eastern European fiddling. Also potentially supporting expansive usage is a review of Portland, Oregon's old time Foghorn Stringband in Lonesome Highway, a “music portal for hard core country, folk, bluegrass, roots, and Americana” characterizes that ostensibly pure Old Time band as “ass kickin’ redneck stringband music” with influences from The Carter Family, Kitty Wells
Kitty Wells
Ellen Muriel Deason , known professionally as Kitty Wells, is an American country music singer. Her 1952 hit recording, "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels", made her the first female country singer to top the U.S. country charts, and turned her into the first female country star...
and Doc Watson
Doc Watson
Arthel Lane "Doc" Watson is an American guitar player, songwriter and singer of bluegrass, folk, country, blues and gospel music. He has won seven Grammy awards as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Watson's flatpicking skills and knowledge of traditional American music are highly regarded...
. This blurring of the lines even touches the Vince Gill
Vince Gill
Vincent Grant "Vince" Gill is an American neotraditional country singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He has achieved commercial success and fame both as frontman to the country rock band Pure Prairie League in the 1970s, and as a solo artist beginning in 1983, where his talents as a...
song named Old Time Fiddle:
- I wanna hear an old time fiddle
- Play an old time fiddle song
- I might even drink just a little
- If you play Little Jolie Blon
Traditional old time fiddle tunes
This is the base repertoire of public domain tunes with no known authorship. Many of these tunes have rich historical signification.- The Sailor's HornpipeThe Sailor's HornpipeThe Sailor's Hornpipe is a traditional hornpipe melody.- History :The usual tune for this dance was first printed as the "College Hornpipe" in 1797 or 1798 by J. Dale of London....
Maritime tune played by old time fiddlers - 500 Miles500 Miles"500 Miles" is a folk song made popular in the United States and Europe during the 1960s folk revival. The simple repetitive lyrics offer a lament by a traveler who is far from home, out of money and too ashamed to return...
a lonesome railroad song with lyrics - Battle of New Orleans Battle of New Orleans (disambiguation)Two battles and a song have the name Battle of New Orleans.* Battle of New Orleans - Battle during the War of 1812 in 1815* Capture of New Orleans - operation during the American Civil War in 1862...
- Eighth of January
- Coal Creek March
- Cotton Eyed Joe
- Last Gold Dollar
- Cripple CreekCripple CreekCripple Creek may refer to:Places* Cripple Creek, Colorado* Cripple Creek, VirginiaSongs* "Cripple Creek ", traditional folk song* "Up on Cripple Creek" by The Band* "Cripple Creek Ferry" by Neil Young on the album After the Gold Rush...
- Cumberland Gap Cumberland GapCumberland Gap is a pass through the Cumberland Mountains region of the Appalachian Mountains, also known as the Cumberland Water Gap, at the juncture of the U.S. states of Tennessee, Kentucky, and Virginia...
- Old Joe Clark
- Cumberland GapCumberland GapCumberland Gap is a pass through the Cumberland Mountains region of the Appalachian Mountains, also known as the Cumberland Water Gap, at the juncture of the U.S. states of Tennessee, Kentucky, and Virginia...
- Old Joe Clark
- Darling Nellie Gray
- Sally Goodin’ which is also played in bluegrass as are many Old Time tunes
- Shoot That Turkey Buzzard
- What Are You Going to Do With the Baby O?
- Wildwood FlowerWildwood Flower"Wildwood Flower" is an American song, best known through performances and recordings by the Carter Family. However, the song predates them. The original title was "I'll Twine 'Mid the Ringlets"...
- Waltzing in Old San Antone
- Whiskey Before BreakfastWhiskey Before BreakfastWhiskey Before Breakfast is an album of American guitarist Norman Blake, released in 1976.-Reception:Writing for Allmusic, critic Jim Smith gave the release five of five stars, writing "All told, there have been many albums in the folk idiom featuring many a guitar virtuoso, but very few achieve...
- Snow Deer
- Turkey in the StrawTurkey in the Straw"Turkey in the Straw" is a well-known American folk song dating from the early 19th century.The song's tune was first popularized in the late 1820s and early 1830s by blackface performers, notably George Washington Dixon, Bob Farrell and George Nichols. Another song, "Zip Coon", was sung to the...
- Casey's Oldtime Waltz
- Red Wing
Composed music in the tradition
Old time music is based upon aural transmission of tunes whose authorship has been lost to antiquity and thus public domain repertoire. Some such tunes as have achieved such acceptance are widely known but most if not all fiddlers, even those who are not Old Time specialists.- Wild Rose of the Mountain, J.P.Fraley
- Blackberry BlossomBlackberry BlossomBlackberry Blossom is an album by American guitarist Norman Blake, released in 1977.-Reception:Writing for Allmusic, critic Ronnie D. Lankford, Jr. noted that Blake "imbeds himself in tradition, offering honest interpretations and fresh originals that are respectful of their roots...
- Orange Blossom SpecialOrange Blossom SpecialOrange Blossom Special may refer to:* Orange Blossom Special , was a passenger train operated by the Seaboard Air Line Railway* Orange Blossom Special , by Ervin T. Rouse* Orange Blossom Special , an album by Johnny Cash...
History and sub-genres
Fiddlin' John CarsonFiddlin' John Carson
Fiddlin' John Carson was an American old time fiddler and an early-recorded country musician.-Early life:...
is one of the canonical historic figures in old time. Other famous and important figures include Fiddlin' Arthur Smith
Fiddlin' Arthur Smith
Fiddlin' Arthur Smith was an American old time fiddler and a big influence on the old time and bluegrass music genres.-Biography:...
, Charlie Higgins
Charlie Higgins
Charlie Higgins was an American old time fiddle player from Galax, Virginia. Higgins said that he was influenced by other old-time fiddlers including Emmett Lundy and Fiddlin' Arthur Smith. His style of playing was said to be very innovative and creative. Higgins played regularly with Wade Ward,...
and countless figures known only in local oral histories.
Old time fiddling has recognized regional variants which are distinguished from regional variants of bluegrass, Celtic and other styles. For instance, Texas Old Time fiddle, is distinct from Texas swing fiddle, Texas blues and Texas rock. It is Old Time, like its relatives in other regional genres (or sub genres) but it is a distinct form in its own right, according to its proponents. For instance, the Texas Old Time Fiddler's Association asserts the uniqueness, and superiority, of "Texas-style of old time fiddling". In an essay entitled The Origins of the Texas-Style of Traditional Old Time Fiddling, the organizations asserts that "the Texas fiddler avoids the repetition and monotony of the two-part Appalachian fiddle tune in favor of those tunes that are more complex and exceed the two-part limit".
Cajun fiddle
Cajun fiddle
Cajun fiddle music is a part of the American fiddle music canon. It is derived from the music of southwest Louisiana and southeast Texas, as well as sharing repertoire from the Quebec and Cape Breton traditions...
is based on French-speaking Acadian culture in Louisiana and Texas and includes copious use of double stops and distinctive rhythms.
Preservation and propagation
Much of contemporary old time fiddling is taught at regional and national fiddler's meetups. The traditional authentic method of learning to play is based upon an oral traditionOral tradition
Oral tradition and oral lore is cultural material and traditions transmitted orally from one generation to another. The messages or testimony are verbally transmitted in speech or song and may take the form, for example, of folktales, sayings, ballads, songs, or chants...
as with all folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
forms. Traditions are maintained by Old Time Fiddler's Associations throughout the US. America's Old Time Fiddler's Hall of Fame is maintained by the National Traditional Country Music Association located in Pioneer Music Museum in Anita, Iowas. Film is also a major means of preserving and propagating old time music.
Festivals, contests and fiddle camps
Breakin' Up WinterBreakin' Up Winter
Breakin' Up Winter is an old-time music 'retreat', a gathering of old-time string band musicians, which is celebrating its 15th year March 5–7, 2010, eschews the contest approach common to the larger festivals...
The Fiddler’s Grove Ole Time Fiddler’s & Bluegrass Festival bills itself as the home of the oldest continuous old time fiddling contest in North America.
According to Winifred Ward, fiddle contests "evolved from being endurance fiddling events to playing a set number of tunes". Contests are highly evolved in Texas, where twin fiddling is also popular.
The national contest is held in June of each year in Weiser, Idaho.
Notable contemporary performers
Carolina Chocolate Drops
The Drops are an old-time string band from North Carolina but their music defies easy categorization. Their view of tradition is well expressed by a quote prominently featured on their website:“Tradition is a guide, not a jailer. We play in an older tradition but we are modern musicians.”
"Genuine Negro Jig" (2010) won the Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk Album. Members Rhiannon Giddens, Dom Flemons, and Justin Robinson exchange instruments including fiddle, banjo, kazoo.
Much of their repertoire, which is based on the traditional music of the Piedmont
Piedmont (United States)
The Piedmont is a plateau region located in the eastern United States between the Atlantic Coastal Plain and the main Appalachian Mountains, stretching from New Jersey in the north to central Alabama in the south. The Piedmont province is a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian division...
region of North and South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
, from the eminent African American old-time fiddler Joe Thompson, although they also perform old-time versions of some modern songs such as Blu Cantrell
Blu Cantrell
Blu Cantrell is an American R&B and soul singer-songwriter.-Biography:Tiffany Cobb was born in Providence, Rhode Island in 1976. Her father was a Narragansett Native American and Cape Verdean, and played in the National Basketball Association...
's R&B hit "Hit 'em Up Style (Oops!)
Hit 'Em Up Style (Oops!)
"Hit 'em Up Style " is the debut single by American R&B singer Blu Cantrell, written and produced by Dallas Austin and featured on Cantrell's debut album, So Blu . The lyrics propose that women should take revenge on cheating spouses by draining them of their available assets, both monetary assets...
."
Foghorn Stringband
Formerly known as Foghorn Leghorn, this Portland Oregon band holds itself out as "ass kickin' redneck" music and has solid critical and popular following as an authentic embodiment of the old time tradition. Their fiddler, Stephen ‘Sammy’ Lind, plays with no neck pad and allows the instrument to rest at a comfortably low position that would arouse the ire of any violin teacher. He also chokes the bow, doubling the violation of violinistic technique but clearly establishing his open tuning fiddle playing in the camp of fiddle rather than violin. Their repertoire is 100% Old Time and they staunchly rebuff anyone who mistakes their style with bluegrassBluegrass music
Bluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and a sub-genre of country music. It has mixed roots in Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish traditional music...
.
New Lost City Ramblers
The New Lost City Ramblers is a contemporary old-timeOld-time music
Old-time music is a genre of North American folk music, with roots in the folk music of many countries, including England, Scotland, Ireland and countries in Africa. It developed along with various North American folk dances, such as square dance, buck dance, and clogging. The genre also...
string band that formed in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in 1958 during the Folk Revival
American folk music revival
The American folk music revival was a phenomenon in the United States that began during the 1940s and peaked in popularity in the mid-1960s. Its roots went earlier, and performers like Josh White, Burl Ives, Woody Guthrie, Lead Belly, Richard Dyer-Bennett, Oscar Brand, Jean Ritchie, John Jacob...
. The founding members of the Ramblers, or NLCR, are Mike Seeger
Mike Seeger
Mike Seeger was an American folk musician and folklorist. He was a distinctive singer and an accomplished musician who played autoharp, banjo, fiddle, dulcimer, guitar, mouth harp, mandolin, dobro, jaw harp, and pan pipes. Seeger, a half-brother of Pete Seeger, produced more than 30 documentary...
, John Cohen, and Tom Paley
Tom Paley
Tom Paley is an American guitarist, banjo and fiddle player. He is best known for his work with the New Lost City Ramblers in the 1950s and 1960s.-Biography:Paley was born and raised in New York City, United States...
. Tom Paley
Tom Paley
Tom Paley is an American guitarist, banjo and fiddle player. He is best known for his work with the New Lost City Ramblers in the 1950s and 1960s.-Biography:Paley was born and raised in New York City, United States...
later left the group and was replaced by Tracy Schwarz.
The New Lost City Ramblers not only directly participated in the old-time music
Old-time music
Old-time music is a genre of North American folk music, with roots in the folk music of many countries, including England, Scotland, Ireland and countries in Africa. It developed along with various North American folk dances, such as square dance, buck dance, and clogging. The genre also...
revival, but has continued to directly influence countless musicians who have followed. They feature twin fiddles.
Partial list of notable OT Fiddlers
- Brad LeftwichBrad LeftwichBrad Leftwich is a prominent American old-time fiddle and banjo player and teacher. He is originally from Oklahoma.Leftwich was a founding member of the Plank Road String Band in the mid-1970s...
- Bruce MolskyBruce MolskyBruce C. Molsky is an American fiddler, banjo player, guitarist, and singer. He primarily performs old-time music of the Appalachian region.Molsky was born in 1955 at New York Infirmary in Manhattan, and grew up in The Bronx...
- Bus BoykBus BoykNorval Newton "Bus" Boyk was a noted fiddler whose career extended from the 1930s to the '90s and who played in many bands during those eras. In the 1930s he was with the Cascade Hillbillies and the Rancho Serenaders. From 1953-1964 he played with the Sons of the Golden West...
- French CarpenterFrench CarpenterDavid French Carpenter, born June 7, 1899 in Clay County, West Virginia died May 22, 1965, was a noted West Virginia mountaineer Old time fiddle player. He is listed by the Library of Congress as a musician on two sound recordings: Elzics Farewell, Kanawha, 1976; and Old-time music from Clay...
- Junior DaughertyJunior DaughertyForrest "Junior" Daugherty has been ranked among the top five fiddlers in the United States over a fifteen year period. He won the New Mexico state fiddling championship eight years, also the Southwest Regional Champion and he is in the New Mexico Fiddler’s Hall of Fame...
- Ed HaleyEd HaleyJames Edward "Ed" Haley was a blind professional American musician and composer.- Biography :Ed Haley was born in August 18851 on the Trace Fork of Big Harts Creek in Logan County, West Virginia. His father, Thomas Milton Haley, was a well-known fiddler in the Guyandotte and Big Sandy Valleys. His...
- Charlie HigginsCharlie HigginsCharlie Higgins was an American old time fiddle player from Galax, Virginia. Higgins said that he was influenced by other old-time fiddlers including Emmett Lundy and Fiddlin' Arthur Smith. His style of playing was said to be very innovative and creative. Higgins played regularly with Wade Ward,...
- Stephen ‘Sammy’ Lind
- Bob Holt (fiddler)Bob Holt (fiddler)Bob Holt was a fiddler, playing old-time and for square dances. He was known for his lightning-fast, energetic style of playing. He was born on November 25, 1930 in Ava, Douglas County, Missouri...
- Clark KessingerClark KessingerClark Kessinger was an influential American old-time fiddler. Many of his fiddle tunes made their way to other fiddlers or into the bluegrass music genre.-Biography:...
- Red Clay RamblersRed Clay RamblersThe Red Clay Ramblers are a North Carolina-based band founded in Durham, North Carolina, performing continuously since their formation in 1972. The original members include Tommy Thompson , Bill Hicks and Jim Watson...
- Eck RobertsonEck RobertsonAlexander "Eck" Robertson was an American fiddle player, mostly known for commercially recording the first country music songs in 1922 with Henry Gilliland.-Early life:...
- Posey RorerPosey RorerPosey Rorer was an old-time fiddler who was best known for being a member of the American string band Charlie Poole and the North Carolina Ramblers.-Biography:...
- Fiddlin' Arthur SmithFiddlin' Arthur SmithFiddlin' Arthur Smith was an American old time fiddler and a big influence on the old time and bluegrass music genres.-Biography:...
- Clyde DavenportClyde DavenportClyde Davenport is an old-time fiddler and banjo player from Monticello, Kentucky.-External links:...
- Lester McCumbersLester McCumbersLester McCumbers is an old-time fiddler from Nicut, West Virginia. His students include Erynn Marshall and Jake Krack.He also makes fiddles, sometimes using local woods....
- Harry JohnsonHarry JohnsonHarry Zephaniah Johnson is a Jamaican reggae record producer of African, Sicilian and Scottish descent. He is the head of the landmark Harry J. Records, located at 10 Roosevelt Avenue, Kingston 6, Jamaica WI.-Biography:Johnson started to play music with the Virtues as a bass player before moving...
- Al Sanderson
Old time fiddle set up
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
which may be somewhat modified to accommodate Old Time playing technique. These modifications include:
- flattening the bridge slightly which makes it easier to perform rapid "double" shuffles which alternate between string pairs. This is not done in Irish, Scottish and most other fiddle styles.
- fiddle players in general more commonly use four fine tuners, where violinists may use only one, for the solid-steel E string.
- Old time fiddlers may dispense with chin rests entirely. Many don't use a shoulder rest, or use a rustic version thereof, such as a kitchen sponge held to the fiddle with a rubber band.
See also
- Western swing fiddleWestern swing fiddleWesterns swing originated in 1920s and 1930s; small towns in the US Southwest. Although sometimes subject to the term "Texas swing" it is widely associated with Tulsa,others contend that "Western Swing music finds deep roots in the dust bowl of Oklahoma", and its influences include jazz from the...
- Cajun fiddleCajun fiddleCajun fiddle music is a part of the American fiddle music canon. It is derived from the music of southwest Louisiana and southeast Texas, as well as sharing repertoire from the Quebec and Cape Breton traditions...
- Canadian fiddleCanadian fiddleCanadian fiddle is the aggregate body of tunes, styles and musicians engaging the traditional folk music of Canada on the fiddle. It is an integral extension of the Anglo-Celtic and Québécois Frenchfolk music tradition but has distinct features found only in the Western hemisphere Due to...
- American fiddleAmerican fiddleThis page is about fiddle music in the USA. For other North American styles, see Fiddle#Fiddling_styles.American fiddle playing began with the early settlers who found that the small viol family instruments were portable and rugged. According to Ron Yule, "John Utie, a 1620 immigrant, settled in...
External links
- Documentary "Why Old Time?"
- Appalachian English
- Meta index of resources
- Nashville_Old_Time_Jukebox
- Tons of fiddle tunes
- Old Time Fiddlers Hall of Fame
- Appalachian Traditional Music: A Short History
- Sheet music, lyrics & midis for 200+ traditional old-time songs
- Voyager Records http://www.voyagerrecords.com/nwffrmp3.htm
- Washington Oldtime Fiddlers Association http://www.wotfa.org/publications.html
- The Henry Reed Collection at the Library of Congress Collection of traditional fiddle tunes performed by Henry Reed of Glen Lyn, Virginia. Recorded by folklorist Alan JabbourAlan Jabbour-Biography:Jabbour was born in Jacksonville, Florida. His grandfather had immigrated to the United States from Syria, and his father later joined him. He was educated in the Jacksonville public schools and at the Bolles School, where he graduated from high school in 1959. He graduated magna cum...
in 1966-67. - National traditional music association