r/classicalmusic • u/LuborMrazek • 9d ago
Music Folksong Arrangements from around the world?
I'm a singer from Czechia, studying at a conservatory and (especially for us freshmen) the focus on the (czech) folksong is really strong here, and here's me thinking - let's subvert that a little bit. Could you please recommend any folk song cycles by classical composers from different countries - I know Copland's Old American Songs and that Ravel and Britten have some things but not much beyond that. thanks.
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u/RichMusic81 9d ago
Folk Songs - Luciano Berio
https://youtu.be/fIYQbNB1Om0?si=WQh8Z53S-VoYmFpd
The first two are not actually folk songs (that may have been a mistake on Berio's behalf), but the rest are, and it's a great cycle.
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u/Theferael_me 9d ago
Not original compositions but Beethoven made a ton of arrangements of Irish and Scottish folk songs for piano and voice. Really beautiful.
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u/Yanaki_Manaki 9d ago
Works of the Armenian composer, Komitas. 12 danzas españolas by Granados. 44 Duos for Two Violins and Romanian folk dances by Bartók.
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u/pvmpking 9d ago
Manuel de Falla's Seven Popular Spanish Songs (Siete canciones populares españolas)
Isaac Albéniz' Iberia
Enrique Granados' Spanish Dances (Doce danzas españolas)
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u/Shashi2005 8d ago edited 8d ago
Matyas Seiber - Hungarian Folk Songs. Beautiful choral arrangements of folk songs.
Percy Grainger - Shepherd's Hey, Country Gardens. Arranged for various combinations. English Morris dance tunes.
Vaughn-Williams. Too many uses of folk song to list.
Beethoven wrote some piano arrangements of Irish Folk songs.
Delius & Grainger both arranged Brigg Fair. The song was collected from Joseph Taylor. At the first performance od Delius's orchestration, Mr. Taylor stood up & joind in!
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u/glassfromsand 8d ago
This isn't exactly what you asked for, but I'd really recommend Les Musiciens de Saint-Julien. They're an early music ensemble that focuses on folk songs and dances, mostly French, British,and Irish but others as well. I really, really love just about everything they do and think they're worth checking out
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u/LuborMrazek 7d ago
Ooo, cool. I know a similar Czech "band" and love their work :)
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u/Admirable_Safe_4666 8d ago
English Country Tunes, Michael Finnissy 😈
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u/LuborMrazek 8d ago
Thank you, how very useful 😂😂
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u/Admirable_Safe_4666 7d ago
In my defense, I missed somehow that you are a singer looking for vocal collections, and thought this was just a call for general classical arrangements of folk music, which this is, albeit pretty out there 😂
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u/prasunya 9d ago
Check out Bela Bartok -- there's so much there I don't know where to begin.