A musical question.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

Have you seen the movie Fargo? In the opening seen we see a bleak winter landscape. The music playing has a haunting, eerie quality to it. I believe it's a fiddle being played very slowly, but I could be mistaken.

Anyway, I heard something similar on the radio this morning and I was wondering if this particular variety of folk music has a name?

[Call Me Wesley]

1. Movie soundtracks?

I don't think there's a real genre for this one, but it's 'Fargo, North dakota', composed by Carter Burwell: http://www.carterburwell.com/

[SteppingRazor]

2. I believe he has contributed to just about every Coen Bros. soundtrack...

no point here. just thrownin' out trivia :)

[Call Me Wesley]

3. Looks like. (nt)

[Squeech]

4. Good question

It's been years since I've seen the movie, and I don't remember the theme music.

But from your description I would guess that it's Appalachian old-timey music, or a reasonable facsimile thereof.

The traditional music of the American hillbilly was the music brought over from the old country-- Ireland or England or the European mainland-- dimly remembered by people without formal musical training, often on instruments they had to craft themselves. For example, the Appalachian folk song "Shady Grove" is a simplified version of the English folk song "Matty Groves," with different words. So it was a true folk music, people playing for their own enjoyment and to entertain their neighbors, getting together sometimes on the porch to jam out on tunes they all knew.

When people like Alan Lomax started wandering around to collect tunes on acetate disk recorders, most of the performances were one instrument at a time. I think that's what's being invoked here.

This is different from bluegrass or Western swing, where these tunes and others composed to resemble them were arranged for a full time professional ensemble configured to resemble the back porch jams. Bill Monroe was a fine musician, yes, but he was also an entrepreneur, "professionalizing" this music for a less self-reliant audience.